Mr. Couch's Corner: The Latest Texas Trip — December, 2006

I just returned to Tucson from my latest trip to Dallas, TX to study with Grandmasters Keith Yates and Michael Proctor. It was a wonderful and fun-filled four days, and I was once again amazed at the generosity of these two martial arts pioneers, as well and the skill, courtesy, and helpfulness of their students.

Over the trip, I had the pleasure of staying at the house of Thomas and Ysabel Merhout. Ysabel and Thomas Jr. are both black belts of Mr. Yates. Ysabel is a 1st Degree Black Belt in both Tae Kwon Do and Kobudo, and Thomas Jr. is a 4th Degree Black Belt in TKD and a 2nd Degree Black Belt in Kobudo. Thomas and Ysabel have constructed a full-sized private dojo at their home, and we burned the midnight candle more than once practicing different weapons routines as I began my Kobudo training.

In this trip to Texas, we specialized in Bo and Tonfa weapons training; these are the two weapons that are required for the green belt test in Kobudo in the A-KaTO program. I had gone to Texas with the intention of watching the Kobudo green belt test that was scheduled for the weekend. Little did I suspect when I debarked from my plane that I would be participating in the test! However, after evaluating my ability with the weapons and my absorption of the forms, Mr. Yates allowed me to test for green belt.

It took a LOT of cramming to remember all of the forms, one-steps, and other partner routines — and I will be doing a lot more work in the coming months to fix the corrections from my test and get more comfortable with the weapons and routines — but I managed to pass the green belt test. My heartfelt thanks go out to Ysabel Merhout, Thomas Merhout Jr., and Mr. Yates for their help in this process!

So the exciting and neverending quest for more martial knowledge has begun for me once again! My hands are sore and bruised from the training; my brain is frazzled from cramming eight months of information into three days; and my spirit is thoroughly giddy at the prospect of new information and the opportunity to grow. In future years, and with the permission and guidance of Mr. Yates and Mr. Proctor, I hope to bring this program to Blue Cliff Tae Kwon Do so that my students can also enjoy the benefits of training in this ancient system!