Next time you don’t attend classes, make sure you have an excuse that you can justify. And remember, you don’t have to justify it to anybody else... just yourself!
Change of course date
Due to a number of students having prior commitments on the date we originally set for our course with Iain Abernethy, we have agreed with Sensei Abernethy to change the date of it. The new course date is Saturday 30th August 2008. We apologise for any confusion/inconvenience that this change of date will cause.
Monday (Pendeen) Adult Classes
After a lot of careful consideration, I have made the difficult decision not to run any more adult classes at the Centre of Pendeen on Monday nights.
I didn’t make the decision lightly, but with attendance levels being not only low but also very variable (somewhere between 0-4 adults per class), I didn’t feel that this class was either viable to me, or beneficial to the students any longer.
Karate classes require spirit and enthusiasm, and this is difficult to achieve (both as an instructor, and as a student) when attendance levels are low. Not only that, but irregular attendance levels makes it impossible to plan and structure classes properly.
I didn’t feel happy having people pay me for classes which they simply weren’t making use of, so I felt that closing the adult class at Pendeen was the best option. Students who wish to commit to learning Karate can attend our well-supported classes at the Penzance Leisure Centre; these are held at a better time for most adults, being later in the evening. Students who are unable to commit for whatever reason can cancel their standing orders (where applicable) and will receive a full-refund for any advance payments that they have made.
I hope that the few adult students who attended the Pendeen classes will understand my decision, and appreciate that I did not make it lightly, but rather after many months of careful consideration. I hope that as many of you as possible will continue attending our classes, but this time in Penzance.
Please note that the cadet (under 16) classes at Pendeen remain unaffected. Similarly, the adult classes at Penzance will all also continue as before.
The class times/venue section of this website has now been updated to reflect these changes.
Hanshi Paul Mitchell Course
Samurai Karate’s World Chief Instructor, Sensei (Hanshi) Paul Mitchell, is visiting the UK in May 2008.
Sensei Mitchell was a long time student of Sensei Kimura, and was awarded his Shihan by Sensei Tani. Sensei Mitchell has a wealth of knowledge about the style of Shukokai Karate, and - as such - his courses are a fantastic learning experience for both students and instructors alike.
The course venues are typically centred around Samurai Karate’s Honbu Dojo (headquarters) in Hereford. Although a fair distance away from Penzance, the experience gained is well worth the travel.
Further details of the course will be posted on the website shortly. Please speak to Sensei Kevin if you would like to attend any of the course dates.
Hanshi Paul Mitchell.
Grading (Karate Examination)
Our next grading is scheduled for Thursday 24th April 2008, and will be held at the Penzance Leisure Centre. Usual classes will not take place on this date, as it will likely take the full three-hours that classes normally last for (if not longer) to properly grade everybody.
Please note that this grading will be only for students grading up to and including Purple belt (4th Kyu). Students wishing to grade above Purple belt must be graded by the Southwest Chief Instructor. We will shortly be organising some trips to Exeter for higher-grade students to receive some pre-grading feedback from the Southwest Chief Instructor, so please “watch this space” if you are interested in attending.
Adult Meal
On Sunday 9th March 2008, adult students from Samurai Karate Cornwall’s classes enjoyed a pleasant meal at the Dynasty Cantonese restaurant near Perranuthnoe, Penzance. The meal was something of a belated Christmas party for the adult students, as various circumstances meant that it was not possible to hold such an event in December.
The evening was enjoyable, with everyone taking full advantage of the “all-you-can-eat” special menu (perhaps one table more than the other, though!).
It’s A Baby!
After what felt like an age (9 months... seemed like an unnecessarily long time!), Sensei Kevin’s first baby was born.
Alyssa Kayleigh was born on the 16th December 2007 at 9.11am, weighing a hefty 8lbs 6oz! Mum (Rachel) and baby Alyssa were both in good health and excellent spirits!
Thank you to everybody who kindly sent their best wishes and, in several cases, some lovely presents. Your generosity is very much appreciated.
Having a kick on the changing mat (kicking in the Dojo to start soon!).
Having a cuddle with Daddy.
Alyssa looking for enlightenment in the Zen garden at the Japanese Gardens and Bonsai Nursery in Newquay (www.thebonsainursery.com). After meditating, she had a vision of a bottle of milk!
Having problems remembering katas?
Andy Chellew, one of our most senior (in terms of grade... he’s not as old as he might claim!) adult students, is not only talented at Karate but is also a very talented artist!
