JT_the_Ninja
Black Belt
Just got back from the tournament, and good news! First place in breaking w00t!
Video: http://myspacetv.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=33541663
So here's my breakdown of the day:
7:45 - arrived at Trees Hall, U. of Pittsburgh, right across from the place where we usually hold tournaments. This year, though, that building is under renovation, so we had to move to a slightly smaller space. What saved it from being even more crowded than usual was that this year, only people who studied MDK-type styles, both TSD and TKD, were allowed. So fewer people, smaller space...about evened out in the end.
8:30 or so - got my boards, all seven of them, and got myself seated next to one of the others from my dojang. I'd brought along a six pack of Dasani bottles and a box of Twinkies (which I'm finishing at the moment) for nourishment, until lunch.
9:00...roughly - opening ceremonies, opening speeches, horribly long waiting.
somewhere around 10:00 - after the masters division of forms, it was black belt adults up...and that includes me, of course. So I did the best form I could (no video, sorry), but (a) I was second up, never good, and (b) there were two sam dans in my division, so yeah...jinte (read: jindo) vs. kong son deh, doesn't fare so well, especially when your feet hurt from sitting down so long. But I'm not complaining. I didn't place, but at least I know I wasn't the worst.
long hours later...around 2:00pm - break in competition for the "halftime" demonstration. I had been holding boards for the midget competitors for the last, oh, hour or so, so I was glad to get back to the bleachers. Also, my mother had arrived with Subway...an hour ago...so I was able to eat lunch.
...>_<....maybe 4:30-ish? 5:00-ish? Finally, time for black belt men's breaking. I'd been prepping this whole past year for this moment. If you recall, last year I got second place with (a) downward elbow strike through three boards, (b) spinning jump round kick through one board, and (c) flying side kick over three people through two boards. The guy who did a flip kick last year was absent, so I felt a sigh of relief. But it wasn't easy. This year, I added a second board to my spinning jump round kick. I was lucky in two areas, though: (1) I'd been conditioning my left instep for the past year, and (2) I prayed right before I had to break. That second one is the major factor, I'm convinced. Anyway, the elbow strike was easy, after having done it last year, but they held the board a bit too low for the jump round kick (after I placed it high for them), so I missed the first time. After they raised it a bit, though, the second try was a smash hit, pun intended. Also, there weren't enough people handy for me to jump over anybody, so I just told them to imagine there were three people in front of the boards for my flying side kick. I never have trouble breaking that one, so I ended with a smash.
A couple things I forgot to do during the break: (1) Knowing I couldn't jump over anyone, I got a bit flustered. (2) I bowed and asked for permission to break at least twice, in various orders... (3) I forgot, in several locations, where I'd planned to stop, go into hugul jase, and kihap, most notably at the end. Granted, I was thinking more about having finished the break, and landing on the ground, but it annoyed me.
Anyway, I got first place, and I thank God again that all my foot suffered were a few scrapes and a bit of bruising which doesn't hurt as much anymore. That is, this is what my foot looked like after going through two boards with the instep:
http://a902.ac-images.myspacecdn.com/images01/119/l_cbaf1c2233970b3288e28e81654086d5.jpg
So yeah...great time, great fun, and a huge trophy! w00t!
For those interested, they're held every year on the first weekend in May, and next year we'll be back in the old location, with more room and better seating.
Tang Soo!
Video: http://myspacetv.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=33541663
So here's my breakdown of the day:
7:45 - arrived at Trees Hall, U. of Pittsburgh, right across from the place where we usually hold tournaments. This year, though, that building is under renovation, so we had to move to a slightly smaller space. What saved it from being even more crowded than usual was that this year, only people who studied MDK-type styles, both TSD and TKD, were allowed. So fewer people, smaller space...about evened out in the end.
8:30 or so - got my boards, all seven of them, and got myself seated next to one of the others from my dojang. I'd brought along a six pack of Dasani bottles and a box of Twinkies (which I'm finishing at the moment) for nourishment, until lunch.
9:00...roughly - opening ceremonies, opening speeches, horribly long waiting.
somewhere around 10:00 - after the masters division of forms, it was black belt adults up...and that includes me, of course. So I did the best form I could (no video, sorry), but (a) I was second up, never good, and (b) there were two sam dans in my division, so yeah...jinte (read: jindo) vs. kong son deh, doesn't fare so well, especially when your feet hurt from sitting down so long. But I'm not complaining. I didn't place, but at least I know I wasn't the worst.
long hours later...around 2:00pm - break in competition for the "halftime" demonstration. I had been holding boards for the midget competitors for the last, oh, hour or so, so I was glad to get back to the bleachers. Also, my mother had arrived with Subway...an hour ago...so I was able to eat lunch.
...>_<....maybe 4:30-ish? 5:00-ish? Finally, time for black belt men's breaking. I'd been prepping this whole past year for this moment. If you recall, last year I got second place with (a) downward elbow strike through three boards, (b) spinning jump round kick through one board, and (c) flying side kick over three people through two boards. The guy who did a flip kick last year was absent, so I felt a sigh of relief. But it wasn't easy. This year, I added a second board to my spinning jump round kick. I was lucky in two areas, though: (1) I'd been conditioning my left instep for the past year, and (2) I prayed right before I had to break. That second one is the major factor, I'm convinced. Anyway, the elbow strike was easy, after having done it last year, but they held the board a bit too low for the jump round kick (after I placed it high for them), so I missed the first time. After they raised it a bit, though, the second try was a smash hit, pun intended. Also, there weren't enough people handy for me to jump over anybody, so I just told them to imagine there were three people in front of the boards for my flying side kick. I never have trouble breaking that one, so I ended with a smash.
A couple things I forgot to do during the break: (1) Knowing I couldn't jump over anyone, I got a bit flustered. (2) I bowed and asked for permission to break at least twice, in various orders... (3) I forgot, in several locations, where I'd planned to stop, go into hugul jase, and kihap, most notably at the end. Granted, I was thinking more about having finished the break, and landing on the ground, but it annoyed me.
Anyway, I got first place, and I thank God again that all my foot suffered were a few scrapes and a bit of bruising which doesn't hurt as much anymore. That is, this is what my foot looked like after going through two boards with the instep:
http://a902.ac-images.myspacecdn.com/images01/119/l_cbaf1c2233970b3288e28e81654086d5.jpg
So yeah...great time, great fun, and a huge trophy! w00t!
For those interested, they're held every year on the first weekend in May, and next year we'll be back in the old location, with more room and better seating.
Tang Soo!
