Sponsored Walk

The days news channels were announcing 'the worst storms of the year' across most of the UK with gale force winds in Hartlepool too. This didn't stop our club from completing an 8 mile sponsored walk along Hartlepool's North Sea coastline!

Starting position - Hartlepool Divers Club

The annual sponsored event raises funds for the annual club-only competition which will be held on Sunday 6th December. The worst of the weather actually stayed away whilst we were walking and everyone had a great time, we even had some of our newbies turn up to do the walk too!

It was also great to see so many of our Seniors joining us for the walk too. Above shows Andrew (left) and Keith (right) with their bribes of coffee for Sensei Lynne!

We started the walk at Hartlepool Divers Club on Hartlepool Marina and walked over the loch gates and along the promenade and beach to the Seaton Carew clock tower. We paused for a few minutes whilst the juniors practised their kata (no really!) and the seniors grabbed a coffee from one of the local shops. Then we headed back the way we came for hot dogs, snacks and drinks at the Divers club.

Thanks to everyone who turned up in less than perfect weather for the walk, and also thanks to everyone who's sponsored the club too. Please remember to get the sponsors in asap!

All the pictures are now available on the website gallery...

Carl

This is an update of the preparations for the 6th Hartlepool Wadokai Cup, I can guarantee it's going to be bigger and better than ever!

Progress:

• We've ordered the Medals and Trophies from JC Trophies, to the tune of £2178.93.
• We've invited the Hartlepool MP, Mr Iain Wright to the competition view the invite letter here
• Mr Iain Wright, the MP for Hartlepool has kindly accepted our invite to attend our competition and award the medals.
• We have invited Sensei Mick Ryde & Sensei Sue Ryde from Ripley Aiwakai Karate Club to help with the competition.
• Sensei Mick Ryde has agreed to be the Chief Referee for the competition.
• Sensei Nicole Wardell from Kobukan Darlington Karate Club has also agreed to help officiate at the competition.
• Entry forms are now available and can be downloaded HERE
• We've purchased another Electronic scoreboard so that we can run TWO Kumite areas.

Sensei Peter May Training & Grading Course

Sunday 20th September, Belle Vue Sports Centre

Once again, we invited Sensei Peter May up to the club for another great training and grading session. As usual, Sensei asked us what we wanted him to work on, and this time around we asked him to be really tough on everyone. Especially since our students have forgotton how to stay in their stances. In fact, if you look at the pic above, you'll see one student in the front row that has a very dodgy stance (don't worry, we made sure Sam got press-ups!)... The juniors were also given Kata tips for the upcoming Aiwakai Invitational Wado Kata Championships. Once again Kobukan Darlington sent their cadets - thanks for your support guys!

Check out the pose...!

Despite Sensei being extra tough on them, they all still had a great time and the coaches have got tons of stuff to work on for the Aiwakai Kata competition.

Next up was a kyu grading, the nerves were clearly showing with some of the juniors but they managed to battle through to get their next belt.

The Seniors were up next, and we had a great turnout with support from Sensei Rob Jewitt's Satori Wado-Ryu Club, and Sensei Mick Stainsby's Kihon-Do Karate Club. Because the class had a mix of grades from red belt right through to Senior Dan Grades, Sensei Peter May worked his magic to make sure everyone got something out of the session.

Thanks again to Sensei for another great course! The next Sensei Peter May Course will be December 19th...

Sensei Keith Walker Kumite Seminar

Saturday 12th September, at the Belle Vue Sports Centre

This was the first time that we'd invited Keith Walker Sensei up to run a course for us and he certainly didn't disappoint. Sensei started by putting the juniors through their paces with some great drills and exercises that ensured everyone worked hard, but had a great time with it! Sensei also made it his mission to fight every student, and in true Keith Walker style, ensure he kicked each of them round the head or dropped them to the floor - at least once!

Ka-me-ha-me-ha!!!!!!!

After the Juniors session, it was the turn of the seniors. Once again, they worked through some great drills and exercises. This time spending more time on the finer details and tactics of Kumite. Once again, Sensei finished off by trying to kick all the students round the head or drop them...

Special thanks to Kobukan Darlington Karate Club for their support.

Keep checking the website and newsletter for details of the next course with Sensei Keith Walker.

