Last Tournament Day - Nationals

Today mom and I got up and had a shake breakfast in our room like normal. 

I phoned Sensei Ryan and we talked about the tournament and what happened all yesterday.  I told Sensei that I thought I would need to work on my speed more and he said he could really help me with that.  Even though I have 3rd in continuous sparring, which means I am eligible for Spain (the Worlds) in the Fall, Sensei said that we would have to talk about it and figure it out.   I told him that my gloves were not legal in this tournament (open finger tips) and had to borrow a set from Cassidy.  Sensei said that tournaments can make different rules.  Sensei and I had really checked into all the rules for equipment and ring side rules before coming here. 

It is amazing how things can change or come up that you don't expect.   I guess I am learning.   It sure threw me off my game a bit on the first day.  Mom kept saying that this is all part of competition and you have to learn to roll with the punches -- that not to get frazzeled because it won't help me in my performance.  


Then we packed up some and got ready and went down to the tournament which was ending today.  I saw Mr. Lui there and he gave me some competition gloves that his daughter doesn't use anymore -- they are like brand new.  He was so nice, generous and helpful.   He had brought a whole track bag of what was almost new equipment that he said his kids no longer use or need --- he told me to help myself because he was going to give it away to whoever could use it.   I only took the closed finger gloves because that was what I really needed.  Someone may need some of the other equipment more than I do.  I am just really grateful to have brand new competition gloves.  I know they will bring me good luck.

We watched some sparring and then went over to see Sensei Cody's bow staff creative competition.  I felt really bad for him because part way through his routine his bow broke in half when he was doing what they call a baseball swing.  It literally exploded in half.  I have the video tape of it on my camera.  Even though he was frustrated and you could see that on his face, he bowed to the judges and picked up the other half of his bow,   bowed again and left the ring.  He had 2 mins by the rules to find another bow and continue.  He went and got another one from his case and got back into the ring, bowed in and then started over.  He was totally amazing, a pure "awesomous"!  I couldn't believe how he could stay to focused and in his game.....wow....I would likely be rattled.  He was amazing to watch and I learned that even though you mess up one time or something doesn't go right you can still try again.  He placed third and I think he should have placed higher.

Then after watching Sensei Cody, the tournament was wrapping up so mom and I went to print out our plane tickets for tomorrow.  We decided to go and walk back to some of the sights we did't get to do on the day we came in early.   We walked again for tons of miles -- mom can really walk and never gets tired.   We went to see Notre Dame church, and went to Rideau Hall, then started to walk to see the Prime Minister's house but finally had to turn back because we hit light, moderate, pouring and then drenched rains.   We walked for at least 2 hours in this without our unbrellas today.

By the time we got back to the hotel it was pouring so much that if you had added shampoo into our hair it would have foamed on its own!  People were laughing when we walked into the hotel because we looked like we had swam back....and I think we did.  We had to wring out our clothes and they are not even dry to pack.  So we put all the wet clothes into plastic bags, just for fun we weight them with mom's suitcase scale and they were over 10 pounds!   Good thing we are coming back with less food in one of the suitcases!  it was unreal how soaked we were!

Mom got into the shower and I decided I didn't need a shower after that.  We ordered pizza in and called it a night.   We have a wake up call at 4:30 am so that we can get ready and be at the airport on time to catch our flight home.  I am excited to see Dad, Shelby,Brett Grandma and Loida and everyone at school and at the dojo.    I have learned that you don't want to room with your mother -- they make you pick up  your half of the room instantly!   I did have a great time in Ottawa with mom.  I am also really excited about going on the plane again.   I hope I see lots up there.  Mom always lets me have the window seat -- she doesn't like heights that much, so she reads instead.

 Me on the phone with Sensei Ryan telling him about the tournament.

 Mr. Lui - who was so helpful to me in so many ways.  His son, Justin, is ranked number one in Canada in a lot of different divisions - Justin is amazing to watch.  I really like his determination and concentration.  One day I hope to be just as good.

 Sensei Cody right before his bow staff competition.  He is just warming up and getting into his focus.

 The Byward Market in downtown Ottawa. 

 An artist who was drawing with chalk on the sidewalk.  I hate to see his picture after the rain storm and flood  --- it would be wiped out!

 There were all sorts of people playing instruments on the street for money.

 And then there were all sorts of people.

 Inside Notre Dame Cathedral.  It was very beautiful and very large.

