Tag: steve rowe

Interviews & People1 Comment

Dave Courtney Interview 2010

Steve Rowe

This interview was conducted in October 2010 I never judge anyone until I’ve met him or her in person.  In my experience a person and their reputation rarely match, the story from others is always going to be subjective and often it’s only repeated rumour and gossip.  Dave Courtney is a controversial character and draws opinions from all manner of people. The first thing that struck me about him was his genuine friendly manner and the fact that he obviously valued friendship and his long-term friends.  That says a lot about him. Dave ran a security company with over one … Continue reading Dave Courtney Interview 2010

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My Immortal Soul..

Steve Rowe

Most of us are worried about what will happen to us when we die. When all we have to do, Is remember what we were before we were born. What we are now, have always been, And will always be. Where is you immortal soul? Why can’t you feel it now? Of course you can, it rests in your stillness. Stand tall, breathe deep, focus your mind, When the words stop and the body is still, ‘You’ cease to exist – and there it is. It has no name, it permeates everything, Everything within it rises and falls in time, … Continue reading My Immortal Soul..

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The Stopped Breath…

Steve Rowe

Between breathing in and out, And between out and in, There is a magic Zen moment, A moment in which we can access infinity. We stop our breath to concentrate. To draw a straight line freehand, To listen intently, Before we pee or poo, And even before we vomit. A moment of perfect Zen. When we meditate, these are our magic moments. Like the pauses between waves rolling in and out. We learn to extend our Zen from these pauses. And how to extend and deepen our breathing. When in combat we can’t match breath to technique. So breathing has … Continue reading The Stopped Breath…

Articles1 Comment

The Best Martial Art And Teacher…

Steve Rowe

Watching a variety of YouTube Martial Art instructional videos I was struck by the extent of what I would call unintelligent reasoning going on.  What the Coaches were saying sounded like structured teaching, but in fact they were focusing on unimportant points in the technique – and how they were explaining them meant that, in my opinion, most students would not be able to perform the movement with any efficiency. Some students will get better despite the Coach and they will go on to teach in the way that they have been taught and more often than not students with … Continue reading The Best Martial Art And Teacher…

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Dave Hazard Interview 2003

Steve Rowe

This interview was recorded in July 2003 Dave Hazard is a living legend in Shotokan Karate.  He is typical of the depth of quality contained within the English Karate Governing Body.  One of the first to start the Art in the late 60’s, training at the famous Blackfriars Dojo under the late Enoeda Sensei, Dave was one of the first English Instructors to up sticks and make the journey to Japan to train at the Honbu Dojo of the Japan Karate Association, returning a year later as a Sandan graded by the late Nakayama Sensei, head of Shotokan Karate. An … Continue reading Dave Hazard Interview 2003

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The Alchemy Of Tai Chi Chuan

Steve Rowe

A strange challenge – in Beijing in the early 1800’s in the house of Prince Daun sat two men facing each other with their right fists pitted against the other. Yeung Lou Sim (also known as Yang Lu Cha’n) the founder of Yang style Tai Chi Chaun or “Soft Cotton Boxing” as it was commonly known had been teaching many nobles of the Qing dynasty refusing challenges until he had been made the “offer he couldn’t refuse” by a boxing master of high prestige……. Yeung Lou Sim sat calmly as the boxing master began to sweat profusely and his chair … Continue reading The Alchemy Of Tai Chi Chuan

Interviews & People3 Comments

Peter Spanton Interview 2003

Steve Rowe

This Interview was conducted in 2003. I think it’s important for all Martial Artists to know what their roots are.  Month by month in this column I’ve been building up a picture of the people who were there at the birth of Karate in England.  Most Karateka will be able to trace their roots back to this handful of people.  It’s no coincidence that they are all members of one Governing Body, properly named The English Karate Governing Body. Peter Spanton was there from the start.  One of the first students of Tatsuo Suzuki at the Honbu Dojo in Clapham … Continue reading Peter Spanton Interview 2003

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Mick Gooch Interview 2003

Steve Rowe

This interview was published in January 2003 We need experienced Martial Artists to stay around and help the younger generation; far too many of them fade away and either stop training and teaching altogether or simply end up training on their own.  Therefore I was very happy to see Mick Gooch in fine form after a 14 year absence. Mick Gooch is one of those Kyokushin “names” from the Medway towns in Kent, along with Paul and Terry Owen, Dennis Jones and Norman King, Mick bought the Kyokushinkai style of Karate to Chatham.  Mick is a natural, easy going, likeable … Continue reading Mick Gooch Interview 2003

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Mick Billman Interview 2003

Steve Rowe

This interview was conducted in 2003. Mick Billman is one of those names that is well known in the higher echelons of the Karate world and particularly at National, European and World levels.  He has tirelessly served the English Karate Governing Body on the Technical and Executive Committees for many years and has now recently also been elected on to the Management Board of the restructured English Karate Governing Body Ltd. Mick sits on the Technical Committee for Europe and has done a sterling job in getting all our English representatives known and acknowledged at European and World level.  His … Continue reading Mick Billman Interview 2003

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Age With Dignity…

Steve Rowe

There’s nothing more undignified than an old person trying to behave like a younger one.  If you train well over the years, it’s only natural that you lose the aggression and ignorance of youth and the bullishness gives way to wisdom, emotional intelligence, cunning and skill.  A problem only arises  if you don’t continue learning and hanker after that which is past, then it can become embarrassing if the OAP is trying to convince everyone that he still ‘has it’ – a bit like your Grandad trying to dance on a nightclub floor to the latest music. When someone has been … Continue reading Age With Dignity…