Episode 201
Ep. 201 - Get Ready for Worlds 2026!
In this podcast episode, we delve into the intricacies surrounding the upcoming World Championships, emphasizing the critical importance of timely district registration for participants. Our hosts have commandeered the ATA's social media platforms to engage with the community, sharing exciting updates and encouraging listeners to interact and express their locations while tuning in. We are privileged to feature Chief Master Skiles, who elaborates on recent developments in the ATA Max gathering in Texas, highlighting the success and innovative training initiatives introduced during the event. Furthermore, we explore the dynamic atmosphere of the gathering, where participants engaged in various training sessions, including a new program focusing on fight choreography. As we approach the World Championships, we stress the significance of preparation and participation in the myriad of training opportunities available, reinforcing our commitment to fostering excellence within the ATA community.
Takeaways:
- The ATA Nation podcast episode features a significant discussion regarding the upcoming world championships and the importance of timely district registration.
- Chief Master Skiles was a special guest, sharing insights from recent ATA Max gatherings and the successful training programs implemented in Texas.
- Listeners are encouraged to become active participants in the community by engaging in seminars that focus on business and instructional development for martial arts schools.
- The podcast emphasizes the value of supportive environments for young athletes, highlighting how teamwork and community can enhance martial arts training experiences.
Transcript
Sa.
Speaker A:Foreign.
Speaker A:Nation podcast.
Speaker B:Welcome back ATA Nation.
Speaker B:I have hijacked the social media accounts for ata.
Speaker B:Do not tell anyone.
Speaker B:We have decided to go live with Chief Master sky today for our episode one 201 because we wanted to bring to you some special updates on the schedule.
Speaker B:All the stuff ready for world championships.
Speaker B:Now I know many of you are right now on ha easy signup because you're like, I gotta get my district registration in.
Speaker B:And make sure you do that.
Speaker B:We don't want anybody to be late for district registration.
Speaker B:And it's all online.
Speaker B:You have to do it there.
Speaker B:We might hit a little bit more of that at the end of the episode.
Speaker B:Make sure we were reminding you.
Speaker B:But I have a special guest today and if you are able, we want to put in the chat where you're tuning in from.
Speaker B:Everybody's on we.
Speaker B:We hijack the Facebook page for ATA or the YouTube, all the things.
Speaker B:So if you're on YouTube, you can check it out there.
Speaker B:We.
Speaker B:We want to see everybody across ATA Nation tuning in today.
Speaker B:Share it with your friends.
Speaker B:We would love to see where you're from.
Speaker B:And I got a. I got a little an assignment for you.
Speaker B:I got this cool new thing on my broadcast live that I want to do this survey.
Speaker B:Let's see.
Speaker B:Can you let us know are you going to world championships this summer?
Speaker B:Put a one in for yes, a two in for no, a three in for not sure.
Speaker B:We want to know if you are tuning in.
Speaker B:And now.
Speaker B:Oh, let's see.
Speaker B:Georgia, very good.
Speaker B:Oh, my wife is tuning in.
Speaker B:Very nice.
Speaker B:Karate Atlanta tuning in.
Speaker B:Michigan City tuning in.
Speaker B:Nice to see everybody.
Speaker B:Awesome.
Speaker B:Okay, let's bring on our very special guest.
Speaker B:I think the person who has been on the show the most of anyone, Chief Master Sky.
Speaker A:Hey J.
Speaker A:What is up?
Speaker B:Don't tell the headquarters staff there that I have hijacked the.
Speaker B:The feeds.
Speaker B:Okay?
Speaker A:Just hey deal.
Speaker A:It's better to ask for forgiveness than permission sometimes.
Speaker B:That's what I, you know, I. I mean I do need to be careful because I'm up to be able to test next year.
Speaker B:You know, it's easier when you just test and then you got like I got five, six, seven years ago.
Speaker B:So.
Speaker A:But I've been there.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:So we'll.
Speaker A:We'll see.
Speaker B:We'll see that line just a little bit.
Speaker B:Hey, before we hit world championships you had the ATA Max gathering in Texas.
Speaker B:What was it like in Texas?
Speaker C:It.
Speaker B:It was a bigger.
Speaker B:In Texas.
Speaker A:You know, it started out to be.
Speaker A:Unfortunately we had some bad weather coming in.
Speaker A:We had Some people missing some flights.
Speaker A:You know, the, the weather in the south and at Arkansas, Texas in May is hit or miss.
Speaker A:So we did have some people last minute how we can't make it this, that the other.
Speaker A:But it was a huge success.
Speaker A:Big shout out to the Havadoo cheese who let us hijack their school for the weekend.
Speaker A:They actually have two locations.
Speaker A:They have their main school and then they have a second location where they do their after school program.
Speaker A:So we actually use.
Speaker A:It's only about a mile down the road.
Speaker A:So we actually had training in two different locations.
Speaker A:Plus we.
Speaker A:We did some.
Speaker A:Some training at a gymnastics school that is right next to his other location.
Speaker A:That was phenomenal.
Speaker A:We introduced a little, a little teaser of something that we are working title right now is the Max Action program.
Speaker A:It's just a little branch of the ATA Max program, the craven extreme.
Speaker A:It's taking those movements and stuff that the kids are already doing and how they can learn how to you know, do some.
Speaker A:Some fight choreography, that kind of thing.
Speaker A:We had a very well known guy, his name is Rory Bradder that came in him and one of his.
Speaker A:One of the guys that he works with both stunt wise and filming.
Speaker A:If you've seen the, if you've seen the little short video and Mr. Mr. Peckham, Joey Peckham doing it, that guy shot that video, edited it all in about two hours.
Speaker A:Add the music, the sound effects, all that kind of stuff.
Speaker A:It was just a way to kind of highlight every now the kids learned the majority of that fight scene.
Speaker A:They.
Speaker A:They learn how to take a punch, take a hit, throw it, distancing, timing, camera angles.
Speaker A:They got the partner up and shoot it from different angles with their phones and learn all that kind of stuff.
Speaker A:It was, it was phenomenal.
Speaker A:The kids had a blast.
Speaker A:We've got a lot of great comments from the parents afterwards.
Speaker A:It was something that we didn't really promote too much going in but once they got into it the kids were loving it and the parents, they were just engaged and, and loved it themselves.
Speaker B:That's cool.
Speaker B:And I love the.
Speaker B:I got to watch the some of the live on Saturday night.
Speaker B:That was really great.
Speaker B:Some amazing talent there.
Speaker B:If people haven't gone you can go back and watch it on YouTube on the ATAs YouTube page which if you're not subscribed, make sure you head over there and hit the subscribe button.
