We spent much of last Saturday at the 2015 Twin-State Championships in Lebanon, NH. This is a double-point event for the growing Twin-State Martial Arts Association and their rankings. (Twin-State will be ranking our event, the 2016 whistlekick Martial Arts Showdown next year) While this circuit is smaller than others, it's full of wonderful people and great competition. This was our third year attending and we were honored to be there, as always.
This year's event was a bit low in attendance, likely due to the new date. The last two years saw this event in December, and it snowed both times. In an effort to head off any weather issues, the event was moved up to October. The only downside, and the likely contributor to the lower attendance, was that the Vermont State Nationals, also on the Twin State circuit, was a week earlier. We have it on good authority that there will be more of gap between the events next year.
Despite the low numbers, we had great participation in our pushup challenge. We had one lead change and, with several events left, three of the four divisions are wide-open. At this point, it's probably safe to say that Hanshi Richard Bernard will walk away with the Men's championship, but it's not set in stone. You can check the standings here.
Sales were good, and people are really loving the latest addition to the catalog - the zip-up hoodies. Our new display is getting lots of compliments, too! It's faster to setup and really features the apparel better.
if you look carefully, you can see the american flag in the nose!
With the Twin State circuit closed for the year, rankings have been updated and unofficial division champions have been announced. We look forward to seeing everyone with their awards in January at the joint IPPONE / Twin State KickOff event on January 9th in Boxborough, MA. Special congratulations to the numerous members of Team
For those members of the Twin State association, don't forget to submit your Hall of Fame ballots before December 1st, 2015.
Our next event is the Fall Open Championship, November 7th in Jericho, VT. This is a wonderful event and we've been there the last two years. You can find more information here. Remember, you can always find out more about our events, and where we'll next be on our tour on the Events page.
For those of you that missed it, we posted a great episode of Martial Arts Radio with Master Gordon White a few days ago. If you're not subscribing or you otherwise missed it, check it out!
Lastly, Episode 3 of the Update Show posted today. Just a few quick hits and a special announcement about our Brand Ambassador program.
That's it for now, we'll be back soon with more information for you!