Editors note
I vividly recall the exhilaration of our early training in martial arts. Each session was a blend of excitement and challenge, pushing our limits and igniting our passion. The dojo was a haven where discipline met discovery, and every punch, kick, and kata was a step closer to mastery. The camaraderie with fellow students fostered a sense of unity, while our sensei’s guidance instilled respect and perseverance. The intense workouts, the sweat, and the occasional bruises were badges of honor, reminding us of our dedication. Those early days were a whirlwind of learning and growth, laying the foundation for our lifelong martial arts journey. Now let us follow Sensei Tim Spiess on his beginning and where it has taken him.
My Karate journey started in the fall of 1984, Monday, October 1st to be exact. It was suggested to me to check out a local karate instructor by the name of. Tim Hawk. Now sensei Hawk had been practicing Okinawan Karate since his teenage years, and his Sensei was a Nidan and had been trained in the old school style training of Shorin Ryu karate and had recently returned from Okinawa in 1963. Sensei Bob Peters was his name and became Sensei Hawk’s first teacher. Sensei Hawk studied with Sensei Peters until he received his Yon Dan in Shorin Ryu. Sensei Hawk then branched out and studied some Kung Fu of various styles.
Sensei Hawk had been lucky in that he had learned the old style of Shorin Ryu / Shorinji Ryu from his Sensei which had been passed down from two venerable masters Master Hohan Soken and Master Fusei Kise. They had taught the old-style Kata which would eventually be changed or nearly forced out in the early to mid-eighties, as martial artists turned their eyes more to the sports karate we see today. In the eighties, tournament fighting had taken the spotlight in karate and had changed the true Budo of karate to sport karate. So whereas Kata that were developed by the old masters were for self defense and Budo, the new Kata were for competition and were nonetheless watered down. Which changed the translation of the Bunkai or Oyo.
I was extremely fortunate to train under Sensei Hawk and learn these old-style katas with the budo and self defense techniques still taught in the spirit of the old ways and had not yet become the watered-down version we see in some schools today. I was also exposed to a style of training that you don’t see in dojos today that reflects the old schools and traditions straight from the birthplace of karate, Okinawa. We would drill the basics, 100’s of punches, 100’s of kicks, and then go through all the kata in the curriculum. This was done at each and every class regardless. We were taught the only way you got better was by constant repetition and drilling each movement, each technique it until it became second nature.
What I was not aware of at the time when I first stepped into the dojo on Monday 1, October 1984 is that this new thing “Karate” would be a lifelong activity and a way of life for me. Stay tuned for more interesting articles and interviews of masters that I have spoken with over the last 40 years!
- In The Beginning……. - May 19, 2024
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