Check the gallery for all the pics of the course...

Update

Photo Uploads
The photos from the following events gave now been uploaded to the gallery:

Lee Minion Course - 17.10.09
Peter May Course - 20.09.09
Keith Walker Course - 12.09.09

Club Investment
Also, we have continued our investment into the club coaches and volunteers by booking and paying for the following courses, to the value of £210.00:

Tuesday December 8th 2009, 6-9pm - Sport Coach UK, Child Protection - Erin, Diane, Carl, Amy

Thursday 4th February 2010, 6-9pm - Sport Coach UK, Equity in your Coaching - Carl, Amy, Lynne, Michael (Possibly Vince)

Tuesday 9th March 2010, 6-9pm - Sport Coach UK, Working with disabled performers - Lynne, Carl

6th Hartlepool Wadokai Cup
Finally, we've set up a special web page on the site just so that you can keep abreast of the latest developments regarding the club competition.

We've sent off the cheque to JC Trophies for tons of medals...
We've also invited the Hartlepool MP, Mr Iain Wright to attend the comp and award the medals/trophies...

the club comp is on Sunday December 6th.

Corporate Karate

‘I have a strange favour to ask you’ was the way a telephone conversation started between Carl Jorgeson, Development Officer for Hartlepool Wadokai Karate Club and Andrew Drummond, the training Manager for Hartlepool based Garlands Call Centre.

Andrew asked Carl to visit Garlands and help in their management training program but the brief given was a little unusual. ‘We want you to pretend to be like the bad guy Sensei from the Karate Kid movie’. The session didn’t last more than 30 minutes, but it was a great way to build links between Karate and one of the biggest Private Employers in the North East.

The press release covers the outline of the training program.

Press Release

Call Centre managers learn black belt leadership

Tees Valley and South Tyneside, UK, 18th September 2009. Outsourced customer contact specialists Garlands Call Centres have called on the services of local karate association Hartlepool Wadokai to inspire its managers to lead by example.

It’s all part of an intensive leadership and cultural change program called ‘Soul Train’ that’s designed to set new performance benchmarks to raise quality and set Garlands apart from its competitors. Since the program was introduced in August, 30 Directors, Managers, Coaches and Trainers have been through the training - that’s designed not just to instill a powerful winning mindset but also to deliver easy-to-use tools and techniques to improve management and coaching skills, and enhance communication skills. The Soul Train programme was designed by Results International PLC and developed to meet Garlands’ needs.

A key element of the program is an exercise called 'Karate Levers', and it was the idea of Garlands training manager Andrew Drummond and Results International Business Coach Dave Evans to invite Carl Jorgeson, a karate master from the Hartlepool Wadokai, to Garlands last Friday to judge the group's progress and give a practical demonstration of the principles being taught.

“You can imagine the look on people’s faces when an actual black-belt turned up to put our group through its paces”” said Andrew Drummond. “We wanted people to demonstrate the techniques they’d learnt in a real live situation and we gave Carl a brief to exhibit some of the behaviours of the karate instructor from the 80s movie Karate Kid! It was hugely entertaining – but with a hard business message as well. It was all about visualising success, and about the importance of speed, working to goals, and aiming beyond immediate targets.”

“The principles of good leadership are very similar to those taught in karate” explains Carl Jorgeson. “To complete a business task successfully you need to visualise success and have goals beyond what you’re trying to do – just like you do when undertaking a move, such as throwing a punch, in karate. There’s a difference between a strong punch and an effective punch, like in business, there’s a difference between getting a job done and getting it done right.”

“We’ve been delighted by the impact the Soul Train program had had on inspiring our managers to be better leaders” says Steve Norman, Business Development Director at Garlands. “We are confident that this learning will now be communicated and coached throughout the organisation to improve the results we achieve for all our clients.”

This article has since featured in the Hartlepool Mail...

EGM

Hi All,

A quick update... the EGM was held last week with a reasonable attendance.

The key changes are:

Vince Dawkins remaining as the club Chairman until the AGM
Amy Coulson stepping down as Treasurer, and taking up the Squad Manager Post
Carl Jorgeson temporarily taking over the Treasurer role (until the AGM)
Vicky Dawkins stepping down as Gen Sec
Julie Salmons taking on the new Volunteer Co-ordinator role

We would like to thank all outgoing committee personnel for their commitment and dedication for the club.

