Overcoming Obstacles- Big and Small

You think I only watch martial arts movies on netflix.

You know I exercise nearly every day and love martial arts, all kinds.

But there have been times when I stopped training

 

As a ten-year-old I had heard a little about martial arts from television.               

I went down to the local YMCA, watched a Judo class and became absolutely mesmerized.  The breakfalls, the throwing the incredible technique, magic to a ten year old.

 

I went home and showed my mother how to do breakfalls on the carpet.

 

Somehow I was never able to attend a class but always pictured my self in a uniform in the deadly oriental art.  Fortunately my first hands on experience came from my fifth grade teacher Mr. Pier.  He was a professional boxer who loved all sports and especially loved bringing the best out in our class.  Every season we played a different sport football in the fall, basketball in the winter and baseball in the spring with the exception on rainy days, when we boxed.  In the back of our classroom we had a speed bag, focus mitts and boxing gear.  All of us sparred often, sometimes boys versus girls and often together.  I learned that I had some boxing skills when one day I dropped a fellow student in a sparring match. The next day when he came to school he said his mother forbade him to box.  Wow, I thought, I must be something.  That was until I went with Mr. Pier to the community center and boxed some kids a year or two older than me and learned a lesson in humility.

     At age twelve, moving to a new town changed things.  New friends and schools put boxing aside and unfortunately without my mentor I soon lost sight of anything athletic. 

When I was sixteen years old I got into an argument and a fight with a buddy in my neighborhood.  The fight involved a girl and one of my neighborhood friends.  We yelled, screamed and pointed our fingers at each other and then out of the blue he whomped me good, giving me a big black eye, lots of remorse and a very broken spirit.  After he felt he had sufficiently shown me his point of view I limped home only to have to face my parents with my big black eye and lots of humiliation. 

 

They were supportive and loving although I knew I had failed to give much of a fight to defend myself (actually I put up no fight).  This low feeling stuck with me for months and months.  It wasn’t until a few months later I realized that this situation and experience gave me desire to change and put me on track for learning self-defense.

That fall after my incident I saw an ad for a martial arts demonstration and beginner classes.  I nervously went to the demonstration, saw these experts of the martial arts and was emotionally hooked.  This time I was involved for real, not just an excited observer.

 Here I was thrilled to be a student but I couldn’t do even two pushups but I had a desire that wouldn’t let me quit.  Now that I was officially a martial arts student I wanted a uniform so bad I couldn’t stand it.  The challenge, no one knew where to get one. I went to a newsstand and couldn’t believe my eyes.  Here was not only one karate magazine, but  two.  I scooped them both up and devoured them from cover to cover. I read those magazines so much I had almost memorized them word for word.   In the ads I found a uniform company.  I did my best to figure out the size chart and took a shot.  I ordered a size three and sent a money order.  When it came I realized I needed a size five. I had mistakedly ordered by height and not by weight.   It was a little tight but I beamed in my new karate suit.

We worked out in a social club hall where functions were held on weekends.  During class breaks we drank water out of a hose attached to the faucet in the sink and trained with very little heat.  Sometimes my instructor would even open the windows in winter just to make us work harder generating body heat.

  After being a student for three months I was put in charge of attendance and collecting dues.  I think my instructor just wanted to focus on teaching and did not care for the financial aspects and bill collecting.

The following summer, while fixing my car I pinched a nerve in my back and decided to take a break from classes.  The summer was flying by.  I was a senior in love with my high school sweetheart and hadn’t given a thought to martial arts.  One afternoon while shopping my, girlfriend and I bumped into my instructor in the local department store.  He was glad to see me and mentioned,  “When will you be back to class?”  A little guilty I replied “Tuesday” and there I was right back in the swing of things.

 

This was to be the first of a few times my martial arts was interrupted.

My First Boxing Coach

ROLLIE An Old Palooka Who Can Teach You A Thing Or Two

Published May 03. 2009

By Kenton Robinson Day Staff Writer 

New London
At 79, HE'S GOT A BAD RIGHT HIP, A BUM LEFT shoulder, and broken fingers on each hand have healed to point in a different direction.
"I had five nose operations," he says. "See this here?" He flattens his nose on his face. "I got no bone."

Still, on any given weekday afternoon, Rollie Pier, dressed in gray sweats, a white towel flung over his shoulder, can be found in the Bank Street gym of Team Strike Zone and Whaling City Boxing, teaching young fighters all that he knows about the sweet science.
"Rollie?" says Raymond "Coach Ray" Hodges Jr., who works with kids at the gym. "He's forgotten more than most people ever know: Life, boxing, you name it, man, the guy's a walking dictionary."
"I'm active in the gym," Pier says. "If I didn't have this bad hip, I'd still spar with guys, but I don't because I get vertigo now ... dizziness. Everybody says it's boxing related. Who knows?"
And so the world finds Rollie Pier: five foot six ("I shrunk an inch and a half"), faded blue eyes, dull copper hair cropped like a monk's, a man in the twilight years of a fighting life.

