Greg Turnbull

Twenty brave local martial arts practitioners, representing 4 different styles of martial arts, brought in the New Year with a traditional dip in the frigid waters of Elk Lake.

Old Meets New – Allan Curren checks the water temperature the old fashioned way while Gandmaster Kikukawa (below) uses new technology to find the water temperature to be a chilly 1°C

(Photo by Don Osborne. www.donosborne.ca)

Led by Sensei Greg Turnbull, students from Yoshukai Karate Canada, Puckett's Noble House of Karate, Okinawa Shorin-ryu Karate Shinkokai, and Hung Fut Kung Fu took part in what was the 5th year for this event.

Students sprinting into the water in front of bundled up onlookers

The January 1st training session was originally inspired by the late Shihan Hitoshi Shiozaki who believed that every New Year should be started with good training. He also believed in the concept of "spirit training" where students are challenged to overcome adversity. This can come in the form of extensive cardio exercises, body conditioning drills, or training in extreme heat. In this case, being able to overcome cold temperatures was the challenge.

Students (from l to r) Tamao Nakashima, Jo-Anne Redublo, Ray Siochwicz , Mat Beren fling water over themselves and each other to begin the training in front of Sensei Greg Turnbull

(Photo by Don Osborne. www.donosborne.ca)

Although several students were nervous or apprehensive about attempting this kind of training, everyone finished feeling refreshed, empowered, and looking forward to participating again next year.

For more information about Yoshukai Karate Canada, please visit

www.yoshukai.ca