The minutes for the full meeting are available for download here

Also, all of our up to date policies can now be purchased online in a published book format. Please visit: Lulu.com

Committee Changes

On Friday 7th August 2009, Debbie Muldown stepped down as Chairman for Hartlepool Wadokai.

On behalf of everyone at the club, I'd like to thank Debbie for many years of hard work on behalf of the club and its membership, and we wish her well for the future.

We are holding an EGM in September to discuss the new direction for the club, at this meeting we will vote for a new chairman. Until that time, Vince Dawkins (Vice Chairman) will step up into the Chairman role. All nominations for Chairman need to be submitted in writing before September 6th.

Sensei Peter May Training Course

Saturday 11th July 2009, Belle Vue Sports Centre.

Today we had yet another great training course with Sensei Peter May, 6th Dan who was as usual assisted by Sensei Mairi Kerin.

The kids trained first with Sensei putting everyone through the basics, including some simple but effective reaction training.

Then, everyone moved onto basics and Kata training. To finish off, Sensei and Mairi put the kids through their paces with some Grappling Drills which everyone of them loved.

The Seniors started with basics, and moved onto some great sparring drills and finished off with an indepth look at Seishan Kata - which was completely for Carl and Amy's benefit because it's the compulsory Kata for the European Championships in October.

A little bird told us that it was Sensei Peter May's birthday on the following Monday, so we got him a delicious chocolate cake after the kids session to make sure he was suitably embarrassed.

The Usual Suspects - (L-R) Sensei' Mairi, Lynne, Michael, Carl, Sensei Peter May, Vince, Amy

Thanks again to Sensei for another great course. The next one is booked for September 20th at the same venue.

National Wadokai Squad Selections - report

Despite only arriving back in the UK on Wednesday 1st July, Amy and I were eager to head on down to Birmingham for the Wadokai England Squad training session on Saturday 4th July.

The squad session was also selections for the 2009 FEW European Championships which will be held in Dublin, Ireland in October. The session was split into different time slots for Kata (12:00-14:00) & Kumite (14:00-16:00)

Kata
Amy and I decided to use the Kata session as a warm up for the Kumite. Sensei' Peter May & Lee Minion put us all through our paces in basics and Chinto. The instructors spent time going over the finer points of the WKF Kata rules and what the referees are looking for. Also, we were all asked to perform our favourite kata in front of everyone and some of us were also asked to perform Seishan which is the compulsory Kata for the European Championships.

After the individual training, we were put into teams of 3. I was paired up with two lads who are used to competing in Kata at a high level. We decided to do Seishan because the speed of the Kata gave us all chance to synchronise.

The Kata session was really good, and I personally felt that it was tailored completely to what I needed to make my Kata even better - this is obvioulsy the sign of a great coach!

Kumite
We had a few minutes and then we went straight into the Kumite session. We were put through a warm up by Sensei Andy Genery 7th Dan which included a few pairs drills. We then formed lines to do a few minutes of fight drills and then went onto the selections which basically meant that we were sat around for hours and then called up to fight. I remember thinking that the only two people I didn't want to fight were Matt and Dale...

My first fight was against Mat Hubber, a fellow Aiwakai guy who until very recently was training with Sensei Keith Walker, Matt also took the mens title at the Aiwakai National Championships in May. It was a good fight, but sometimes a little scrappy though I managed to secure the win.

My Second fight was against Dale from Sensei Lee Minions Derby Karate Academy. This was another close fight, Dale started well with a solid lead hand punch to my right eye socket. The fight went right down to the wire with me lagging by one point, I managed to equalise right on the buzzer. The fight then went to Sai Shiai which is a new change to the rules, all points and penalties are wiped from the board and a completely new fight takes place for one minute (the old rules was - first to score). This is was my first experience with this rule change and it certainly got the adrenalin going because you have to dominate for the full minute rather than simply getting a cheaky point in the first few seconds. I went onto win this fight though I can't remember the score.

Amy was moving well, but she needed to be more clear with her techniques. She ended up winning one fight and losing one fight, but her performances were good in both cases.