In his day, he fought 102 times, including amateur, semi-pro and pro. He was a welterweight, weighing 150 pounds, and when asked about his record, he says, "I lost 62 fights. I'm not braggin'. I'm tellin' you the truth. And I won - this is not totally accurate - 38 or 39, but I would generally go the three or four rounds, just about make it, you know?"
He sums up his boxing career this way: "I was a phenom that never phenomenated. I was a late bloomer that never bloomed. But I could get in the ring and fake it, and I looked pretty good. People would say, 'That guy knows how to fight.' But I was never great. I was a tomato can or a palooka.
"See, in the vernacular of boxing," he explains, "you've got your champions, you've got your contenders and then, after that, you've got your good opponents, and then you've got opponents, and then you go down to ... palooka. A palooka's a little ahead of a tomato can. I'd say I was a palooka."
Stuff to chew on

It's a Saturday night in the New London High School gym. There's a red, white and blue boxing ring set up in the middle of the floor, surrounded by some 300 people in the bleachers and on folding chairs. It's "The Whaling City Classic," a fundraiser for Heavy Hitters USA, a nonprofit group that teaches kids how to box.

Pier arrives, one of his students, Bethany Geary, in tow. That's right, Pier has been teaching a girl - several young women, actually - to box.
He admits he didn't want to at first.
"I guess it was machismo in boxing. I don't know," he says. "But then we had several girls ... that I taught and they were very good, I mean, they listened."
And that, he says, is what made him change his mind.

"I said, 'All right, c'mon,' gripin' to myself. But the attention span was there. And they'd come back and do me favors. Like now ... I've got type two diabetes and I get a weak spell occasionally, and they bring me stuff to chew on."

Most recently, he's coached three women: Geary, of Westerly, Marsha Agripino, of Groton, and Kelsey Kaiser, of Waterford.
Unfortunately, no women are fighting tonight, he says. It's hard for them to get a fight.
"Bethany's had one fight," Pier says. "She lost. And the other girl already had 10 fights. There's no one else to fight. You can't find 'em. If you go to New York, you can."
But Pier can't talk for long; here, he's a celebrity. Everyone in the gym seems to know him, and there's a constant stream of people coming up to him, shaking his hand, throwing their arms around his shoulders.

Most of those fighting tonight are 17 and 18 or young men in their early 20s. They each fight three rounds of three minutes each, if they can go that long.
Three minutes can seem like forever. In most of the fights, both boxers start out strong, but by the middle of the second round, they clutch and lean into each other.
"I told you, that's how it is," Pier says. "It's a different kind of tiredness, you understand? You've got to be in real good shape to go three rounds. People say, 'Ah, I could do it.' You're waiting in the dressing room. The dressing room's crowded. You learn the guy you're gonna fight's over there. He's lookin' at you. Your hands are being taped. OK, you're next. And that takes a lot out of you. It's enough to destroy guys."
And then, he says, "you've got to fight somebody, and you're not mad at him."
Roberto Vega, another one of Pier's students, gets into the ring, and the crowd lights up. Geary yells, "Don't wait! Don't wait, Roberto," and "Flurries! Flurries!"
Vega and his opponent fight fiercely, with Vega throwing flurries of punches to his opponent's head. Vega wins.
"That was good," Pier says. "They box nice. You won't see a better fight than that tonight."

Kicked in the head
Born Oct. 16, 1929, Roland Pier-Federici grew up on the streets of New London. But he went out into the world and had some adventures before he came home to stay.
You might say his boxing career began the night he got pistol whipped in Mississippi. Not that he hadn't dabbled in boxing before. But that drubbing, he admits today, inspired him to do more than dabble.
"I thought I was going to die," he says. "They kicked me in the head."
Now, as he sits in his basement, surrounded by hundreds of videotapes of boxing matches, he explains, "this is way back in the '50s now, when Yankees weren't too well appreciated."
He and a bunch of other college kids from New London were drinking in a dive in Meridian, Miss., when, "unfortunately, my friends went and asked some girls to dance."
Their boyfriends were not amused.
"They came out and all of a sudden a fight ensued. Guy come out with a gun, started shootin', shot my friend, Louie Casimono, and we all ran different directions. And to make a long story short, the sheriff was the guy that shot my friend, but he survived - leg wounds, back wounds - and I got pistol whipped and the other guys got beat up."

It took Pier a while to get through college.
"I went to six colleges," he says. "I traveled all over. It wasn't uncommon then for guys to go from college to college ... I ended up going for 10 years."
He played football, basketball (even though he admits he was a terrible basketball player), baseball and he boxed. He got a degree in education.

And came home to New England and got a job in Ledyard, where - for 28 years - he taught fifth grade. And that's when he legally shortened his name.
"I did it for convenience purposes," he says. "It was misspelled too much."

Days he would spend in a classroom, teaching the three Rs; night's he'd spend in a gym in Hartford, honing his left hook.
Sometimes, though, his nights in the ring were all too obvious the day after.
"I'd come back to class with black eyes," he says. "The kids, 'What happened?' The principal would go, 'Ah, jeez, this is not what we want in a teacher.'"

A dream denied
Folks with long memories will remember that Pier was also the guy behind the Vagabonds, better known as the Vags, New London's own semi-pro baseball team.
The team played from the '60s all the way through 1986, he says. "And we had a lot of players that could have played pro ball."

