What a fantastic Hapkido-filled weekend!

WOW! What a fantastic weekend!

It all began with the 5 Elements Seminar on Saturday.

5 hours of fun-filled Hapkido, there was something in this seminar for everyone. There were 38 students on the mats, the Dojang was buzzing with the fun and excitement of learning new techniques, of trying new stuff, of students at all levels able to play around with techniques they would otherwise not have gotten the chance to see, let alone practice!

There were takedowns and throws even white belts could try. There was pain enhancement and students were surprised that the techniques they had learnt could hurt even more with the application of 3 letters - T, L and/or C!

And once we had learnt how to enhance pain, we went through how to control pain, how to turn pain off! So easy and so effective - AWESOME!!

A personal favourite, we saw how easy it is to knock people out, with one of the Black Belts going down like a sack of spuds (yes, and all caught on film for later enjoyment!)

A highlight was the students of varying levels who lined up to feel what it was like to get knocked out, Master Geoff making his way through the crowd like the messiah healing people.

And ofcourse we finished up with Ki, every student getting to break a piece of wood using only Ki. Always a seminar favourite!

But that was only half the weekend!

Sunday was a Sun Bae training day for red belts and above. A great opportunity for senior belts to work through coloured belt syllabus material, the Black Belts to play with the new Black Belt syllabus, and senior students to spend some quality mat time with Master Geoff on their techniques.

There were 11 senior belts on the mats at the Sun Bae, and the training day was of huge benefit to every student in attendance.

Well done to those students who managed to do both days, no doubt today is a huge let down after a jam-packed Hapkido weekend like the one we just had!

What a brilliant weekend, what a fantastic way to kick off the IHA International Training Seminar!

For more photos from the fun-filled Hapkido weekend, click here.

The 5 Elements Seminar!

The 2009 ITS kicks off with the 5 Elements Seminar, its on this Saturday 28 March 2009 at CSD Moorebank.

The seminar runs for 5 full hours, from 12pm - 5pm with an hour spent on each of the 5 elements:


1. Earth - ground locking and takedowns
2. Water - throwing and breathing
3. Fire - pain enhancement and locking
4. Wind - wave techniques, movement and redirection
5. Void - mind over matter and Ki

This seminar is an opportunity for coloured belts to get exposure to techniques they would otherwise have to wait YEARS to see. And no doubt every student in attendance will see techniques they have NEVER seen before.

And just for added fun, we'll get to do Ki breaks on wood as part of the Void session!

So come along and join the fun! Don't miss out and regret it afterwards!

This Saturday from 12pm at CSD Moorebank. It's going to be awesome.

March grading congratulations

The Hapkido grading on Saturday (21st) that was held in the Moorebank Dojang was the first new style grading to be run. The new style of grading consisted of a junior belt grading (orange to green) and then straight after the senior belt grading (blue to red).

After focus, sweat, technique and quality, the following students have successfully graded and will progress to the next belt:

Harley - Red
Peter K - Red
Jane P - Blue
Brett W - Green
Tara B - Yellow

Congratulations
The CSD Team

2009 ITS T-Shirt Design Revealed!

Push me if you dare!

Exciting news just in...

The Limited Edition International Training Seminar (ITS) commemorative t-shirt design has just been revealed (see image below)!

Following the witty tongue-in-cheek style of the previous 2 designs, this t-shirt is the hottest thing in season!

To be eligible for the t-shirt you have to attend one of the official ITS Seminars which are listed on the back of the t-shirt.

The sexy t-shirt costs AUD 40 (USD 30 or € 25) and orders to international students will be delivered by Master Geoff while on tour.

For Australian students, to guarantee receipt of your t-shirt at the Australian ITS seminar (that's The 5 Elements Seminar on Saturday 28 March 2009), you have to order and pay for your t-shirt before Monday 23 March 2009.

Order now through your Regional Chief Instructor or via email to hapkido@netro.com.au.

Don't miss out on your chance to wear one of the coolest Hapkido t-shirts ever!

Order your Limited Edition t-shirt today!

The Art of Striking

Who thought the Art of Striking 'kicked butt!' ?





A funny way to introduce the BBC Art of Striking seminar which traditionally involves hands, arms, elbows etc. But this one had more!

30 Strikes of different variations: crane, ridge, grazing, to name some familys. Everyone had fun, with lots of smiles, striking and great enjoyment. From white to Black Belt, there was a strike or two in there for everyone.

And to finish off - the amazingly funny and enjoyable hip and butt strikes, along with the 'liverpool' kiss aka headbutt x 2 variations. This seminar was certainly unforgettable.

And all captured by camera and soon to be released as part of the 'Art of .... ' series, 'In the raw' (unedited, just pure fun).

regards
The CSD Team

BBC Seminar - 'The Art of Striking'

The second seminar in 'The Art of' BBC seminar series is on this Saturday 7 March 2009 at 1:30pm.

The topic is 'The Art of Striking' and we're going to go through 30+ strikes, some not using your arms, most of which have never seen before, none of which are on the current syllabus.

That's a minimum of 30 new strikes to learn for every student at the seminar - some of which you will love and want to keep for your arsenal. For Black Belts this means exposure to new variation techniques to add to your list of weapons!

If the last seminar on 'The Art of Kicking' was anything to go by, the seminar this Saturday is going to be a great deal of fun.

Just a reminder also that 'BBC In The Raw' - the DVD of the last BBC seminar is now available to order. The DVD will set you back $25 and is footage of the last seminar - that's right, all 30 kicks! Great to have for those who attended the seminar (you might even see footage of yourself trying one of the flying kicks on the wavemaster) and a must-see for those who missed out on the last seminar. Order your copy today!

March 2009 - What's coming up this month

Events*
6th Friday - 6pm Falcon Grading
7th Saturday - BBC Seminar The Art of Striking
21st Saturday - Coloured Belt Test
28th Saturday - 5 Elements Seminar
28th Saturday - 3rd AHG Black Belt Challenge & Technical Review
29th Sunday - Sun Bae Training

check the Forum 2009 Event List to see what's been added

Birthdays

1st Rosendo - White
3rd Sir Kev
5th Leanne - White
9th Mark - Blue
12th Dante - Hawk
15th Vivian - Falcon
16th Charlie - Blue
17th Sir Mick
23rd Luke - Falcon
26th Siska - Blue
27th Thel - Hawk
28th Sir Yash
29th William - Falcon