Belts that look old but are not

[IcemanSK]

I'm confused...it seems that MA f all hobbies is the one that you do not want to put on airs about skill that you don't have. Good way to get hurt

Very true, but folks do it all the time. Perhaps they figure it's intimidating.

I look at my avatar picture. The gentleman next to me (I'm the taller one) in GM Park, Hae Man. He is a legend in TKD circles as one of the men responsible for the Tae Guek poomsae. Both times I've met him his uniform was very simple & his belt plain & very black. He of all people in TKD could wear a very worn belt & folks would appreciate it: and yet he doesn't.

Like most our fields of physical expertise, wearing what "the pros" wear doesn't make you a pro.

 

[Journey]

I have heard of people doing this to their belt but have never actually witnessed it. Seems kind of silly. I am definatley more impressed by how a person moves and what they can teach. This will tell the tale of what they really know.

As far as washing a belt. When I would recieve a new belt I would generally wash it in cold with woolite and let it air dry just to take the folds out. For my Black Belt they have a Woolite Dark that I would do the same on, wash once only. Doesn't wear the belt just removes the folds. I also wash my Black Gi's this way to preserve the color. I perfer a deep black with my Gi's.

 

[newGuy12]

Well, I do not wash my belt, and I have been given one to me by a Very Special Man. And, it is starting to show wear now, which I think is cool. I will not replace this because I have a strong affection to it, because it was given to me.

If people think that I am trying to be a show off, well, I may indeed be trying to show off. I cannot kill off my ego. Very few people can destroy their ego. It dies very hard.

But, we also all know that as soon as we bow in to class and start moving about, at that point all thoughts of such things go away and we start to kick and punch. At that point we think only of the techniques, so it matters very little.

If I were to ever progress in my school to 2 Dan, it is customary to have a new belt (this is a new custom at our school). I don't care about rank. I only wished to get to 1 Dan before I died, and that has been accomplished.

To give this too much concern is very strange anyway. The main point is that we have been given this wonderful opportunity to learn these special Martial Arts. Whatever uniforms we wear is up to the Master Instructors, and is definitely of very little consequence.

I will continue to wear my belt unless told to do otherwise by authorities within my school, though.





Regards,

Robert

 

[kamishinkan]

I was also told years ago that "It was not appropriate to wash your belt"....I have since learned that this is a modern myth and wash my belt when needed, needless to say not as often as my uniform. My "old" black belt is around 17 years old. My older black belt I got in the 80's I don't even have any more due to misplacement (I think it was lost in a move in the military, although not sure). My belt is getting rough around the edges. Kind of coming apart around the knot area and up the belt some.
One thing I have not seen mentioned on this post is when you come across someone with an old worn out belt, does anyone ask them how long they have been a black belt? If only a few years (relatively speaking) then other than the belt being given to them from their past instructor, it is probably pretty suspect. If they have been a black belt for years then the belt may speak for their time on the floor.
As far as Asian sensei having worn out belts I know of a few that wear an old obi. I think it depends on the person, neither right nor wrong. Belts can have sentimental value but the training is inside the student not around the waist.
Just a thought.

 

[Ybot]

Purposely aging your belt is silly, but I could care less if someone decides to do it. Washing your belt, on the other hand, may be necessary. Maybe not in all martial arts, but in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu it can be a good idea, with various types of Staph infections, and ringworm (not actually a worm, but a fungal infection) going around, my instructor has asked us to wash our belts.

 

[kingkong89]

its sad there are people out there that cant let their belt wear and tear naturally