The Road to Shodan

A year ago, when I found Fraijo Sensei's Shito Ryu dojo in Clovis, CA, I was thrilled. I've been a student of Shito-Ryu some 23 years. The past ten spent simply maintaining what I knew as a green belt, half of which I spent practicing alone.






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After a year of hard training, assisting, and taking my licks, I finally earned my 3rd Kyu.

It was no easy task, and though I walked away a brown belt, I walked away with a few superficial injuries.

Location:Clovis, CA

Moving Forward

In 2003, testing under the stern, watchful face of Demura Fumio Sensei, Isbel Briscoe, and Vasily Mstslavsky, I tested for 6th Kyu. I had to test through three Kyu leading into my green belt test. The grueling test took about twenty-five to thirty minutes under hot lights. I was dumb enough to wear Thermal Underwear beneath my Gi.

By the time I earned 4th Kyu, I chose to stop testing. Whatever assessments decided what I knew, or didn't know, it was my decision that I didn't know enough to progress.

I didn't want to proceed, and let whatever it was I needed to know catch up to me.

In my early twenties I was not well known for showing any great deal of wisdom, but one thing I knew certain, Karate is a patient art.

Depending on the dojo, some people make their first Dan in a few years.

Some much sooner.

The one thing I knew then was that I didn't know enough. There was no hurry.

I've spent eleven years in 4th Kyu, patiently, learning everything I could learn about my position in Shito-Ryu. What may seem a little overboard is likely one of the best decisions I've ever made.

This past eleven years has been a blessing, and my eyes opened many, many times, my understanding through the training bestowed by my instructors, has granted me a clarity - in an art I am undeserving - I never knew I could achieve.

Tuesday, 27May2014 I test for 3rd Kyu. I know the academia, my lineage , the nine Kata, and I will fight until I drop, and wrestle until I am become the blood, sweat, and tears it takes to earn this belt coming.

I am a little nervous, yes. Eleven years, comfortable, and maybe a little complacent. I know 6th Kyu. 5th Kyu... 4th Kyu... Probably better than most green belts ever will.

I don't know anything of 3rd Kyu.

The home field advantage is gone, and hence forward, this is wild country.

Yeah, I'm ready - nervous - but I'm ready.


http://www.piranhagear.com
Get the best of the best Martial Arts Gear for your needs directly from Piranha Gear, and put some Bite in your Fight! Use the 10% discount code KT-74804-JHVE1Q checking out for a 10% discount!

Location:Corona-Norco YMCA

Piranha Gear: The Best Martial Arts Training, and Fight Gear you'll ever own! Put Bite in your Fight!

Put Bite in your Fight!

Q: Why follow a Piranha Gear Affiliate on Instagram?

A: Why Not? You've got nothing to lose, and plenty to gain.

It's true, I am one of those people, the guy on other end of the computer that wants to encourage you to visit some website you're unfamiliar, and expect you to browse the gear. It's true, and worse, I am a self professed unrepentant affiliate.

*Insert evil laughter here*

Not all affiliates are sinister villains looking for a way to separate you from your hard earned money, all while twisting a thin evil mustache, and lining their pockets with a cut of your hard earned green.

It is true, affiliates get a commission for turning you onto a website, idea, business plan, or product, and some may use less-than-honorable means to proliferate their business plan. This is why there are is way too much SPAM E-Mail floating around in virtual space, annoying net users, and finding its way into SPAM folders, unsubscribe lists, and even in severe cases, complaints against the affiliate spamming.

Not everyone with a handful of hope, and a heart full of dreams wants to get rich quick selling snake oil remedies that promise a more fulfilling love life, better, longer lasting connections, and larger, fuller life experiences.

Certainly, I am not.

Do I look skinny yet?

I'm not here to sell you weight loss on the next homeopathic diet supplement, energy from whatever new root's making headlines, or to offer any business plans that you can use to quit your job, work from home, and make $600.00 a week (that's the current big one floating around the internet right now). I am not a multi-level marketing opportunity, nor am I looking to recruit you based on your talent in sales, or your ability to hire a foundation to help build a pyramid scheme.

 
If you've read, or seen anything I've posted, whether pictures, or text, you'll know I'm here for the sole purpose of introducing you to Piranha Gear.

I'm not even asking you to buy anything.