But it is boxing that is Rollie Pier's greatest love.
He says he loves the loneliness, the inescapable fact that you're on your own.
"Football is vicious, I know," he says. "Those big guys could kill ya. But you've got teammates. You go out, defense, offense. Boxing, there's no timeouts, nothing. A guy's startin' to get to you, you've got to cover up, and you're getting hurt, and you can't quit."
And he misses the old gyms.
"There used to be old-time fight arenas, with sawdust on the floor, drunks laying there, and you're steppin' over them to go to the ring," he says. "Honest to God."
Pier rubbed shoulders with everyone from Willie Pep to Rocky Graziano, and his dream was to fight just once in Madison Square Garden.

"That would have been it for me," he says. "I would have been the happiest guy in the world. Win, lose or draw, I didn't care. As long as I could come up the ramp."
It was a dream that, at the age of 38, he came within a death of achieving.
"I used to go to the gym in New York called New Garden Gym right by Penn Station, and I got to know this guy Joe Garfield good," Pier begins. "I said, 'Joe, I've been coming here now, and you could do me a great favor: Just get me one four-round fight at the Garden. That's my ambition: one four-round fight.'
"And he says, 'Ah, you don't want it. You're old; you're gonna get killed.' I said, 'Nah, I'll be all right.'"
Garfield said if he could hold his own sparring with a pro, he might get him a fight. And Pier sparred, barely getting through the four rounds.
Finally, Garfield called and said, "OK, you got the fight."
Pier was ecstatic. He had two months to train, and he worked himself hard to get in shape, never telling anyone but his wife, Yvette, that he had a fight coming up in the Garden.
He was training in his basement, jumping rope, when the phone rang.
"And I picked it up, and they said, 'Rollie? Rollie Pier?' And I said, 'Yeah?' 'Joe Garfield died.' 'What?' And I said, 'What about the fight?' And the guy said, 'I don't know about the fight.'"
Nobody, it turned out, would honor the promise of a dead man.

Yankee doodle
As it happened, Pier's biggest fight came a couple of years later, before a crowd of 10,000 at a ring in London. It may be the only time Yvette saw him fight.
"She went with me to the fights," he says. "But if I was fighting, she only went to one out of 102. She didn't like it."
"Yeah, I don't deal well with that," says Yvette Pier. "It's not my cup of tea. I go with him to some of the fights, like I go to the football games with him, but if he's fighting, I don't want to be there.
"I don't hate boxing," she insists. "I just don't like it, just like he wouldn't like knitting."
He and Yvette were on vacation in London, and while she went shopping he would train at the Thomas à Beckett gym. It was there someone approached him and asked him if he could fill in on a fight.
"Now I was like 40 something, but in good shape, looked 30," Pier says. "I said, 'OK, I'll do it.' I wanted to just do it. Like I didn't fight at the Garden, I wanted this ... I remember taping my hands. You sit in a chair. You know how they do. Tape your hands. And they go, 'OK, Yank, you're on,' and I come out of the runway there, I'm telling ya. And they played 'Yankee Doodle Dandy,' you know that song?"
Pier breaks into song, "I'm a Yankee doodle dandy... Wow, I can't tell ya how I felt. It didn't wear off for weeks."
The guy he fought was P.J. Clarke. Pier went the whole four rounds with him and lost.
"He was an English fighter," Pier recalls. "They jab, jab, move, jab, throw rights. He could box real nice."
Surrounded by his stacks of videotapes, Rollie Pier will be the first to tell you that he'd rather watch one of his hundreds of fight tapes than anything that's on the tube today.
"I live in the past mostly," he says. "It's a bad thing. But I come from another era. Up in the gym they play all hip-hop and music where they swear. I can't take it. Turn that off! I turn it down. I can't get used to that. I can't."
And he doesn't like the way some dress.
"Guys coming in, they come in with their pants down, way down, and their hats sideways. No. You've got to adhere to the rules of the gym. To me, it's a shrine."

K.ROBINSON@THEDAY.COM
               

The ANTI Bully

Many people know my story.  Bullied and beat up as a teen turned me to martial arts.  Often times over the years I have been invited to many classrooms to talk about our martial arts program.

I always brought my “story” about being bullied and beat up and how that experience motivated me to learn martial arts and then help others avoid this terrible experience if at all possible.  The trauma I suffered from being beaten up still lingers in my soul and the anguish comes right back when I tell the story of being beaten up.

Then one day my life changed again when the news flashed the absolutely horrible story of the Columbine shooting in Colorado.  It hit me right in the heart.  Not only for the victims that were shot, their friends and families,  but to the young men that had been harassed for years and thought they had no outlet for their frustration, except for getting some guns and shooting up a school.

I made a decision.  I was going to reach more kids, more classrooms, and more schools and let then turn their hate to hope.  It was time.

See more on my anti bully website

mikebogdanski.com

If you're over the age of 30, Should You Consider Martial Arts?

Well, yes --and no.

 

You should consider a regular, daily, exercise program. A sensible one; one that starts slow

 and lets your fitness sneak up on you (rather than hitting you over the head with it).

