My early Karate days (I am in the middle at the back) and my first competition.
Karate
Ever since I had first
seen something resembling the martial arts on television as a boy, I knew I
wanted to learn them. I should say that
school life was never easy for from Primary 5 or 6 I became the target of bullies. It wasn’t that I was a small weak person, far
from it, I guess I just wasn’t much of a fighter. Years later as a Karate Coach I was able to
talk to parents who worried about their children at school, and I was also able
to talk to the children who trained in my class. Hopefully I was able to help those who were
bullied and perhaps give potential bullies some food for thought when they came
to learn Karate with me. The bad news
for parents is that karate doesn’t change the timid person into an aggressive
person, at least not in my experience.
What it does do hopefully is help handle situations better and of course
aid confidence when one learns that it is possible to defend oneself without
being big or having “big” muscles! I
mention this only as a background, I did not start in Karate because I was
bullied, the whole thing just fascinated me and to be perfectly honest the
martial arts still fascinate me as much now as it did then. When I first started training, I was 20 years
old, Karate clubs or any Martial arts clubs were very few especially living in
rural areas. After some research I heard
of a club in Uphall which adjoins Broxburn in West Lothian. I didn’t want to go on my own, so I
discovered that my sister Isabel’s boyfriend at that time, Sam, was interested
too. We went along to the pub where the
class was held in the lounge bar twice a week, it was an adult class, very few
if any children trained in these days.
We were allowed to watch, I paid particular attention to the exercises
thinking I didn’t want to make a fool of myself when I finally went to train
properly. After the class finished Sam
and I spoke to the instructor and told him we would be along to train
regularly. I went home and religiously
did the exercises I had seen, even sticking my feet under my bed for the
stomach exercises until I could do them without support.
The big night duly
arrived, and Sam and I lined up at the back of the class and then I discovered
what that even for all my preparation I was still unprepared, my instructor
doubled all the exercises and I had decided that I was going to do them all. Well, I had to leave the class and run to the
toilet where I was promptly sick, totally different being sick through exercise
than any other sickness. I forced myself
back and finished the class. I loved the
training however looking back and having trained in other classes, in other
styles of Karate, with other Instructors I recognise now that this, with my
first instructor, was a dangerous type of coaching and would not be allowed
today by the regulatory authority. The
club was not licensed, however that was not important to me at the time.
Sam gave up eventually by
which time I had become integrated in the club. I was always better with my
hands as flexibility with my legs was something I had to work on.
It was shortly after Sam
left that our coach organised a weekend camp, staying in tents in a field near
a river in Broxburn. I had just recently
purchased my first Karate suit which was a pristine white. During the camp
weekend we were crawling through fields which had their share of Cow droppings
and we also spent time training in water in the nearby river. At the end of our first day, I stripped of my
wet and dirty Karate suit and got changed for eating and sitting around the
campfire. After good night’s sleep I
awoke to find my Karate Suit standing where I had left it. The jacket and
trousers standing stiff on their own just looked so funny and strange, it was
as if they had a life of their own.
After our normal training
sessions some of us used to stay behind and do some extra training when the
class finished. One night another
person, Jock, practised with me. We faced each other and practised kicks. Jock protectively covered his groin, at which
(having trained longer than him) I told him he had nothing to worry about. He then relaxed and I practised a very poor
side kick which caught him in the groin and had him jump in the air then roll
on the floor clutching his vitals.
Frankly I couldn’t stop laughing because it is always funny when you are
not the one doing the rolling about! Jock was great though once he recovered,
he eventually laughed too, much to my relief.
One major lesson is that you can’t play with fire and not expect to get
burned occasionally. As a coach though
you take every precaution to avoid accidents, Karate is a serious sport, but it
still provides great fun and adventure. People believe when you achieve your
Dan grade (black belt) that is it, you’ve reached that exalted goal! Not so I
am afraid, Dan means level, therefore 1st Dan means first level, when you have
the tools to start.