Speaker B:Make sure you, you check that out because it was a man a dynamic show that night.
Speaker A:It really was.
Speaker A:I mean some highlights we had, we had two mother Daughters compete against each other, which was kind of, kind of cool, right?
Speaker A:They both came together, they both were training all weekend together.
Speaker A:And so we had those compete.
Speaker A:The highlight was that was Beckham versus the world competition.
Speaker A:You know, Beckham is as.
Speaker A:He's been to every one of our max gatherings.
Speaker A:And to see that kid go from you know, awkward baby giraffe with, with the, with the red, with the, with the flashy red hair he had that, he's had it every year to what he's doing now.
Speaker A:You know, another kind of quick shout out about Beckham is not only is he tops in all the creative extreme stuff, but he's also a top competitor in all the traditional stuff as well.
Speaker A:And he's going to be coming here next, next month for athlete development camp.
Speaker A:And, and so just to see the, the, the talent that these kids have and what they've developed through the years is really inspiring.
Speaker A:And then we also got them hooked up.
Speaker A:We, we started the conversation.
Speaker A:The, the group up in Alaska, they're looking for someone to an instructor to come up for a couple weeks, maybe a month or so to fill in that craven extreme gap.
Speaker A:And so I connected Beckham and his mom to Mrs. Dempsey, who runs that program up there.
Speaker A:That'd be cool.
Speaker A:The, the red hair might be making it up through Alaska this fall, which is going to be kind of neat.
Speaker B:That would be really cool.
Speaker B:If they need somebody to live broadcast from up there, you just let them know.
Speaker B:I, I'm available to.
Speaker A:We'll bring in bush plane style, land you on the water.
Speaker B:I'll do like some drone shots and like survivor version of.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:Hey, speaking of leveling up, you know, in traditional and creative and all those kind of things, you've got a packed schedule.
Speaker B:Events for legacy, for licensees, for all kinds of things.
Speaker B:World championships is the time to get some amazing training in not just competition.
Speaker B:So what, what do you got planned there?
Speaker B:Let's just start from through the, the list.
Speaker A:Well, you know what, so one of the, one of the biggest changes to this year is the format of seminars for the business topics.
Speaker A:You know, here these last few years we have done the, the Big Thrive live.
Speaker A:The Big Thrive live.
Speaker A:And it's just been a rotate of instructors coming through all that kind of stuff.
Speaker A:Well, we're actually going to kick it old school style and, and go back to when we were back here in Little Rock.
Speaker A:You know, we kind of had a business track, an instructional track and kind of a personal development track where you could just be bop through around.
Speaker A:You knew exactly what time everything was going to go on.
Speaker A:And you just picked your track.
Speaker A:So we're kind of going back to that.
Speaker A:So the, and the registration form is kind of set up that way where, you know, we list out all the business seminars first.
Speaker A:So, you know, top going down, just going from top to bottom.
Speaker A:You know, Chief Master Steve isn't her team.
Speaker A:I don't have the full outline yet.
Speaker A:But tournament culture, if you've been to the last handful of our national events, she's always picking something about how you can develop your tournament culture.
Speaker A:Might be class C tournaments, it might be monetizing, you know, a team type of a package within your school.
Speaker A:So her and her team are going to.
Speaker A:Are going to be presenting something else on the tournament culture.
Speaker A:As you know, our tournament numbers are growing, so something there is working.
Speaker A:Spring nationals coming off a record event with competition.
Speaker A:And so that's just gonna, Just gonna help enhance that.
Speaker B:Yes, sir.
Speaker A:Then we've got Chief Master Langren Lee.
Speaker A:You know, over the last couple years, she's been kind of downsizing her operation a little bit and, and shrinking the number of schools that her and her husband own.
Speaker A:So she's been really into this, you know, this retirement blueprint.
Speaker A:You know, what does it look like setting yourself up for those.
Speaker A:That, that, that time period in your life where you're ready to kind of step back a little bit.
Speaker A:So she's going through it now, so she's going to share that information with everybody there.
Speaker A:Then we've got, then we've got Chief Master Bass.
Speaker A:You know, he's been, he's been hired on with us here as member of the team to really help grow the, the, the, the club licenses.
Speaker A:And he's done a great job with that.
Speaker A:I think he's in the 20 or 30 range, and he's really helping to grow.
Speaker B:Yeah, I, I just keep seeing in the licensee Facebook page for, for the licensees, just like new club after new club every week.
Speaker B:I'm seeing it.
Speaker B:And that's so cool.
Speaker B:Really great to see.
Speaker A:Yeah, and he's an integral part of that.
Speaker A:So he's going to do two separate seminars.
Speaker A:So if you're interested in opening a club now, that means whether you're a, you're an independent person that you're just looking to go out and do it, or maybe you're a school owner wanting to expand and create some opportunities for some of your instructors.
Speaker A:This is how you can.
Speaker A:He's going to set the stage and give you some guidance to how to open up a Club.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:And then the second one is, hey, I've got a club, I need some help running it.
Speaker A:Right?
Speaker A:So running a club and running it effectively is the second part of that.
Speaker A:Now you, they can be attended independently or you can do them congruently.
Speaker A:It's up.
Speaker A:Completely up to you.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:But it's kind of two different topics.
Speaker B:Who is, who is that open to?
Speaker B:Is that all licensees and staff members?
Speaker A:I've got licensees and staff members listed on the website for right now.
Speaker A:If you are a staff member or maybe you're a legacy member of, of a school and you're like, hey, go.
Speaker B:To your instructor, you might be interested in opening a club or whatever, probably talk to your instructor first, see if it's okay and they can reach out to you and, and maybe get them a spot in, in one of them.
Speaker A:Yes, absolutely.
Speaker A:Absolutely.
Speaker A:You know it.
Speaker A:One of the things on our, on our, on our registration forms are do you have your instructor's permission to attend the trainings?
Speaker A:Or.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:Which, which was kind of funny.
Speaker A:Master.
Speaker A:Master who have a ducci.
Speaker A:Text me the other day, he's like, sir, do I have your permission to attend training at Worlds?
Speaker B:Be like, no, no, you can't.
Speaker B:I'm so sorry.
Speaker B:Yes.
Speaker A:So yeah, do.
Speaker A:If you're a legacy member and it's something that's in the back of your mind, or maybe it's in the front of your mind, you're like, hey, this is something I want to do.
Speaker A:Go talk to your licensee.
Speaker A:And then, and then, you know, go from there as far as registering and getting yourself into the seminar.
Speaker B:Okay, sounds good.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker A:Then we've got, and you know, both, all three of them, you know, well, Chief Master Langer Lee and G. Master Bass, they.
Speaker A:I don't know that they've ever presented before at a national event.
