My Tae Kwon Do journey has certainly been a test of perseverance!

I began Tae Kwon Do in Edinburgh in February 1992, just over 10 years ago now. I had all the eagerness of a new student and would attend 3 or 4 times a week. Less than a year later, due to personal circumstances I had to move away from Edinburgh. One of the first things I did in my new location was search out a Tae Kwon Do school and start classes again. Unfortunately, this club was very different from the first one and my enthusiasm quickly waned. I still attended classes, but at the first “excuse”, which was a small operation in this case, I stopped going. I tried to push Tae Kwon Do to the back of my mind and concentrate on yoga and other things. I moved around a lot over the next few years and did try out one or two more clubs, but was not inspired!

Then, on moving to Germany, I found a Tae Kwon Do club that suited me. The main thing was that the “heart” of the club seemed to be in the right place. I re-started my training with a fresh zest and gusto and trained there for 3 or 4 years before returning to the UK. I had now reached red belt level and loved sparring especially (something this particular club emphasised), so I couldn’t wait to find another club in the UK so I could reach the next level.

And there I was again, back to the dilemma of finding a suitable club. I did find a club, but the atmosphere was just not right and in the end I felt I was simply wasting my precious time in the evenings. This time though, I was determined not to stop martial arts completely as I knew I would be moving location again within a year or so. I became a member of a Combined Fighting Arts club, which involved kick-boxing, Jeet Kun Do and Eskrima techniques. I learnt much, but my heart was not in it – it was still with Tae Kwon Do.

Last December 2001, we moved down to Penzance in Cornwall (where we intend to stay!) and I tackled the problem of finding a club again – internet searches, library notice boards, numerous phone calls – I began to feel like a private detective. Although there are Tae Kwon Do clubs nearer to me, I am extremely fussy with how I spend my valuable time and only re-started my training after finding the St Austell club. In February 2002, I began travelling to St Austell twice a week with my 13 year old daughter Lydia who also trains with me and is at blue belt level.

On the surface it might seem contradictory that I am so concerned not to waste time, yet spend quite a lot of time travelling to training.  We cycle 15 minutes from our village outside Penzance, take a train for one hour, then walk 10 minutes at the other end to reach the training venue (then the same back again arriving home at 10:40 in the evening!). I can’t deny it is difficult, especially to ensure I leave work at 5 pm promptly to ensure I catch the train on time, but I can honestly say it is worth it and I would never consider it time wasting, because of the value of training we receive.

There was always an element that was “lacking” in so many of the clubs I have visited and tried out over the years. That “lacking” element is there at the St Austell club. Although I obviously learnt many Poomse to reach my red belt, I often felt “awkward” with certain movements without knowing why. Under the instruction of Steven Shields at St Austell I have now started to remedy this. He has the patience to teach the forms and techniques correctly so they flow well and has the right “feel” for this martial art.

I have often compared my learning experience to learning to drive. It is as if I have learnt to drive by a family member, been driving around happily for many years and am now for the first time attending an Advanced Driving School to learn the techniques correctly.

I have had to take several steps backwards in my learning process, to enable me to step forwards and I now feel confident that by training with Steven Shields at the St Austell club and under the guidance of Master Loh (I have attended one of his one-day seminars and am about to take part in his one week seminar in Nottingham, followed by another of his seminars in October in Fowey), I will achieve the level I am capable of achieving.