Putting plans into action.

Running and leading my own Tang Soo Do class has been an ambition of mine from when I got my Senior 1st Dan. Whilst I always love training, I believed I could open my own class and introduce more people to Tang Soo Do; passing down my knowledge to a new group of students.

After moving to Denby Dale, I made my first steps into opening my own class in December 2019, speaking with The Savoy at Skelmanthorpe and a few other venues to secure a slot to train in. Plans were falling into place, but we all know what happened at the beginning of 2020 where actions to open my own class stopped in February 2020 with Covid hitting the UK.

Undeterred, I started up online training for Tang Soo Do practitioners which was kindly taken over by Master Clubley who did a fantastic job. (My day to day job at the time hampered my ability to run with online training unfortunately).

As Covid started easing up I reached back out to Venues in the area; with the Denby Dale Pie Hall keen for us to train there . The only drawback was that the only available time was 6:30pm on Fridays and weekends; clashing with the Tang Soo Do Pudsey class I had attended from when I first started Tang Soo Do. I spoke to Master Tang to confirm the availability and my plans for the class. Giving me his blessing, on 24th September 2021 I held the first "Taster Session" which was an absolute success.

As a result I booked the pie hall for a weekly slot on Fridays at 6:30pm and we were up and running. Over the next few months the class started increasing in size with the first group of students to our class consisting of Bernie, Grayson, Oliver, Jon and Heather joined by Lily and soon after Bradley, Martin and Evan.

However, in November 2021 we hit our next bump. Given the day the class run, the pie hall wanted to use the venue for parties etc; which is completely understandable given the facilities etc. As such, I had to attempt to find a new venue asap. LuckilyC I got in touch with the Denby Dale Methodist Church who were happy to take us in.

The Methodist Church was an almost perfect venue for us, the staff were very welcoming and supporting, the room was bright and heated, everything was spot on. But, the class started increasing further with Mark, Maya, Josh and Quinn joining the class not long after we moved. This saw space becoming very limited for our martial arts class.

In April 2022, one of the owners of Soverign Fitness Gym reached out to me to ask if we would be interested in taking the class to their newest venue. I'd like to say, what a coincidence, but I'm sure my wife had a hand. Either way, in July 2022 we moved to our current venue of the new Sovereign Fitness Gym in Scissett, where we still train to this day and the class continues to grow.

There have been other minor bumps on the way, like John walking into the cupboard when leaving the building or me forgetting everyone's name 30 times per session but opening the class has been absolutely worth it. Seeing Oliver grow into a confident Martial Artist and leader, Lily bringing energy into the class every week and making everyone feel welcome, Bernie and Grayson demonstrating their fighting capabilities, Bradley producing the best back kick I've seen for his belt level and so on is even more rewarding to me than my achievements.

So what is the point of this blog. I always hear at coaching courses that people are interested in opening classes of their own but have trepidations, which is understandable. I hope my blog can help you overcome your concerns and start putting plans into action. Seeing students progress in Tang Soo Do is worth all the effort. Furthermore, all our students are different in age, ability, background and most had no experience of Martial Arts whatsoever. So, if you want to join Tang Soo Do Denby Dale but are nervous, please don't be. We welcome everyone.

If you have any questions about opening the class, feel free to ask me when you see me. Alternatively the advice and support of senior members across the UK is invaluable.

Thank you to all the students from Tang Soo Do Denby Dale. It is a privilege to teach such an engaged, talented and inquisitive team. Also, a big thank you for all the venues who have welcomed us and local businesses who help us in our ambitions to continue to grow.