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Jan 19th 2012

Back Problems?

Hi folks,
With training getting back to full swing and particularly with some intense preparations going on for the Irish Open Martial Arts event I am reminded of a recent back problem I had (or thought I had!).

As some of you might have noticed I was unable to participate fully in training classes before Christmas due to back pain. I was lucky enough to get in touch with Ferdia McKeon, a Sports & Remedial Therapist working out of Integral Fitness. Ferdia had a chat with me about my symptoms and then did a few “range of movement” tests on my legs and back. I was very surprised to hear my problem was actually in my ham strings and that the pain I was feeling in my back is known as “referred pain”.

Thankfully there was a simple (if not painless) solution! The first step involved deep tissue massage on the ham strings and this was followed by some instructions on stretching exercises aimed at bringing the ham strings back to their normal range. Although it’s not a quick fix, as I need to continue my exercises, I did experience an immediate improvement and within a couple of weeks the back pain had gone completely.

The reason for posting up this article is to bring to people's attention the importance of a good stretching routine and to consult your instructor if you think exercises are not working for you or if you are feeling pain. In the event of muscle injury I can't recommend Ferdia enough, if anyone wishes to contact Ferdia for a consultation he can be reached at Integral Fitness at 041 980 2600 or on his mobile at 087 418 7552.

Kieran Doody, Drogheda Kenpo Karate Club

Jan 13th 2012

Additional Update

Hi folks, just two additional notes:
1) Short Form 2 has been added into the members area.
2) For a little more information on the Irish open follow This Link from the 2011 event.

Kieran Doody, Drogheda Kenpo Karate Club

Jan 12th 2012

Website Updates

Hi folks and Happy New Year!
I know some of you have been waiting patiently to see the Purple Belt techniques in more detail and I've finally gotten around to it.
The techniques can be found in the members area, if you have any problems accessing them just drop me an email.
We have gradings coming up in February with a provisional date of the 18th followed by the Irish Open in March which is promising to be a world class event this year.
Any members wishing to take part in the Irish Open should REGISTER as soon as possible. Training for this event is a must and our Kickboxing Classes are concentrating on getting fighting fit with the Irish Open clearly in the sights of a few of our members.

Kieran Doody, Drogheda Kenpo Karate Club

November 2nd 2011

New Name, New Website and New Dojo!!!

We have had a few changes over the Halloween break...
It has been decided to rename our club to Drogheda Kenpo Karate Club.
In accordance with our new name we have also rebranded our website and have secured DroghedaKenpo.com which we will use in tandem with our old domain. All of the same features are accessable from both the old website and our new one - www.droghedakenpo.com.
Finally (and we have saved the best for last) from next Saturday,November 5th 2011, we will operate out of Integral Fitness and Leisure at their gym in the Boyne Business Park. This will see us return to an excellent studio which will be more suitable and quiet than our previous location. As a result of our move we do need to increase our fee which will now be increased by 50 cent per class for all members, I'm sure everyone will agree that this is excellent value once they see the new facilities.

Kieran Doody, Drogheda Kenpo Karate Club

October 11th 2011

Master Bob White to visit Drogheda Kenpo Karate Club

Next week we will once again be honoured to have Master Bob White give a Seminar at our club.
It has been a year since we last welcomed Master White to our club and I'm sure you will all make a special effort to attend this unmissible event!

Kieran Doody, Drogheda Kenpo Karate Club

May 11th 2011

Competition Success and More...

Great performances from Casper, Carlos and Ben were rewarded when they took part in the Cavan competition (see pics). Ben, Casper and Carlos More trophies for the Lads!

Many thanks to Casper for sharing his photos, also featured below is our own instructor with some very distinguished guests... Mr. O'Connor and Family with Master Bob White (L-R) Prof. Ed Downey, Casper, Mr. O'Connor, Master Bob White, Kavan and Carlos (L-R) Prof. Ed Downey, Mr. O'Connor, Master Bob White and his wife Barbara

Kieran Doody, Drogheda Kenpo Karate Club

May 4th 2011

Wednesday Classes are Back!