 Mom's favorite flower.  There were tons of lilacs along the way and the smell was beautiful.  The air here smells way better than home --- it has a lot of humidity.  Mom's hair went fuzzy - it was pretty funny.  I seemed to breathe better in this air.

 Rideau Hall where the Governor General lives.  He was home today because his flag was flying.  The fountain is the Hope Fountain named for Terry Fox.

 We walked what seemed like hours on Sussex Drive -- they hide the Prime Minister's house pretty good because we never did come to the end of Sussex drive where he is suppose to live.  Maybe we were close but it started to rain so hard we decided to head back.

I thought I was wet from the rain at this point --- this is nothing --- I wasn't even damp yet!

Mom making my keep my side of the room kind of clean.  I didn't get away with stacking clothes that much either!


well.....I am going to see everyone really soon!  Thanks for everyone being so supportive of me.  I did my best and I learned a lot and I hope to be able to pass forward what I learned to others.  I know I have SO much more to learn and so much more to practice.  Sensei Ryan taught me really well and I am looking forward to learning more from him.   He is a great Sensei.

I

Saturday, May 21st

Sorry -- I did not blog yesterday --- it was a VERY long and tiring day.  After the tournament all the people from Alberta went with Senseis Elaine and Cody for supper.  We went straight from the tournament, to the room and had just enough time to change and meet back downstairs to go for supper.  The tournament ran super late -- my ring was the last one to finish out of the whole tournament!!     We didn't get back  until very late at night from supper - I decided I wanted to go for a swim to unwind and then to bed!


I learned that this tournament is really 'hurry up and wait'!  I was told and given a sheet that said  I had to be ready for 11:30 when I registered the very first day.  All the times are listed beside what ring you are suppose to be in.  

Mom and I got up early so that we could eat and get ready.  Mom made breakfast in the room while I got my gear ready.  We went downstairs so that I could warm up - this would have been around 10:45 am.   They were still in the middle of the weapons classes.....so I knew I had a bit more time.   That turned into A LOT more time!   wow.   We didn't start the sparring matches until about 3 pm!  My was around 5 pm!

all I know is that I was really tired of waiting!  It was interesting to watch but when you are thinking about your own match you just don't really like it the same.   I get the case of the nerves when I have to wait and wait.  I am glad I had mom here because she is so calm about competitions and tournaments ....nothing seems to make her worry.   She massaged my back which helps me a lot to calm down.  I got a lot of back rubs while waiting and waiting!

I have learned that I have to do a lot more training and sparring for speed and for endurance.  These guys are fast here!  When mom is allowed to run again in a couple of weeks, she will be good to help me train endurance.   I will have a running partner there.   

I learned that I didn't have the right type of gloves here.  We have open finger sparring gloves at home and they are not allowed in these type of tournaments.   I didn't know this - so I panicked again about equipment. We met some really nice parents there and  Mr Frank Lui, this one dad whose son was in my division said I could borrow his daughters gloves when she got finished.  They were a super nice family and he helped me out a lot with 'tips'.   In the end it was Sensei Elaine and Cody that found me a pair of gloves to use and I thank them and Cassidy for that.   Mr Lui gave mom the name of gloves and head gear that are allowed at this level of competition.   He said the one type of glove that his son uses can only be ordered online because it is not found in Canada but it is a good glove and will last for ages.  Anyways mom took all that information down.  I had other things to worry about.

Mr Lui said his son really works on endurance - that is very important.  I think Justin is about the best in the tournament in my division -- he does everything really super good.  He also does weapons and other divisions too.  Same with his sister. 

There were 11 in my weight division and when my match finally happened I did ok the first round and was at least able to score a bit.  Everything is much faster here - even the reffing!   I was really lucky in that Sensei Cody coached me ringside.  Everyone had their coaches ringside and they set up chairs at the sides for them.  I was glad he was there.  At one point I did a jumping scissor round house kick and Sensei Cody said it was an awesome move and said it should have 'counted' but only one out of the 3 judges saw it, so it didn't count.  That would have given me about 3 points if the judges had seen it!!    They were really tough matches and I think I really did good against the blackbelts.  You really have to be sharp on your blitzes.   They are super fast!

On the second round however, it was tougher.  I wasn't able to score any points.  That is when I knew I had to work on speed and combos....big time!

I was not one of the six that advanced into the 3 rounds for Sunday.  I am going to go and watch some of the tournament on Sunday and cheer a few on.  