He has recently prepared a series of colourful “Manga-style” comic guides, each one showing the moves of the Pinan katas as we practice them. Andy has also prepared guides for some of the more advanced katas such as Matsukaze, Jiin and Annanku.
Andy is selling these guides for £3.00 each, which is a bargain and only really covers his time and printing costs. They would be a great way to encourage cadet students to practice their katas, as well as a useful aide-memoir for adult students.
If you would like a copy of any of Andy’s guides, please either speak directly to him, or ask Sensei Kevin.
Grading (Karate Examination)
Well done to all of the students who took a grading in November 2007. With large numbers participating, the gradings took a long time to get through, however students impressively remained focussed throughout their gradings, and demonstrated a high standard of technique.
At the end of the grading, all students were given feedback on how they did and what they should focus on improving in preparation for their next grading. If students want to achieve their maximum potential, it is important that students take note of this advice and focus on these areas during their training.
The grades awarded to each student were as follows:
Red Belt (9th Kyu)
Brandon Riggs, Lily Irwin, Billy Cook, Jack Baylis, Ellie Summers, Sierra Riggs, Kim Long, Kai Summers, Jack Douglas.
Yellow Belt (8th Kyu)
Tomaz O’Donoghue, Jack Edwards, Eva Edgeworth, Cameron Bloor, Jess Whitakker, Stephen Brown, Darragh Edgeworth, Felix McCrossen-Sadler, Thomas Baylis, Aaron Dobson, Dan Turner, Chris Savery, Jack Gordon, .
White Belt Orange Stripe (7 1/2th Kyu)
Dewey Healey, Ben Thomas.
Orange Belt (7th Kyu)
Tanesha McCreadie, ALexander Kerr, Ashlea Evans, Craig Lowndes-Castle, Carmen Scrase, Bradley Beare, Thomas Teiken, Frankie Lanni, Naomi Lowndes Castle, Bryher SMith, Georgie Irwin, Eli Donnithorne.
White Belt Green Stripe (6 1/2th Kyu)
N/A.
Green Belt (6th Kyu)
Aiden Goddard, Annie Thomas, Aaron Dunkley, Poppy Felton, William Prowse, Joe Manley, Cameron Clarke, Louise Jay, James Prowse, Charlotte Jay, Kevin Hancocks, Marcia Hosken, Peter Blackabey, Elizabeth Jay, Kane STephenson.
White Belt Blue Stripe (5 12/th Kyu)
Scott Chellew, Nathaniel Wilson, Robert Blackabey.
Blue Belt (5th Kyu)
N/A.
Purple Belt (4th Kyu)
Bob Jay, Francis Reynolds, Paul Riggs.
2007 Christmas Party
Samurai Karate Cornwall recently held a Christmas training session for its cadet (under 16) students.
During the session, the 50 students who attended were taught a kata (pre-arranged series of techniques) called Sanchin. Sanchin kata was traditionally practiced in Japan to develop the ability to breathe correctly and tense the muscles of the body to absorb blows and become immovable when attacked. Sensei Kevin Cooke demonstrated the effectiveness of the kata by inviting a senior adult student to strike him with a full contact punch to the body. Not only was Sensei Kevin unmoved by the blow, he also emerged from it totally unhurt and continued teaching the class as if nothing had happened!
After the training session, the achievements of the best students from Samurai Karate's Penzance, St Just and Pendeen classes were recognised at a special award ceremony. Awards were given for confidence, improvement, hard work, good behaviour, excellent spirit, and good technique. Daniel Britton, aged 8 and a student at the Pendeen classes, won the much sought-after student of the year award, in recognition of all of his hard work and enthusiasm over the previous 12 months. Students were asked for a £1.50 donation in return for attending the training session, however a total of £100 was actually received. This entire amount was donated to Samurai Karate Cornwall's nominated charity, the Children's Hospice Southwest. Sensei Kevin would like to thank all of the students who generously made a donation to attend the training session. He would also like to congratulate all of the cadet students, not just those who won awards on the day.
Sensei Terry Wingrove Seminar
Sensei Terry Wingrove of Karate Jutsu International traveled to Penzance in September 2007 to teach a thought-provoking seminar on Karate Jutsu, the original form of Karate which was commonly practised before karate’s post-WWII “sanitisation”.
The course was well attended by students from Samurai Karate Cornwall’s clubs, as well as by students from other Karate clubs of all different styles (Shukokai/Shito-Ryu, Wado-Ryu, Shotokan, etc) from across Cornwall..
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