 

A martial arts program certainly has the potential to be a fantastic complete training program, as it includes stretching, strength training, aerobic and anaerobic exercise, and requires a kind of mental focus that is like a moving meditation.

 As a matter of fact, if the instructor you choose has the right kinds of experience. yoy can get so much out of training. Instructors that are under the age of 30 are often spectacular athletes, but it’s important that they have an understanding of how to teach people of all ages.

 

But, find a great teacher and the martial arts can become your best friend. The training can keep you supple, sharp, and clear thinking. A martial arts school, directed by a conscientious professional teacher, can be a centering, inspiring, refreshing place that you love going to --and leave thinking about your next session.

 

Yes, look to the martial arts for new perspective on your life, after the age of 30. It’s not too late, even at age 40, 50, or 60. To choose a school try out an introductory program (which should be free or close to it). All the best school offer new students an opportunity to test drive “the car” before buying into a program. I think you should try our school, of course, because we have a very wide range of ages in our classes.

 

If you’re thinking about training in martial arts, allow me to be the first to invite you in.  Mention that you’re over 30 and I will offer you 2 weeks of lessons to try us out (no strings attached). Here is our warning: Classes are fun, affordable, and will give you a new energy in your life. It’s never to late to start working out. The most challenging aspect of exercise is taking that first step.

Reach me here: 860.928.9218 or mbogdanski@questmartialarts.us

Bouncer Chronicles - 4

In some of these chronicles it may seem like things got a little rough.  They really weren't.  Although... 

One rainy dark Sunday night we were closing the bar, the doors were locked and there was a knock at the door.  There were double glass doors and someone was asking to come in and use the phone because his car had broken down.  This was way before cell phones but there was a payphone at the diner next door.     

I politely refused him and directed him to the payphone.  He argued with me and even kicked the door once because he was mad.  He eventually stormed away.  We had plenty of cash for the day and I was wary of this guy.  I kept thinking, all he had to do was pull out a gun, point it at me and demand to come in.  I would have been at his mercy and felt totally vulnerable.

The next week I bought a gun. 

Bionic Parts

I had heard people get replacement parts although I never though the day would come when I needed one.  Hips, knees and anything you can think of has worn out on people and then needed a newer better part to keep functioning.  Little did I know I was next.

I have always been healthy and went for annual check ups.  Strong as a bull I would tell people.  But just a few years ago when I was sparring there was a big snap in my knee and down I went, a torn meniscus.

I got a brace and things went along fine.  They forecast a knee replacement down the road.  They said I would know when I was ready.  I kept training and suffering and finally the day came.  I polled people that had replacements, Chris Bannon Rodrigues, Billy Blanks, and they said do it!  Here I am now with a total knee replacement.  19 Days later I am walking fine (slowly), have given up the walker and cane and look forward to a great recovery.

Now I know what Grandmaster Kim means when he says martial arts is for health.  Lets train smarter, be healthier and live a long life.  Polish people have a toast "Sto Lat", meaning we hope you live to be a hundred!

Tang Soo For life!

 

Jack Scott- United Karate Studio- Cookeville, TN

Jack Scott- United Karate- Cookeville, Tennessee

 

Around 1988, I arrived at my inlaws who had relocated to Cookeville from New Jersey.  We had brought my four year old son there to visit his grandparents and spend some quality family time.  After being there a few days I casually leafed through the yellow pages to see what karate schools were around.  My eyes landed on Jack Scotts United Karate Studio and I decided to call.

 

I explained I was visiting family and asked if I could come down and watch some karate classes.  Mr. Scott said it was not a good night to come down but the next night would be better.  Of course that prompted me to go down and see why I could not watch.  Well he received me with open arms and let me watch for several hours.  We talked for a long time and then he asked if I would like to take a class the next night.  I responded I would like to but had not brought my uniform.  He loaned me a uniform and Black Belt and we had only just met!

 

The next night I showed up early and began to warm up and introduce myself to his students.  Class started and we swung into a very dynamic warmup and did many, many,many kicks.  The class ran on for a few hours and then we took a break to spar, and yes he loaned me sparring gear.  I sparred all the students and then of course my new friend Jack.  Wow what a workout!

 

Then when I though we were all done he said, "Lets you and I fight some full contact", so of course we went several more rounds.  It was a tremendous workout.  Mr. Scott was in shape and could really fight and bang.   Later when I was in the locker room changing, one of the red belts asked if I were coming back the next night.  I told him I was flying back to Connecticut and was unable.  He let out a big WHOO Hoo!  Great he says,  That is the hardest training session we ever had!  I couldn't take another clas like that tomorrow.

 

It was the start of a glorious friendship.  The following two years I attended his tournament and had a blast.  I met many of the UKS members included the senior Master Ben Kiker, Jesse Thorton, James Hobby and mitzi Tyler, all well known competitors who I saw frequently on the national competition circuit.

 

A few years went by and we had lost touch.  One of my students was attending a martial arts business seminar by Hartford and she told me he had bumped into Jack Scott and he told her of our friendship.  The next night we met for dinner and we just picked up where we left off.

