What is your highest tested belt rank?

[Kacey]

Which soke board was it?

ITF TKD doesn't have soke boards. Since we are now unaffiliated with any international organization, all of the testing instructors were from our organization or other organizations with which we are affiliated and with whom we share the same style; the most recent test board (IV Dan) consisted of 2 VI Dans and an VIII Dan, as I said.

But you were on the floor, and demonstrated your skill and spirt each time you set foot on there. You didn't get promoted because you had perfect attendance, or a nice smile, or bought the GM lunch.

How do you know I don't do those things, and they don't have some bearing? How one acts outside the dojang is as important - and in some ways more important - than how one acts inside. In terms of what type of person one is, how one acts outside the dojang is more important - much more important

How one deals with failure, is also a test. There is a difference between the "brainfart" and the "never knew it in the first place". The instructor who knows their students well enough to know the difference is a good one, in my not so humble opinion.

I believe I said that.

I am what I am. http://dict.die.net/master/

Arrogant? Self-righteous? I am not usually quite that judgmental, but your statements, and the method in which you make them, leave little else in the way interpretation. Too bad you find yourself unwilling (or perhaps unable) to walk the walk as well as you talk the talk; else, you would answer the question you posed with greater detail than "An interesting question. My rank, is Mastre. The tester is no longer with us." And no, I did not follow the link you provided; it's late, and I'm tired, and if you are not willing to provide the information openly, I see no reason why I should ferret it out of your site. Your choice, your credibility that suffers.

 

[matt.m]

Ok I'm one of those people with the stripes on my belt, so what? I can tell you this I never ask or begged for my stripes and when I get ask a straight forward question I can answer it without dodging around corners. I find everything you have said when ask a question to be disrespectful and down right rude toward some highly qualify people on this forum. Why hide who and what you are if you are of any important to anybody elses training and have been training and your Instructor is decease than why not say. I tell people who I have trained with and I;m proud of the poeple that have given me far more than I could ever give them.

A master of what duck and dodge.

Yes I almost never get angry here on this forum but you sir have deistrated lack of Humility and respect towards your fellow Martial Artist here on thei forum.

What style are you me TKD and proud of it
What rank are you me 4th dan Kukkiwon certified and 5th Okinawa Karate
Where do you train and who do you train with, again me I own and operate a school located in Arlington Texas and train under the guideience of 5 other Master that I have mention before.

You bring this upon yourself for being not up front with answer to legitament question.

Terry,

I agree. You do understand that it takes a ton of aggravation to get this mans blood pressure up. All I can say is "No good." Hey btw, if someone higher than you bestowed a rank or title unto you then how are you different than anyone else.

Again, I am and have never bragged that I have skill. I let my techniques and attitudes show and speak for themselves. However, when taking my blue belt test I crashed knee brace to opposite leg knee cap. It swelled up like a grapefruit. I went to the back, wrapped it and reapplied my other leg brace. That is correct, I wear one on each leg.

Did my side kick suffer after that accident? Yep, sure did. Did I quit and everyone expected me too and no one would have thought any less of me? No, I hung in there and did what was requested the rest of the test.

Along with what Kacey said, I agree wholeheartedly and completely.

 

[Cirdan]

So, I have to ask this highly charged question:
What is your current rank, and when was the last test you stepped on a floor and showed your metal to a senior or panel of peers?

Still a lowly kyu student here. I tested for blue belt in Wado Ryu last summer and will test for green in Ju Jutsu in a few days. I also have a 5th kyu in kenjutsu from some limited training with the TSKSR. All tests done in front of a panel of peers.

I don`t care that much about rank, just enjoying my journey in the arts. I do constantly try to improve tough. Gradings to me is a way of pressure testing your skills as well as your will. However I got no problem with those who hand our rank based on preformance in the dojo.

 

[MJS]

Random Side note: What does sweating on ONE DAY at a test have to do with anything? Training should involve the "blood sweat and tears" over a period of time so one day and a test is really miniscule on the grand scale. If an instructor has seen you sweat and bleed in front of him/her for a certain period time (whatever their standards are) and they feel you are ready for a belt (whatever their standards are) what does a formal test have to say that the last few months and/or years working with you didn't already say? Nothing in my opinion, it's just a formality.

With that said I've tested for every belt I've ever earned. And here are some of my current stats..

