TKD Class Description

Cooke's TKD teaches the martial art of Song Moo Kwan Tae Kwon Do ( the way of the hand and foot) and is associated with the style and poomses (forms) of Karate North of Duluth Minnesota. TKD class's taught by Cooke's Tae Kwon Do , teaches the student the 7 Chong Bong poomse as developed by Karate North and fighting skills for both competition and self defence. This offers the student a program that builds self esteem, self confidence, self discipline and self assurance all while having fun and getting into shape.

Classes offer good work outs that focus on stretching and martial arts and self defence development skills. As the student progresses through the different skill levels they are able to obtain different belt rankings. The time for a student to normally progress through the seven belt levels (white, Yellow, Green, Purple, 2nd grade Brown, 1st grade Brown , Black ) is 4 1/2 - 5 years.

Classes are offered to young and old , male or female. Age has no barrier to the art of TKD, however classes are limited to students 10 years and older. Beginner classes are offered at the beginning of each session. After 3 months and completing the testing requirements for the Yellow belt level the student moves in to either the Junior advanced class or Senior advanced class (16+).

Back to Top

Belt Rankings and Requirements

Belt Grade Ranking (a student can be graded on a test 4 ways)

Belt Grade Ranking Levels:

Belt Testing requirements:

In addition to the time requirement, students are required to meet the following:

• Has learned the form and one steps required to test.
• Stances and kicks are well defined.
• Has good attendance.
• Shows good attitude and behaviour in class.
• The student is committed to learning and advancing in the martial arts.

Back to Top

TKD History

The earliest records of Tae Kwon Do, which date around 50BC., show the practice of Tae Kyon. During that time Korea was divided into three kingdoms - Silla, Koguryo, and Baekche. Many of these records, including murals and paintings, show many of the modern-day Tae Kwon Do components. The Silla warriors were, apparently, the reason for the growth of Korean martial arts. These warriors, the Hwarang, had been taught the fitness-oriented Tae Kyon by the soldiers from the Koguryo who helped to defend the Silla kingdom from Japanese pirates. Tae Kyon was introduced into the military training for Silla’s young nobility. This training evolved into Hwarang-do, the Way of flowering manhood. Through the teaching of the young nobility to become warriors, the Five Codes of Human Conduct were established. These codes were:
Be loyal to your country
Be obedient to your parents
Be trustworthy to your friends
Never retreat in battle
Never make an unjust kill

During the Koryo dynasty, 935 AD. to 1392 AD., Tae Kyon was modified and became Subak. Subak was less fitness-oriented and more of a fighting art. The training declined over the years until only a few families were still active. This decline lasted until 1909 when the Japanese invaded and occupied Korea for the next 36 years. While under Japanese control, all military arts were banned. This ban is what sparked the revival of Subak. When the people were told that they couldn’t train in any martial arts, they revolted by going underground and training in secret.
Generally, history has stated that the kwans began to appear around 1945. This does not seem credible, however, since Korea was in the process of rebuilding itself after the occupation of the Japanese from the prior 36 years and the destruction that had occurred during World War II. There were no extra funds available to families at this time to afford the cost of lessons in the martial arts, and may had difficulty paying for mere essentials. Then came the Korean War which also greatly affected martial growth, making it impractical to pay for training unless it was supplied by the military.
Many accounts of the appearance of the kwans have their emergence around 1943 or 1944 and the actual numbers, names, and locations are still hotly debated. One version of this history has the following kwans opening in 1944:
Won Kook Lee
Hwang Kee
Chung Do Kwan
Moo Duk Kwan

And the following kwans opening in 1946:
Sup Chun Sang (or Sup Jun Sang)
Yun Pyung (or In Yoon Byung)
You Kue Pyang
Yun Moo Kwan
Chang Moo Kwan
Chi Do Kwan

These were the original five kwans but the following apparently emerged in 1952 and 1954:
Gae Byang Yun
Ji Do Kwan (Jee Do Kwan) Hong Hi Choi and Tae Hi Nam
Byung Chik Ro
Oh Do Kwan
Song Moo Kwan