 

I stayed in touch with him and knew he had some health challenges but had been doing better.  Since he had moved locations after my last visit he sent me this video tour of his new school and I know he was so proud of the school and students.  Martial arts was his passion.

 

A few years later Jack lost his fight against cancer and we lost one of the greatest martial artists, teachers, and men I have ever known.  After I found out he died I wrote a letter the the local Cookeville newspaper teling what a loss I had felt.  His wife sent me a nice letter along with a school t shirt.  I sent her a copy of this video.  She didn't even know he had made it for me.

 

I hope many of his students will enjoy the energy of this great man and the pride he took in this journey as a Karate teacher.

 

Mike Bogdanski, Jack Scotts friend.

Ho Sin Sool

Ho-Shin-Sool (호신술) consists of three characters and their meanings are as follows.

Ho (호) is to guard, to protect, to defend or to keep us safe from something against such as physical assaults, diseases, and/or even from harmful spirits.

Shin (신) refers to our body, and

Sool (술) is a word for skills or techniques. Therefore, ho-shin-sool is all and any techniques used to guard our body.

How Do You Spell Relief? It’s not r-o-l-a-i-d-s!

In my life I have seen many bullying situations.  From children to teens and even adults I have seen some of the worst cases of mental and emotional abuse go on.  As a teenager I feared confrontation and hated to see the bullies work against helpless and timid people.  When I was younger I wished I knew martial arts and had the courage and fortitude to stand up to these mean and angry people.

 

Should I stand up to these big, mean intimidators?  No not me. There is always a chance that they would turn their attention my way.  I couldn’t risk that, or could I? 

Several years ago one of my little skinny blond students, while riding the bus, would get picked on.  She was a good student but a little shy.  She may not have been a bruiser in sparring class but she always managed to hold her own but these were not the skills needed on the school bus.  The verbal taunts and abuse would leave her in tears both on her way to school and the way home.  This fifth grader was growing more afraid of the bus ride each day.  The bus driver couldn’t or wouldn’t address this issue.  The principal attempted to help but was ineffective.  The bullies were warned of punishment but just ignored the threat.  Does this sound familiar?

Many schools, families and children live this same fear and situation on a daily basis.  It has been going on for decades in every country in the world.  I decided as this time that a solution was in order and I was lucky enough to have the answer.

In the television commercial the way to spell relief is Rolaids, the anti heartburn suggestion.  On the school bus relief was spelled t-r-a-n.  I found out that one of my Black Belts named Bang Lee Tran was an eight grader on the very same bus.  He was an average size boy with a pleasant disposition, heart of gold and tons of confidence.  I asked if he would speak to the group that was the problem.  We practiced what to say, what the responses might be and how to deal with those too.  And yes by the way he mentioned he was a Black Belt and suggested they did not want to see a display of his skills.  Within a few days all the kids that picked on Barbie had found new manners.

There was no violence, detention or telling the driver or principal.  There was just one strong willed and confident boy who was willing make a stand for someone that needed help.  In studying martial arts I was taught of the concept of giri, which means obligation or duty.  We must teach our children that it is their responsibility and their duty to stand up for what they think is right, protect the innocent and let people know that this behavior is not acceptable.

 Now is the time.

MLB

Bouncer Chronicles - 3

Once I got settled in as the solo bouncer I devised ways to keep myself safe in my role.  New Britain had a mixed population of gangs, bikers and offbeat characters and I never knew who was going to show up.  I kept a quarter over the payphone in case I needed to call the police and in the eventuality things went bad quickly, I hung my jacket by the door.  I kept a pair of nunchaku with one piece down the sleeve and one piece hanging out so I could retrieve it quickly.

Things kept fairly calm at the bar.  I made friends with the football team and they became my backup in case things got out of hand.  It is easier to be a bouncer when you have a couple of 250 pound linebackers standing behind you.

Little did I know that at the end of my graduate career I was going to postpone returning back to my old high school as a counselor and get into the nightclub business where bouncing took a more serious track.

Just when I got the hang of working the college crowd I was introduced to little old Northeast Connecticut.  At the time (the 70's) it was like going back to the fifties!

Bouncer Chronicles -2

Being a Black Belt does not make you a bouncer. 
Fighting in tournaments does not make you a bouncer.
Knowing martial arts does not make you a bouncer.

Learning on the job helps make you a bouncer.

Most of the time when people were unruly in the college bar we just had to break up fights, cool people down and then kick them out.  It became a matter of restraint rather than a brawl (although I will go over those episodes too) and we had to keep people safe in spite of themselves.

One night during a busy night there were three very big college football guys drunk at the door.  I had stopped them from entry because they were already drunk.  We began to argue and knowing that the odds were against me I came up with an effective strategy. 

                                      I closed the door and held it shut.

The door knob was small so only one person could grip it to try and open it.  After several minutes of frustration they left.  No fight, no fuss, no muss.  This is what Bruce Lee must have meant when he said "The art of fighting without fighting"

Bouncer Chronicles -1

Attending college as a Black Belt and needing a part time job, it was only a matter of time before applying to the local college bar as a bouncer.