It's been a tough start to the year but things are looking up... We are happy to announce that from Wednesday May 11th our usual classes return for both Adult and Junior members. This means the Junior classes on Tuesdays are being moved back to their original Wednesday slot at 6.30PM. Apologies again for the inconvenience and many thanks for supporting us through this period. Drogheda Kenpo Junior Members Leinster Open Competition

The club has also enjoyed some competition success over the past few months and we've had some excellent Junior gradings recently, well done to everyone (see pics). Portlaoise Open Competition North East Open Competition

Kieran Doody, Drogheda Kenpo Karate Club

January 31st 2011

Major Change to Class Schedule

From February 1st 2011 will will be running the Children's midweek class on Tuesday nights from 6.30PM. There will be no Wednesday night class for any age group from now until May this this year. Please accept our apologies for any inconvenience caused. Special arrangements may be made for existing adult members, please contact the club directly for further information.

Kieran Doody, Drogheda Kenpo Karate Club

November 14th 2010

Inter Club Kenpo Competition in Mullagh

Well done to everyone who took part in the recent Kenpo competition in Mullagh where several of our members did the club proud bringing back trophies for sparring both at the Adult and Junior levels. Pictured right is Mr.O'Connor with Coinneach Farrell who won his division.

Kieran Doody, Drogheda Kenpo Karate Club

October 13th 2010

Master Bob White Visits Drogheda Kenpo Karate Club

We were very honoured to have Master Bob White visit the club and give classes to both the junior and adult members. The junior class was very well received by the children and Master White with the assistance of his wife Barbara had everyone "Commit to Hit" and lifting the roof with some very enthusiastic Kiai's. Well done to the juniors who really impressed Master White with their skills. The Kenpo and Kickboxing clubs combined for the adults class which involved street and tournament sparring techniques as well as examining the technical aspects of kicks, how to concentrate training to achieve better kicks and their practical applications. We were also honoured to have Professor Ed Downey join us. Professor Downey is Mr. O'Connor's chief instructor and director of the European Kenpo Karate Association. At the end of the class everyone had a chance to meet and talk to our distinguished visitors and we would like to extend our Thanks and Appreciation to them for taking the time to visit the club. (photos to follow soon)

Kieran Doody, Drogheda Kenpo Karate Club

September 2010

Drogheda Kenpo Karate Club Moves to Matrix Fitness

The club has relocated to the Matrix Fitness Centre in the Greenhills Industrial Village Drogheda. The new studio is bigger and better suited to our growing membership. Many thanks to all those who helped make the move.

Kieran Doody, Drogheda Kenpo Karate Club

May 24th 2010

New Kickboxing Club gets off to a strong start.

On April 24th Mr. O'Connor started the new Kickboxing classes for Adults and there was a great turnout from the Kenpo students and Drogheda Gym members. As mentioned in our previous article the classes were to involve intensive training and this is exactly what was delivered - classes begin with Stamina and Speed workouts followed by fighting technique and finishing up with semi-contact sparring with aim of applying what was learnt during the class. As the weeks have gone on the tempo and level of training has been rising and I believe people who have done martial arts before as well as people with other sporting backgroundsand are finding the classes both challenging and insightful.

For more information about SSES Kickboxing click on the image above to go to the SSES Kickboxing website.

Kieran Doody, Drogheda Kenpo Karate Club

April 16th 2010

SSES Kickboxing

From April 24th Mr. O'Connor will be starting Kickboxing classes for Adults. The classes will involve intensive training to get people Fighting Fit. The name SSES is taken from the initials of Speed, Strength, Endurance and Stamina and these are the attributes Mr. O'Connor will be aiming to improve in people interested in taking the classes. Far from being a competitor to the Kenpo classes these sessions will compliment anyone already practicing Kenpo or any other Martial Art. In order to accomodate the new classes we will need to move all classes a half hour forward so Wednesday night classes will begin at 6.30PM for Juniors and 7.30PM for Seniors, Saturday classes will begin at 10.30AM for Juniors and 11.30AM for Seniors. Apologies for any inconvenience however I'm sure you will all wish Mr. O'Connor the best of luck and give what ever support you can in his latest endeavour.

For more information about SSES Kickboxing click on the image above to go to the SSES Kickboxing website.

Kieran Doody, Drogheda Kenpo Karate Club

February 13th 2010

Gladiators Ready!

Congratulations to all of our students who took part in the club team competition over the past few months. The competition consisted of various tests of skill, speed and stamina with points being awarded to individuals and teams based on how well they did. Last week we added up the scores, it was a close call, the top place changed hands between the teams over the final two weeks of events but on the final count Shauna's team were declared overall winners. Shauna picked up the winner's trophy for leading her team to victory, Lana took the second place trophy and Cathal and Gareth picked up the runner up trophies for their teams. Medals were presented to all students who took part and well deserved they were too! The competition was enjoyed by all and was so successful we plan to begin a new competition soon - keep checking out this page for more news.