3rd Dan TKD (1998)
3rd Level Black Sash Kung Fu (1998)
2nd Dan Ju Jitsu (2003)
3rd Dan American Kenpo (2003 and 2004 for different instructors)

The OP was kind of open-ended, so its possible The Master could be referring to the same thing you just mentioned. I agree with you though James. Every time I go to class, I do my best to give it my all. While I still put everything into those panel tests, the real test is what you've done up until that test day. The actual test can also be viewed as a 'show' of what you've already done.

Mike

 

[Cris]

I'm a 10th dan in hung lo and we do our belt tests in "pop quiz" style. When your teacher thinks your ready he sends out a few students to ambush you on the street seriously though, that'd be a neat way to do a test

 

[Haze]

I can see what Master is saying. There are alot of rank sellers aout there and prices may vary.

Anything you want for $25 http://www.icmaua.com/

Even Founder Certificates that give you the title "Soke"

Anyone have one of these from the ICMAUA?
Don;t try and hide now, you know who you are!

 

[Brandon Fisher]

I can see what Master is saying. There are alot of rank sellers aout there and prices may vary.

Anything you want for $25 http://www.icmaua.com/

Even Founder Certificates that give you the title "Soke"

Anyone have one of these from the ICMAUA?
Don;t try and hide now, you know who you are!

I signed up with them for free but never paid anything for certifcates and such. I in fact don't even keep in contact with them now that I figured them out. Glad I didn't waste any money.

 

[searcher]

I currently hold a VI Dan in Chito-ryu and a V Dan in Okinawan Kobudo. I hold Dan rank in TKD, but it is not my highest rank. To give you an idea of what happens for our rank tests, it is not uncommon for there to be some broken bones, though nothing major. The tests last an average of 6 mos and are extremely difficult. There is always and overewhelming amount of physical training and material to cover. One of my instructors is a old school blood, sweat, and tears kinda guy. We work our butts off to get where we are going.

 

[exile]

I currently hold a VI Dan in Chito-ryu and a V Dan in Okinawan Kobudo. I hold Dan rank in TKD, but it is not my highest rank. To give you an idea of what happens for our rank tests, it is not uncommon for there to be some broken bones, though nothing major. The tests last an average of 6 mos and are extremely difficult. There is always and overewhelming amount of physical training and material to cover. One of my instructors is a old school blood, sweat, and tears kinda guy. We work our butts off to get where we are going.

Just out of curiosity, do the occasional bone-breaks happen in all of your MAs? And if not, which one(s) can you count on them happening in most frequently?

I'm also curious about what kind of breaks are involved—hard for me to imagine a break that wasn't serious; I take it you mean something like a fracture where there's not much to do except let it heal on its own...? Are they mostly incurred during sparring (as I'd imagine, but best not take anything for granted...) ?

 

[Brandon Fisher]

Only breaks I have ever experienced are noses, fingers and toes. Fingers and toes are the worst.

 

[exile]

Only breaks I have ever experienced are noses, fingers and toes. Fingers and toes are the worst.

I broke a hand on a three-board fist break two Xmases ago, one I'd done many times before with no problem, because my fist was slightly misaligned. Had to wear a splint for four months, and am now very gunshy about fist breaks. So the notion `broken bone' makes me wince; I have a hard time picturing one that isn't a bad one...

 

[Brandon Fisher]

Yeah I have heard of broken hands but never had a one or had a student break a hand.

 

[James Kovacich]

My judges included my instructors, KJN Ernie Reyes and KJN Tony Thompson (7th dan-which ids the highest rank in our system), also a Hapkido 9th dan for that portion of the test, and UFC veterans Bob Cook and Frank Shamrock (5x UFC champ) for the grappling and NHB portions of the test. Also some of the Fairtex instructors, including "Woodman" and "Dr. Knees" (i'm not even going to try to mangle the spelling of their real names), as well as former ISKA world champions Jean Claude Leuwer (spelling?) and Javier Mendez for the kickboxing.

.

My Inayan Instructor is also a student of your Seniors. I'd like to ask why bring in other judges if they are not your trainers. I'm not knocking it because I know other people who have done that recently but they were scrutinized by they're peers.

I'm just curious as to why your trainer in those areas did not test you. On a side note. I've seen a lot of Ernies students classes and where it is today is a step up from what I see of TKD in general.