The bar was a local restaurant and prominent college student hangout.  The drinking age was 18 so every weekend students flocked to Elmers Place for lots of fun.  The first night I was there the owners had friends show up to visit.  They invited me to sit down with them and plyed me with drinks.  At the end of the night I told them I would quit the job if that was to be the standard. Drinking and bouncing is not a good idea.

I was the solo bouncer in a crowd of one hundred and fifty patrons!  No backup, no one to cover my back, another lack of planning because I had not thought much of it.  About two weeks in, it was alumni weekend and the school was populated by an extra thousand people visiting and that Saturday night they all wanted to be partying at Elmers.

There was an unruly group of alumni in the dining room.  One of the guys was sitting in his chair and driving it around the room like it was a car.  I tapped him on the shoulder and asked that he refrained from the activity so as not to possibly injure anyone.  He stood up, reached out and grapped me by the shirt and raised his fist.  I hit him so hard he flew back with my shirt still in his hand.  He had ripped it completely off of me.

After throwing him out, I asked the bartender (a biker guy) why he didn't help me.  He responded " I wanted to see what you could do"!

FIVE MOO DO VALUES

The Five Moo Do values of History, Tradition, Philosophy, Discipline/Respect, and Technique, are the backbones of our proud Moo Do identity. These values coexist interdependently with each element strengthening the meaning of the other four. When we apply the Five Moo Do values to our daily training we strengthen our self not only as a Moo Do practitioner, but also as an individual who provides a positive influence within our society. – HC Hwang

#	VALUE	KOREAN	LITERAL TRANSLATION
1	History	Yuk Sa	Yuk – taking part, experience Sa – History, Recording
2	Tradition	Jun Tong	Jun – transmit Tong – govern
3	Discipline and Respect	Ki Khang / Jon Kyong	Ki Khang – principle, rule ethics Jon Kyung – respect, high regard
4	Philosophy	Chul Huk	Chul – sagacious, bright Hak – learn, study
5	Technique	Ki Sool	Ki – skill Sool – artifice

Sensei Bob Thivierge

When I was a teenager I guess I was karate crazy.

I trained two nights and Saturday with my karate teacher.  A friend of mine had karate classes two nights a week in Jewett City so I trained there also.  If we had free time we went to Chuck Merriman's school in New London and watched class.  There was a Pai Lum Kung Fu instructor in Ledyard so we checked him out.  We could not get enough karate.




In the Jewett City school, under Rusty James, I met Bob Thivierge.  He came early, stayed late and was always perfecting one technique or another.  When he received his green belt I started to notice him more because of his hard work and dedication to the school.  His teacher eventually moved on and he took over the training and became the resident Sensei.  My life had moved on with working and family but I always kept my connection with Bob.


His teacher, Rusty sponsored a small competition in Voluntown.  We got a group of Black Belts together and did point sparring under the tent one summer.  We sparred on a wood floor that was set up for dancing later that night.  Little did they know what had ahappened just hours earlier.  We had about a dozen guys show up from around the area.  Martial arts was a small culture in those days and we knew about all the schools in the area.   I sparred a Phillipino guy who showed up.  With his first move he drilled me with a front kick that knocked me out of the ring.  It was a real WOW  moment for me.  I received a second place losing to the sponsor Rusty James who was a great sparrer.

 The following year Bob took over the competition.   Kickboxing waas now the vogue and was the competition of choice.  My brother John fought and there were some great matches that day.  They all took place in the field outside the tent.  Bob fought and had an amazing match.  He was seriously tough and never backed down.  There were several bouts that day that were pretty fantastic.

The following year there was to be an upgrade.  A boxing ring was to be used for all the fights.  One of my fellow Black Belts Windy Winslow was to fight Tommy Champagne and I was to be in the main event against Bobby.  I was running 20 miles a week and training 6 days a week in karate/kickboxing and could not have been more ready.  I was in the best shape of my life.


It was the Wednesday before the fight and Windy and I had a 2 hour training session.  Our main KO technique was to be the spin backfist (it was to be our "secret" weapon).  After sparring many rounds we decided to drill it some more, with no equipment on.   An errant spin backfist knocked my front tooth loose.  It was hanging by a tiny little ligament and was almost knocked clean out of my mouth. 

I went to the dentist the next day to have him look at it.  As soon as I opened my mouth and he saw it dangling there, all he could say as his eyes popped out was, OOOOOH!

I knew it was not good.

He asked how it happened and I had to tell him, kickboxing! And then I had to tell about the big match coming up in a few days.  I spoke to him about all of my preparation and how important it was to me.  He gave me two choices.  Fight and lose the tooth (because very little was keeping it attached to my gum) or wear a tooth cast and maybe keep it.  It was both an easy and tough decision because I wanted so badly to fight.


Well, I skipped the fight and got a substitute.  Larry Kelley of Amhurst, Massachussets was the number one point fighter in New England and the country.  He is a fantastic kicker and once even knocked out Billy Blanks with a front leg hook kick.  Bobby and he went toe to toe for three rounds.  Even though I was rooting for my substitute, Bobby held his own and went the distance.  I couldn't have been prouder of him.