Kieran Doody, Drogheda Kenpo Karate Club

January 23rd 2010

WELL DONE SHAUNA!

Congratulations to Shauna who successfully tested for her Green Belt Today. Shauna had missed out on the club grading before Christmas due to illness. When Shauna came back after the holidays she was offered the opportunity to test on her own and despite the pressure of having all attention on her performance she passed with flying coulours displaying great skill in executing advanced techniques and forms. Well Done!

Kieran Doody, Drogheda Kenpo Karate Club

December 21st 2009

2009 Round-up

There was an exciting and eventful end to the year with competition winners and successful belt promotions.

On our final day last Saturday (December 19th) there was a very hard test for belt promotion, all students were successful and congratulations are well deserved! The awarded belts came in many colours from yellow all the way to green and the standards shown are a tribute to the hard work and dedication to training the students have put in, well done everyone! As well as full promotions we also awarded Belt Tips for those students who have displayed a good knowledge of some of the techniques and forms required for their promotion to the next belt level. These were mainly awarded to the students wearing the White Belt, although some of you have not been long with the club you were awarded the Tip in recognition of how much you have learnt in that time. The Tip on your belt should remind you that you will be next to be tested for promotion so concentrate during class and practice often!	Unfortunately due to ill health Shauna was unable to participate but as you can see in the picture she came down to give support and encouragement to her brother Cathal.
We also had a senior belt test on Saturday afternoon, again everyone was successful on completion of an intense technical and physical examination by Mr. O’Connor. We have been delighted to see the new students coming in and it must be said that the standard they are setting from the start has been very high, promotions to yellow belt were well earned.	The longer serving members were also tested and we now have some Blue Belts in our ranks. Getting to Blue Belt takes a lot of time and dedication to the art and the introduction of the Wednesday night classes has played a big part in enabling the students to achieve this level – I know I can speak for all of the students when I say a big Thank You to Mr. O’Connor for all of his hard work and efforts in running the club.
	Earlier in December Lana and Zac did extremely well while competing in a sparring competition, even though they were fighting more advanced students both managed to bring home first prize! Zac did himself proud by defeating Yellow belt opponents while Lana punched well above her weight by showing some brown belts how it's done! The club is very proud of you both! This was the second time this year students brought success to the club as well as taking part in charity work and the European Kenpo Camp - read more in our articles below.

Kieran Doody, Drogheda Kenpo Karate Club

September 21st 2009

CONGRATULATIONS!

Congratulations to the Junior Students from Drogheda Kenpo who took part recently at the North East Karate Championships in Celbridge. They won first and second places in Forms and Sparring and did themselves and the Drogheda club proud. Pictured right (from left to right): Molly Rath, Morgan Rath, Lana O’ Connor and Shauna Broderick.

Anthony O'Connor, Drogheda Kenpo Karate Club

June 20th 2009

Junior Grading and Charity Event at Drogheda Kenpo Karate Club

On Saturday June 20th we had our Junior Grading - congratulations to the students all of whom performed very well. We now have students skilled up to Blue Belt level which means they are well on their way to achieving Black Belt!

During the class we had a visit from baby Gretta Kieran Cullen with her Mum and Dad. Gretta suffers from a condition called Septo-Optic Dysplasia (SOD) and has been to China for operations to help her condition. The operations are only available outside the country and when you add in travel costs it is quite expensive so Gretta's Mum and Dad have been tirelessly raising money to help Gretta get this treatment.

The club children were delighted they had the opportunity to meet Gretta and hand over a cheque for €400 which they raised during their sponsored "1,000 Kicks for Lent". Mr. O'Connor organised the event after hearing about Gretta's condition and the junior students lined up every week to get their 1,000 kicks done before the end of lent. Everyone had a great time raising the money and we even had a few competitions to see who could get the most kicks in one minute, I'm sure Gretta will be happy to know the girls invariably won these mini competitions (more practice boys!). We also had one of the local papers cover the story so watch out for the article which should be published soon.

