On Saturday, along with a number of other karate students, I braved the weather and the traffic to participate in the 39th Annual 2009 Wa no Kizuna Invitational.  The tournament was held at Jefferson High School at 23rd and Pierce Street in Lakewood, Colorado.

The tournament was hosted by Denwakan Karate, the Wado Karate Federation of USA and Sensei Sadaharu Kurobane.  Sensei Kurobane is an 8th Degree Black Belt in Wado and has been teaching traditional Japanese (Wado) karate in Lakewood, Colorado, since 1970.

The tournament was well attended despite the weather.  In addition to many students who practice karate in Denver, Lakewood, Niwot and Brighton, participants came from as far away as Bloomington, Indiana, and Albuquerque, New Mexico.  In previous years, the tournament has hosted students from as far away as Ireland.

It was a good experience for all of the participants – even though some of us did not perform as well as we would have liked.  And, best of all, there were no serious injuries.