This information can be misleading and , in some places, incorrect. The turmoil throughout the country caused poor communication and record-keeping during the period after WWII. Subsequently, the rebuilding of Song Moo Kwan was greatly hampered. The study of the available information and necessary corrections has taken a long time but is finally cleared up, beginning with the history of the kwan. The individual largely responsible for this endeavor is the grandmaster of Song Moo Kwan, Byung Jick To (English spelling).
The opening of the Kae Sung dojang in the 1944 was done upon Grandmaster Ro’s return to Korea from university work in Japan. He had learned Tae Kyon and Subak from his neighbors and had been interested in the defensive techniques that were taught at the local temples during his youth. This interest in martial arts lead Ro to search out Gichin Funakoshi, Shotakan founder, during his college years. Ro studied under Funakoshi and earned a black belt before returning to Korea. Although his first attempt was thwarted, he tried again in May 1946 to open in Kae Sung. The second attempt was also unsuccessful due to the onset of the Korean War. Following the Korean War, a dojang was successfully opened in Seoul during 1953. This has generally been accepted as the emergence of Song Moo Kwan as one of the eight original kwans. It should be noted that other than the first attempt in Kae Sung, which was in an archery school, Song Moo Kwan was taught in its own dojang. The only other kwan to do this was Chung Do Kwan. The rest that appeared were taught within YMCA-type organizations where they would rent space in which to teach class.
On 25 May 1953, the (Grand)masters of the eight kwans attended a conference which concluded with the establishment of the Korean Kung Soo Do Association. This was the first organization developed by the Korean martial arts community. This association did not elect a president but had the following positions filled plus, one representative from each kwan.

These positions and how the were originally filled are:
Vice President: Cho, Young Joo (Yudo, Korean for Judo)
Executive Director: Byung Jick Ro (Song Moo Kwan)
Directors: Hwang, Ki [Kee?] (Moo Duk Kwan)
Lee, Jong Woo (Youn Moo Kwan [Ji Do Kwan?])
Yun, Kwae Byung (Han Che [Chi Do Kwan?])
Hyon, Jong Myung (Chung Do Kwan)
Lee, Nam Suk (Chang Moo Kwan)
Kim, In Hwa (Yudo)
(the author apologizes for any incorrectly spelled names)

The association placed Grandmaster Ro in the chair of the rank promotion committee and as the master instructor. The most important decision made by this association may be the adoption of the name “Tae Kwon Do”, which was presented to them by General Hong Hi Choi, as the formal name for the arts taught by these eight kwans. The Tae Kwon Do is made up of three words: “Tae” meaning feet or kicking, “Kwon” meaning hands or punching, and “Do” meaning the way or path or road. It was chosen for it similarity to Tae Kyon.
In November 1958, Hwang Kee separated from the Kung Soo Do Associations and established the Korean Tang Soo Do Association. Grandmaster Kee petitioned the Korean Amateur Sports Association (KASA) to become a member of the organization but was refused due to lack of unity being presented by the original kwans..
The Korean Kung Soo Do Association and the Korean Tang Soo Do Association met in July 1959. This meeting resulted in the creation of the Soo Bahk Do Association. This organization petitioned the KASA for membership with the claim that it contained all the original kwans in one united group but they were refused. At the same time, Hong Hi Choi became president of Oh Do Kwan, which had emerged in 1953 with Jong Myung Hyon as its leader. Hong Hi Choi and the Soo Bahk Do Association held a conference in September 1959. This lead to the formation of the Korean Tae Kwon Do Association (KTA).
Shortly after the KTA was established, Grandmasters Hwang Kee and Yon Kae Pyong left the organization for apparently political reasons and have remained separate ever since. Another problem that had arises was the loss of several grandmasters, for many reasons. Some were missing in action after the Korean War. This left students to fill the vacancies to carry on the traditions. This accounts for the assertion by Ro, Hee Sang that his father could be considered the “Sepreme” Grandmaster of Tae Kwon Do since he is the only grandmaster to still be actively involved with Tae kwon do.
The KASA averted the petition for membership of the KTA in June 1962 through help from Hong Hi Choi. Grandmaster Ro became president of the KTA from 1966 to 1969. Throughout that time and still today he has dedicated his life to the promotion and expansion of Tae kwon do.
During the late 1970’s, the kwan identification was dropped to leave the art simply known as Tae Kwon Do. The dropping of this identification may have been done, in part, to show unity of the kwans once South Korean president Park proclaimed that Tae Kwon Do was to be the national sport. Today, as more students are searching for the roots and traditions of the schools and instructors, more may go back to including the kwan name in their identity.