Speaker A:So we got.
Speaker A:There's a couple new presenters or if they have, it's been a long time, right?
Speaker B:Yes, sir.
Speaker A:Another, another new member to the presentation team is both Chief Master Tina Newberry and Chief Master Jeff Newberry.
Speaker A:Now they're on, they're teaching a couple different things.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:Obviously husband and wife.
Speaker A:What they teach is gonna, is gonna, you know, mesh well together.
Speaker A:But Chief Master Tina Newberry is teaching two seminars back to back again.
Speaker A:You can, you can, you can attend them separately, but it is more powerful if you do the whole four hour block.
Speaker A:But in the first two hours going to be focused on, you know, using the families and the parents within your school to become raving fans of your program.
Speaker A:And Then the second part is expanding that out into your community.
Speaker A:And that way you can, you can use your leadership training and life skills, that kind of stuff, to help engage people in your community.
Speaker A:So it's really the title of it is turning parents into powerful Partners.
Speaker A:You know, how can you partner with the parents and, and then going out in your community to help build your, the strength of your program within your, you know, within your community.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:And then Chief Master Jeff Newberry, he's doing one.
Speaker A:And I know you're familiar with this because this is something that goes back in the day, but the 10 class management skills and how to unlock.
Speaker A:It's called unlocking the opportunity through 10 class management skills.
Speaker A:I've done it.
Speaker A:I'm sure you've done.
Speaker A:A lot of instructors have used the 10 class management skills and we've gone out and taught those to teachers, business leaders, managers, directors.
Speaker A:Because those 10 class management skills can universally be used in other markets, right?
Speaker B:Yes.
Speaker A:And Master Newberry is phenomenal at teaching the 10 class management skills.
Speaker A:He's got drills on drills on drills.
Speaker A:So he's gonna talk about how to use those 10 class management skills and expand your, your footprint in the community and open up the door to be able to, to teach that in other places.
Speaker B:Yeah, that, that could be really cool.
Speaker B:And especially like if you are a licensee who's newer and like maybe weren't around when we did the 10 class management skills before the being able to see how you can apply those in other areas to build relationships and connections in your community.
Speaker B:I mean, that could be a really great addition to someone's knowledge.
Speaker A:Yeah, absolutely.
Speaker A:And being able to know how to do that will also enhance how you apply those 10 class management skills within your business.
Speaker B:Oh, yeah, right.
Speaker A:We have adult students that are, that are directors and teachers and all this kind of stuff.
Speaker A:And while you're teaching your legacy class, you can say, hey, Mrs. Smith, I know you're a teacher.
Speaker A:This is how this would apply within your.
Speaker A:When you're teaching your kids in school.
Speaker B:Yes.
Speaker A:You know, hey, Mr.
Speaker A:So and so, I know you're this, you know, in your business, you can apply this as a legacy member of mine.
Speaker A:I want you to learn these because this can apply to your.
Speaker A:So it can be both utilize internally applying it to your legacy members, but also putting yourself out there in a community where you're not just the karate guy in your community.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker A:You're an educator.
Speaker B:Yes.
Speaker B:And that's.
Speaker B:That's huge.
Speaker B:I mean, I actually just.
Speaker B:Tomorrow I'm going to school.
Speaker B:They got a grant to have somebody come in and talk about some stuff.
Speaker B:And they reach out to me and we're like, hey, come in.
Speaker B:And it's not because we're doing a bunch of kicks and punches, you know, it's about the other stuff.
Speaker B:And that's where these 10 class management skills, things like that can come into play really big.
Speaker B:So this is, these are all business ones that are taking place on Tuesday.
Speaker A:There's one more.
Speaker B:What's the other one?
Speaker A:So we got a special guest coming in, the gentleman by the name of Master Michael Mertens.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:He's the executive director of world class Taekwondo centers.
Speaker A:So he's in the north area, northeast area.
Speaker A:He's got, you know, an extensive resume when it comes to schools that he owns and operates himself and then a lineage of licensees under him that have gone out and opened up.
Speaker A:He came recommended to Senior Master Lead through a couple different people I know Chief Master Langren Lee.
Speaker A:She has spoke at one of his events.
Speaker A:He's, he speaks on a regular with Senior Master Jesse Isaac.
Speaker A:So he comes very highly recommended.
Speaker A:So he's talking about achieving a 97% retention rate in the X factor to building your thriving dojang.
Speaker A:So he's going to be really talking about building that retention rate within your school.
Speaker A:And you can read through the description for the seminar.
Speaker A:But we're bringing him in.
Speaker A:He's a non ATA member.
Speaker A:But, you know, we know non ATA members have, have a value of, a vast value of knowledge and to share with us.
Speaker A:So that's something that we're going to start trying to do a little bit more often.
Speaker A:You know, at Spring Nationals we had a, you know, we had Tony D. Simone come in and do a great AI seminar for us.
Speaker A:And you know, so that was just the tip of the iceberg and starting to bring more and more outside minds into the organization to help share.
Speaker A:You know, we don't need to be, we don't need to live in a bubble.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:We need to, we need to know what else is out there and learn from the others that are, that are having success as well.
Speaker B:Yes, sir.
Speaker B:Yeah, that's a, that one is definitely one that is on my list to register for.
Speaker B:I'm really excited to hear some information from, you know, I mean, the ATA has a wealth of amazing operators, amazing instructors.
Speaker B:So it's so easy for us to grab people and get their information and take in their stuff.
Speaker B:But it is nice to go outside a little bit and be like, okay, let me hear something Fresh something maybe that I haven't heard of before.
Speaker B:So that's a neat addition this year.
Speaker B:I like it.
Speaker A:Yes, sir.
Speaker A:Yes, sir.
Speaker A:So that's kind of rounds up all the business seminars on Tuesday.
Speaker A:I am looking to add a couple time slots Wednesday morning.
Speaker A:The.
Speaker A:The group that was there, you were in the group that did the presentation on the ATA legacy and new member type of thing.
Speaker A:So we've got, we work here locally with a, with a, with a group called marketing firm called Vines in Brookshire and they're going to be doing a presentation on Wednesday morning as well.
Speaker A:So I'm getting all those details locked in.
Speaker A:I'll get it added to the schedule.
Speaker A:So that'll be coming up as well.
Speaker A:Look for that this week to be added to the schedule.
Speaker B:Okay, Keep an eye on that.
Speaker B:Ladies and gentlemen.
Speaker B:I did just get my next month's assets from them in my email that I got through and be working on.
Speaker B:So I'm pretty excited about that.
Speaker A:All right now, instructional training seminars we have, we've got.
Speaker A:And I just added it to the registration form.
