Yepper. That’s right. Tonight I’ll be testing for my next belt, red with brown stripe. From there it’s just a chop, kick and a jump to a black belt. Weeeeeellll, actually it’s a few years of training to black belt, but still. . .Yippie for me.
Hey, where and what style do you train? I go to Midwest Karate in St. Paul, studying Shotokan karate from sensei Ertl. I started at Midwest in Minneapolis, training with the Fusaros.
…Snatch this pebble from my hand, grasshopper…
Good luck. I remember the days when I was involved in martial arts. The tests were fun. Expecially going up against the instructors in sparring matches. Nothing teaches humility better than getting your ass kicked by someone who appears to be hardly trying.
Good luck racer.
<gets nosey> So, have you competed in any tournaments? Open or closed? Or is it more of a self-defense/get-in-shape kinda thing?
Just curious. Again, good luck. 
Ethilrist, I attend National Karate school in uptown Mpls, which offers a very Americanized version of Tae Kwan Do. I tend to get a little defensive of my school cause lots of people kinda look down on it because it is so Americanized (we bow and use only a few Korean phrases), but I really like the emphasis on self defense. I have been to tests at a traditional TWD school, but frankly, I like mine better. And FTR, I can hold my own at an open tourney.
QuickSilver Thats what the lower belts are for! To get an inflated sense of self esteem before getting smacked down by an instructer who doesn’t even pretend to try.
Good Luck!
Kick names and take ass. No, wait. Take a kicking and name your ass. No, wait…hell, you know what I mean.
Well I take Tiger Schulmann’s Karate, you can’t get much more americanized than that. I know what you mean by people looking down on it and you being defensive. I’m the same way. My friend who took Shorin-Ryu karate calls it the “McDonalds of Karate”. I don’t care. I like it, and the higher up belts do well at tournaments (I saw my Shorin-Ryu friend at a tournament once and he got his ass beat). I just got my second stripe on my blue belt. After 4 stripes I can try for the yellow belt (20 more classes). Belt Order: White, Blue, Yellow, Green, Red, Brown, Black in case you were wondering. I’m still a beginner.
I forgot to put the Congratulations! in there.
CONGRATULATIONS!!!
By the way, Tommy the Cat, see here for help.
Belt order at my school:
White, yellow, green, purple, blue, red stripe, red, brown stripe, brown, black stripe, double black stripe, black.
Although, they just changed the format and added a few lower belts.
Simetra I’ve been to both open and closed tourneys, and I tend to do better at the open ones. Go fig. I haven’t been to any in a while cause I broke my ankle right before the Diamond Nationals, in September. I don’t really like tournaments because I get so nervous, but the people I talk to all say that the good karate students are ones that frequently participate in tourneys, so I go.
Thanks c-goat, and keep kickin.
I’ve seen a lot of other-school-bashing, and it never fails to mystify me. I can kind of understand how, if two schools have exactly the same mission (winning tournaments or self-defense, for example), but one school consistently kicks ass over the other, that’s kind of justification for saying one’s better than the other.
However, that’s a pretty limited way of looking at a martial art, considering how much time, energy, and pain people put into it.
For belts, our school uses white, orange, orange, green, purple, purple, brown, brown, brown, black. Back in the 40’s, it was just white, brown, black. People would train for years before their first test. Once it came across to the US, it was decided that us gaijin needed a carrot on a stick to keep us going, I guess, so they shoved a bunch more levels into the mix.
I don’t know much about karate, but I’m all for giving avdice. Mine to you is:
Try not to miss any belt loops, racerx!
Ethilrist, I’d heard about there only being white and black belts back in the day. I think Americans definately need that belt gratification because the Martial Arts are very challanging don’t traditionally have many forms of student recognition. 'Sept a’course being able to beat people up. . .
Thanks for the advice, Dr. J! 
Must be a very Americanized version. Where I went it was spelled Tae Kwon Do;)
G/L on the test. I trained a few years ago and got up to 1st Dan, 8th gup (read: a bit past 1st degree black belt). But then I had to go awaaay to school and I couldn’t train. I think I’d have to start around green belt if I wanted to start up again.
I was reading this thread about Karate and it inspired me enough to register so I could respond, so be kind this is my first attempt. I recently, about 6 months ago, got my black belt at the National Karate studio in Hastings. It was one of the greatest things I think i’ve ever done. So good luck with your test, and stick with it as long as you can.
good luck, and remember to have fun.
I was Chan Don-bo Nym at my Kuk Sool Won school, till my instructor changed styles… then kids got in the way…
sigh
Someday I’ll belt in something… I’m looking for a good Kung-Fu/Wu Shu school that has daytime classes…
The school is called National Karate and yet it teaches, Tae Kwon Do. . .you can kinda see how Americanized it is.
Hey night, welcome! Congrats on the black belt! They aren’t easy to get.