Song Moo Kwan expanded to the United States in the 1960’s. Grandmaster To did not set up specific regions or assign instructors to certain locations which allowed the freedom to establish a dojang wherever an instructor chose. Some of the notable instructors are Master Hee Sang Ro in Minneapolis, MN; Master Moo Myung Yun in Willmar, MN; Grandmaster Byung Yul Lee in Maple Grove, MN; Master Joon Pyo Choi in Columbus , Ohio; Master Yong Kyu Yu in Houston, Texas; and Masters Chang Jin Kang, Jin II Chang & Tae Ryang Chang in California, New York and New Jersey respectively. Another instructor who deserves mention is, the now retired, Master Jay Hyon. Master Hyon moved into the Minneapolis, Minnesota area and opened the Karate Center dojang in 1966. He played a large part in bringing Tae Kwon Do into Minnesota. He also played a role in bringing Grandmaster Byung Jick Ro to the United States. Master Hyon retired in 1980, turning his teaching responsibilities over to Grandmaster Hee Sang Ro, who had come over from Korea four years earlier. Grandmaster Ro continues to develop Tae Kwon Do and carry on the traditions of Song Moo Kwan through his North American Tae Kwon Do Federation (NATF) and World Song Moo Kwan Association. He has also been working on the development of a more organized Song Moo Kwan community, which would include a central promotion committee.
Currently you can find Song Moo Kwan instructors as members of a multitude of Tae Kwon Do Associations and Federations. This comes partly from Grandmaster Byung Jick Ro’s belief that personal development should play a greater role than the politics of rank. In fact, you will find that a variety of poomse and taught within the Song Moo Kwan community including Pinan, Chang Han, Taeguek and Chung Bong. The Chung Bong poomse are unique to Song Moo Kwan since they were developed by Master Hyon and were first performed in 1974. These poomse were designed to be realistic yet they allow for some of the flashy kicking techniques that can be found in Tae Kwon Do. The seven poomse in this set were developed so the majority of the combinations within them can be quickly and easily adapted to apply to combat situations. They also include the symmetry that will develop the student equally. Lastly, jumping and spinning kicks can be found as well as stances that fit combat / tournament situations and a variety of hand techniques.

There are no official poomse for Song Moo Kwan. Although poomse plays an important role in the development of a Tae Kwon Do student, the choice of which set to study is less consequential. All poomse are intended to build the student’s stamina, endurance and technique. Particular patterns learned do not have a significant affect on the student’s overall abilities.

Today the practice of the Chung Bong poomse can be found through the teaching of Tom Sullivan, a 5th Dan, who was trained by Master Hyon. Mr. Sullivan began his training in the fall of 1969 at the Karate Center. Mr. Sullivan was consistently in the top 10 of Karate Illustrated regional rankings for tournaments until the late 1970’s. In 1973, he moved to Duluth, MN, and opened Karate North Tae Kwon Do using the Chung Bong forms as the basis for his teaching.

Today, Karate North Tae Kwon Do and all the other members of the Northern Tae Kwon Do Association, as well as, Cooke's TKD, and Pine Tree Tae Kwon Do teach the forms and principles of Song Moo Kwan Tae Kwon Do.

Back to Top

Chong Bong

The characters Chong Bong, or Blue Mountain, have very strong symbolism also. The color blue has traditionaly been the color of Um (or Yin) in the Um/Yang symbol. (This is the symbol that appears in the center of the Korean flag.) In this context it emphasizes the strength of the mind, as opposed to the strength of the body. The word chong also has other meanings in Korean, including "dignity", "fearlessness" and "restraint".* Mountain has traditionally been used to represent a mind that is centered, stable and that understands its relationship to the universe.

Master Jay Hyon, the man who brought taekwondo to Minneapolis/St. Paul in 1965, created his own set of forms called "Chong Bong". He was Dr. Haaland's first taekwondo instructor. Today, we teach these beautiful and unusual forms to preserve our heritage. (An interesting note about the word bong. It's actual meaning is closer to "small mountain" or "mountain top". Dr. Haaland believes that Master Hyon was well aware of the real meaning when he named his forms, but used it to symbolize humility.)

Visit http://www.mntaekwondocenter.com/resources/symbols.html

Back to Top