 This is my friends from Sylvan, Sensei Howes and Josh.  Josh is in a lighter weight division than I am.  His division would go before mine but we were all waiting.

 Josh and his dad discussing some of the matches that were held before all of ours.

 Me waiting and thinking.

And waiting some more.

This is one of the refs -- he was a riot.  He had a lot of humor and was a really good ref. 

 This was one of the matches.  I am not sure who they are but I think they are both from Ontario.  There are a lot of big clubs here from Ontario.

 I am still waiting.

 Enough pictures.  Mom was snap happy.  She didn't get any pictures of my matches because she was doing the video camera.  I haven't seen the video yet. I was too hungry after the tournament was over and then we had to get ready fast to meet everyone for dinner. 

  I am hiding behind the gloves I had borrowed.  I saw mom trying to take my picture AGAIN.

 My mouthguard smile.

 Checking my mouthguard.

And waiting some more.


I have a lot of homework to do when I get back.  I am going to need to talk to Sensei Ryan about what he thinks I should do about Spain.  I placed 3rd in continous sparring which means I have a placement on Team Canada.  I know I have to be a lot faster.  I always felt I was better in point sparring because that is what I know more about.   Mom said we will discuss this all with Sensei and with dad when I get home and not to worry about it here.

Red Deer Tournament

Thinking about Braden and Kyle for tomorrow's tournament in Red Deer --- go kick butt guys!  And the same to anyone else from our dojo who might also be going!!  I will you all Luck and the very best!   Would really like to know how you did --- Blog it back to me if you can!   Thanks guys!

The Start of the Nationals Karate Tournament

I met Garrett in the lower Lobby where the tournament was being held tonight.  I had already signed in and weighed in at noon.  The weigh in was really scary -- the guy told me that if I gained anymore weight I would be 'out' and not able to compete.  I was scared to eat after that.  Mom told me to relax and that it wasn't going to be a problem but I am still worried.

I saw Sensei Elaine and Sensei Cody here -- they were super busy.  Sensei Elaine was judging most of the time while Sensei Cody looked like he was running from ring to ring.  Sensei Cody said he would help me tomorrow with my point sparring matches.

Garrett and I warmed up about 30 mins before our scheduled 6 pm fight time.   We both got to our rings only to find out they were running late.  I had to wait over an hour and I was getting a huge case of the nerves.  But after mom massaged my back and told me to do what Sensei has trained me to do and to not let things 'get to me' mentally -- I was much better.

I had 3 people in my division.  The first fight was very hard --- he was a black belt and super fast.  I have never seen so many nosebleeds at any tournament in all my life.  Every single fight had someone bleeding.  I got hit in the face but I didn't bleed --- it just have me a runny nose plus it hurt a lot.  

I ended up placing third out of three.  Myself and another Arashi Do competitor from Sylvan were the only Blue belts in the 12 and under division that I saw.   It is really hard to figure out how you actually did in continuous sparring because you don't see any scores.  You just know you are hitting a ton, they are hitting a ton and it seems like a very long time in the ring!  I was really grateful that Josh's dad,  Sensei Howes coached me ring side --- he really helped me a lot.   He also warmed me up before the match --- super thanks to him!   I got a Bronze medal with this match and was really happy to have my first match done.   I think I am over my case of the nerves.  Tomorrow is the start of my point sparring and I feel much more ready for that --- because I have done more of point sparring in karate.  Plus  you get to know where you 'stand' in the scores.

Garrett did really well too.  He also came in third and got a Bronze medal.  Mom was able to video tape him too.  His first guy he was up against had been on Team Canada for 10 years.....  I think.....anyway this guy had a ton of experience and seemed to be super good at this.  No one could believe that Garrett was an orange belt --- they thought he was great!  I am really proud of how Garrett did -- he had a super hard division plus he was fighting with a dislocated knee. 

I talked to dad after the match.  He , Shelby and Brett went to the zoo today.  They had fun but were wondering how I was doing all day long.  I think most of the time I was waiting for the match to begin or getting nervous!

 Garrett and I warming up in the lower lobby.

 working through our warm up.

 Garrett's dad holding the warm up pads.

 Garrett and I in between our warm up exercises.

 Reading the notes from Sensei Ryan for our warm up routine.

 There were 6 rings and it was pretty much like any other tournament --- lots of people everywhere.  This is just the beginning of the "hurry up and wait"! 

