BAMF of the 2nd degree?

It's a little strange that I haven't had any Hapkido posts on here lately.  Things have been a little quiet since Chris injured his foot and Master Sim had his little baby girl.  This week was our first week back after a two week break so that the boy could mend his footsie.

I can't tell you enough how much I love Hapkido.  Never in my life did I ever really want to learn a martial art, but when Chris said he wanted to practice it I decided that he couldn't be the only one in the relationship with a black belt. 

I enjoy Hapkido for so many reasons.  I feel like I'd be able to put up a strong fight in any compromising situation.  If I happened to have my katana with me I'd be in even better luck.  I also like it because it's a pretty intense physical workout.  The first few weeks were rough.  My legs, wrists, arms, joints, every possible muscle in my body hurt.  Bad.  It's gotten better, but even as I type I have to rest my arms in a certain position or else I'll get a sharp pain in my arms.  It hurts so good.

Today we got a big surprise when Master Sim asked the boy and I if we wanted to test for our 2nd degree black belts before we left Korea.  Uh, is Anderson Cooper stunningly handsome?  Silly question.  We enthusiastically said yes and asked when the next test is.  His response?  "Oh.. next test.. next month".  As in, we'll be testing for our 2nd degree black belts in less than 30 days.

Whose got two thumbs and will be working her ace off?

This girl.

 Oh and look.  We even bought Ares his very own Hapkido uniform and katana.

You can stop judging now.   

Saturday.

Saturday was a great day.  It was exactly what the doctor ordered.  The boy and I realized that we've been ridiculously busy every weekend since we've been back [from America] and that we deserved a weekend to just... be.  We really only had one thing on the agenda and that was to attend our good friend Sarah Willey's black belt test.  In fact, I was her partner aka punching bag for the test.  She got to throw me around like a ragdoll and in turn, I get to test for my 2nd degree black belt.  woot woot.

Sarah's Hapkido master (Master Che)  is actually our grand master.  He taught Master Sim pretty much everything he knows.  He is intense.  Well, more like scary.  We've trained with him a few times and everytime he ends up putting me in a joint lock until I feel like crying.  He just stands there watching my agony all whilst smiling.  He moves like a snake and there's just something about him that demands respect.  He's the most quiet and least showy of all the masters that we've met, but I tell you what, the room goes silent once he walks in.   I find it incredible that Sarah Willey had the determination to take private lessons with him! 

Look at her!  She doesn't even look nervous!



Sarah Willey informing me that she'd be punching me... a lot.

 We didn't get any pictures of her actually performing her self-defense because Christ took video of it instead.  We only got the beginning and the end of it.  We did, however, get some pictures of her awesome kicks!

Yeah, she was amazing!  We're so proud of her.  Welcome to the black belt family Willey!

Hapkido Competition

So as some of you may remember, the beau and I were invited to partake in Korea's National Hapkido Competition a few weeks ago.  If you don't remember how it all started you can check out my post here.

I'm not gunna lie, I went into this thing with a good amount of confidence.  For starters, Master Sim decided that I should take part in the kicks and falls portion of the test.  This meant that I didn't have to learn 24 new self defense moves.  One point for Tawny.  I was also informed that I'd only be competing against other women and that none of them would be masters.  Two points for Tawny.  Master Sim even said that he thought I might actually win a medal in the competition.  Little old moi?  Wonderful.  I love medals.   Three points.

Chris kept asking me how I was feeling and I was actually quite apathetic towards the whole thing.  I wasn't really nervous, nor was I very excited. I was just happy that I didn't have to compete against men my age that could quite literally kick my ace and take my name.  

Oh... wait.  What was that?  Master Sim was completely wrong?  I did in fact have to compete against men?  Yeah.  I was not a happy girl.   Turns out, we waited at the competition all day for me to compete.  We got there around 9am and I didn't compete until around 4 in the afternoon.  Throughout the entire day we kept an eye out for any women around my age who would be my competition.  We saw a few here and there but none of them really fit into my category.  When my name was finally called I realized that I was the lone girl standing amongst 14 men.  Big men.  Men that have been studying Hapkido their entire lives.  Men that looked like this...

Needless to say, I was a wee bit worried.  Worried because it looked like there was no medal to be had.  Worried because it was the end of the day and everyone and their mother would be watching me compete.  Worried because I had no idea what the eff I was doing... and worried because this girl's got a little bit of dignity left on her.  Dignity that she prefers to not be battered and bruised.  I pretty much had to suck it up, try not to cry, and embrace this once in a lifetime experience.  I was also comforted by the fact that most of these people I would never,ever have to see again.  Whew.

And you know what, all things considered, it went pretty well.  Everyone was ridiculously nice and I had quite the cheering section.  Old men were giving me high-fives and the younger kids were patting me on the back and telling me "good job".  I was nowhere near as amazing as my competition, but I'm pretty proud of the fact that I even competed because to be honest, I was inches away from just withdrawing.

So what did I learn from this experience?  I learned that a lot can be lost in translation with Master Sim. I learned that Korean people are extremely generous and kind.  I learned that hapkido competitions are intense and extremely long.  I also learned that I can be a brave little toaster when I need to be.

And look, I DID get a medal!

Photo credit to Corey Jolley and Dr. Staudinger.

Hapkido Championship Sneak Peek.

Here are a few pictures to tickle your fancy.  These were taken at the National Hapkido Championship that I participated in this weekend.  I'll have a post detailing the whole experience soon, but just let these soak in for now.   These kids were amazeballs!

Yes, that last little gent jumped over 11 of his fellow teammates. ELEVEN!  I want to be him.