I'm asking you just to browse the website, and see for yourself why Piranha Gear will be the best martial arts training, and fighting gear you will ever use. Ever. Piranha Gear backs their gear with a 100% Product Satisfaction Guarantee! They're doing this with a no nonsense, no BS approach to insure you never know dissatisfaction with their product. This covers exchanges, or if a product simply isn't what you wanted after all. You're covered. Piranha Gear's got your back, and that's saying a lot.

It's not enough for me to encourage you to check out the Piranha Gear website, or browse. Get to know them, check out their blog, and feel free to address any questions, thoughts, or concerns their way. Their customer service is second to none, unparalleled, and unsurpassed.

Researching Piranha Gear on the net will yield you a wealth of positive written reviews from satisfied martial artists of nearly every style. Undoubtedly, the informed researcher seeks more than just what's written, and I don't blame you.

Bill, BuffBrown21 on YouTube reviews Piranha Gear's kick pad training gear, and his review reflects the sentiments of many martial artists using Piranha Gear today.

Still, it's not enough to simply hear someone say how good a product is, either. Buying blind is scary, especially on the internet. Even with your 100% Product Satisfaction Guarantee, you may still be skeptical, and given the current climate of the internet, I wouldn't blame you if you are. You're better safe than sorry.

Fortunately, there is some footage of this gear hard at work, and I can personally guarantee you I'll add more myself as time permits. Probably me getting hit a lot in my Piranha Gear to demonstrate it's functional capabilities.

For now, as you see here, once again Bill BuffBrown21 is demonstrating the use of Piranha Gear's strike pads, coming at them with kicks, punches, and elbow strikes.

 
In the video prior, he discusses how like the strike pads are to striking a person in the ring.

This demonstration is a very convincing display of his skill, and striking power. The pads hold up, firmly enough for full performance practice, and yet are not so hard that they impede training.

All of my gear is by Piranha Gear, and no they didn't sponsor me any free gear to say so. Like you, I discovered something amazing, and I was compelled to own it.

I've never looked back.

For me, because I study Shito-Ryu, the use of shin pads, and heavy head gear is not as necessary for me, as say someone who may study Muay Thai, Kickboxing, or Boxing. My medium Headgear is plenty more than enough protection for the dojo. My gloves, and footwear are intended for karate, as well.

From the moment I first contacted Piranha Gear, I was immediate impressed. Their staff is courteous, personable, and even discussed some of their martial arts experience when engaged. When I experienced the quality of their gear, it wasn't a matter of how I would promote the gear, only the question of how anyone could not?

We're not all the same, we affiliates. Some of us are in it for a quick buck. Some of us are in it for the product, because we believe in it, use it, live by it, and swear by it. I'm one of those, and thanks to Piranha Gear's outstanding line of martial arts fight gear, and training gear, I always will be.

Why you should choose Piranha Gear fight gear over all other fight gear!

It is no secret that all fight gear companies are going to step up to the plate, guns blazing with the promise that their gear is the best martial arts gear on the market. Contenders like Adidas, Hayabusa, and Venum are examples time tested, and proven competition performance fight gear that can make the claim with some merit.

Most of these companies, shelling out MMA gear for aspiring cage fighters, pride fighters, and UFC champions are doing so under the guise that expensive means reliable.

Sometimes expensive just means expensive, but quality does not need to be expensive, and Piranha Gear demonstrates this through outstanding merchandise, personal customer service, and a comprehensive 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. No runaround, no bureaucracy, no bait and switch.

Beyond the exceptional quality of their cost friendly quality merchandise, your satisfaction is paramount. Period.

There is a whole lot of salespeople out there who want to peddle and push their wares on you without regard for what you need.

Most vendors want to sell you their merchandise more than you want to buy it.

My job's to make sure you get the right merchandise for you - along with your 10% discount.


For me, headgear, open palm gloves, and footpads. I'm not an MMA fighter, nor do I dreams of UFC, so I don't need the heavy padded shin guards, or sixteen ounce gloves. It would loo awesome to walk into a ring looking like a Spartan warrior, but unnecessary for me.

Experience martial artists know what they want, what they need, and will choose at their discretion. For everyone else, I am only an email away, or you can text my business cell and I'll be glad to help you choose what is right for you,

Remember, Piranha Gear is backed by a 100% Satisfction Guarantee, with no questions asked.

