On Saturday, April 28, 2012, my nine-year-old daughter and I took our first black belt test. I tested for first-degree black belt (first dan), and she tested for first-degree junior black belt (first poom).
In the weeks leading up to the test, I was very nervous about performing all of my forms. My daughter had them memorized with no problem, but I kept getting the mixed up. I would start out performing one form, and then after the turn, I would start performing steps from another form. It was maddening. Fortunately my daughter helped me “cram” for the test the night before.
On the morning of the test, we arrived at the testing center at about 9:15 am. My daughter's best friend came with us for support. The test was held at Portland Community College, Sylvania Campus. There were approximately 50 students testing for first- second- or third-degree black belt or first-, second- or third-degree junior black belt. Most were testing for first-degree; there were (oddly) only a handful of students testing for second- or third-degree.
The test was scheduled to begin at 10am, so we had some time to stretch and review our forms. I was still mixing some of them up. This did not help set my nerves at ease. At 10am, we separated into three groups, and we did some stretching. There were only two other adults in my group. The rest were all teenagers. I recognized the masters leading my group, but I do not know their names. They made a point to emphasize the importance that everyone stay safe today. They wanted us to let them know if we became injured during the test.
At approximately 10:20, we began
endurance testing (20 minutes). This is the part of the test that most candidates dread the most. The masters asked us to do lots and lots and lots or jumping jacks, mountain climbers, pushups and sit-ups. Some of these exercises we do regularly in class, but not all of them and not nearly enough in my opinion. I had wanted to be better prepared for this portion of the test, but I just can’t keep up with the teenagers, so my strategy was to just do my best, not give up, and maintain a positive attitude. I was not near enough the other adults in class to notice how well they were doing, but one of the masters came to the back to check on me at least three times to make sure I was doing alright.
After endurance testing, he gave us a five-minute break to get a drink of water. I checked in with my daughter and learned that her master had asked her group to remain in plank position for what seemed like forever. She said it actually made her cry, but no one noticed. She was red in the face and sweaty, but as happy as I was to have completed this portion of the test.
At 10:45 we started
basic techniques (40 minutes). This portion of the test was really fun. We demonstrated various punches and blocks. At this point I was able to relax and even smile. We finished basic techniques with one hundred punches. I was surprised how easy that was. Then he asked us to one hundred more. I think I probably lost count and only did 90. My arms were starting to feel like jelly. At 11:05 we started
kicking (25minutes). At this point I was finally able to shine. I was feeling really good, and when the master complimented me on my spinning hook kicks, I felt nine feet tall.
After kicking, he gave us a ten-minute break to get some water and put on our sparring gear. I also grabbed a little snack from lunch box. Oddly, this was the part of the test that my daughter was most nervous about. She thought we were going to be scored, like in the tournament, but I knew that we were going to have friendly bouts, like in sparring class. It was also at this point in the day that our former master, Jason Leitski, made an appearance. It was super-awesome to see him again.
At 11:40 we started
sparring (30 minutes). I was paired up with the other adult woman testing today. She was very nice. I think she said her name is Shirley, and she studies at the West Union School. Her daughters were testing today, too. The master announced to us that we would fight in five ten-minute rounds. My sparring partner freaked out a little bit, but I knew he was teasing. We fought in three one-minute rounds. We couldn’t all fight at once, so half of us sat down while the other half fought, and then they sat down while we fought. We traded places each round. After each round, some of us switched partners; I switched partners after the first round. My second partner was younger, but closer to my own weight. I think I was much better than either of my partners, but not everyone likes sparring.
After sparring, we had another five-minute break to get some water and stow our gear.
At 12:15 we started
forms (30 minutes). This was the portion of the test that I was most dreading, but it turned out all right. We did not perform the forms in order, but two other things happened that were to my advantage: first we performed the forms all as a group, which I knew we would, and second, the master called out the steps. I tend to fall behind when we are told to perform the form at our own pace. I did forget which step comes next a few times, but I was able to “cheat” by watching the people around me, and I did okay. I did get an extra kick in on of the forms, but no one called me out on it.
At 12:45 we watched the higher-ranked students perform their
nun chuck forms. They were really good. Hardly anyone dropped the nun chucks, but there were a lot fewer candidates than years past.
At 1:05 we heard some
speeches (20 minutes), I think four different parents had been asked to speak about how taekwondo had helped their children grow up into better people. Some of the parents were also studying taekwondo.
At 1:25 we started
board breaking (35 minutes). We were each given eight boards. The children were given medium-sized boards and the teenagers and adults were given “thick” boards. My master, Eric Jun, held my boards for me. We had to think up our own breaking techniques. I thought we could do eight kicking techniques, but we had to do four hand techniques. I chose chop, hammer fist, and elbow strike. I couldn’t think of any others, so Master Eric called out punch: not my favorite breaking technique, but I did fine. For kicking techniques, I performed back kick, sidekick, spinning hook kick and spinning roundhouse kick. I broke all my boards on my first attempts. Later I learned that my daughter chose hammer fist, chop, elbow strike, reverse chop, axe kick (her favorite), sidekick and spinning roundhouse kick.
At 2:00 we began the
closing ceremony (30 minutes). We lined up by school and received new uniforms, so we scurried off to the bathrooms to change. I love new uniforms. They are always so bright white. These uniforms had black collars and black stripes on the shoulders and thigh. They also had the name of the school running down the sleeve, across the back and down the leg. When we came back to the testing area, we lined up in front of our masters again and we received our belts. Our friends Laura and Dominic came down and snapped pictures with us. The Bakkensens and Singles were also there to support us. When everyone had his or her black belts, we gathered for a group photo.
After the test, we went out to lunch at Red Robin with our friends the Singles to celebrate. Red Robin is becoming the go to place to celebrate black belts. We ate there after Jared’s black belt test, and we ate there after Dominic’s black belt test.
The whole experience was really wonderful. I'm so grateful that so many of my friends were there to support me. I am especially grateful to Laura and Olivia who took pictures. It would be a real shame if we had no photos of our experience. I’m looking forward to continuing my taekwondo journey. I will be eligible to test for second-degree black belt in two years, but before that, I will have three level tests at six month intervals to keep me on pace toward my next dan ranking.