Speaker A:So making the public announcement today, they were already on the list but the course description and title wasn't on there.
Speaker A:So ATA Max Crew is back.
Speaker A:So something that they did a few years ago, we're going to circle back to that was very well received.
Speaker A:But we're, we're going to add something to.
Speaker A:It is a competition judging seminar.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:Now we want some participation in there.
Speaker A:So there'll be some live stuff going on.
Speaker A:So if you got some athletes that want to come and participate and be able to demonstrate and use as some role playing type of things.
Speaker A:But it's.
Speaker A:Last time we did it was just on judging the craven extreme divisions.
Speaker A:Well we're starting to see if you haven't seen it, Spring Nationals was huge.
Speaker A:Our Team Sync and Team Demo competitions are starting to grow.
Speaker B:Yes.
Speaker A:We also had it at a few regional events this last season.
Speaker A:Little birdie's telling me that the list of regional tournaments is going to expand this coming season.
Speaker A:So we're putting a final I's and T's getting crossed and dotted on locations but expect to see some more locations on the list.
Speaker A:So because of that they're going to be adding how to judge the Team Sync and Team Demo divisions because there's a lot of crossover but there are some nuances to it because of the team element to it.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:So we'll talk about that.
Speaker A:So that's going to be going on this time as well.
Speaker A:So we, we had a record number of craven extreme bodies competing at Spring Nationals.
Speaker A:It was over 900.
Speaker B:Really?
Speaker B:That's fantastic.
Speaker A:That's the most we've ever had, I think, I think in the low 800-high-700 is the most we've ever had.
Speaker A:So we went up, we went up over a hundred bodies participating this time at Spring National.
Speaker A:So we expect the number to continue to grow both regionally, nationally and now with the team divisions.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker A:Growing and being expanded and being offered in more places.
Speaker A:We want, we want to make sure that we're providing the best customer service by, by making sure the judges are qualified and know what they're looking for first.
Speaker B:And then I mean if you're a school who is interested or on a team, understanding the judging process will just help you make a better demo, a better sync competition all the way around.
Speaker B:So it not just for the ability to go and judge it, but the ability to make sure that you are creating a form and demo that is going to match what the judges are looking for.
Speaker A:Correct.
Speaker A:And that's a, that's, that's a, that's a great observation, sir.
Speaker A:100.
Speaker A:Because you want to know and you're hearing it from two of the, and, and you know the two guys, master senior Master Swazi and C. Master Turner are the most accomplished when it comes to teams winning and placing and building teams.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:So you know, you're getting the greatest information there.
Speaker A:And then a lot of the pro, the ATA Pro Max team members are members of those teams.
Speaker A:So they're going to help guide all of that for you and they can show you how to do different, you know, different formats and, and the way to.
Speaker A:The way to make it appealing for the judges, all those things.
Speaker B:Excellent.
Speaker A:She's back ladies and gentlemen.
Speaker B:Yeah, she's back.
Speaker A:Building speed, agility and explosiveness.
Speaker A:She's excited and it hasn't been because she doesn't, hasn't wanted to teach because she's been chewing on my ear for the last year or so national events.
Speaker A:But it's time to dust her off and get her back out there.
Speaker A:You know, she's an amazing instructor.
Speaker A:She's.
Speaker A:She's got a wealth of knowledge.
Speaker A:If you've ever taken her seminars before, which all of her seminars were always some of the best attended seminars in the past.
Speaker A:So she's doing one on building speed, agility and explosiveness.
Speaker B:That'll be good.
Speaker A:Myself and Senior Master Ireland, Senior Master Burns going to be doing the teaching the life skills in song on Taekwondo.
Speaker A:So we did this for the first time at Spring National.
Speaker A:So it's not just the legacy pro curriculum, it's utilizing the life skills while you're teaching your class.
Speaker A:So while I'm doing a, a a teaching a high block, focusing on base during the discipline lifecycle life skill cycle.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:It's tying that life skill in naturally while I'm teaching those things.
Speaker A:So it's not just the three messages.
Speaker A:It's building it naturally into your repertoire while you're doing drills and activities, teaching techniques, forms, etc.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker A:Now, physical training wise, we've got some, a great lineup of stuff.
Speaker A:So Master Isaacs and his crew, they're going to be teaching controlling the ring, free sparring strategies for controlling the ring.
Speaker A:Building your confidence there.
Speaker A:You know, one of the big concerns that we have from our surveys that we've gotten from participants is how intense the training is going to be a couple days before leading up to top 10, the TSD.
Speaker B:Yep.
Speaker B:All those things.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:So these, these, these seminars are not designed to be highly intensive, but cerebral in nature.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:So you're going to be doing some physical stuff.
Speaker A:But it's not, he's not doing battle bads.
Speaker A:It's not an athlete development.
Speaker A:He's not trying to work you out and work you down.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:He's, you know, he, he wants.
Speaker A:So it's all about strategy and controlling the ring, that kind of thing.
Speaker A:And then something similar with combat.
Speaker A:Chief Master Kaminsky doing something similar to that with the combat strategy, timing, ring awareness, positioning of judges, all those types of things.
Speaker A:So, so real some strategy when it comes to control, you know, with your sparring and your combat.
Speaker B:Right, Okay.
Speaker B:I think that that's a good point for people to understand.
Speaker B:You can sign up for these and still be fine for toc.
Speaker B:Still be.
Speaker B:They're not going to kill you.
Speaker B:It's really working on some mental things.
Speaker B:I mean, and you got to do it once, you know, in the class a little bit to get it.
Speaker B:But, but you can sign up for those and not be concerned that like, hey, I'm going to be exhausted and sore for testing or anything like that.
Speaker A:Correct, correct.
Speaker A:You know, and hey, you might pick something up you use a couple days later, bingo bango.
Speaker A:I mean, I've done that before.
Speaker A:You know, I've taught form seminars in the past, other sparring and combat seminars, weapon seminars and all that kind of stuff.
Speaker A:People go and immediately apply it.
Speaker A:Then I get a great email or somebody comes up to me a couple days later, look, sir, I did what you told me to do or, you know, other.
Speaker A:All the other instructors have told me that's happened to them.
Speaker A:So yes, you know, it's, it's, it's pretty cool.
Speaker A:I'm going to be doing one on song on forms.
Speaker A:Good to great.
Speaker A:So not going into a whole lot of form clarifications, but the details that matter, right?
Speaker A:You step into the ring, what's going to set you apart from all the other competitors in your ring?
Speaker B:Okay.
Speaker A:I've got, I've, I've been fortunate to have pretty good success over my years in my forms divisions, my form competition.
Speaker A:And so I know like Chief Master Bass, who's also a really high level instructor as well from Informs might be joining me.