 

[jdinca]

Currently 3rd degree brown. We test in instructor workouts in front of our GM and a number of BBs several times a month.

 

[Kwan Jang]

In awnser to akja's question, most of these guys DO train with us on a regular basis. Bob and Frank have trained with us on an average of 2-3x per week for 7-8 years(+) when they are not on the road. Jean Claude is now a student of KJN Ernie; Javier's American Kickboxing Academy used to be located in one of our schools (which Frank is/was a partner in-I'm not sure on the current status on that and Bob runs the MMA program). Also, the Fairtex guys come over to play quite a bit. I moved out of state years ago, but still come back 2-4 weeks out of the year to train, so I am not always up on who's doing what.

Out of curiosity, who is your escrima instructor? Depending on what era he is from, I may know him. I trained quite a bit with Mike and Jeff Elliott back in their West Coast Escrima Society days in the early '80's. In fact, Jeff and I used to stay after class and train together for several hours at the old Milpitas/Berryessa school when I was in my late teens.

 

[James Kovacich]

In awnser to akja's question, most of these guys DO train with us on a regular basis. Bob and Frank have trained with us on an average of 2-3x per week for 7-8 years(+) when they are not on the road. Jean Claude is now a student of KJN Ernie; Javier's American Kickboxing Academy used to be located in one of our schools (which Frank is/was a partner in-I'm not sure on the current status on that and Bob runs the MMA program). Also, the Fairtex guys come over to play quite a bit. I moved out of state years ago, but still come back 2-4 weeks out of the year to train, so I am not always up on who's doing what.

Out of curiosity, who is your escrima instructor? Depending on what era he is from, I may know him. I trained quite a bit with Mike and Jeff Elliott back in their West Coast Escrima Society days in the early '80's. In fact, Jeff and I used to stay after class and train together for several hours at the old Milpitas/Berryessa school when I was in my late teens.

Jon Ward is under Tony Thompson and I also Train under my wifes
Uncle Chevo Macias who was certified by Ray Subega in 1977 and Ray was certified by Mike Inay sometime before that, before Inayan Eskrima is what it grew into being. Chevo and Ray have their own system now called Macias-Subega Fighting Systems, a whittled down sysem of Eskrima and Kenpo.

I know Frank casually and Ernie knows me by face as do alot of your people.

 

[Kwan Jang]

I used to be an assistant instructor for Jon's class when he was a kid. I've heard nothing but high praise for the teaching ability and skill of the man he has grown into.

 

[searcher]

Just out of curiosity, do the occasional bone-breaks happen in all of your MAs? And if not, which one(s) can you count on them happening in most frequently?

I'm also curious about what kind of breaks are involved—hard for me to imagine a break that wasn't serious; I take it you mean something like a fracture where there's not much to do except let it heal on its own...? Are they mostly incurred during sparring (as I'd imagine, but best not take anything for granted...) ?

The most common are broken noses and ribs. We do, however, have an occasional broken hand or arm. We have even had a couple of ACL tears during testing. Yes, they are most common during the sparring portion, but there has been a few that had cracked ribs during Niseishi testing(very similar to Sanchin testing) from the use of a shinai. This is common in the Chito-ryu school, not very common in the TKD school. The TKD school has mostly bruises and a few cuts. TKD is not quite as brutal, as far as injuries go. I actually go to the "brutal" school just for some training and for tests. I have tried to keep injuries to a minimum at my own school. I do have those 18-36 YO guys that always want to try and kill each other, but they are all a bunch of freaks.

Hope this answers your question.

 

[James Kovacich]

I used to be an assistant instructor for Jon's class when he was a kid. I've heard nothing but high praise for the teaching ability and skill of the man he has grown into.

So we are brothers! I bought my videos from Cory and he was very respectful. The whole clan has been a great experience.
Take care, James

 

[grydth]

I can see what Master is saying. There are alot of rank sellers aout there and prices may vary.

Anything you want for $25 http://www.icmaua.com/

Even Founder Certificates that give you the title "Soke"

Anyone have one of these from the ICMAUA?
Don;t try and hide now, you know who you are!

Never heard about this outfit until I just read about it here.

Are they in fact selling rank - as I have seen done elsewhere - or are they merely giving you a wall paper membership certificate based upon what somebody claims to already be? While many would not view that as kosher, either, to me it is a much lesser sin.