We were informed on Saturday (11th) that both Amy and I have been selected for the England Squad. I've been selected for Kumite and Kata (which was a huuuuge surprise!) and Amy has been selected for Kumite and is a reserve for the Kata team.

Overall not a bad result for the club...

Temporary Class Changes

Due to issues outside of our control, we have had to take the temporary step of relocating our 'Friday' class from the Belle Vue Sports Centre to Owton Manor Primary School. We have also slightly changed the times to 1830-1930 (Kids Beginner Class) & 1930-2030 (Intermediate & Advanced Kids Class) & 2030-2200 (Advanced Adult Class).

This is a temporary measure for the following dates only:

Friday 3rd July 2009

Friday 10th July 2009

As yet, we are not sure where the Friday class will be after these dates though the class will definitely continue at one of these sites.

We apologise for any inconvenience caused and we will resolve this matter as soon as possible.

...more new classes from September

Stranton Primary School (From 12th September)
Saturday
10:00am-11:00am - Kids (All Grades)
11:00am-12:00am - Conditioning Class (existing class, reduced to one hour)


Brougham Primary School (From 15th September)
Tuesday
3:30pm-4:30pm - Kids (All Grades)

More NEW classes confirmed...

We have the pleasure of announcing 3 new Karate Classes that will be available from September...

Monday - St Helen's Primary School
3:15pm-4:15pm - Kids (St Helen's After School Club Only)
4:15pm-5:15pm - Kids (All Grades)

Wednesday - St Helen's Primary School
3:15pm-4:15pm - Kids (St Helen's After School Club Only)
4:15pm-5:15pm - Kids (All Grades)

Thursday - St Helen's Primary School
4pm-5pm - Kids (All Grades)

These classes will start from September 7th 2009...

Aiwakai Nationals - Mikey's report

Parental Advisory... The following report is filled with Mikey's.... unique humour... if anything offends, you have my permission to throw him a thorough beating! - Carl

It’s Saturday 23rd May and the time is 4.25am.

No you haven’t misread that does actually say 4.25AM! That’s 04:25, or half past four in the morning. The worst part about this is, I’m not coming in from a night out, and I’m getting up now. This can’t be good.

OK so I quickly take stock of the situation and start the bath running and whilst waiting for this to finish I did what comes naturally to everyone and text Tinkerbelle and Rambo. If I’m up this early, so are they. HA!

Anyway, after a quick bath I decided to hassle the folks and Ellen too, just to make sure they’re up in time you understand. Honest…

Fast forward to a more reasonable time in the morning, its 6am now and the coach is locked loaded and ready to roll. Obviously time to get my head down and catch up on the sleep I’ve missed out on. I get everyone’s attention for my customary announcement and, after a short death threat involving some horribly violent and painful method of execution; I leave the kids wide eyed and looking at each other uneasily to sleep. Result.


The Officials

A short while later (seriously not long enough) we arrive at our destination and it’s time to get in and register for the Aiwakai Nationals. Always one to set a good example I promptly bully one people until one of them relents and carries my bag into the centre for me. You’d have all done the same if you could it weighed more than I did why would I want to carry it?

Anyway, swiftly brushing aside the mental torment of our students and following a swift coffee I head out to the mezzanine to check out the tournament floor. Everything seems to be in place, 3 areas set up, the control table in place and the first aid station all ready to roll (well, barring the actual people as it was only 08:15 and we didn’t start for some time).


The venue

The categories were all posted on the walls with their entrants and the provisional timetable was posted so we have a rough idea of the times we’ll be up and the order of events. I check out my categories, not too many for Kata, good stuff as I’m ropey at best, and possibly the largest number of competitors I’ve ever seen in my Kumite category with around 20,000 entrants. OK it was more like 20 but still, I may enjoy fighting but I’ve never claimed to be national champion material.


The mother AKA, Sensei Lynne, mid-Seishan

The good news is the folks are up first in their kata event. The old girl is up first and goes through to the semis with Seishan. The old fella got a bye in the first round so they’re both in the semis. Both perform Nihanchi and both get 3rd place. We’ve started well.


l - r, Jason Gallagher (1st), Mark Harland (2nd), Lynne Jorgeson (3rd), Michael Jorgeson (3rd)

Kata

A lot of our kids are in this event...

