World Karate Union Hall of Fame Event and Sandokan in the Poconos

This was the most exciting weekend of the year yet!  Arrived on the 22nd, and we had World Karate Union MMA cage fights.  The fights were very intense with a lot of energy. It was awesome to meet and talk to the fighters such as UFC's Kamal Shaloris "Prince of Persia".

Saturday morning the 23rd we kicked off the day with Professor Ruben Torres's Chinese Green Dragon Tournament.  Competitors from different countries exemplified excellence in Chinese arts as well as all the exotic Chinese Weapons.  At 1 pm Sandokan Stick and Knife Tournament began. The participants were very excited, energetic and ready to go.  At 6 pm the Hall of Fame Awards Banquet began and it was great to run into some martial arts friends that I haven't seen in a few years, plus to make new friends from different countries.  Opening ceremonies began with the Marine Honor Guard followed by India's Spiritual Guru Sri D'nish who had traveled from far away to be a part of this excellent event.  The night ended with a lot of fun and dancing with our Canadian Martial Arts family.

Sunday the 24th the World Karate Union Open Tournament began. The lines were very long at registration, filled with many competitors from different systems, backgrounds and rank.  At the tournament I participated in the Weapons Form after not competing in over 10 years and it felt like I had never stopped.  I received a lot of applause which left me wanting more.

After an exhausting 3 days my energy and spirits were so high that I didn't mind the two and a half hour drive home and I can't wait to do this again as soon as possible.  I already marked tentative dates the the WKU Toys for Tots event in November on my calendar.