Brad builds bonds with martial arts

ECLIPSE Martial Arts instructor Brad Emmett points to both the self defence benefits and important character-building skills martial arts such as Taekwondo, Jiu-Jitsu and Judo provide his students.

In fact, Brad strongly stresses the “character ethic”, is deeply entwined in martial arts.

“People want to develop character, and parents want their children to develop self discipline.”

Brad noted that this in turn transfers over into many other aspects of life, assisting with the development of skills that students can harness to achieve their goals.

“I think parents and people are coming for that, as much as to learn how to kick and punch,” he said.

Brad moved to Collie as a student in 1981. His father had been appointed the deputy principal of Collie Senior High School, and his mother, a nurse, worked in the mines in occupational health and safety.

As he notes, after four decades, “I’m almost a local!”

While he’s spent a good deal of time out of Collie, including for university studies in Perth, he has always been drawn back.

He points to the strong sense of community that pervades the town as being a key attraction. “I love it,” he said. “We travelled a lot before we came here, but this is where I want to stay.”

Brad became involved in martial arts in the mid-80s, training in styles including Kung Fu and Taekwondo, and has since been actively involved in the Collie club.

“It’s always been a successful, strong club, with lots of good fighters and competitive souls,” he said.

“I’ve been lucky that while I was running the club, a lot of other people have come to town with other martial arts to teach.”

This saw him train in Judo, becoming ranked and competing, and also in Muay Thai.

With the growth of mixed martial arts (MMA) in the ‘90s, a lot of his students became involved in the hybrid sport.

“We’ve produced a lot of really good fighters over the years,” he said.

“I’ve been blessed. It’s brought a lot of amazing people into my life.

“I’ve spent a lot of time with them, travelling the country and the world.

“I’ve got friends all over the place now. So, I can travel pretty much anywhere, and we’ve got good friends wherever we go.”

In line with this, Brad points to both the people he’s met and the opportunity to compete overseas as having been the highlights of his martial arts career.

“The guys I’ve fought against, usually we’ll exchange belts,” he said. “Now we see each other, 20 years later you’re at a competition, and my students are competing against their students.

“I competed in Thailand against a guy from Bhutan in a Muay Thai final, and I’ve stayed in touch with him.”

Brad said he still goes back to Thailand, taking students in Muay Thai in Koh Samui.

He said he’s been lucky enough to train many “amazing” students, including MMA fighter Shaun Spooner, who now runs a gym in Dunsborough.

“The highlight for me has been the quality of the people I’ve met and the family we create,” he said.

“Everyone’s so supportive of everyone else. It’s just a positive vibe.”

Brad said that the Eclipse Martial Arts studio runs classes for three-year olds, the “Little Dragons” program, and up, with some students in their 60s.

Most days he is kept busy with classes and competitions, and when he isn’t teaching he is typically thinking about and planning his next steps.

Brad teaches his students, like Xavier Stone, skills they can harness to achieve their goals.

My friend couldn’t pay his own water bill, so I sent him a “get well soon card”.

I was struggling to figure out how lightning works, but then it struck me.

One hundred hares have escaped the zoo, so police are combing the area.

“It continues to evolve and develop,” he said. “It’s just trying to find the time to fit it all in.”

The Looks Around Bystander

Catch-22

A local business person was having problems with Telstra and wanted to talk to the telco.

But wait – how do you talk to someone/ something about a problem if the problem is that you can’t talk to them?

She considered a scribbled note, hiring a sky-writer to send a message via the clouds, or even a Ouija board. Someone suggested an email. She had two email accounts and had just stopped one.

But wait there was another she hadn’t used for a while, like several years.

Never mind, just try it. Then it asked for the password. Ah, passwords, the bane of our modern lives.

Not a problem, just change to a new one. You just log on to your email, using your password …

Problems not new

Problems with communication are not new.

Reminiscing about the days of the Apex Club in Collie, a former Apexian recalled that when John Atherton was the club's secretary, he kept all of the minutes in braille.

Only to be expected really, as John was blind.