This post is the first part of a two-part post. You can read part two here.
My journey through Kuk Sool and the inspirational figures whom I have looked up to along the way have influenced my life and development massively, and a huge part of who I am is owed to this. Approaching my twentieth anniversary of training in Kuk Sool, I thought it would be fitting to look back and reflect on my martial arts journey so far, as without this journey and the experiences I have gained throughout, the timid 5-year-old I was twenty years ago certainly would not have developed into the confident 25-year-old that I am today.
In Kuk Sool, it is customary to greet your instructors and classmates with a bow, mirroring the culture of South Korea (Kuk Sool’s country of origin). It was this custom which my dad observed from his friend Ashley at the end of 2004, which prompted him to ask what on Earth that was all about. After all, it’s not every day you see a grown man bowing to another grown man in the streets of twenty-first century Britain. As it turns out, my dad’s friend was a Black Belt in a martial art called Kuk Sool Won, and he was greeting his instructor to whom they’d run into.
In January 2005, my dad decided to take me along to the local Sports Centre one Saturday morning; he’d found out that the club had recently started running a new beginners class for children aged five and up called the Tiny Dragons class, and so we went along to see what it was all about. I remember vividly that when we arrived, we were met by a group of seemingly well-disciplined students of a similar age to me, all lining up outside the door to a small practise hall. As it got to 10am, a friendly face appeared at the door to let the students into the hall. We made ourselves known to him, and he introduced himself as KSN Jon Denny, the instructor for the class (KSN meaning Second Degree Black Belt), before inviting us to take a seat at the back of the room. I remember being wowed by the kids on the mats, and – although I was only watching – I remember KSN Jon involving me in class discussions too which made me feel welcomed.
The next week, we returned again, and this became my Saturday morning routine from that point onward: wake up, have some breakfast, catch Dick and Dom on the telly, and then head to Kuk Sool.
At first, I was extremely nervous to join in. It even got to the point where KSN Jon didn’t want us to keep paying to come along, because I just wasn’t joining in! Weeks passed, and my dad finally cracked how to get me on the mats. He offered me 50p if I stepped onto the mats, and that I did; I stepped on the mats for a fraction of a second, and took my seat again. Maybe I was cut out to be an entrepreneur, because I continued to rack up funds for a few more weeks (or maybe it’s just because I have a brilliant dad who didn’t want to let me give up). After some time, my dad’s persistence in bringing me along finally paid off as I began to join in with the classes, and the rest became history.
Whilst in the tiny dragons class, I have quite a few fond memories. One of the earliest was when the instructor went on holiday for a week and I got to meet another one of the instructors, PSBN David (PSBN meaning Third Degree Black Belt). Dave took our classes in Jon’s absence, and when Jon returned, we were promised something of a special demonstration – and that’s exactly what we got. Both Jon and David showed off some of the higher level stuff in Kuk Sool that we would have in years to come, but the highlight of the show was when David jumped over Jon’s head. I don’t know what was more impressive, the fact that he had cleared the height of another person, or that he’d done so without hitting what was a very low ceiling. I can still see it clearly in my head after all these years, as it has to be one of the most impressive things I’ve ever seen!
Another early memory I have of the tiny dragons class was when our school owner, PKJN Martin (PKJN meaning Fifth Degree Black Belt and Master) took our class one Saturday morning. Master Martin’s style of teaching was different to Jon’s – a little more old school as I now understand it; a little more hardcore as it were. I was so scared of Master Martin that I was stood in line training, but in tears. I cried to much that at one point I had to run off the mats, making a dart for the toilets at the back of the room where I threw up!
My earliest memory of being recognised for the effort I was putting into my training occured in the tiny dragons class too. I don’t remember the specifics, but we were challenged with demonstrating a particular technique or move, and one of the assistant instructors was asked to choose the student who was best at it. The assistant instructor was a young lady named Rachel (I don’t remember her last name), but I do remember that she chose me and I got to go home with a red and blue Kuk Sool headband which still sits proudly on display almost two decades later, hanging from my bookshelf.
