True Taekwondo

Sorry it took me so long to post this.

A couple weeks back a good friend of mine invited me to attend a training seminar taught by Hee Il Cho.  Growing up, Hee Il Cho was a man I admired.  He was the dude from "Best of the Best" and "Bloodsport", he was the dude who could throw pieces of wood up in the air and then break them with a jump spin kick.  He was the man who said what he believed, and then acted on it, no matter what others may think.  He was one of the few "traditional" kwanjangnim enlightened enough to see the benefits of cross-training, incorporating boxing and ground fighting into his system.  He wasn't afraid of full-contact in a time when everyone else was playing "tag karate".

So, I leapt at the chance to train with him, even at the expense of quitting my job.  The trip up to Pittsburg for the training, as well as a friend's birthday party, and the chance to spend time with friends was well worth it.

The Bald Guy himself with friend Jasmine Cho.  For once, I don't have that evil red demon eye thing going on.  I suppose I have Miss Jasmine to thank for that.

After dinner, we went to Master Philip Ameris' dojang outside Pittsburg.  I was struck by two things upon arrival.  The first was the friendliness of all involved, especially the senior black belts.  Jasmine introduced us to "Uncle Philip" right away, who extremely glad to see us there and immediately escorted us into the group picture, front and center.  We were greeted and introduced time and time again to senior black belts, who went out of their way to make us feel welcome.  Cho-kwanjangnim's students had traveled very far for this rare East Coast seminar, and it was readily apparent that they all considered themselves one family.  I was asked several times which dojang I was from, and when the only answer I had was "I'm a friend of Jasmine's", that was more than enough to include myself and Mike into their "family".

I suppose I'm going off on a tangent, but I've experienced the cold aloofness of so many in the WTF, the "Korean FOB Grandmasta" attitude that many seem to have.  I've sat by and watched the partisan bickering of the Dangsoodo community.  There was none of that here.  The welcome was genuine.  Mike and I, outsiders, were escorted front and center of their organization's group picture, standing behind Cho-kwanjangnim and his daughter.  I was more than ready to stand out of the picture, but several of the senior black belts wouldn't allow it.  How many other dojang or group would do that?

The second thing that struck me was the senior black belts themselves.  The majority of modern Taekwondo is a child's game.  While there was a horde of children, Cho-kwanjangnim's senior black belts were mostly a large group a well-muscled, "hard-core" men.  I could easily see any of them working the door.  They had the kind of look you usually see in men who study JKD; cops, bouncers, infantry guys...but these mean were studying TKD, not JKD.  I suppose one way of gauging the effectiveness of a master's teachings is by who comes to learn from him.

Jasmine took Mike and I inside and introduced us to her father.  Now, my impressions of Cho-kwanjangnim come almost entirely from his movies.  In "Best of the Best" he is the hardcore badass coach of the Korean national TKD team, where he puts his team through training like making them do two step push-ups while wacking them with a jokgum.  I half expected this seminar to be like that.  There are those in the TKD community and the KMA community in general who have bashed Cho-kwanjangnim, calling him a show boat, arrogant, etc.  So I had no idea what to expect, but with a daughter like Jazz, he had to be a nice guy, right?

Right?

I'll put to silence all the naysayers right now.  Hee Il Cho is one of the most humble and genuine men I have ever met.  His love for his family of students showed throughout the whole seminar and his love his art was apparent in every move he made.  I have seldom seen such perfect technique.

We opened with a meditation led by Cho-kwanjangnim.

Mike, sitting back with the blue belts.  I had brought a white belt I was going to wear to honor tradition, but Jasmine would hear nothing of the sort.  She vouched for me and I was seated with the black belts.

Cho-kwanjangnim leading the warm-ups.

Master Ameris in the foreground, and you can see my baldness in there performing an out-block.  The majority of the seminar was hardcore kibonki, a great workout, and a chance to gain an understanding of the basics of Cho-kwanjangnim's system.  I was very impressed at its simplicity and effectiveness, as well as the manner of Cho-kwanjangnim's instruction.  While I had to make a few adjustments to my technique, I felt right at home technically as much as I did emotionally.  As for Master Ameris, he is as hard as they come. He is also exceptionally friendly, and invited me to come train any time I'm in Pittsburg visiting.

White amid a sea of black, I stuck out pretty well.

Cho-kwanjangnim prepares to move.  His kicks were amazing; simple and strong.  Let anyone who says TKD kicking isn't effective step up.

Me, throwing a left reverse punch.

Jasmine from behind, performing a low block as she waits for Cho-kwanjangnim to finish the next move.

Mike looking confused, Jasmine with a smile assuring she's going to take you down, and me looking bald...I mean bad.

The candid shot.  Mike still looks confused.  Jazz and I with the evil red eye...

Mike and I with Cho-kwanjangnim.  After almost two hours of non-stop training, we sat down and listened to Cho-kwanjangnim preach a sermon from the gospel of Taekwondo.  I heard so many of my own thoughts and even more of the teachings of my own master echoed in his words.  From his practical fighting art, Cho-kwanjangnim showed his students how to find practical ways of living.

Overall, it was an amazing experience, and I'm thankful for the chance to meet one of my childhood idols.

I'm convinced.  Hee Il Cho has true Taekwondo.