I started my martial arts journey at the age of nine. It started like most in that I was introduced to it by a friend. I wasn’t really interested in team sports even though I enjoyed playing them. I liked the idea of all the cool moves you see on TV and thought I’ll give this a go. I started with Zen Do Kai and not knowing any different I though all karate styles were the same. I enjoyed the the training, and even though I didn’t understand the concept of what martial arts has to offer the benefits were starting to make a presence within me.

I found myself being more active, wanting to better myself and even training at home. As time went on, I graded though various belts and my friend that introduced me to it had left, but not me. There were times that I didn’t feel like training, and then there were times that I trained as much as I could. A couple of cousins of mine trained in Taekwondo, I started going training with them on other nights. This was my first introduction to the differences in Martial arts. I found concepts within Taekwondo that I wasn’t seeing in my Karate classes and visa versa. I enjoyed the challenge of the kicking techniques as I was very flexible and quick with my legs. Although after a while the focus on the sports side of training wasn’t for me.

I was now researching into different Karate styles and trained at various dojos with different friends. I found myself coming back to the idea that there needs to be self-expression not just following what your sensei is telling you to do. I understand now that the teacher goes a long way with anything that you are taught. I had many teachers in school and in work life that I didn’t connect with and did not really learn much from them, I learned more on my own. I had a good teacher at my dojo but something was still missing. I wanted to learn various weapons but was told that I wasn’t ready for that. Or we don’t teach that weapon within our style etc. I started becoming hungry to learn and wasn’t going to let this stop me. I made a variety of my own practice weapons and started exploring what I could do with them. I needed more. My parents encouraged me to learn more. My dad had trained in Judo when he was younger and knew how it stays with you. The other styles I had trained with also were limited to what I wanted to learn and I was starting to get disillusioned about it all. We didn’t have YouTube or internet to Google how to videos.

As fate would have it my new music teacher, Jack Harris was also a martial artist. We got talking about what I liked about it and what I had done etc. I told him about my various experiences and aspirations. What I did at home and how I was trying to learn of Bruce Lee movies, because I wasn’t learning things I wanted to learn in one place. One day he said to me, “David lets see what you’ve got”, I said sure, not really know where this was going but I was always up for a challenge. I followed along and basically completed a grading. He then said to me, “I grade you to brown belt. If you want more, I recommend you train with Darko Tuskan at Budokan Bujutsu." I asked my parents if I could try going there as well to see if I liked it. By this time, they were used to me jumping around to different dojos trying new styles.

Once I started training with Budokan Bujutsu I knew what I was looking for. Sensei Darko and Shihan Cullen were amazing teachers. We did everything. It was then when I learned about what Bujutsu is. It was my fit. I trained hard learnt as much as I could as I started with them wearing a brown belt. Sensei Darko worked hard with me and I did many one-on-one sessions with him. I was training 7 days a week between the dojo, one on one and at home. Within six months I graded to my Shodan Ho, black belt.

It was around then Shodai Soke Jack said to me he was going to start teaching martial arts at school. I was up for that and that was my first class with Manakai Martial Arts. I continued to train with Sensei Darko as well and we also had many combined classes as Shodai Soke Jack Harris was also Sensei Darko's and Shihan Cullen’s teacher. Manakai’s approach to learning martial arts was different to the way we learnt in Budokan Bujutsu. It was more open, you were able to express your own interests and guided to learn more and more in what suited you as an individual. Not stuck to a structured syllabus. That suited me to a tea. I was never into the sports side of Martial arts although thoroughly enjoyed training in Kick boxing, points style karate and judo but wasn’t something I aspired to.

The 6th Kubota cup IKA World Titles were being hosted in Brisbane Australia and Shodai Soke Jack asked us if we were interested in competing. I thought why not. Not very often you get the possibility to compete at a world standard. That’s when I had to unlearn and learn anew about tournament kumite. We trained as one, both students from Budokan and Manakai. We trained for 6 months with the last 3 months 5 nights a week in the dojo and every hour we had available. My day started at 5:30am with Breakfast then off to the pools. Swam laps for 45 minutes then a 5km run before my day started. We entered the Victorian Teams championship and one first place. We were then eligible for registration for the World Titles. We flew to Brisbane to compete. We had our qualifying bouts and preliminary rounds on Saturday. I had made it through to the final rounds to be held on the Sunday. In the end I placed fourth in my division. Far exceeding my expectations as I had never competed in a tournament until training for this. I was over the moon just being there. I had beaten contestants from the Australian team, contestants from Canada, France and Germany. These people travelled half way around the world to be there, the feeling was euphoric.

Post the World Cup we resumed our normal training. Now I had to unlearn all that I had learnt for the ring and back to what we did. A few of us students then graduated to Manakai Master class. This class was only for higher ranks and the training was about anything and everything to do with Martial arts. I also trained in various other styles of Martial arts that included; Karate, Judo, Kung Fu, Sanshou, Kick Boxing, Taekwondo, Kendo and Iaido.

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However, my main source of training was Manakai Martial Arts. The master classes were very intense and fuelled my thirst for knowledge of the application. I then joined the Australian Army and went through the usual training. It was then I started to realise how much my experience with Manakai Martial Arts was shaping my awareness. Combat training and strategic planning that we were learning in the army went hand in hand with what I had already learnt. Identifying enemy weak points, taking advantage of opportunities etc was all common strategies I had learnt though Bujutsu.  As a supplement to my main work in the Automotive Field as an adult educator I started working in the private security sector. I gained qualification to operated as a licenced guard, including endorsements for Crowd Control, Security Guard, Baton and handcuff, CIT operations Armed guard, Bodyguard and Private Security Trainer.

I started working for a small company Security Armed Solutions (SAS) that specialised in boutique work. Specialist assignments, events and armed work. As the company grew and took on more mainstream work including pubs and clubs I ran various security crews, carried out risk assessments and planning. I continued my Martial Arts training in the truest sense of "Martial Arts" in the form of real world application, "anything goes". I expanded my knowledge with Bujutsu from the koryu (old ways) and incorporated Gendai (modern), I specialised in defensive tactics and weaponry (including firearms) from an operational point of view in various private security applications including close personal protection and asset protection local and interstate. Living the way of Manakai Martial Arts has no boundaries and lessons learnt from one application becomes incorporated into another, and another and so on.  Later on, I moved into accredited training for licencing courses that I still deliver today.

My journey took me to the one place I had never expected, Shodai Soke Jack Harris naming me his Soke and awarding me the highest level of licence "Menkyo Kaiden" (license of total transmission) for Manakai Martial Arts. It is the biggest honour bestowed on me apart from becoming a father. Now my journey continues with new focus and dedication with an awakening of my desires to delve even deeper within me and my art.