First off, I never liked the way sweat would collect and run under foam gear. It always felt like the gear itself was generating sweat. For this reason, the first time I tried vinyl gear, I fell in love. Not only does it absorb sweat, it breaths at least a little bit, making it infinitely more comfortable than foam gear. It also seems more durable since it can be sewn instead of glued together....

By Bart Scovill

I was recently reading a message board in which the topic was whether Kata had a place in modern Karate. As you might imagine, there were opinions both for and against. Most of the opinions in favor only focused on the external benefits of Kata, and the ones against tended to focus on the inflexibility and lack of practical application of Kata. While I agreed with most of the positive comments, even some of the negative ones had a point, but they both missed some essential benefits in the diligent practice of Kata....

Without going out of your door,
You can know the ways of the world.
Without peeping through your window,
You can see the Way of Heaven.
the farther you go,
the less you know.

Thus, the Sage knows without travelling,
Sees without looking,
And achieves without Ado.