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WIMBERLEY — Teachers become singer-songwriters, oil company executives become small business owners, and high school coaches become disc jockeys. Wimberley is filled with individuals doing great things after retirement.
Charles Elder has come a long way from just a few years ago. His chosen profession? “I’m a professional salesman, retired,” he said. In retirement, most people pursue different paths to enjoyment, whether volunteer or with little pay, paths they could not follow while making a living and earning money to live and support a family.
Elder started to enter martial arts training in the early 70s. “Bruce Lee died one week before,” Elder said. Mention karate and the only other name that rings a bell with most people is Chuck Norris.
“I was scared of my own shadow. I could take a beating. Nobody taught me how to fight. That’s pretty common,” he continued. “The bravest thing to do was to walk through the door of the martial arts studio. It took a lot of courage.”
He’s come along ways in karate. These days, he’s a teacher at Kuk Sool Won in San Marcos, which is a Korean Karate style Martial Arts school. He previously retired from competition in 1994 in the 35 and up division. Since, he has moved to Wimberley and trained by himself. “I turned 65, I retired from 25 years at the company (as a professional salesman). I thought, competition, just one more, it would be fun.
“It’s been one year and I came out of the wilderness. I would train at the (DS Springs) Y three times a week for two hours a day for at least 25 years.”
As training progressed, he’d use the aerobics room with mirrors to watch his form, but “after 25 years I was rusty.” He decided to help at the school in San Marcos. Last October he entered a competition and was totally embarrassed. This spurred him on in his training. “I saw video and came back and trained harder. I got blanked again. I got really mad,” he said.
Competing in the Texas Amateur Organization of Karate, he was continuing to hone his talents. It took eight tournaments to catch the leader, another to step in front, and then another to put some distance between the No. 1 and No. 2 rankings. Now, at 67 years old, he’s is the top ranked competitor on the amateur circuit.
“It forces me to get better and a it’s a rush when you win. The competitor’s comments are what I like.” His tournament schedule is a weekly basis, all around the state. He estimates that with book learning, studying and practice he has spent over 10,000 hours pursuing karate.
He enjoys teaching the craft, watching students “eyes light up once they get it.” He continues to compete on an almost weekly basis around the state and his goal is to “Be ranked No. 1 at 70.”
He will continue to train and his big advice is to “exercise, stretch everyday and it will improve your quality of life.”