Bobby was a hard worker and when he got layed off he traveled to Florida by himself and had been working 7 days a week for over 6 months.  It was hard for him because his wife and children were still home but he had to work.   He finally had a day off after working like a dog all these months and went to the beach.  While body surfing a wave overtook him, flipped him upside down and the accident made him a quadraplegic.  After some hospital time he returned home to Jewett City.


His students, friends and family flocked to support him.  I remember they quickly built a ramp in anticipation of his need to make his house wheelchair accessable.  I was competing heavily around New England and had a big entourage of friends who traveled the karate circuit.  I tapped in to them to do a fundraiser for the Thivierge family to try to help them with some expenses.


It was a great turnout.  Larry Kelley, Jeff Goldberg, Steve Best, Lenny Stavrou, Gary Wilcox, Doug Peoples, Neil Hoffler, Wali Islam, Frankie Baker, Arvo Laats and many more turned out to demonstrate and pay homage to Bob Thivierge in his time of need. It was a "Who's who" of New England martial artists!


Bob stayed active teaching karate in his garage and then in a commercial school.  He affiliated with the Enshin karate group who gave him support and helped his school become a succcess.  I am sure Bob inspired many people in that group too.


I had kept in touch with Bob occasionally over the years and often thought back about the kickboxing match we were meant to have.  Maybe someday when we meet again and we can give it a go.


Sensei Bob Thivierge, through your life you continued to inspire me and I will work to pass on your P.M.A.- positive mental attitude as long as I am able.


We will miss you Sensei Bob Thivierge, you were one of the good ones.


With love and respect,


MB

Everything I Know About Martial Arts I learned From The Wizard Of Oz

After having taught martial arts for decades I always try to give the first class a fun, simple and achievable lesson that teaches one punch, one block and one kick.  I believe our program is fundamental in teaching mental and emotional skills too, tying in the mind, body and spirit concepts of moo do (martial way). 

In the movie "The Wizard Of Oz" (original) Dorothy lands in Oz and of course wants to return home.  She gets advice from the munchkins to follow the yellow brick road and find the wizard who has all the answers to her problem.  Soon we find out it is the journey, not the destination that helps her realizes the true answers.

Dorothy, along with her dog Toto meets their first new friend, the scarecrow.  He is in a quandary and can't figure things out because he has no brain.  Dorothy convinces the scarecrow to join her on the trek to see the wizard in hope of getting him a brain. The lacking of a brain in turn teaches us that we need to find a good school and good teacher because we are seeking knowledge.  Some students want to look cool and learn the kicks, some want the muscles and many want the powerful personality and demeanor of a Black belt.

  Like Dorothy, the martial arts student does not always realize yet what they really need or want and look to the wisdom of the teachers in the path we call "do"- the way.   New members truly come in as white belts, the tabula rasa (blank slate).  It is up to us to point out the attributes they gain on the journey because they

Down the yellow brick road she travels and we meet friend number two, the tin man.  He is frozen with rust, totally immobile and barely able to make sound. With a little lubrication he is able to tell us his story.  He was bewitched, rebuilt as a tin man but missing an essential piece, a heart.  He was unable to have any feelings and he needs a heart. In the story he is the most tender and emotional of the trio.  We as teachers and seniors to our junior students must have a tender heart to nurture students along.

 Great teachers communicate emotionally and from the heart and hope to instill a love of martial arts to their students.  It is always a sad day for me when a student tells us they are quitting.  One of my favorite stories of having a good heart is about adoption.  A teacher is talking about the concept of adoption and then has the children explain what they thought it meant.  From one student to another they all had slightly different versions of understanding and had many questions.  Finally, one little girl put it well.

  “Adoption is when a baby goes from the tummy of one Mom, to the heart of another.”  If that one sentence doesn’t hit you directly in the heart, nothing will.

We talk about fighters having heart but I think teachers that have the patience and love to teach any beginner has a special heart to help everyone along with the many failures beginners experience.  How many times do we tell beginners, no - the other foot, no -  the right hand, no -the other right hand!

When I teach introductory classes I like to teach the concept of courage to new students.  Many children, teens and adults come in with courage already.   You need a little courage and humility in starting a karate class.  Many students come in shy, apprehensive and doubtful that the experience will be for them but they show up wondering, what can I learn?  Children especially come in wary to a room where there are dozens of people training with intensity and lots of noise. It is easy to forget what a new member sees when all you see is your ”normal”.

Yong gi is the concept of courage.  Courage is not the absence of fear, it is being afraid and being able to take action anyway.   Although we get students in that are perfectly confident we can all use a little practice in building courage, especially in new situations.  I know I have!   When I teach new students a high block, I test their arm strength and then I tell them it is time for a test, a courage test. I smack a focus paddle to my palm to show them how hard I will be attacking.  The big "thwack" sound makes a few eyes bulge at the impact.  Now the student wonders, what am I doing here?  My question to them, do you want me to attack you like a little tyke (and I gently tap my hand) or a future Black Belt (and I give my hand a big impact with the paddle). Ninety nine percent of the time the student asks for the Black Belt version.  They are choosing a path to test their inner courage and we know this is never easy.

