Top karate award for Caithness man
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A CAITHNESS man feels "very privileged" to have received a top karate award. Michael (Spike) Tait from Wick passed his 6th Dan after a grading test at an international course in Windsor and joins a limited number of people in the UK to have achieved such success.
The Dan ranking system is used by many Japanese and other martial art organisations to indicate the level of a person's ability within a given system.
"I feel very privileged to have been asked to do it. The award is great but it is what you do with it afterwards that is the important thing," he said. His instructor Kenny Taylor from Paisley thought it would be a good idea to do it.
Spike, who is 63 and has been involved in martial arts for over 40 years, got his 1st Dan in 1990. His 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th followed and now he has his 6th.
Six people from the UK and one from Japan were up for the prestigious award. "It was all over in about 15 minutes. "The worst about it was the hanging around waiting to get it done. I found out the next day that I had passed, " he said.
Spike said reaching that level is "a case of perseverance. There is no secret. It is training and a lot of travelling," he explained.
He has been to Japan and undertook a two-week training course with an instructor who was a ninth Dan at the time. "That was a great experience."
But he added: "Realistically speaking, I will not be going any further than a 6th Dan but I will continue to learn. If you stop that, you might as well stop all together. I will concentrate now on those coming behind me."
Spike started off doing the Shorinji Kempo Japanese martial art in 1982 but after a couple of years switched to Shotokan when Kenny Bell from Dundee started clubs in Wick and Thurso.
When Kenny moved to London it was decided to keep the club going but it became the Caithness Tora-Kai Karate Club with Spike becoming one of the licensed coaches. It is based in Wick and has between 50 and 60 members from all over the county, including Thurso, Castletown, Halkirk, Reay, Lybster and Dunbeath. Training takes places in the Assembly Rooms on Monday and Wednesday nights and Saturday mornings. It is affiliated to the Japan Karate Association – one of the oldest Shotokan karate organisations in the world.
"You get out of it as much as you put into it. It is entirely up to the individual," he said.
Spike, who has played in local bands such as British Standard, Zero Option and One Card Trick, lives in Wick with his wife Evelyn. The couple have two of a family – Paul (36) and Hannah who is 30.
