[Growltigga]

Definitely sounds like you need to find a new club

No, no, no, you miss my point - my club is great - it is balanced training

being in a major urban centre as you are.

I spend as little time in Manchester as possible and actually live in the Cheshire countryside

to be fair, kata isn't supposed to be taken quite so literally

I knew d'at, my point is that kata is the be all and end all at many clubs.

I think you'll find that kick boxing is even more long-ranged than shotokan.

It is not actually. A lot of it is close range attack combinations and using elbows and knees. The distance punching and kicking is not as fluid as the Shotokan style but is more... tough to describve but instinctive sums it up.

I can't imagine why you got into it in the first place.

seemed a good idea for the first 30 seconds but then I won my first few fights (that biting is a great leveller)

The best you can do (other than avoiding the fight in the first place) is to arm yourself with a technique that is geared towards real combat rather than competition and/ or meditation and/ or impressing girlies. I think Shotokan fits that description.

I agreer with all this but what you also jhave to remeber is that you are as likley to be as drunk as El Smeggo who is having a pop at you. You try doing a spinkick when you need to hold onto the floor for support

Wow... I can really ramble, can't I?

Yes, but it is one of your more endearing qualities