The cowardly lion was the trifecta on the yellow brick road although we can add advice and mentoring from the munchkins, escaping the wicked witch taught indomitable spirit, the end of the yellow brick road to the see the wizard taught perseverance and finally she realizes at the end, there is no place like home.  Martial arts schools all over the country are like second families and second homes to many.  I know many of our Black Belts are as close to me as any family member.  Many I have spent substantial time with and we have a strong bond.

These topics are the perfect summary of things needed to be a Black Belt.  Knowledge (a brain), a heart compassion) and turning cowardice into courage.   Martial philosophy at its best from L. Frank Baum, author.

And by the way, I am still afraid of flying monkeys.

 

Hwal = Vitality

Moo Do Creed (Moo Duk Kwan Hun Jang)

The purpose of Moo Do is Hwal -               to cultivate ourselves.

Moo Do does not end in offense or defense.

It is one step further, the purpose is life itself.

Even facing the enemy, our goal is to save them.


The principles of Moo Do are the principles of Nature.

 

Guided by Moo Do we may achieve the goal of Hwal in the principles of Nature

 

To do so we must concentrate, stress the beauty, line and speed, and study scientifically
To provide all this is our creed.
                                                                         - Hwang Kee

Lets not forget the philosophical part of the art!

Master Bogdanski
 

Know When to Hold Them

The Kenny Rogers song comes to mind.

"Know when to hold them, know when to fold them"

We all have a tendency to push all day every day, that is what helped make us Black Belts and successful in life.

Know when to take a break.


Sleep;

• Keeps you heart healthy
• Reduces stress
• Reduces inflammation
• Increases alertness
• Helps your body and mind recover

Sleep is when your body repairs itself.
I love to sleep and hate to sleep.  Sleep feels so good but keeps you from being active.  Yes we need it.

Age 62 and Training Hard

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At age 62 I know I need to keep up my fitness.   With significant cartilage loss in my knees I can't jog anywhere.  I would be a limping mess.  A few years ago I rediscovered bike riding as a way to keep my legs strong and get some good cardio.

Yesterday I did a 16 mile hill course.  It took one hour and fourty four minutes.  I sweat, my heart pounded and my legs burned.  It was challenging and fun and I got to see lots of beautiful views of NE Connecticut.

One day you will wake up and you will feel like you are aging.  I read you will begin to feel old when you turn 58.  Don't let it happen!

P.S. - Today I sparred 6 rounds and felt fantastic.

24 Hours

KJN

Whenever you celebrate a victory, savor it for 24 hours and then move on.  It's time to set up the next one.  Take what you learned, make it a little better and get to it.

Lets do this on the loss side too.  When something goes wrong and it will, give it 24 hours and move on.  It's not a roadblock, just a detour.  We learn from our failures.

Tang Soo Do Hyung Introspective

The forms (hyung) used by Tang Soo Do are believed to be the intermediate forms between Okinawa and Japan. These include Kee Cho Hyung Il Bu, Ee Bu, and Sam Bu. These are similar to Taikyoku Shodan, Nidan and Sandan.

 

 Next are the Pyung Ahn (Okinawan: Pinan; Japanese: Heian) Cho Dan, Ee Dan, Sam Dan, Sa Dan and Oh Dan.

External (Hard Style), influenced by Southern Chinese Schools, These belong to the We Ga Ryu (Chinese: Wai Chia) They are characterized by aggressiveness, dynamic action and spontaneity.

Basai Dae is the Tang Soo Do version of Bassai Dai. Next is Passi So (Passai or Bassai Sho). Following these is jin Do (Chinto or Gankaku). The twelfth form is O Sip Sa Bo (U Sei Shi Ho; Gojushiho), followed by Wang Shu (Wansu; Empi/Embi). Tjin is the Tang Soo Do version of Ji-in.

So Rim Jang Kwon and Dam Toi are unique to Tang Soo Do. Hyung seventeen and eighteen are Kong Sang Koon Dae and Kong Sang Koon So (Kusanku Dai and Sho; Kanku Dai and Sho). Tang Soo Do has three Rohaee (Rohai) hyung: Chodan, Ee dan and Sam dan.

The last two are Eesip Sa (Nijushiho) and Woon Shu (Unsu).

The Ne Ga Ryu (Chinese: Nei Chia) Internal (Soft [Kung] Style) use forms influenced by the northern Chinese Schools. These forms display deliberateness, stability, fluid motion and slow, quiet power.

These forms include Tsan Tjin (Sanchin), Jun Jang, Ssi San, Ssi Boai (Saifa; Saipa), Bae Rin Bba, SsanSsi Bbai, Sei San (Seisan; Hangetsu), Sai Hoo Ah, Goo Reung Hoo Ah (Kururunfa), Jin Toi, Ji-on, Tae Kuk Kwon, and Ne Bboo Jin (Naihanji; Naihanchi; Tekki) Cho Dan, Ee Dan and Sam Dan.

The Choong Ga Ryu

Chil sung Hyung and Yuk Ro Hyung.

 Yuk Ro Chodan - Du Mun (Great Gate)

Yuk Ro Ee Dan - Jung Jol (Cutting the Middle)

Yuk Ro Sam Dan -  Po Wol embrace the moon

Sal Chu - Killing Hammer

Choong Ro - Seize and Capture