These two areas have had the most influence on my Journey.

Martin Hardy, with the assistance of David Frost, started the Surrey Club (Banstead) in 1980. Martin learned Kyushindo Karate at Bristol when he was a chemistry undergraduate at the University, and he also trained in Kyushindo Judo with George and the Bristol Judo instructor, Ian Parfitt. During the 1980’s Martin was the only KIJA instructor to hold Dan grades in Karate and Judo. The Banstead club met twice a week for 4 hours in total.

Martin was a manager in the analytical chemistry department within Beecham Pharmaceuticals, which I worked in, and although he was known as the ‘Karate Man’, he never attempted to recruit me or my colleagues. That task fell to a sandwich student in the department, Bill Stone, who went along to Martin’s club whilst he was with us for his university sandwich year. His hyper-enthusiasm and constant demonstrations eventually persuaded me and two fellow lab techs (Sean McCrossen and Mark Harrison) to go along in 1983, and we all enjoyed it; with peer pressure keeping us going strong, we gained our black belts in 1986/7.

Martin, in all black gi with David Frost (with gi badge) next to him. I am next to David.

I am standing next to Martin, Sean is next to me, and Mark Harrison is behind David Frost. Tony Choules is next to David Frost. Mike Edwards, the first of the club’s black belts, is next to Tony. Peter Daniels is behind Martin

David Frost also started a club in Reigate on Thursdays but still attended Banstead.

A video of a demo given in a Banstead park after a Sunday morning session in 1985. Recorded on cine film by my brother. Shows group exercises, kicking (Julius ? and Mark Prothero), Sean and I with the first part of a 2-man rehearsed routine, David Frost self defence (Mark/Julius and Tony Choules), youth defence Scott Wiles and his dad, David Frost nunchucks, Martin Hardy self defence (Mark Harrison and ?).

We didn’t do anything with the London club until Martin moved to Essex in 1988, when David Frost took over and invited them to some combined classes. David also had contact with Sam Simmons of the Southampton area (Gang Warily club).

There were a couple of University clubs started by Surrey black belts, one in Southampton started by Tony Choules, and one in Cambridge by Rick Trubshaw, which I visited fairly often (as Elaine Chapelhow was at university there). Tony gained his black belt a year before me, whilst Rick was the same day.

Although the Southampton area didn’t want anything to do with the KIA/KIJA, Martin and Ray Wood got on well together, and I can remember a few combined training sessions with Ray and Southampton students. Ray was a guest examiner at a Surrey grading, where I was going for Orange, and later, he officiated with Martin and David with combined gradings of Banstead, Reigate and Southampton University clubs. In Feb 1986, I also went with Martin to a Kata seminar led by Ray Wood and hosted by Bob Pape in Lyndhurst. When Ray Wood retired and the main club closed (late 90s, early 2000s ?), many instructors continued training at a new club in Marchwood.

Photo taken at the Racal Recorders Karate club. Ray Wood is in all black gi. Ron Hancock is centre far right. Ron posted this in the Romsey Club Facebook page. You can see some old Southampton club photos here:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/5546171498/

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Sean started his club nearby in Kingswood around 1990 whilst Mark moved over to study Kyushindo Judo at the two Surrey Judo clubs, Redhill and Banstead, that Martin began in 1981 and 1985, and then left to Les Jones to run after Martin moved to Essex. Peter Daniels, another Beecham employee, started with Judo and Karate in 1985 but focused more on Judo and helped Les Jones when Martin left.

The Banstead and Kingswood Karate clubs are still running with David and Sean. Although independent of each other they now clash with their training times on a Tuesday, though there are some who train at both.

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After 1st Dan I continued training at Surrey, briefly trying the Judo (up to Green) and then Karate training only once a week from 1988 until 1992 whilst studying for a degree (career switch to Electronic Systems Engineering). In 1993, I moved to Hampshire to pursue post-degree career opportunities and get married.

Martin ‘hated’ Shotokan karateka, mostly Kyu grades, coming to train at the Banstead club for the first time, who would arrogantly show off their Japanese techniques/katas before the class started. I remember him ‘humiliating’ one of them, for lack of power, who was showing off on the hanging bag before the session started but somehow seemed unable to move it much with his punches. This anti-traditional karate sentiment probably impacted me, as did his statement on my moving to Hampshire to not get involved in Southampton due to a recent influx of Japanese Wado Ryu practitioners. It took a while to lose these prejudices.

I don’t believe any graded karateka from other styles made it to black belt at Banstead, certainly not when I was there.

I did 18 months of Ju-Jitsu from 1992-94 in Fareham: ( http://www.bkjjf.co.uk/ )

Some name change problems on later certificates! (see About my Blog if confused)

I went to some external seminars and training – Russell Stutely (Oakham), had my eyes opened to self-defence by Geoff Thompson (late’ 90s)

It wasn’t until 1998 that I discovered and joined the Romsey club. Family ‘timetable’ clashes with the car prevented me from training regularly with the other Southampton clubs, though I did visit the Gang Warily club a few times. As Ron will testify from those initial years, I wasn’t interested in becoming an instructor or starting a club – I just wanted to ‘do Kyushindo Karate’.

I have an ongoing study of Bagua with the Chinese Internal Arts Association in Berkshire (2000-2003 and 2019-). I have also attended various local Tai Chi classes over the years, but these were only chi-gung and forms – there was no martial aspect to these classes.