Meet DAVID COPPOCK | Owner/Head Instructor

We had the good fortune of connecting with DAVID COPPOCK and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi DAVID, is there a quote or affirmation that’s meaningful to you?
Nobody cares how much you know until they know how much you care.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I started training i n the martial arts at age 18 in 1981. I had wanted to learn martial arts from an early age, but was unable to do so until I turned 18. Unlike many martial arts school owners I have real world experience in Executive Protection, Tactical Security and Self Defense. I began teaching in 1982 as a green belt and achieved 1st degree black belt in 1985. I am currently a 7th degree black belt in American Kenpo Karate and a black belt in Krav Maga.

I have competed both locally and internationally for many years in tournaments and have 15 world titles in sparring and in forms, as well as nearly 100 state championships. I am still competing and travelling, both to expand my own training and to share with others what I have learned by teaching seminars. When I first started competing I realized that I needed to significantly increase my training to be able to compete with the national fighters and forms competitors. I am happy to say that I have had considerable success on the world and national level, and am able to pass on the lessons I learned along the way to my students.

Other than being a 15 time world champion, I am very proud to be included in several Hall of Fames, in Tom Bleeker’s Journey book as one of the top Kenpo instructors in the world, and on the cover of the current Century Catalog.

One of the most rewarding parts of my job is that I get to witness my students developing life skills, becoming more confident, and growing and learning as people. I also enjoy traveling to train with different instructors and learning new material from them so that I can bring some of that to my students. I appreciate that my instructor, Master John Sepulveda, has always encouraged me to expand my horizons either through traveling to compete or to learn different material.
I may be the owner and Head Instructor at Coppock’s Kenpo Karate Academy, but I will always be a student of the art.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
If my friend was visiting for a week, it would depend on the season as to where I would take them. If in Spring,Summer or Fall, the list would definitely include Garden of the Gods, 7 falls, Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, Pikes Peak, and the Royal Gorge. There are several restaurants I would visit, most of them unique to Colorado Springs. Roman Villa for Italian, Saigon Cafe for Asian food, Marigolds, MacKenzie’s Chop House are all on the list.
If it was in the Winter, a ski trip to Monarch or Breckenridge would be on the agenda

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I am also very appreciative of all of the support my wife Sarah has given me throughout this journey.

Website: Colokenpo@gmail.com

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