I achieved my Yellow Belt after almost a year of training, and soon after came my grading for blue stripe. The stripe gradings serve as a halfway checkup to the next belt, so my blue stripe grading was the instructors’ chance to make sure I was on track to achieving my Blue Belt in another three-months-time. Why am I mentioning this? I’m mentioning it, because this is the grading I remember more than any other. This is the first grading I failed. I was only given one of my blue stripes instead of the two that I had tested for, and was made to re-test a couple of weeks later after I had received additional instruction on the content I wasn’t up to scratch with. I did get my second blue stripe after those couple of weeks though, which felt great after having to work that little bit extra for.
When I achieved Blue Belt, I was invited to graduate from the Tiny Dragons class and move up to the regular children’s class. This meant accelerating my training to twice-a-week, on Monday and Friday evenings. It felt good to be moving up and integrating more with the rest of the practitioners. Training in the kids’ class was absolutely fantastic. The regular instructor was Master Martin, the man I’d once been scared of but whose toughness I’d learnt to appreciate as it made training more fun, and it encouraged me to train harder. I also came to realise that actually he wasn’t that scary at all!
Whilst in the kids’ class, I made some great friends. I found a regular training partner named Billy, and when he eventually ended up leaving, I began to train with his older brother Adam. I also managed to develop a bit of Kuk Sool fame within the Lowestoft and Halesworth schools because it turned out I could jump quite high. Master Martin recognised this and it led to a move being named after me: the Shay-change. I still remember being approached by a few of the Brown Belts in the next class up, the advanced juniors’ class, who asked me to demonstrate it because they’d been hearing all about it. That felt good!
One of the things I miss most about those days and being in the kids’ class was the atmosphere. Every class was tough, and we trained so hard. We all left absolutely drenched in sweat, and it was just brilliant. At the end of every class, there was a student creed that we’d chant, and we’d be in competition with the advanced juniors to see who was loudest. They’d be lined up along the side of the room looking absolutely awesome, waiting for our class to end and theirs to begin, and we’d be competitively chanting:
- I will develop myself in a positive manner, and avoid anything that will reduce my mental growth or physical health, Sir!
- I will develop self-discipline in order to bring out the best in myself and others, Sir!
- I will use what I learn in class constructively and defensively, to help myself and others and never to be abusive or offensive, Sir!
- We are a Black Belt school! We are motivated; we are dedicated; we are on a quest to be our best. Kuk Sool!
The atmosphere during that was incredible; we could have blown the roof off of the place! The student creed went away quite a few years ago now, so I’m writing that from a very distant memory, but one which is so clear due to the sheer quantity of times we chanted it. The fourth part was reserved for Brown Belts and above, so we had to sit and listen in awe as only the advanced kids shouted that one. Man, did that make me want to be where they were.
My training continued to progress well in the kids’ class. I got to the penultimate rank before moving up to the next class, when I got quite unwell with glandular fever and had to take a short period out of training as I spent a couple of nights in hospital, and then subsequently had to have my tonsils removed a short while after. I don’t remember clearly how long I had off, but I don’t think it was too long. A requirement for grading though is that you must train for at least 24 hours between gradings, equating to twelve-weeks’ worth of classes. I didn’t meet this requirement due to my absence and so my grading and promotion to Brown Belt was delayed very slightly. When I did eventually achieve this though, I was able to finally move up to the next class.
The advanced juniors’ class was run by SBN Kevin Cullen (SBN meaning Fourth Degree Black Belt), and I absolutely loved being in this class. After a little while, SBN Kev stepped down and my original instructor (a Fourth Degree Black Belt by this time), SBN Jon took over. Whilst in this class, I continued my progression toward Black Belt and in 2010 I completed my final test in front of Kuk Sa Nim, the grandmaster, toward my First Degree Black Belt. This came after testing for ten patience stripes over the course of a couple of years, and completing a written exam.
The testing was busy, as it wasn’t just for students in my class, it was for adults and children from various local Kuk Sool schools who were testing toward not just First Degree Black Belt, but also subsequent Black Belt ranks. At the end of the testing, we were asked to sit down and stand if our name was called, as this meant that we had passed. Listening to the master call out names from the list made some of the most anxious minutes of my life, but then I heard my name. I had done it. I has passed. I had achieved my Black Belt!
A week later, we travelled to Kings Lynn for the European Championships where I received my promotion in front of hundreds (or maybe even thousands) or other practitioners, Masters, Black Belts, and spectators. It was one of the proudest moments of my life.
You can read about my training as a Black Belt here.
