Company: Turtle Press
Tape Name: Beginner TKD (TKD35)
Tape Cost: ? (5 tapes
for $100)
Length of Tape/Time: 30 minutes
Number of Moves/Techniques: 16
Return
Policy: Defective Merchandise or By Authorization
Experiences in dealing with
this company: Excellent
The Instructor: Sang H. Kim
Company's Address: 403
Silas Deane Hwy., Wethersfield, CT., 06109
Company's Phone Number: 1-800-778-8785
Web
Page: http://www.turtlepress.com
E-Mail: sales@turtlepress.com
Primary Grading Criteria:
1. Production/Tape
Quality: 9
2. Instructors demonstrated skill level: 9
3. Comprehension Score/Immediate
Understanding: 10
4. Degree to which this will make someone a better Martial Artist:
9
5. Score on delivery vs hype: 9
6. Degree to which we would recommend this
product: 9
7. Wasted Time ( The higher the number, the less " fluff"
/repetition ): 10
8. Playback Score/Watching if over-and-over again: 9
9. Would
I purchase more of this company's products:9
10. Overall grade based on cost vs.
Value: 9
Grand Total: 92% (Good = 3.0 Stars)
Secondary Grading Criteria:
1. Beginners
benefit: Good
2. Intermediate benefit: Good
3. Advanced benefit: Fair
4.
Time to benefit: Immediate for most of the material
5. The need to buy additional
tapes to understand this one: None
Written Summary:
Sang H. Kim hasn't
earned a bunch of "Excellent" scores in our reviews, but he consistently
produces "Good" tapes. Most TKD stylists, especially WTF'ers, shouldn't
pass up his material.
When reviewing a Beginner TKD tape, like this one,
I had to put myself in several different mindsets:
1. Someone who didn't know
this art
2. Someone who did, and had helped teach it before
3. A reviewer looking
at this tapes benefit to other martial artists, from other styles
Needless
to say, that's a lot of hats to wear when reviewing a tape. And # 3, you can't really
apply here, because this tape is definitely meant for people interested in TKD. Why
do I mention all this? So everyone knows where I'm coming from when I grade a tape
like this. OK, enough of that, so what's on the tape?
This is a very basic
tape, and in some respects, a REAL intro to TKD. One is shown:
1. Definition
2.
Purpose
3. Benefits
4. Origin
5. History
6. Etiquette
7. Uniform/Folding
a Uniform Traditionally/Tieing one's belt
# 1 - 7 took up about 5 minutes
or so on the tape.
Next it goes into what Kim calls "Techniques",
although part of it I would think should more appropriately be called "Commands".
He shows:
1. Attention command (Korean: Charyo)
2. Bow (Ken-ya, bare with
my spelling)
3. Ready (Chunbi)
4. Relax (Barro)
Left out were important
commands such as:
1. Begin (Shejak)
2. About Face (Duiro Dora)
3. At
Ease (Sheer, although I've heard some say Show)
4. End (Goman)
And what
really surprised me was that Kim left out the Korean count/numbering system. Meaning,
how to count from 1-10, which is a basic thing taught to most beginners, at least
around here, their first month of classes. Those commands are:
Hanna, Dol,
Set, Net, Tausut, Yosut, Ilgope, Yadul, Ahop, Yul. (excuse my spelling!)
Maybe
these are things he doesn't teach to his beginners right away. Oh well, to each his
own. I'm not going to fault him for that. Even though they were listed as "Techniques"
instead of "Commands".
Next Kim shows:
1. Fighting stance
(how to properly do one wasn't explained as well as I'd hoped)
2. Front stance
(explained OK, but could've done better)
3. Punches : a couple of very basic ones
(left out uppercut, hook)
4. Strikes: knifehand, palmheel, elbow (backfist was
left out)
5. Kicks: front, roundhouse, side (crescent and heel/hook left out)
6.
Footwork: (shows 3 samples, doesn't explain them thoroughly)
7. Forms: Kim demonstrates
one form and breaks it down, I believe it was the 1st WTF Poomse.
8. Self Defense
Applications: hair grab, front choke, double handed lapel grab, belt grab, front
shoulder grab, rear shoulder grab. (left out a few)
9. One Step Sparring: Shows
about 8-10 of these, but most were one block & one punch/strike. This is something
I personally think, that from the beginning, most TKD instructors do wrong. A one
block, one strike mentality, is something you don't want to have become ingrained
in ANY students mind (personal opinion). But hey, they were beginners, and I know
he has to start somewhere. Maybe at the next rank level, or a couple above, he changes
this and teaches multiple strikes when attacking someone.
10. Cool Down - meditation
This
was a "Good" tape, as I said before, and could've been an "Excellent"
one had a few additional things, some of which I pointed out, been included. Other
things I would've like to have seen would've been:
1. Warm Up exercises
2.
Stretches
3. A few basic drills for developing ones punches and kicks
If
you're reading this it's probably because you're looking for a good beginner TKD
tape. If you're interested in the absolute best TKD beginner tape I've ever seen,
find Danny Lane's website, email him, and beg him for a copy of one he did a long
time ago, which for some weird reason he no longer actively markets. I use to have
this tape of his and it was AWESOME! If I could find it and grade it, it would certainly
be a "5 Star" tape. I loaned it to an old TKD instructor of mine, he liked
it so much he loaned it to another TKD instructor he knew, and now it's supposedly
"lost" (Yeah, right!). I guess that just confirms how good it was, heck,
the person who ended up with it didn't even want to return it. I found this tape
of Lane's in a bargain bin at a store called MacFrugals years ago for like $1.99
(can you believe it?), and in my opinion it's the best tape, out of all the one's
of Lane's I've seen. I can't remember the exact title, but I think it was called
"Daily Dozen". Boy, I'd give about anything if I could get another copy
of it. In it your shown a variety of the common stances, punches, kicks, and blocks
one needs to know for TKD. Lane takes you through a quick do-a-long workout, prefaced
by warm ups and stretches, that if you follow along for about 30 minutes, will each
day take you through about a dozen reps of every punch, kick and block. And as if
that wasn't enough, at the end of his tape he shows some great self defense and knife
defense techniques, making it an extremely thorough tape for most any beginner. And
somehow during the tape, he even fits in explaining "commands" and how
to properly do each technique. Lane's tape is without a doubt the BEST beginner TKD
tape I've ever seen. Heck, even intermediate students, who can't make it to their
TKD classes on certain days, could use it and get a great little quickie workout.
One of the best things about Lane's tape was that it was short, 35-45 minutes in
length, yet in this time he was able to cover a whole lot of ground. This tape of
Lane's is generic TKD, meaning that if you're an ITF, WTF, ATA, USTF, or whatever,
it won't matter. He teaches generic punch, kick, blocks, and self defense. It's not
only the best beginner TKD tape I've ever seen, but the best TKD follow-a-long workout
tape. And I can't find it anywhere, Lane's dropped it from his current product offerings.
That I can'f figure out. Why is it that sometimes really GREAT products disappear?
I've never understood that!
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