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HomeMy WebLinkAboutClinton News-Record, 1987-11-04, Page 19iZECiZE WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 1987 Locals getting kieks from karate By David Emslie Many people of all ages in Clinton and the surronding area are getting their kicks, and keeping fit by participating in Ron Tyndall's Karate School. Mr. Tyndall, a first degree black belt, has been studying karate for about 14 years. Although he started out studying Kung Fu, after about a year and a half of that martial art, he switched to studying the style of karate he currently teaches, Shorin Ryu. Taking most of his training in Goderich, Mr. Tyndall noted the switch to teaching a course wasn't too difficult because he was brought up within a club, and he was used to teaching., He didn't, however, make the jump straight into teaching after receiving his black belt. "The club sort of folded in Goderich, but I didn't want to take over. I decided to travel to Hamilton to get some knowledge. I thought, it (teaching) was always something I would do, but I thought I'd take a break and train elsewhere." After a year or so of this other training, Mr. Tyndall returned and ran a 10 week course in the martial arts. "It sort of blossomed from their into a club," he said. The club that blossomed from this course five or six years ago continues to run twice a week at the Goderich Township Hall in Holmesville. Approximatelya year and a half ago, another branch of the club opened in Exeter. Explaining that when he first started to study the art it wasn't very popular, Mr. Tyndall said when his club started, it caught on in popularity quickly, and he had a good turnout for his classes. Currently he has students of all ages, right from nine years old and up, studying under him. Although his classes are for both sexes, he said he has trouble getting women out to the sessions. About five women are now enrolled. One major change in karate participants over the years, he said, is that more children are getting into it now. When he began studying, it was in a clas§ with only adults, and he feels the influence of televi- sion might be responsible for some of the course's popularity with children. "I think people are badly mislead by T.V., ' he said, noting that what is seen on T.V. is the ability level some can reach. Although they can reach this level of abili- ty, the television shots are misleading because of the fancy work and camera angles, he added. Once the children join the club though, because of the glitter of television, or for different reasons, Mr. Tyndall feels it is good for them. "I get a lot of feedback from parents that it changes them. I think it's the respect thing. We teach them to wait. If kids are hyper or hard to handle, karate takes the energy out of them, and teaches them repsect," he said, adding that it also gives the kids something to work at, and concen- trate on. Although children in the course are fast learners, Mr. Tyndall has noticed their at- tention span is not too long in some cases. He feels that this obstacle can be over- come though. -They're quick learners if they have the drive. They learn very fast," he said. Aside from the younger students, Mr. Tyndall said people decide to join for a number of different reasons. The first reason most people will give for joining is to learn how to defend themselves. The next answer most commonly given for joining is that people want to get in shape. There are, however, some reasons aside from physical fitness and self defense. "Some join for self confidence, some join for self control, too," Mr. Tyndall said. He explained self control is enhanced if a per- son is hyper, or can't control their emo- Chanda Chilton (right) is one of only five women who take part in Ron Tyndall's karate classes. The classes are open to people of all ages, and both sexes, but Mr. Tyndall ex- plained he has trouble getting women out to participate. Here, Chanda demonstrates a punch on Jeff Clarke. (David Emslie photo) tions because karate settles them down, and makes them think. From Mr. Tyndall's remarks, one can notice that the study of karate is beneficial both physically and mentally. As an example of the mental benefits Mr. Tyndall discussed a kata, which is a series of moves against an imaginary op- ponent or opponents. This kata is similar to the gymnastics they do in the Olympics, he said, as it is a set routine, only it is done with punches, blocks and kicks. "If you think about the kata, it teaches you how to fight, it teaches you how to live. One learns the moves of kata, and it gives them something to work on and perfect," he said, adding that once a kata is perfected, a person feels they have ac- complished something, and feels good about themselves. Thus, karate has enhanced their mental image of themselves. According to the instructor, there are other ways in which a person can benefit mentally from karate. "The phsical side builds up self con- fidence. You know what you can do, and it allows you tho stick in there when things get tough. It gives a little more perserverance, then again, self control. All that's working on the mental ( side). That's what you get out of training." As Mr. Tyndall mentioned when speak- ing about children taking the course, respect also plays a large part in karate training. When entering the hall to train, known as the dojo, students are taught to bow in respect for the martial art which they are studying. Before performing a kata, they also bow in respect for the master that made up the kata. Within the class, students in the lower belts are taught to respect those in the higher stages for the knowledge they have gained. Those in the higher belts return this respect with compassion for the lower belts because they know what they have to go through to advance to the higher belts. According to Mr. Tyndall, this respect and compassion, "overflows into everday life." Those entering the course, and planning to work their way through the belts will progress from a white belt, and from there to yellow, orange, green, blue, brown and finally, black. The progression time from one belt to another is up to the individual, Mr. Tyndall said, but the average is six to nine months. "Anyone starting now as a beginner, in say four of five years could he a black belt, if they're serious about it," Mr. Tyndall explained, adding that the reason it took him seven years to reach this level was because he changed martial arts, and had different instructors over the years. When entering the course, the students are taught that karate can only be used for self defence, where their life is en- dangered. "We tell them right off, if they're caught using it outside the class, they're gone. Only in a life or death situa- tion must they use it," stated Mr. Tyndall. As an example of how the students should react in an aggressive