Speaker A:I got some other people that'll be in there too.
Speaker A:So we're giving those little, those little tips that maybe can give you an edge, maybe get you an extra point or two from, from a judge that might take you from third, second, second to first and get you onto the podium where you've never been before.
Speaker A:So that, that's the goal of that seminar.
Speaker B:Excellent.
Speaker B:Very cool.
Speaker A:Is that, of course, weapons training.
Speaker A:Weapons training, weapons training, weapons training, Weapons.
Speaker B:On that day.
Speaker B:What, what, what do we got?
Speaker A:Weapons wise weapon, Every single weapon and the ATA is going to be on there.
Speaker A:All 11, we've got them staggered out.
Speaker A:So in, in years past, we've done it to where like the same weapon was, was offered three or four times throughout the whole entire day.
Speaker A:All right, so taking a slightly different approach, each weapon's gonna get two, two hour sessions.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:So they're gonna be staggered throughout the day.
Speaker A:This also, I stepped back and looked, I was like, you know, I've got an amazing team of weapon instructors, but when I put them in a ring or put them in a pod all day to teach the same weapon two, three, four times, these guys don't get to take any of the amazing seminars that we have.
Speaker B:Yes.
Speaker B:And then they don't want to be, they don't want to teach the thing if they don't get to do some of the training too.
Speaker A:Yeah, yeah.
Speaker A:So we've also freed up some time for them to go get some business seminars or some other trainings, you know, and, and participate themselves.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:There are incredible operators, they're incredible martial artists, but everybody needs to sharpen their iron just like, just like everybody else does.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:So the schedule is pretty, pretty flexible there.
Speaker A:Again, all of them are offered.
Speaker A:We do recommend that you go online, get familiar.
Speaker A:If it's a weapon that you're not familiar with the form, get familiarized with it.
Speaker A:The instructors will take, you know, hey, this group is kind of new to the weapon.
Speaker A:We'll put you over here.
Speaker A:You guys need some refining.
Speaker A:We'll work with you over here.
Speaker A:We got pretty much all hands on deck when it comes to the weapon staff.
Speaker A:And because of the number of seminars that we're offering throughout the day at every single time slot, the sizes should be really manageable for you shouldn't be in a group of 50 to 60 people all at one time.
Speaker B:Yes.
Speaker A:With the variety that we have, we're going to be spread out all over the whole convention center doing different things.
Speaker A:So I suggest licensees sign up and get as many of your instructors to be there.
Speaker A:Divide and conquer.
Speaker A:You can't be everywhere to everybody, Right?
Speaker A:When I had my school, we would sit down as a group and I'd say, okay, what's your passion?
Speaker A:What do you want to go do?
Speaker A:Okay, you go do those, you go do these, I'll go do these.
Speaker A:Then we'll come back to the school and we'll just, we'll just decompress, we'll have a meeting, we'll go through everything so that it stays on your mind.
Speaker A:You went and did this weapon.
Speaker A:So next month we're going to schedule a seminar and you're going to lead it.
Speaker A:I'll be in there, I can help you.
Speaker A:But we're, you know.
Speaker A:And then the next month you're going to teach a seminar on this and then I'll do a seminar reviewing all this with the, you know, that kind of thing, right?
Speaker B:Yes.
Speaker A:That's the best way to do it, 100%.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:That way you, like you said, divide and conquer.
Speaker B:One person doesn't have to try to remember everything and be the expert at everything.
Speaker B:It's just too much to do.
Speaker B:And then have those seminars afterwards.
Speaker B:That way you're staying up to date with them.
Speaker B:You're not forgetting it as soon as you come back.
Speaker B:The number of times I've paid for a seminar and, you know, learned something, came back and didn't do it right away, then you forget the material and you're in trouble.
Speaker B:So.
Speaker A:Yes, yes, yes, yes.
Speaker A:And then, so that, that kind of rounds up Tuesday and then on Wednesday, just got a couple things like I already mentioned, we're going to be putting in a couple two 90 minute seminars for marketing with the Vines and Brookshire.
Speaker A:We're going to get them added to the list.
Speaker A:I'm going to be going over and just giving an update to the legacy facilitator manual.
Speaker A:We are going to I was planning on kind of launching and pushing that new manual out at Worlds, but I'm just going to provide an update and a status of where we are on it and I can show you.
Speaker A:I'll have, I'll have a sample there for you.
Speaker A:But we've done some reconsidering and said, you know, we want to go ahead and push out the student manual, an updated student manual with the facilitator manual at the same time.
Speaker B:Okay.
Speaker A:So the student manual is going to come later this year.
Speaker A:So I'm just going to give an update to it and then we'll go later in the year with a full integrated launch.
Speaker A:Because we're talking about, you know, maybe trying to enhance a reward system with, you know, giving, recognizing especially the younger students in all of those off years in between callers.
Speaker A:Like, can we create a system where we can do some rewarding in between this caller and this caller?
Speaker A:Because there's so many years in there.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker B:Because 16 to 18 is, is a long time between collars.
Speaker A:Sure, sure, sure.
Speaker A:And we've got some, we've got.
Speaker A:Internally we're working on a new CRM system which is going to allow us to make some adjustments to some ages where, to the different levels.
Speaker A:So that'll be coming out as well.
Speaker A:Once that goes into effect, of course, we're going to the whole, you know, launch it out, make sure we communicate what that is.
Speaker A:But we're looking at making a few adjustments into the, the minimum age requirements for those, for those callers leading up to 18 at certified, but we'll put all that out.
Speaker A:So instead of, instead, instead of piecemealing it out, we're, we're gonna, we're gonna just gonna kind of step back, put the pause button on that and just do everything as one big, one big package, which as you know, in, in years past, it's always worked out best.
Speaker A:Tigers was that way.
Speaker A:Mac was that way.
Speaker A:We introduced the characters and this and that and you know, all that kind of stuff.
Speaker A:So we just, we want to do it right.
Speaker A:We don't want to rush you into it and piecemeal it.
Speaker B:I think that's a great idea.
Speaker B:As much as I would love to see, you know, this stuff early and get it, I think it is best, you know, be able to launch it all at the same time.
Speaker B:Have the student instructor, you know, that makes sense.
Speaker B:So checking that out, I'll probably still be in that seminar anyways because they won't let me come to the ladies, empower her seminar.
Speaker A:So the wit yeah.
Speaker A:The ladies empower her Seminar, Spring Nationals.
Speaker A:I mean, you saw the highlights in the highlight reel that we had.
Speaker A:They're doing a phenomenal job.
Speaker A:Grandmaster Tammy.
Speaker A:I am.
Speaker A:I can't tell you.
