A simple stick is a dangerous, even lethal, weapon in the hands of a skilled weapons expert. This short 1 minute YouTube video shows four ways to defend against a stick attack as taught at the Karate Institute of America. Two of the techniques show how to use the stick offensively, if necessary, after the opponent is disarmed.

The Black Belt playing the role of the “scary bad guy” in the video, is 5th Dan Master Kim “Cultivator” Thomas, the only Black Belt at the KIA holding a “Master” dan title in its 40 year history. Master Thomas is quite the actor, as the video proves. “Are you hearing this, Hollywood?” Prepare that Oscar!

It was a fun day with a fun group! Chip Robinson, owner of The Management Works and a Karate Institute of America fighting and forms champion, hosted a self-defense workshop for his employees on 12 February 2019. The following photo was taken at the end of a four hour, jam-packed session of self-defense knowledge, kicks, strikes, techniques, tactics and strategies. Chip, aka Hawk (his KIA call sign), has surrounded himself with a host of excellent and professional individuals who have all contributed to the success of The Management Works - a real estate property management company located in Newport Beach, CA.

One of the major criteria in evaluating the excellence of martial artists is their form, i.e., the structure of their basic fundamentals, techniques, kicks, punches, hand strikes, movement, etc. If their form is faulty, so will be their art. If their form is perfect, so will their art be also.

Throughout the history of the Karate Institute of America, the form of our competitors has been responsible for literally hundreds of championships in all areas of martial arts competition on a local, state, regional and national level.

It is not the size of the man in the fight that wins. Rather, it is the size of the fight in the man that proves victorious, and the size of that fight depends on the size of the spirit in the man.

On 23 March 1775, Patrick Henry, an American lawyer and patriot, delivered a speech to the Virginia Convention urging his fellow countrymen to wage a war for independence against Great Britain and King George. That historic speech, known by its final sentence, “Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death,” reflects the enormous power of words and the fighting spirit behind them.

The following excerpt is from Chapter 8 of The Karate Consciousness: From Worldly Warrior to Mystic Master by Kiado-Ryu Grandmaster Richard Andrew King.

The “D and C” are the initials for Discipline and Control respectively. They generate the “Discipline-Control Factor” – an idea basic to all principles of achievement, without which there could be no accomplishment.

The relationship between Discipline and Control is that the former generates the latter. Control is regulation. Discipline is the training and exercise needed to effect the regulation. In karate, for instance, the placement, power and effect of any striking blow, be it a kick, punch, chop, rake, thrust, etc., is variable. Proficiency, however, and the extent of the variations is a matter of control. Yet, as any practitioner will confirm, the achievement of control takes work, concentrated effort, practice and repetition. Discipline is the force which binds all of these components together and creates the efficiency.

If there is one thing in this world that is certain it is that time marches on and we all get older. The photo with the two cuties above was taken in August of 2009. Pictured are Sofia “Cannon” Dale and brother Jake “Achilles” Dale, the children of Green Belt Annette “Warrior” Dale.

In the photo below we see these very focused and talented dynamos doing kicking drills during The Karate Institute of America’s Kids Power Self-Defense Workshop on 7 November 2010, Sunday. Notice how intense each of them is. Obviously, the acorn didn’t fall far from the Warrior tree!