Your Path to Black Belt
The way you learn Hapkido at Kinetic Martial Arts is a concept based system. Syllabus techniques are into concepts. For example: Technique’s applied to the neck, wind pipe or strangles and sleepers are catalogued as one concept = chokes.
This style of teaching has its roots from Grandmaster Geoff’s Kwan Nyom (school of concepts), where our Chief Instructor (3rd Dan) mastered his first two degrees of black belt before moving on to our current schools’ headmaster Grandmaster Lee.
Each Kub (belt level/colour) contains different concepts, plus a series of hand strikes, kicks, breakfalls and pressure points – giving the student the opportunity to expand her/his skill set the further she/he progresses through the ranks.
Apart from self defence techniques the path to become a black belt also involves a high degree of discipline.
Ranking System (Belt Colours)
In order to progress from a beginner to a black belt our students have to master 8 levels of skill testing.
Apart from adding new concepts at each belt level, the existing concepts will be expanded as well. Each belt-level also features a series of one new breakfall, one pressure point, three kicks and four hand strikes.
Syllabus & Concept Levels
A Kub (Gub in Korean) are coloured belts or skill levels. Kub ends at black belt where the levels are called Dan and start from 1 again, counting up to 9. The 10th Dan is reserved for the art’s inventor/representative of the art, school or organisation (kwan).
8th Kub: White
Concept: Circles & Releases (basic escape)
You start with a black uniform and a white belt.
7th Kub: Orange
Concept: Fingers & Armbars (controlling attacker)
6th Kub: Yellow
Concept: Wrists (Fans- & S-Locks)
5th Kub: Green
Concept: Forearm Locks (L-Locks, Gooses) Takedowns
4th Kub: Blue
Concept: Chokes & Throws
3rd Kub: Brown
Concept: Shoulder Locks & Kick Defence
2nd Kub: Red
Concept: Knife- and Ground Defence
1st Kub: Provisional Black (Red w. black stripe)
Recap of all concepts, only applicable with the agreement of committing to ½ year of extensive, hard and dedicated training in order to test for black belt.
1st Dan: Black Belt (1 stripe)
Your journey of the martial arts begins
(The apprentice can finally start go to work 
.
Concept: Weapons (Dan Bong)
Skill testing usually ends at 6th Dan. Levels up to 9 are called promotions and depend on dedication to the art.
For more information on higher Dan’s simply visit our club and ask our chief instructor in person for the details.
Grade Recognition
Our schools’ Kub and Dan assessments are all observed by Grandmaster Sung Soo Lee
. Like a bachelor degree your grade achievements will be recognised by a big range of internationally bodies since Grandmaster Lee is the headmaster of Australian Hapkido Moohakkwan, which is affiliated with the Korea Hapkido Federation and therefore widely accepted.
Grandmaster Lee currently holds a 9th Dan in Hapkido, a 9th Dan in Taekwondo and 2nd Dan in Judo.