Speaker A:Even just today, you know, I know she was over at the.
Speaker A:She was over at the European Champs.
Speaker A:And I haven't seen her and I think two weeks and I hear coming down the hall, making a stop at everybody's office, hey, good to see you.
Speaker A:And then, boom, in my office, having her back.
Speaker A:Not just in the organization, but here in the building.
Speaker A:The energy that she brings to everybody.
Speaker A:She goes around and says hot, says hello to every single person in this building.
Speaker A:And it's just phenomenal then.
Speaker A:And then.
Speaker A:But what she's done and taken, well, the Hu Lee foundation is just right.
Speaker A:And now this Empower her series of seminars that she's doing.
Speaker A:And the other ladies, Master Pavlick and Master Blanks and know Master Brown was in there.
Speaker A:This, this past event.
Speaker A:Master Giles.
Speaker A:I mean, all these ladies are just.
Speaker A:They're doing such a great job inspiring these young ladies in the organization.
Speaker A:I mean, I have to go back down to the roster, but the ATA Max gathering, I think the.
Speaker A:I think.
Speaker A:I think the girls out outnumbered the boys.
Speaker A:It was.
Speaker A:I messed it back.
Speaker A:I'm going to.
Speaker A:I think there's more girls here.
Speaker B:Hey, you know, I know there.
Speaker B:There's some licensees out there like myself who are, you know, pleading, you know, maybe putting hints in with the team, sparring people, be like, can we change these team setups a little bit?
Speaker B:Because I got a ton of ladies and I don't have as many guys because.
Speaker B:Because Grandmaster Tammy's doing such an amazing job.
Speaker B:You know, we.
Speaker B:We, our ladies are outpacing our guys.
Speaker A:That's fantastic.
Speaker A:That's a great idea.
Speaker A:Even if we did it like as, like, as a.
Speaker A:Like a special thing and like a one off at a tournament.
Speaker A:Oh, you know, just a special thing.
Speaker B:Yep.
Speaker B:Nope.
Speaker A:You know.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:Master Stevens is in the.
Speaker A:Is in the office next to me.
Speaker A:She doesn't want to hear me say no.
Speaker A:Oh, we just do it as a one off special thing.
Speaker B:No, that's not on the list.
Speaker A:If she hears me, she should be like this.
Speaker B:It wasn't my id.
Speaker B:I didn't say anything, sir.
Speaker A:No, no, no, no, no, no, no.
Speaker A:This is.
Speaker A:Hey, this isn't being recorded, is it?
Speaker B:No.
Speaker A:No.
Speaker A:Okay, good.
Speaker B:This is between you and me.
Speaker B:That's it.
Speaker B:Nobody else is on.
Speaker B:No one else.
Speaker A:Well, listen, sir, we.
Speaker A:We're.
Speaker A:We're 30s.
Speaker A:I see we're 37 minutes in.
Speaker A:So we are for the special announcement.
Speaker B:Yes, give us the announcement.
Speaker A:All right.
Speaker A:List chaos, right?
Speaker A:Euros.
Speaker A:You know, I know they are getting districts all up.
Speaker A:There was a little bit of a glitch in the district signups and all this kind of stuff.
Speaker A:So listen, with all the things going on and everybody's life.
Speaker A:Mother's Day, right?
Speaker A:I get to, my wife and I, we get the whammy this week.
Speaker A:Her, her mom's birthday is on the 6th, my mom's birthday is on the 8th.
Speaker A:And then we got Mother's Day.
Speaker A:We get to win.
Speaker A:So yeah.
Speaker A:So listen, early register, the discounted pricing, early registration was supposed to end on Sunday the 10th.
Speaker B:Yes sir.
Speaker A:I'm extending it to Wednesday the 13th.
Speaker A:So if you want the best price, Four Worlds, you want to get on there and register.
Speaker A:I left the price.
Speaker A:The price, you can still get it at the 249.
Speaker A:Remember that 249, that covers you for all training that you want to do both Tuesday and Wednesday.
Speaker A:It's not just one seminar, it's.
Speaker A:You can get, you can do up to four different seminars on Wednesday.
Speaker A:You can do at least one on Wednesday.
Speaker A:If you're a licensee and we throw the business seminars in there, you can do another couple.
Speaker A:So I'm extent extending the deadline to the early registration.
Speaker A:The cheapest price you can get till Wednesday, Wednesday at midnight, gone, changing the price.
Speaker A:They're going into early registration mode.
Speaker A:So take advantage of it.
Speaker A:I highly recommend you do it.
Speaker A:Licensees, if you get your ER credits, make sure you're utilizing those for yourself or a team member.
Speaker A:If you know you're not going to end up going to Fall Nationals, then Worlds is the place to use your ER credits because they're not rollover minutes.
Speaker A:Once it's gone.
Speaker A:Once they're gone, they're gone.
Speaker A:So I highly recommend, if you need some help on knowing how many you have available, you can always email us attraining ta online.com licensees to find out if you, how many of those ER credits you have available to you and your staff.
Speaker B:Perfect.
Speaker B:Okay.
Speaker B:I am, I'm getting my registrations in, making sure all my people get theirs in because I, I was at a camp, we had our, our school had our little camp this weekend and I was there and I saw it and I'm like, ah, dang it, I missed the early bird registration.
Speaker B:So.
Speaker A:Yes sir, you get, you get three days left.
Speaker B:Excellent.
Speaker A:Today, tomorrow and Wednesday.
Speaker A:Don't mind extending it to you.
Speaker A:I know everybody's Got distractions going on.
Speaker A:I myself had some distractions going this last week and you know, and I'm, I'm getting ready to mad shame.
Speaker A:Nice little plug to our, our ATA International crew.
Speaker A:Senior Master Turner and I are going next Thursday.
Speaker A:We're heading down to Peru.
Speaker A:We've got the, we've got the, the, the.
Speaker A:The camp down there that him and I are going to be teaching at.
Speaker A:We're excited to be there.
Speaker A:I've never been to South America so this is the first time for me and I'm looking forward to seeing all of our, our Peruvian ATA members going through some forms.
Speaker A:I'm doing forms training.
Speaker A:Master Turner is going to do some forms and some, some creative extreme training.
Speaker A:We're doing some instruction, legacy training.
Speaker A:I'm excited for a lot going on.
Speaker B:That's exciting.
Speaker B:Well, I really appreciate your time today sir.
Speaker B:It's always great to have you on and guys get out there, register for your training at world championships there.
Speaker B:I mean this is honestly when I go to Worlds this is what I go for.
Speaker B:I go for the training.
Speaker B:I stay for the judging because they need me to judge but I go for the training.
Speaker B:It's the best thing.
