Orange Belts

Testing for the orange belt was a week after school ended and the award ceremony was a few days later. All of the kids passed and received their orange belts which is very exciting because now they get to spar. They get padded gear to put on their heads, shins, feet, hands, wrists, and elbows. When you move up a stripe you can pass in a few ways. You can pass with a red stripe on your belt, which means you did everything perfect and one of the judges recommended you for a red stripe because you did something really well. You can pass with a blue stripe, which means you did everything really well and didn't make any mistakes. And finally you can pass with a white stripe, which means you missed something and should work to master that skill as you move on. Mackenzie and Dayton passed with blue stripes and Alexa passed with a red. They all did really well and they are super excited to start sparring.

With the gear on you can now have contact with other kids. They practice the right combinations of hits and kicks that are choreographed and each person takes a turn. At first they were a little hesitant to make contact with other kids. They had no problem hitting each other. Mackenzie was sparring with a boy and he came at her a little aggressively. She was first and did everything right but really soft. After he hit her a little hard she laid into him. It was hilarious. Next step...Senior orange belt.