Countdown to Black
For a while, I decided not to blog about my KF or TKD/TSD training on this account. It seemed rather played out and cliche; another night, another fight, more training, more, ahem, "fabrication" as some have called it. Yet, I know it's part of who I am, so instead of just abandoning my posts I created another account for this purpose. wushusaru was developed to keep track of the training, but written in a different tone. Even then, I didn't update regularly, which was the whole point of it.
So here I am, facing the oncoming, if not looming, pinnacle of my training, and I need to realize that by not regularly recording these events, much will be lost. As such, I'm now returning to blogging about my martial arts accomplishments/misadventures here as this is really who I am and what I do.
This does mean, of course, that I have a story to tell...
Instead of going to Kung Fu, I felt that my college studies would be better served if I went to the earlier Tang Soo Do class as to free up my evening for the piles of reading that await me. Not bad reading, mind you, but disheartening nonetheless. After gathering my uniform, I scurry over to the studio and was met by several students who were surprised that I was attending this session instead of my primary discipline. I explain the homework detail, and they understand.
The TSD class is always bigger than the KF attendance, meaning that a larger variety of students are present; younger, older, low ranking, black belts. The full representation of our student demographic was present, which meant that there was a potential to trip over the wee bairns as they ran about.
The highlight of the night was clearly the fighting, which, due to our large turnout, resulted in a pit fight of sorts. Yes, the children were included. Now, before anyone flips out over this concept, this is how it went down.
We formed a large circle and were assigned a number. Each of us in turn would stand in the center of the circle and defend ourselves from all attackers. The attackers consisted of the individuals whose numbers were called, and they were to move in, strike the opponent, and then retreat. All attacks (within reason) were legit, granted utmost control was utilized, especially against the kids.
The goal was to defend ourselves from any direction, listening to audio cues for the direction of our assailants, and keep moving so that they (the attackers) would get in each other's way. Single assailants first, opposing side attacks, two attackers, sequential assaults from multiple directions, and finally, waves of opponents en masse. As each attacker got in one attack each (this did include quick combos), the defender knew that a good block and counter attack would remove that opponent, leading to a quick analysis of which opponent was the most dangerous at any given time.
Yes, one's mind simply blurred while in the center. Clever students remembered which numbers the black belts held, and quickly faced (or ran away from) them when they were called, which led to a good reference point for where to face next. Additionally, the large mirror on the side of the room let you watch your back if you could remember to use it.
Here, I wish I could say some clever line about my time in there, but I simply can't recall most of it. I know that my reaction time allowed me to see the student approach, judge and deal with that individual appropriately, so as to avoid kicking children in the face, and that it seemed like smooth sailing until I faced the waves of five students at a time. The first wave was dodged/dispatched handily thanks to my training against multiple opponents, but the second wave of five came at opposite angles while I had foolishly positioned myself against a wall, so it was game over for this monkey.
My quasi-success aside, it was still a great class, and everyone left smiling.
So here I am, facing the oncoming, if not looming, pinnacle of my training, and I need to realize that by not regularly recording these events, much will be lost. As such, I'm now returning to blogging about my martial arts accomplishments/misadventures here as this is really who I am and what I do.
This does mean, of course, that I have a story to tell...
Instead of going to Kung Fu, I felt that my college studies would be better served if I went to the earlier Tang Soo Do class as to free up my evening for the piles of reading that await me. Not bad reading, mind you, but disheartening nonetheless. After gathering my uniform, I scurry over to the studio and was met by several students who were surprised that I was attending this session instead of my primary discipline. I explain the homework detail, and they understand.
The TSD class is always bigger than the KF attendance, meaning that a larger variety of students are present; younger, older, low ranking, black belts. The full representation of our student demographic was present, which meant that there was a potential to trip over the wee bairns as they ran about.
The highlight of the night was clearly the fighting, which, due to our large turnout, resulted in a pit fight of sorts. Yes, the children were included. Now, before anyone flips out over this concept, this is how it went down.
We formed a large circle and were assigned a number. Each of us in turn would stand in the center of the circle and defend ourselves from all attackers. The attackers consisted of the individuals whose numbers were called, and they were to move in, strike the opponent, and then retreat. All attacks (within reason) were legit, granted utmost control was utilized, especially against the kids.
The goal was to defend ourselves from any direction, listening to audio cues for the direction of our assailants, and keep moving so that they (the attackers) would get in each other's way. Single assailants first, opposing side attacks, two attackers, sequential assaults from multiple directions, and finally, waves of opponents en masse. As each attacker got in one attack each (this did include quick combos), the defender knew that a good block and counter attack would remove that opponent, leading to a quick analysis of which opponent was the most dangerous at any given time.
Yes, one's mind simply blurred while in the center. Clever students remembered which numbers the black belts held, and quickly faced (or ran away from) them when they were called, which led to a good reference point for where to face next. Additionally, the large mirror on the side of the room let you watch your back if you could remember to use it.
Here, I wish I could say some clever line about my time in there, but I simply can't recall most of it. I know that my reaction time allowed me to see the student approach, judge and deal with that individual appropriately, so as to avoid kicking children in the face, and that it seemed like smooth sailing until I faced the waves of five students at a time. The first wave was dodged/dispatched handily thanks to my training against multiple opponents, but the second wave of five came at opposite angles while I had foolishly positioned myself against a wall, so it was game over for this monkey.
My quasi-success aside, it was still a great class, and everyone left smiling.