We have several other event running at all times so it’s all a bit of a blur but after a chick change I find myself watching Tinkerbelle in her Kata category and find the I am up next.


Kate, aka 'Tinkerbell' on her way to 3rd place

Oh bugger. It’s occurred to me now that not only have I not been practicing my kata but I have no idea which one I’m going to perform (so much for everything I’ve been telling the kids eh?). I decide I’ll make my mind up as my opponent is performing his as I have the luxury of being up second. Nihanchi is the order of the day and I manage a win with all 3 judges going my way. The next round isn’t so good, I’m not particularly confident with Wanshu (which my opponent has selected) and Seishan is too slow and highlights my questionable techniques.


Mikey in action...

I decide that, although I won’t do well with a Pinan kata, that’s the way I’ll go. As expected I don’t progress but it’s 3rd place. Result.


Mikey looking a bit rough after exercise...
or maybe it was the VERY early morning.

On to the kumite events. There are too many things to detail here from the kids categories but I will say a big well done to all our fighters. Everyone fought like lions.


Carl here... This pic made me laugh... Obviously NOT because Phil is hurt, but because the medics bring.... Fosters!

On to the adult male fighting. Vince drew the short straw, with there being 19/20 entries, some had to fight before being in the same round as the rest of us. Still, things started well, Vince won his fight which meant he was to face mat (who went on to win) in the second round. Vince fought very well but Mat's skills are tight and Vince wasn't progressing any further today. I wasn't hopeful about my own performance.


The Vince

When it got to my fight, everything was calm. This is what I enjoy doing, this is the fun stuff. Can't actually remember who I fought in the first round (sorry) but several hits to my face because my front arm was too low I started getting annoyed with myself. A cheeky uppercut which I caught myself throwing was enough to catch myself though. I managed a dubious win in this round. On to the next. I got a little frustrated in this round too, had an incident where my knee was taken. It got a little ragged and the ref wasn't getting the support from the judges he wanted. Still. Another win.


Mikey vs Jamie Ellson (Swanwick)

Next round I was fighting Jamie, he's a good bloke but he's really fast. Much faster than I am. It was clear from before the bow that I was going no further. We were both tired by this stage but he had those bursts of speed just when needed. He advanced to the semi's and I finished my day just outside the medals.



A well earned break...?

Over all the day was great fun, the areas were run very well and the event ran smoothly and often ahead of schedule.

There were a couple of injures among some of our competitors. Both Vince and I have damaged a foot. I'm convinced it's broken although the hospital said no (just like they did last time when Vince broke his). Amy (rambo) and Phil both took an injury to the ribs and Phil also got an injured leg too.


The Hartlepool Wadokai Squad... with their medals!

All that remained was the coach journey back home. It had been a long, but enjoyable day...


Lewis Muldown... taking a well earned nap after winning 2 1st places in Kumite!


Carl here again... the full results can be downloaded from the Aiwakai website www.aiwakaikarate.co.uk.

Aiwakai Nationals - Final Results!

The full results for the Aiwakai National Championship are available for download from the Aiwakai website, www.aiwakaikarate.co.uk.

Hartlepool Wadokai finished ranked 1st (for total number of medals) and 2nd overall (on points). Well done to EVERYONE who entered... a fantastic result!

Next Events
The Aiwakai Summer Course, June 5th, 6th & 7th has a Special Guest Instructor - Sensei Derek Desmond, the Irish National Kumite Coach who will be running a kumite seminar over the weekend.

Also, the next Wadokai England squad session is June 14th...

...Please speak to an instructor if you'd like to attend either of these events.

Aiwakai Nationals - success!

