A Little About MTC Operations, Testing and Questions in General

Each Taekwondo Class has its own flavor, but we do follow a rough guideline each month when devising each class curriculum.  Each month we use the 3rd week to teach self defense techniques, which in the beginning are based on simple escape and evasion techniques then progress to eventually fully incorporate Hapkido and Judo techniques.  We also strive to have Tip Tests on the last class day every month.  To maintain a flow and a sensitivity to the greater schedule of life outside the dojang we sometimes adjust these dates to fit better into life's flow.  For instance: the August tip tests were shifted to not add any additional stress to the first day of school for so many.

Our guidelines for testing and tips say that one should have 2 tips before testing for the next rank.  This is to hopefully keep students on pace to test roughly every 3 months.  To keep individual growth constant, we recommend keeping close to this schedule, but if there are questions about this please do not hesitate to ask.

In fact, please feel free to bring us your questions, comments and concerns about any subject-we value any opportunity to make your family's Taekwondo experience more meaningful.

Big Sky State Games Results

Big Sky State Games Results on July 18th:

Austin Graef Gold in Poomse and Gold in sparring
Rachel Schmidt Gold in Poomse and Gold in sparring
Austin James Gold in sparring
Kyle bronze in Poomse and silver in sparring
Ryan Cagle Gold in sparring
Mr Parks Gold in Poomse and Bronze in sparring
Mrs Hammond silver Poomse

At the Big Sky State Games Judo was held in the same gym and two of our athletes competed for the first time in Judo....

Ryan Cagle 4th Judo.

Winter Judo Camp - one Perspective

What a great camp!!
"I don’t want to drive over there alone, I don’t want to be the only girl, I’m too old….." There are several excuses I tried. Thankfully, Mr. Rosbarsky struck them down as I said them. I am so glad I didn’t miss this opportunity.

Besides the nice accommodations and good food, the people are amazing. They came from all over the state and seemed to all know each other already, but it didn’t take long to feel a part of something great.

After dinner and introductions on Friday night, we listened to a lecture from Grand Master Park, Grand Master Fujiwara and Master Martin. They spoke of the Way of martial arts & life and they gave their testimonies of their journeys. They are very humble and thankful men. It was an honor to get to know these men better.

Saturday, we ate and then went on a drive to spot critters and saw several white tail deer. We got back to camp and gathered our gear for our Judo training. We took the bus to the training site near Elkhorn Hot Springs. We then made our way up to the pristine field where the snow was untouched. That didn’t last long as we started into the field. The first step sunk the line leader down to the hip. After forming our line and stomping out a suitable sized outdoor Dojo, we stretched and partnered up. Thankfully I was wearing a black cap or I may have been too camouflaged to find in the snow with my white gi and white belt. We worked on piggy backs first and then Ippon Seoinage , Morote Seoinage , Osoto Gari, O Goshi , Hane Goshi and Tai Otoshi . Between the two sessions, we gained valuable instruction and practice. The snow was soft to land on even softer than the blue mats at the Dojang. Footwork became more difficult with the snow conditions, but we kept on going.

The Hot Springs was a lot of fun. Many people soaked in the warmth while the others volleyed a ball around until we finally got 171 straight hits. That must be a Hot Springs record.

Dinner was great. We had prime rib, salad, rice and kimchee if you dared. The talent show followed. Not only are these people talented at Judo, but they can also sing, play instruments, act and tell jokes. As for me, I will not give up my day job, but it was a neat experience anyway.

The Missoula Team came in second place in Yut (a Korean "Sorry" game using sticks).

Grand Master Park instructed us for a third session on Sunday because he "liked us". :) We worked on footwork. It was a lot different than the deep snow we were in the day before. The temperature was probably 65 degrees warmer in the building too. It was a great work out. You know it is good when your legs shake after you’re done. It was awesome.

We said our goodbyes and went on our way. The Navigator buzzed with talk about the camp, next year’s plans, lessons learned, and the people we met. We all came out of the camp with the same lessons and some of our own. I was reminded that you need to "seize" the opportunities when you can. They are not always available. And that age is not an excuse to quit or not try. Martial Arts is a way of life not a hobby for a season. Do you have any excuses?
Kim

PS. It is probably best to do surprise attacks when dunking people, however it is not recommended to "surprise attack" Masters in Taekwondo.

To See More Pictures, Click Here

Judo Winter Camp

The Judo Winter Camp put on by Master Martin Martin and taught by Grand Master Jae Ho Park (our Grandmaster) is being held once again in Southwest Montana.

This is a fabulous opportunity for our Red and Black Belt Students who are 16 years old and older to experience Grand Master Park's teaching and the company of other high ranking Martial Artists from our region.

Winter Camp is held near Elk Horn Hot Springs which is near Wisdom, Montana. This years' accommodations will be at the Clark Canyon Bible Camp Facilities. Campers will arrive on Friday evening. The Judo seminar will take place Saturday morning to be followed by a trip to soak at Elk Horn Hot Springs. Transportation will be provided from the Camp to the training area and the Hot Springs and back to the Camp. There are Saturday night activities and Sunday Morning Activities. Campers will depart Sunday late morning.

They have costs estimated around $75 for the camp, lodging and food. This is a great opportunity not only because of the highly economical cost and great instruction, but most importantly, this is an opportunity to learn from and "just be" with our Grand Master. He is a phenomenal Martial Artist and a truly remarkable human being.

We urge all who fit the requirements to attend this camp and those who are too young or not yet a high enough belt level to keep this on your list of things to do in future years.

from the desk of Mrs. Rosbarsky