Kieran Doody, Drogheda Kenpo Karate Club

May 16th 2009

Rare Karate Suit Visits European Kenpo Camp

While attending the European Kenpo Camp recently I had the privilege of being present at the signing of a very rare Karate Suit. The suit had been offered up for silent auction by Ted Sumner at the 4th Annual Bob White Invitational in aid of the Royal Family Kids Camps and was to include autographs of martial artists of 6th Degree and above attending the event. The winning bid of $200 was made by Gerry and Linda Schmidt, two of Master Bob White’s students.

Master John Sepulveda, impressed by the donation, offered to take the suit on his Seminar Tour across America and Europe and add to the great names already adorning the suit. It was during his visit to the 2009 European Kenpo Camp that I was lucky enough to witness Professor Dian Tanaka and Professor Pat Salantri add their autographs to the suit. Pictured left: Master Sepulveda talks about the origin of the suit and asks the professors to add their names.

What was an even greater privilege was to listen to these very accomplished martial artists talk with great regard about the other signatories. I cannot remember all of the great martial artists to list them here and, as you might have gathered, with so many great names appearing on the jacket there must be a volume of stories too. Hopefully someone will take up this story when the suit completes its journey and record them then. Pictured Right: Prof. Salantri (left) adds his Signature as Prof. Tanaka (right) listens to one of the stories sparked by the names on the suit.)

I will however mention one name that stood out for Professor Tanaka, it was Sifu James Wing Woo. Professor Tanaka spoke with great regard and even reverence about Sifu Woo when recalling meeting this amazing man and watching him give classes in which he demonstrated his great knowledge of how our bodies move. What is also truly amazing about him is that even in his late eighties (he was born in 1922) he is still very active in martial arts! Pictured left: Prof. Tanaka Autographs Suit watched by Anthony O’Connor (right) of Drogheda Kenpo, Ireland and Kevin McCarron (middle) of Castleknock Kenpo, Ireland.

I would like to thank Master Sepulveda for taking the time to speak to me about the suit and Master White’s charity work. However unique this suit is we must not forget the reason it came into existence, as a result of the fundraising done through Bob White’s Karate Studio the Royal Family Kids Camps received a cheque for a fantastic $75,000. The work being done for children by this organisation is admirable and should you wish to know more about them please visit www.rfkc.org.

Kieran Doody, Drogheda Kenpo Karate Club

May 13th 2009

2009 European Kenpo Camp

Introduction

The European Kenpo camps are organised by Professor Ed Downey the European Director of American Kenpo Training System. Held once a year and run over a weekend the camps are an opportunity for Kenpo students at all levels to get together and train with some of the most senior people in Kenpo and sometimes with experts in other styles. This years camp took place between the 24th and 26th of April in Portumna, County Galway and was my first Kenpo camp. I was so impressed with so many things about this camp I decided to write about it, this is my experience of the 2009 European Kenpo Camp.

Arrival

On Friday I arrived at the camp with my instructor Mr. Anthony O’Connor (Drogheda Kenpo Karate Club), we headed straight to the camp H.Q. where we were greeted by Professor Downey and given details on where we were staying and the itinerary for the weekend. We were allocated a lodge sharing with some of the dignitaries who were giving classes over the weekend so it was a great opportunity to get to talk to them outside of a class environment.

The facilities were excellent, each lodge had several bedrooms and large living area, breakfast was self service in the lodge and dinner was served in the hotel. The hotel leisure facilities were available to us although I didn’t feel the need for them after taking the Kenpo classes!

With little time to spare we headed for the hotel for dinner and met Mr. Julian McDermott and his student Kevin McCarron from the Castleknock Kenpo Karate Club where Mr. O’Connor had had trained and instructed for many years. There was good banter at the table between everyone including Prof. Tanaka who received a crash course in Irish humour, it didn’t take long before she was getting the upper hand!

Training

All too soon dinner was over and it was down to the local community hall for our first session. The classes were divided into lower belt ranks up to Orange, intermediate ranks between Purple and Green then Brown belt and higher. Children’s classes and Women only classes were also available at the hotel. I fall into the intermediate category and the first class was with Master Bob White. After a quick introduction we were straight into some warm ups followed by forms and techniques and I can tell you we had all worked off our dinner calories by the time we finished. If I can mention one thing Master White taught us it was to use real strikes in our forms, i.e. to put real emphasis on the key strikes in our forms striking as we would do in a fight situation with power and proper stance.