situation, Mr. Tyndall set the scenario of a karate student being grabbed by someone at their high school. He said this student should tell the person to let go. He should repeat this request, then warn the person to let go or they are going to be hur c. After these three warnings, the karate student should give the aggressor one shot, not to the head pr face, and walk away. "There are a lot of cases, too, where you know you don't need to use it. You know you have the ability to hurt that person, so you don't have to use it because that per- son's not a threat," he said. He added that if a karate student is put in a situation where they have to use heir skills, they can block, rather than retaliate in anger because they are taught control. Aside from the warning to use their skills only' when warranted, the students are given three basic rules tc1 follow for the course. Mr. Tyndall feels if they follow these rules, they can't help but improve their skills. Their improvement depends on: 1. How hard they train; 2. How often they train; 3. How long they train. Students just beginning the course whould train twice a week, Mr. Tyndall ex- plained, but once they get into the colored belts practice is necessary three or four times a week depending on the student. As the course is aimed at people of all ages, and both sexes, Mr. Tyndall stressed students are able to work at their own speed, and at their own potential. A basic workout for the class begins with a quick warm up, before moving into exer- cises such as push-ups and sit-ups. Stret- ching then takes place, before the class begins going through the basics. This por- tion of the class can run for 30 or 40 minutes as the students run through all the blocks, kicks and punches they have learned. While Mr. Tyndall takes the class through this workout himself, once students reach the blue belt level, they become junior instructors, and can help out their teacher. Currently, the highest ranking student in Mr. Tyndall's school is a blue belt. This student began with the school as a white belt. Mr. Tyndall also has an assistant in- structor, Bruce Henderson, who began stu- dying the art at the same time. Mr. Henderson, however, left his studies for a while, and later joined Mr. Tyndall as a green belt. After progressing to the black belt level, Mr. Henderson began assisting Mr. Tyndall with his Exeter and Holmesville classes. The training provided by this duo has proven successful in the past, as students of the course do very well at tournaments. The students attend four big tournaments a year, as well as four smaller tour- naments in the area, and Mr. Tyndall said they usually come borne with some sort of award. Anyone interested in studying this mar- tial art should know that classes run every Monday and Wednesday night, from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at the Goderich Township Hall. The Exeter classes run from 7 to 8:30 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays at the South Huron Recreation Centre. For any parents who might like to enter their children in one of these courses, or join as a family, but are worried about in- juries, Mr. Tyndall pointed out that very few people get injured because of the con- ditioning students go through. "I've been in it for 14 years, and I think I might have broken a toe. I've had sore knuckles, and the usual bruises, but that's it," he concluded. SECOND SECTION DE1VID EMSLIE I met an interesting figure at a party the other night that some readers might recognize. His name was Brian Mulroney. All right, it wasn't actually the prime minister, but someone dressed up as him. Anyways, after he informed me that my taxes were going to go up, I was so flustered I forgot to ask him an impor- tant question about Canada's future. No, no, it has nothing to do with free trade, I'm talking about something really im- portant, the future of the Canadian Foot- ball League. Some may recall that I am a strong supporter of this league. I don't, like some people I know, consider the CFL to be semi -pro, or the training grounds for National Football League players. It is probably attitudes like those that are helping the league along to an early grave. And that seems to be exactly where they are heading with the extremely low attendance figures, and teams grappling to survive. There's something here I don't quite understand. Taking Toronto as an exam- .ple, we saw the Blue Jays pull in over two million fans this year. 'Then look to the Toronto Argonauts, who must be in their scraping the barrel with the rest of the league. So what's so great about the Blue Jays compared to the Argos? I mean, the Argos can choke just as well as the Jays, if not better. Then, or course, there is the case of football in Montreal, or the lack of it. The Expos must have enough support to stay around, but where are the football fans? I don't know what's wrong with Cana- dian football fans. There were more fans out at some of the scab games during the NFL strike then there are at regular CFL games. Could it be that four downs make the game more exciting? I doubt it. Like I've said before, who needs four downs to travel 10 metres ( or yards)? And it can't be that the games are too boring. You just have to check out the results from this past Sunday's games to see how exciting they were. All three games were won by one point. You can't get much closer than that. At least there is one semi -bright spot among the gloom that is hanging over the league. Many players have shown how strongly they feel for the Canadian game by agreeing to take pay cuts to help it along. I'd like -to see them try that one out in the States. It will be a real shame if this league has to fold. We can then say goodbye to something else that is uniquely Canadian. I guess all I can ask is for the league to stay together long enough for the Argos to win that Grey ('up just one more time. You never know, this could be the year. First, or course, they're going to have to get by their arch -rivals, the Hamilton Tiger -Cats. If they can squeak by the Ti -Cats without.going into the old choke, chances are they can take out the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. I'll keep my fingers crossed on this one, and also on the hope that the league will survive to play in Toronto's new dome stadium. A large part of each class at Ron Tyndall's Karate School is taken np with students prac- ticing the basics. Thirty or 40 minutes of the class is spent with practicing different blocks, ldcks and punches. (David Emslie photo) Ron Tyndall, left,has been studying karate for about 14 years. For the last five or six of those years he has been running a successful karate school at the Goderich Township Hall. He also opened one np in Exeter about one and a half years ago. In this photo, Mr. Tyndall demonstrates a side kick with the help of Don McPhee. (David Emslie photo)