Dear members,
The annual camp in Queenstown was excellent. The weather was very kind and the commander Mr John Titter and assistant Mr Jeremy Parkhill and others ran things very efficiently. Being the 40th anniversary year, most senior instructors made special effort to attend. We had one hundred and twenty participants.
Everyone seemed to have a good time training and socialising with old and new comrades. The scenic location helped with the spirit in training. The instructors who helped with leading, teaching and assessing were outstanding in their efforts.
Many stayed for a few more days skiing, snowboarding and sight seeing. I am sure everyone will be keen to come back to camp at this location in a few years time.
We worked on our fundamentals to be more efficient with the lines and timing. New stop-hit drills were introduced to the lower ranks. The Black Belts worked on balance, sensitivity and adhering. They were also assigned some more pressure-points moves to study. An important message at camp was to take good care of our body regardless of our age. It is like taking good care of a new car as soon as you take delivery so that it will have a long and useful operational life.
Most branches are holding their own or are growing strongly. The instructors are increasingly better tuned to guide the students in their training and make classes more productive. It is especially pleasing to see everyone improving steadily at all levels.
In the last forty years there has been massive changes in the martial arts globally. On the positive side, there has been a proliferation of many new martial arts as well as more exposure to some obscure old ones and there are more people practising martial arts than ever.
However, on the negative side, a large proportion of gyms or clubs concentrate solely on competition and do not hold the old formal codes of conduct or decorum with any regard. Sadly, now we have thousands of ‘keyboard warriors’ displaying their disgusting attitude on the internet whenever discussing any kind of martial arts. Egotism and arrogance are more often than not a sign of ignorance and/or insecurity.
Humility and politeness were the hallmark of martial artists in days gone bye, but a challenge to one’s honour was not to be taken lightly. Of course we should no longer duel to the death but we should still back up what we say and conduct ourselves with the proper protocol and respect. Firstly, you have to respect yourself and secondly, you treat others with respect to earn their respect. We ought to train in order to be a better person and a credit to society.
Finally, we are inviting the following to grade this year.
1st degree:
Keith Van Niekerk - Lower Hutt
Rick Connelly - Lincoln
Tim Kennett - Invercargill
Steven Taylor - Invercargill
Aldous Kelly - Greymouth
James Helem - Greymouth
Blair Andrews - Blenheim
2nd degree:
Mr Bevan Wilkinson - Papanui
Mr John Avei - HQ
Ms Suyi Chan - Sydney
Mr Rowan Findlay - Invercargill
Mr David Good - Ponsonby
3rd degree:
Mr Philip Marshall - Kelburn
Mr Cody Hopkins - Hornby
Mr Luke Murdoch - Spreydon
Mr Tim Smith - Newmarket
Mr Rob Wilson - HQ
4th degree:
Mr Kin Chan - North Shore
Mr Kelvin Joyce - Parklands
5th degree:
Mr Paul Reid - Parklands
6th degree:
Master Bruce Lord - HQ
Best wishes and see you all at the grading and 40th anniversary dinner.
May Chi be with you,
SC Chan
Grandmaster
Chans Martial Arts
Coming Events
* SOTC - Auckland Seminar
26-27th Sept. Register through instructors.
* West Coast Training Day Trip
3rd Oct. Leaving HQ at 9am.
*Canterbury - KF Grading
17th Oct Sat
* Canterbury - TCC Ex. Grading
27th Oct Tue: 7:00pm
* SOTC Senior Instructors
Retreat - Lake Tekapo
24th, 25th & 26th Oct
* Wellington Gradings /
Seminars
1st Nov Sun 11:00am
* SOTC Instructors Camp -
6th, 7th & 8th Nov
* Dunedin & Regional
KF & TC Gradings/Seminars
14th & 15th Nov Sat & Sun
* Annual BB Meeting
27th Nov 7pm
* Annual BB Grading & 40th
Anniversary Dinner
28th Nov
* Canterbury - TCC Ex. Grading
8th Dec Tue: 7:00pm
* HQ - Last Regular training &
Barbeque 19th Dec Sat
* HQ - Skeleton Class
22nd Dec Tue KF 5:30pm
TCC 7:00pm
* HQ - Skeleton Class
29th Dec Tue KF 5:30pm
TCC 7:00pm
* HQ - 1st Regular Class
4th Jan