 There were a ton of medics on hand for all the bleeding people!

 This medic was in our ring --  helping someone in a lower weight division than mine.

 
 Ok -- so I am having a bit of nerves.

 Josh, a friend from Sylvan, and I discussing the matches.  He won first in his division.  I am really happy for him!  His dad helped me out ringside later when my weight division was up.

Getting geared up for my match.

 we are getting instructions from the referees and the judges.

This was the medal awards for my weight division.  Mom video taped the match and was not taking pictures but took some of the medal presentation.


I also got to talk to Sensei Ryan tonight.  We talked on the phone about my match.  He told me to keep my guard up when I told him it seemed like there were a ton of nosebleeds in every ring tonight.  Guess they were actually going for a blood sport.  He asked a ton of questions and gave me some great advice.  He said everyone at the dojo was wondering how I was doing and he said it was too early to know that yet.  I am going to call him after my match tomorrow.  Thanks to Sensei for his great training of me -- I wouldn't be here if he didn't train me.  I still have a lot to learn!   Mom keeps telling me to relax and just get experience and have fun, do what I have been trained to do.   Sometimes that is hard when you have to wait so long to start your first match.

The Royal Canadian Mint

After the Parliament Buildings we walked for miles, mom got us lost, and then got us back on track - she said it was a minor detour of sightseeing. 

The Royal Canadian Mint was a blast!  The tour showed us how they made the coins.  Most of the coins made at this mint are either collector's items or investor's items.  If there is a defect in the coin it becomes more valuable because that means there is only one coin in the world that has this defect and also because 99.9% of the defects are hand picked and are thrown back into the meltdown area.  If they happen to be missed by the people who are watching for defects --- this makes the coin all that more valuable.

I got to see MILLIONS of dollars worth of rolled metals that were ready to be stamped out into coins.  Gold was one of the most valuable --- and Platinum beat out the Gold.  This mint also has contracts from all over the world to make other country's coins.  They also made the Guiness World Record for making the largest gold coin -- it was about the size of a large pizza and worth at that time 2.5 million dollars -- now it is worth 5 million on today's market.  The tour guide said there were only 4 made --- 3 were sold and one still is in the deep basement vault below the mint.  There are armed guards everywhere you turn inside this mint.   The mint rents vault space out for people to store their valuables here --- that is how well guarded it is!    This mint made the Vancouver Winter Olympic medals all out of recycled metals from computer boards. 

When my friends were up from Texas we toured the Edmonton City garbage dump.  That was a cool tour too!  Anyway, at the garbage dump they said that they shipped all the recycled metals down to Ontario where the Winter Olympic medals were made --- now I know the mint that made these medals!

Where they make the coins that we use as money is in the Winnipeg mint.   That mint is one of the largest in the world.


From the mint we walked over to the Tulip Festival and took in some festival music and an open market.   Then we walked back to the hotel, dumped our backpacks and stuff and went for a Thai dinner.  We doubled back to the Parliament buildings to take in a Haunted Walking Tour of Ottawa.  It really was a cool lesson in history.  I didn't know that there was a lot of nasty politicians way back then.  wow.  some are supposedly still hanging around as ghosts!  One of the oldest jails in Canada is now a hostel --- this place has the freakiest ghost stories and it was pretty cool to tour it.  The stories about the jail and some of the prisioners there freaked me out a bit.  I didn't know the history of Canada was so violent.

 Me lifting an actual gold bar - they had 2 guards standing by this exhibit at all times.  It was in their gift shop at the mint.

 I made it onto a coin!

 Mom as the Tooth Fairy coin - an actual coin they have made!

 A giant spider statue our 'walk' --- we walked forever!

 One of many beautiful gardens of tulips.

 A giant kaliedescope in the Tulip festival --- it was totally cool!  You could swivel it around and no picture was the same.

 Some of the music we stopped to sit and listen --- this group was super talented!

 Looking at the many exhibits in the tulip festival.

 A statue of Terry Fox --- everywhere you turn there are statues in Ottawa --- it is so cool!

 OurHaunted Walk tour guide -- she had tons of ghost stories to share.  We walked for over an  hour and a half ---I had my exercise today!

 Mom and I behind bars in the "Drum cells" --- there were barely big enough to stand up in!

after that we went back to the hotel to call it a night.   I had to weigh in the next day at noon and my first fight is scheduled for 6 pm --- so I want to get a good nights sleep.