After the class we headed back to the lodge where we got to spend some time listening and talking to Prof. Dian Tanaka, Prof. Pat Salantri and Master John Sepulveda. This was a great experience and a rare privilege for me, views were exchanged and stories told which any person, Kenpo student or otherwise, would find very interesting. After that some of us headed off for a “night cap” at the hotel bar. There was a great atmosphere and comradery between this group of martial artists which I was proud to be part of and the locals seemed very enthusiastic and happy to have us there.

Day 2

The next morning we were back to training and my first class was with Per Sørensen and Torben Simonsen of Jushinryu Jujitsu. They were demonstrating some techniques which involved blocks, holds and sometimes throws. The demonstrations were very realistic and there were a few gasps from the students (and the victim) as some wrist holds and arm locks were applied to full effect. During the class I met one of the students from Austria and we got to try the techniques on each other, many thanks for your help Monica! It was a reminder to get back to practicing my languages, luckily Monica’s English was a lot better than my German!

Before lunch we had a class with Prof. Dian Tanaka in stick techniques. The class started with basic stick work building up to defence techniques and culminating with the application of what we learnt to the “Storm” techniques. I found this very useful as it has helped me better understand the mechanics involved in countering a weapon attack. When we broke for lunch we headed back to the lodge where our resident cook, Kevin McCarron, produced an excellent fry up and fruit salad. Thanks again Kevin!

It was a rush to get back to Prof. Downey’s class and I just about made it, now this was one class where “to feel is to believe” was the order of the day. I started working techniques with Walter from Portugal when Prof. Downey needed to demonstrate one of the movements in Dance of Death. I was called up and asked to throw the traditional left jab right punch which would be a likely scenario for Dance of Death, Prof. Downey executed the step off and block then stepped forward and struck me with his shoulder. The effect was to throw me back and despite trying I couldn’t get my balance back and landed on Walter, thanks for the soft landing Walter! It showed that if you step correctly you will need very little effort when unbalancing your opponent. We also worked on two man techniques and Walter’s brother Louis stepped in to help us with these.

The last class on Saturday was with Prof. Pat Salantri on balance. Prof. Salantri had us perform Circling Wing on each other and then told us to hold our position at the finger strike, we then compared our stance with how we would have been standing if we had done a normal strike without the turn. It was surprising to see how we were making similar mistakes when doing the technique as most of us were leaning far right of where we would normally be. The cure is to introduce a step into the turn so that you end up striking straight into your opponent and in balance. Prof. Salantri went on to other techniques where we need to be aware of our balance and how it can make all the difference when dealing with an opponent, something I’ll be keeping mind of when practicing in the future.

When I got back to the lodge I had a chance to talk to Master Sepulveda about the signing of a Karate Suit the night before which led me to write a separate article. Dinner at the hotel was excellent again followed by drinks at the bar, a great night was had by all.

Last Day

Sunday morning was to be my last training session as I was heading back home early, unfortunately some knee trouble kept me from training properly but on advice from Master Sepulveda I had pen and paper ready to take notes. Master Bob White gave another great class on Fighting Strategy beginning by stating his first rule of strategy: “Don’t get Hit!”, which got everyone laughing. The session was well paced with lots of content and I’m sure everyone came away with plenty to work on well after the camp was over. One of the last gems of information Master White gave was about accessing the expertise around us and not to miss our chance to benefit from the great calibre of people around us before it was too late. This is something I hope I made the most of during my stay at the camp.

Heading for home I felt the weekend had been very worthwhile and something I would be recommending to my fellow Kenpo students, next time I will be planning well ahead to make sure I can stay for the full camp which finished with a special dinner on Sunday night. I’d like to thank all of the students and instructors for their help and friendship during my time at the camp and a special Thank You to Professor Downey and all the people who helped to make the camp a great success.

Kieran Doody, Drogheda Kenpo Karate Club

April 23rd 2009

Junior Classes are going ahead next Saturday April 25th however Adult classes are cancelled to allow members attend the European Kenpo Camp.

There will be no Adult or Junior classes over the May Bank Holiday Weekend (Saturday May 2nd).

Junior Grading is due to go ahead on Saturday May 16th. Keep an eye on this page for any changes... and Get Practicing!

And finally (for now), many thanks to Douglas Munro for giving up his time and energy in helping us to get this site up and running. We still have some checking to do but hope that the site will become a great resource for our members. If you have any suggestions or queries please e-mail us.

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