Speaker B:Make sure that we are there.
Speaker B:Hey, quick question came in.
Speaker B:If they've registered with new things being added, can they make any changes if they want?
Speaker A:Yes.
Speaker A:If you, if you want to go ahead and, and with the ATA max being added I can understand somebody not you know click an ATM because there was no description but just use that same email training ta online.com.
Speaker A:Just give us your name.
Speaker A:Say I want to change this time slot seminar from this to this.
Speaker B:Gotcha.
Speaker B:And that you guys will have the Brookshire Vines.
Speaker A:That'll be up, that'll be up this week as well.
Speaker A:Like I said, that's going to be on Wednesday morning.
Speaker A:It'll be like 8 to 8 to 9:30, you know, 9:30 to 11.
Speaker A:It'll be two 90 minute slots to choose from.
Speaker A:So if you want to come see me first then go do them or you want to do the, the ladies empower her then goo do one or whatever.
Speaker A:That's, that's fine but that'll be on there.
Speaker A:So a little bit of.
Speaker A:And a whole.
Speaker A:I think it's new.
Speaker A:I think they'll be doing some stuff on some new members, things like that.
Speaker A:But we'll get the, we'll get all the topics locked in.
Speaker B:Awesome.
Speaker B:Well sir, again I appreciate your time so much and enjoy Peru and we'll see you in Arizona.
Speaker A:Yes sir.
Speaker A:Thanks everybody.
Speaker A:Thanks At Nation, look forward to seeing you.
Speaker B:Hey, ATA Nation, Since I have hijacked this broadcast, I am also bringing you the full episode of the Ata Nation podcast.
Speaker B:This is episode 201.
Speaker B:If you aren't subscribed, you can subscribe on YouTube.
Speaker B:Okay.
Speaker B:We have our YouTube channel on the Atas YouTube channel and any podcast feed that you like out there.
Speaker B:So one of the things that we do each week is make sure that we highlight an athlete of the week.
Speaker B:These athletes of the week are picked by the ATA brand ambassadors.
Speaker B:If you're ever interested in being an athlete of the week, make sure you, you know, reach out to one of those brand ambassadors because they're in charge of that awesome stuff and I just get to bring you a cool interview.
Speaker B:So let's go to that now.
Speaker B:ATA Nation, we're excited to have another awesome athlete of the week with us.
Speaker B:Sir, can you introduce yourself for us?
Speaker C:Hello, at Nation, My name is Tyson Nita from Saddle Rock, ATA and I'm a second degree black belt.
Speaker B:Excellent.
Speaker B:So you, you know, we were trying to find times to do this and though it is May the.
Speaker B:You had a snow day today.
Speaker B:Is that right?
Speaker B:Yep.
Speaker B:That's crazy.
Speaker C:Like art.
Speaker B:That's insane.
Speaker B:And I was like.
Speaker B:I thought because I got the message and I was like, okay, we can do.
Speaker B:And I was like, snow day.
Speaker B:Does that mean like they canceled on purpose for something other than snow and.
Speaker B:Nope, real snow.
Speaker B:You got foot of snow outside and all that kind of stuff.
Speaker B:That's insane to me.
Speaker B:But, you know, whatever.
Speaker B:You got the day off of school, right?
Speaker B:Yeah, that's always good.
Speaker B:Can't complain about that.
Speaker B:So, hey, how did you get started in martial arts?
Speaker C:So actually it was my.
Speaker C:One of my dad's work friends that her daughter was doing taekwondo and they recommended us for like a free month of taekwondo.
Speaker C:And I was like, really skeptical at first because I like, didn't think I would ever be interested in like contact sports, but.
Speaker C:And then like after I tried it, I like fell in love with it and then we like ended up signing a three year contract without my mom's permission.
Speaker B:It seems like it worked out okay for you though.
Speaker B:Yeah, yeah.
Speaker B:Did you do other.
Speaker B:About how old were you when you started?
Speaker C:I was.
Speaker C:I had just turned eight years old, I'm pretty sure.
Speaker B:Okay, cool.
Speaker B:Were you doing any other sports?
Speaker B:Any other sports that you maybe currently do?
Speaker C:I had just like finished flag football and like, my parents were trying to push me to like, find another sport to do, so.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker C:Then I ended up at taekwondo.
Speaker B:Very Cool.
Speaker B:And is Taekwondo your main gig now?
Speaker B:Yeah, yeah, me too.
Speaker B:You don't need any other sports.
Speaker B:I talked to somebody, an athlete of the week the other day, and he's.
Speaker B:He's a swimmer, and I was like, oh, that's great.
Speaker B:Except.
Speaker B:No, just do Taekwondo, guys.
Speaker B:Come on.
Speaker B:No, I'm joking.
Speaker B:Do whatever sport makes you happy.
Speaker B:And Taekwondo.
Speaker B:Do that.
Speaker B:And so, hey, we are in kind of the, like the end of the season, getting ready for districts and worlds and all that kind of stuff.
Speaker B:So how did your.
Speaker B:How.
Speaker C:So this season was like, probably my most interesting tournament season as, like, last season I had just like, been introduced to like, the world level and national, like, tournaments, and that was like a whole, like, eye opener for me because at my previous school, Taekwondo school that I went to, we didn't like, we were kind of like more enclosed from that stuff.
Speaker B:Gotcha.
Speaker C:But this season I had.
Speaker C:There was this like, really good kid in my ring and he beat me in everything usually, but at the last tournament, I beat him in sparring and combat, and that was like a turning point for me.
Speaker B:Oh, that's like a win, like a personal victory for sure.
Speaker B:That's exciting.
Speaker B:What are your events that are like your.
Speaker B:Hey, these are my favorite things to do.
Speaker A:Do.
Speaker C:I would definitely say team sparring and combat because, like, it's just so fast paced and energetic.
Speaker C:It's like, really fun to do.
Speaker C:Also.
Speaker C:Cheering on your teammates is always the best.
Speaker B:Yes.
Speaker B:You know what, we've been talking about that recently at my school and how just the team aspect is so much fun.
Speaker B:You know, there's a little.
Speaker B:Well, I should say sometimes I'm like, there's a little less pressure on you because you got other team members that bring it up.
Speaker B:Unless you're the guy at the end who's got to go last and then there's a lot more pressure on you.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:Is that you very often or do you guys mix spots?
Speaker C:Because my.
Speaker C:Oh, actually will be me from like now on too, because my friend, he just like recently moved on to track from Taekwondo.
Speaker C:So I'm gonna be always sparring their biggest, best kid last.
Speaker B:That's always rough.
Speaker B:It's a tough spot to be in, but, you know, it can sometimes.