At the end of the day it comes down to simple numbers.
Do you want more, or less for your money?
Do you want to see where your money's going?

Trust in Piranha Gear. You have nothing to lose, everything to gain, and of course: satisfaction guarantee,

Dig in, and prepare for battle. Go Piranha Gear and put Bite in your Fight.

http://www.piranhagear.com
Get the best of the best Martial Arts Gear for your needs directly from Piranha Gear, and put some Bite in your Fight! Use the 10% discount code KT-74804-JHVE1Q checking out for a 10% discount!

Use the Best Fight Gear! Go Piranha Gear, and put Bite in your Fight!

If you're reading this, then you're using one of the three best free blog sites the internet has to offer (BlogSpot, WordPress, or LiveJournal). Me, I'm using all three of them at once. I'm using three at once, because when this entry is finished, I'll hopefully not only changed your point of view, or opinions, but hopefully I'll have changed how you choose your fight gear.

Demura Sensei, Briscoe Sensei, and Hilliard Sensei

My name's Michael Oka, my friends call me Oka, so you should too. I'm a twenty-two year veteran of Shito-Ryu, with a solid lineage.

Additionally, I train under Jerry Fraijo Sensei in Clovis, California. My lineage through Fraijo Sensei, ascends directly through Tim Shiomi Sensei, and Kenzo Mabuni Sensei (the son of Shito-Ryu founder Kenwa Mabuni Sensei).

I have solid instructors, solid training, and like most of you who train hard, I need to keep myself in the best shape I possibly can. This means proper diet, proper exercise, and proper training - but - this also means that I need the best possible gear to train with.

Anyone who trains has probably at one point, or another gone to a Dicks Sporting Goods, or Big 5 to look for fight gear. They've got a huge supply, and odds are most beginners have no idea the injuries they're about to walk into.

I discussed some of the brands I've seen at the sporting goods stores, or little mall outlets, with other martial artists, and when I discussed names like Macho, Swift, and even Everlast, the sentiments were majority shared. Rubber dipped, painted, or coated high impact, high density foam padding like you'll see with Macho, or Swift brand martial arts gear is great for kids, short term practice, and certainly great if you don't plan on practicing professionally.

...and for some of us, I am certain that's fine.

When I asked about Everlast, the consensus was that "...Everlast neverlasts..." and that was the kindest compliment I could pull up out of the conversation.

So, I got to researching. You see a lot of these martial arts supplies being pumped out through small vendors, and discount martial arts gear from sites such as Tiger Strike, or Martial Arts Overstock, and at least to me, that's not very reassuring. There has to be a reason the gear is oversold at underwhelming prices, and there has to be a reason why there is so much overstock that the vendors can afford to sell the gear at irrationally low prices.

I pulled most of this up by discussing gear with other martial artists, and then researching it with a simple Google search. If you check it out yourself, you'll see what I'm talking about.

So why hurt yourself? Why waste time searching for any discount martial arts supplies, whether for sparring, MMA, UFC, or training? Never mind used gear vendors, and the idea of using something someone else didn't want because they chose to upgrade to reliable gear.

You need to be 110% when you step into a match!

It doesn't matter what style you practice, whether it is mixed martial arts, traditional martial arts, Karate, Kung Fu, Aikido, Kajukenbo, Muay Thai, or Brazilian Jiujitsu. You've put way too much into what you do to find yourself forced to quit because of an injury

Trust in Piranha Gear.

Piranha Gear is a martial arts training, and fight gear company that provides fight gear made by martial artists for martial artists. The quality of the gear is second to none, and they provide equipment, and fight gear for the majority of martial arts styles.

You want to win big, and walk away from it to fight another day. You want to train hard without risking your health, and safety. Go Piranha Gear.

Piranha Gear offers a 100% Satisfaction Guarantee on all of their merchandise, and won't jerk you around, bait and switch, or hit you with any red tape. Their service is prompt, polite, and personal, and that my fellow martial artists is something severely lacking from the fight gear industry today.

Piranha Gear has what you need and if you find they're out of stock, they do their best to go out of their way to get it to you! You can't beat service like this, no matter who you are.

Check the site out, get yourself some gear! Not only is it quality, you won't have to empty your bank account to get it - and - because you've been so patient with me, use this 10% Discount Code at checkout, and knock a chunk off your purchase.
KT-74804-JHVE1Q

(You're Welcome!)

- M