Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, April 14, 1994 TAG: 9404300001
SECTION: NEIGHBORS PAGE: S1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By KAREN L. DAVIS SPECIAL TO ROANOKE TIMES & WORLD-NEWS
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
Steve McGraw Sr., his wife, Sharon, and their two sons, Steven, 13, and Bobby, 11, all have first-degree black belts in tae kwon do, a Korean martial art similar to karate.
McGraw, formerly on the Roanoke County Board of Supervisors, started taking classes in tae kwon do shortly after he was elected the county's clerk of circuit court in November 1991.
He and his family got involved in the sport after meeting instructor Robby Lacy and his wife, Jenny, owners of Taekwondo America at Oak Grove Plaza.
``I was working full time in real estate when the Lacys came to Roanoke looking for a place to open a tae kwon do school. I realized in dealing with them that they had a good set of values,'' McGraw said.
McGraw's oldest son was interested in the sport, so when the school opened at its former Apperson Drive location in January 1991, Steven became Lacy's first student. Bobby watched from the sidelines for a while, and ``when we saw that he, too, was clearly interested, we let him participate,'' McGraw said.
Both parents waited until after the elections that year to join. ``For us, it was a way to have organized physical exercise,'' McGraw said. Each session begins with a rigorous warmup, stretching exercises and calisthenics.
``I was the least confident at first,'' said Sharon McGraw, a district supervisor for the Children's Home Society of Virginia. But that changed after she won first place in her division in sparring at a national tournament in New Orleans.
``I've gained a lot of confidence from it,'' she said. ``I had tried aerobics and walking, and just couldn't stick with any type of exercise. But tae kwon do keeps you challenged. It's probably one of the best sports around for women, because you benefit from both the physical fitness and the self-defense training.''
Besides building confidence, tae kwon do also encourages goal-setting, Lacy said.
``The long-term goal is the black belt, which takes 21/2 years to earn,'' Lacy said. ``For short-term goals, we have testing every eight weeks for those who want to advance to the next level.''
Belts progress from white to yellow, orange, green, purple, blue, brown, red and black. A black belt has nine degrees. Each degree has its own ``hyung,'' the Korean word for pattern or form.
``Forms are pre-set blocks of moves, kicks and punches against an imaginary attacker,'' Lacy said. Tae kwon do does not incorporate throws or rolls, but students wear protective gear when sparring.
The black belt means ``master of the basics,'' Lacy said. ``Many people have the misconception that the black belt is the ultimate, but that's really when your advanced training begins.'' Each degree requires greater agility, flexibility, endurance and technique.
``You can get the second-degree black belt at any age, but you have to be 15 to be a third-degree and 21 to be a fourth-degree,'' said Lacy, who at 27 is a fifth-degree. He started studying tae kwon do when he was 10 years old.
Age is a factor, because tae kwon do philosophy holds that only certain life experiences can teach the emotional restraint and mental maturity expected in advanced study, Lacy said.
Bobby, a sixth-grader at Glen Cove Elementary School, got his black belt about a year ago. He is training as a junior instructor. In a few months, he will test for his second-degree black belt.
Steven, an eighth-grader at Northside Junior High School, said his fitness tests at school improved after he started tae kwon do. But the hardest part for him has been combating the violence-oriented stereotypes perpetrated by many martial arts movies.
``It's been difficult for him to restrain himself, not to show off'' under peer pressure, his father said. ``But he's never gotten cocky, and I've been real proud of him.''
Tae kwon do stresses integrity, courtesy, perseverance, pride in oneself and a positive, ``Yes-I-Can'' mental attitude, McGraw said. Self-control is an important part of the martial arts philosophy.
``The kids aren't taught to be aggressive. They are taught self-discipline and politeness. They have to address their instructors with `Yes, sir' and `No, sir,''' he said.
``Tae kwon do is an individual sport,'' Sharon McGraw said. ``It's not a team sport, so it's good for kids who haven't been successful in team sports.''
``Tae kwon do is not a muscle-building sport,'' Steve McGraw said, ``but because of the fitness and stretching exercises, it makes you a lot stronger and gives you greater flexibility.''
Students start practicing board-breaking at the blue belt level. At the red belt and above, board-breaking is part of the required testing.
The wood used is No. 3 pine, Lacy said. The secret of the technique is more in the speed and position of the strike, rather than in the sheer strength of the blow.
Giving a family a common interest to share is a big benefit for the McGraws. They've traveled to several tournaments together. And each week, they enjoy two or three evenings together taking classes and practicing their skills.
by CNB