Alan Burrows started full contact sports in 1984 at the age of 16, practicing Boxing at the Wythenshawe Forum Boxing Club under the late and great Jimmy Egen. Training for 3 nights a week for a year until Jimmy progressed Alan for competition. As the years went on Alan was picked to represent Manchester against Ireland.

 

Alan then went on to win the North West Counties ABA Championship. Alan’s Boxing Career came to an end in 1992 finishing undefeated.

 

He then spent a few years working and bringing up his expanding family.

 

After a while Alan felt the urge to begin training again. Alan began training with Master John Parkinson in the Art of Tang Soo Do. There he progressed through the grades reaching his First Dan in 2002, this is where Alan and Ken first realised they both had a passion for Martial Arts. Alan being Ken’s instructor for many years.

 

In 2005, Alan graded for his 2nd Dan, shortly after this Alan left Master Parkinson to search for other disciplines. Alan then met up with Sensei Ken again in 2007 and began training in Ashihara Karate which became Koku Tora Ryu Karate Do

 

Alan graded as 1st Dan Koku Tora Ryu in June 2009. With some formulating with Sensei Ken, They began to look more into the style of karate itself, looking at the kata thinking about each move. Why is it there? What's it for? Can it be used for anything else? Through Sensei Ken’s experience of Traditional Karate looking into the core of Bunkai. They amended most of the kata to make a more realistic approach and now the kata can support a various amount of Bunkai. They've added moves, body twists, changed round kicks to front kicks, taken moves out included "grappling" techniques into the kata etc to make the Kata and style "complete" or "whole". and created Koku Tora Ryu Karate Do. “Koku Tora Ryu” actually means “Dark Tiger School of the Empty Hand Way”

 

Koku Tora Ryu Karate Do was formed and Sensei Alan hasn’t looked back. Where Sensei Alan goes next is entirely open, Koku Tora Ryu Karate Do is always developing and evolving. Sensei Alan is looking at becoming a fulltime instructor ‘retiring’ from his jobs and running a full time Dojo, along side Sensei Ken, with several Satellite clubs up and down the country.