23rd May 2009

The club hired a coach for everyone to get to the Aiwakai Nationals, but that meant a VERY early start for everyone. Hartlepool Wadokai had the most entries (18!) in the competition out of all the Aiwakai clubs, and we brought back 20 medals! The following people entered the competition:

Entries
• Lewis Tucker
• Lewis Muldown
• Jasmine Langley
• Jack Plows
• Connor Dougherty
• Luke Dawkins
• Charlotte Welsh
• Beth Gray
• Sam Tillot Gray
• Amber Tillot Gray
• Phil Salmons
• Bailey Reed
• Kate McCafferey
• Amy Comb
• Vince Dawkins
• Mikey Jorgeson
• Lynne Jorgeson
• Michael Jorgeson

Results
Lewis Muldown
• 1st ’10-12 years, 4.5ft and below’ Kumite
• 1st ’10-12 years, 4.5ft and above’ Kumite

Jasmine Langley
• 1st ’10-12 years’ Kumite

Jack Plows
• 2nd ‘4th Kyu and below, 10-12 years’ Kata
• 2nd ’10-12 years, 4.5ft and above’ Kumite

Luke Dawkins
• Joint 3rd ‘4th Kyu and below, 10-12 years’ Kumite

Charlotte Welsh
• 2nd ’13-15 years, 6th Kyu-3rd kyu’ kata
• 2nd ’13-15 years, 4.8ft and above’ Kumite

Beth Gray
• Joint 3rd ‘Junior 6th Kyu – 3rd Kyu’ Kata
• Joint 3rd ‘Junior 13 – 15 years’ Kumite

Sam Tillot Gray
• Joint 3rd ‘Peewee’ Kata

Phil Salmons
• Joint 3rd ’10-12 years, 4.5ft and below’ Kumite
• Joint 3rd ’10-12 years, 4.5ft and above’ Kumite

Bailey Reed
• Joint 3rd ‘Peewee’ Kata

Kate McCafferey
• Joint 3rd ‘2nd Kyu – Black belt’ Kata

Amy Comb
• 1st ‘3rd Kyu – 1st Kyu’ Kata
• 3rd ‘Senior Open Grade, 16 years +’ Kumite

Mikey Jorgeson
• Joint 3rd ‘Senior Open Grade’ Kata

Lynne Jorgeson
• Joint 3rd Veterans Kata

Michael Jorgeson
• Joint 3rd Veterans Kata

Special Mention to Lewis Muldown and Phil Salmons, both were entered into the Kumite '4.5ft and below' category, but there were only 3 competitors in the division. So they were asked if they would enter the '4.5ft and above' division too! Obviously they entered, but they also managed to get medals too! With Pint Sized Lewis winning the category!

Also, another Special Mention for Sensei Lynne, and Sensei Michael. Both entered the Veteran's Kata division and both came away with Joint 3rd place! - I'm just pleased that they didn't get to the final!!! :-)

Keep a look out for some pictures and a full write up... coming soon...

NEW KARATE CLASSES

We are pleased to announce that as of Monday 18th May, we are running weekly Karate classes at Manor Primary School. The schedule is as follows:

Kids Class (All Grades) - 6pm - 7pm
Adult Class (All Grades) - 7pm - 9pm

All classes are open to NEW and EXISTING students...

Hartlepool Wadokai AGM 2009

20th April

We recently had our AGM. The minutes were kindly taken by Julia Gowland, and they can be downloaded here.

Aiwakai WTE Course, hosted by Hartlepool Wadokai

Sunday 19th April



Hartlepool Wadokai was selected to host this edition of the Aiwakai Way to Excellence program...


Sensei Vince (right) in action

A lot of people from our club attended, and the course itself had a very good turnout with over 60 people.


Mikey and Kate
Before Kate dropped Mikey!


Sakagami Sensei looks on... in despair?

As usual with these events, the students were put through their paces by Aiwakai' top instructors.


Sensei Lynne, and Sensei Michael

Everyone worked hard on the Sensei' teachings, all of which is necessary for those wanting to reach black belt...


Some of the Darlington lot enjoy a bit of a tussle...

...though, as you can see, it wasn't all work!



Some confirmed dates in the Way To Excellence program are as follows:

September 27th - hosted by Leeds Wadokai
November 28th & 29th - hosted by Hartlepool Wadokai

The November event in Hartlepool will also include this years Aiwakai Dan Grading, and there will be a Social Event/Party on the Saturday evening.

Aikido & Massage Event

20th March 2009, Belle Vue

Hartlepool Wadokai recently hosted a visit from a local 'Sports Injury Massage' instructor, who also happens to teach Aikido. A few members of the club were taught a number of massage & Aikido techniques during the class.