Speaker B:Like, I had a kid just last a couple weekends ago, and he got so like, we were down big because we were down a part player, so we were already down in points.
Speaker B:And I was like, man, what?
Speaker B:Doesn't matter.
Speaker B:You just go in there and go crazy.
Speaker B:And he was killing it.
Speaker B:It was awesome.
Speaker B:So sometimes that End spot.
Speaker B:When you get that energy and you get that, you know you're in the zone is really great.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker B:What.
Speaker B:What event is your like?
Speaker B:I could skip this event.
Speaker C:So I used to do weapons and XMA weapons.
Speaker C:I used to find it really enjoyable, but now it's like I recently stopped doing them, but it was more like just doing the form instead of like.
Speaker C:I didn't like, like the aspect of you make it on your own.
Speaker C:I'd rather like the just traditional forms.
Speaker B:Okay.
Speaker B:Okay, cool.
Speaker B:Do you do traditional weapons?
Speaker B:No.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker B:What is your.
Speaker B:If you had to pick a weapon, let's say in traditional, what would be the weapon of your choice?
Speaker C:I would do either sword or Song Jabong because obviously Song Jamung is like the easiest weapon, but also sword.
Speaker C:I learned that form like about a year ago, and it's actually like a interesting forms.
Speaker C:Like, really cool.
Speaker B:Yeah, that's a fun one.
Speaker B:That's a fun one.
Speaker B:What's the weapon that you're like?
Speaker B:Nope.
Speaker C:Probably song knots.
Speaker C:I don't like the mechanics of the weapon.
Speaker C:It's like hard to move around and stuff.
Speaker B:I got that.
Speaker B:Yep.
Speaker B:I understand.
Speaker B:Okay, go to.
Speaker B:This is off my regular script, but go to sparring move.
Speaker B:What's your like?
Speaker C:Hey, I love this Sliding sidekick every single match.
Speaker C:Sliding psychic slime psychic.
Speaker B:That is the correct answer.
Speaker B:Very nice.
Speaker B:Good job.
Speaker B:Okay, so you're.
Speaker B:What kind of.
Speaker B:Do you have postseason goals for districts or world championships?
Speaker B:You said this is kind of a new.
Speaker B:You know, go into that level of competition.
Speaker B:It is a big difference.
Speaker B:I mean, it takes getting used to.
Speaker B:So do you have goals for the end of this season or what are you looking for for the new season?
Speaker C:My end of this season goals are probably to like, beat the good kid again at districts and get those district titles for the buys.
Speaker C:And also for next season, I'd say go to both nationals or maybe some out of state tournaments to like, help get even more used to that.
Speaker C:Like traveling into different places with different competition.
Speaker B:Yeah, I'm trying to think Colorado.
Speaker B:You know, you guys got some tournaments there in Colorado, but it's like I'm east coast or in middle and so I don't see as much out there.
Speaker B:Do you have to travel far for out of state tournaments?
Speaker B:Is that a.
Speaker C:We're like right in the middle of our region, so we have to travel at least like a two, three hour flight usually.
Speaker B:Okay.
Speaker B:Okay.
Speaker B:Yeah, that makes it rough.
Speaker B:But did.
Speaker B:Which nationals did you go to this year?
Speaker C:I went to spring nationals this year at St. Louis.
Speaker C:Yep.
Speaker B:What do you think?
Speaker C:This one, it was actually, this time was like a. I don't know how to explain.
Speaker C:It was like so different because I had like everyone different in my ring.
Speaker C:There was not a single person in my ring that was the same.
Speaker C:So it was like really shocking.
Speaker C:And I like didn't know any of their sparring styles, so it was like hard.
Speaker C:Yeah, just to.
Speaker B:That's a little.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:When you go in and you're like, hey, I'm used to this group of people.
Speaker B:And then you get there, you're like, wait a second.
Speaker B:These aren't the people I'm used to.
Speaker B:Yeah, that takes some getting used to for sure.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:What, what division are you in?
Speaker C:I'm in 13, 14, second, third degree boys.
Speaker B:Yeah, that's a, that's a big one.
Speaker B:Lots of guys in there.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker B:Are you staying in that one this new year or, or are you aging up?
Speaker C:I'm staying in second, third or 13, 14.
Speaker B:Good.
Speaker B:Yeah, that's better.
Speaker B:You don't want to go that 15, 16, 17 year old.
Speaker C:Yeah, I'm.
Speaker C:I'm scared for that.
Speaker C:They, they're like way up here.
Speaker A:It.
Speaker B:You know what I say, it's funny because that ring, simultaneously, at the same, you can have one ring of that 15 to 17 year old.
Speaker B:And one of the kids looks like he's got a wife and kids, he's got a full beard.
Speaker B:And then the other one looks like he's in elementary school somewhere and it's just that whole age range and.
Speaker B:Yeah, it's a little scary, I'm not going to lie.
Speaker B:But you'll have lots of experience to be set there.
Speaker B:Okay, what about martial arts goals in general?
Speaker B:Like outside of maybe the tournament composition, do you have other goals that you're looking at for your training or instruction or, you know, being a master?
Speaker C:Someday, I think someday I would like to become a master and then also maybe become like a school owner or part school owner so I could teach like kids.
Speaker B:Yes, that's.
Speaker B:It's a blast.
Speaker B:I mean, it's a, it's a great gig.
Speaker B:I'm not going to lie to you.
Speaker B:Awesome.
Speaker B:Okay.
Speaker B:Hey, what's it mean to you to be an athlete that goes beyond the belt?
Speaker C:To me, it's kind of like a signification that I have like reached the point where I am almost like above average and I put in the commitment, I put in the effort and like I'm at this point.
Speaker B:That's great.
Speaker B:I love hearing your, you know, going from kind of the, the in just hanging out in the school doing those kind of things to kind of going on this bigger level.
Speaker B:And that just gives you another way to look at, wow, look at all these other things I can do.
Speaker B:Look at how I can push myself even further, you know, and be able to do more things beyond where you were before.
Speaker B:So congratulations on being an Athlete of the Week and thank you so much for your time today.
Speaker C:Thank you, too.
Speaker B:Well, ladies and gentlemen, thank you so much for tuning in today to our live episode 201.
Speaker B:Please make sure that you are subscribed to the ATA Nation podcast.
Speaker B:We come out every single week.
Speaker B:Sometimes we've got big interviews like we did today with Chief Master Skiles.
Speaker B:Sometimes we have our athlete of the Week and upcoming events.
Speaker B:We've got all kinds of things.
Speaker B:Make sure you hit that subscribe button on YouTube or your favorite podcast feed.
Speaker B:And until next time, get out there and go beyond the Bell.
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