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Forest City---After teaching martial arts in Rutherford County for 50 years, Ray Rice has closed his karate school.
Rice, who has trained in tae-kwon-do, kenpo, ju-jitsu, and akido, holds the rank of 8th Degree Black Belt. He has trained thousands of Rutherford County students since he began in the early 1970s. He has fought professionally across the United States and internationally, and became something of a local legend in the world of combat sports.
Rice grew up in Rutherford County, and graduated from Chase High School. In his last two years of high school, Rice worked at a cotton mill in Chesnee, and later for Sonoco. Throughout adulthood, while working a "regular" job, Rice also was practicing and teaching martial arts.
His first black belt was in tae-kwan-do, which Rice explains is from Korea, and he learned from a respected Korean martial artist. Next, he earned a black belt in Shotokan Karate, which is a Japanese system of martial arts.
Rice's first black belts were obtained while he was still in his early twenties. Rice is now 70 years old, though his martial arts training keeps him far more physically fit than average Americans in their seventies.
The last class he taught at his Forest City studio was in mid-March.
"I have wonderful memories of my school, that I will take to my grave," Rice said recently.
"But, that season for me has passed," he said, reflecting on the karate school days. "I am grateful to God that he allowed me to have these experiences."
Ray was raised by his parents, Ralph and Ida Mae Rice, and has two siblings who were also athletic. His brother embraced bodybuilding, while his sister also earned a martial arts black belt.
"My dad was a tough guy, a Marine. I always wanted to impress my dad, to make him proud," Rice said. "I was small for my size, and was always getting beat on when I was a kid. But I had a couple of friends who were into karate, so I went with them."
His early training was in Shelby and Gastonia.
"I loved it from the start," Rice shared. "The training was rough. I got beat many times by instructors and other students. I was the runt."
But he kept at it, and he grew in stature, as his skill level continued to improve.
"I got better," he said.
Rice became an outstanding kickboxer, fighting in 18 states including New York, Florida and California; as well as Canada, Italy, France, and Russia. He earned multiple state and regional titles, and eventually was recognized as one of the top ten kickboxers in the world.
The fight in Moscow, Russia was held in a venue built for the Olympics. Rice was in his thirties, and he beat his opponent who was in his twenties.
"We went on short notice, because the originally scheduled opponent had to withdraw," he explained.
That win earned Rice a world title in kickboxing. He won his last professional fight, when he was 42-years-old, in Montreal, Canada.
Many in Rutherford County, who may not be trained martial artists, will recall that in the 1980s, Ray Rice brought "tough man" competitions to Forest City. These fights proved to be very popular, and helped raise the profile of his karate school.
Rice had competed in tough man fights before.
"But you couldn't fight in the ones you were promoting," he said.
About 15 tough man competitions were held at Cool Springs Gym in downtown Forest City. Members of the public would pay $10, to see local men brawling to find out who is "toughest."
"We would pack the gym out," Rice remembers. "People loved to come to those shows. They would see people in the ring who they knew. They would get excited, cheering on the fighters."
Some of those participants had training, some were simply men who wanted to try their luck in the ring. Many of them were in their thirties and forties, and some even older.
"Those were some tough 'ole boys," Rice said with a laugh. "Often it was the older ones who would win. And the winners were not necessarily the biggest guys. Those fights showed that you really can't judge a book by its cover."
Rice says with any combat sports, people choose to participate because of an inner desire, "...to see how good you are. To see how tough you are, how skilled you are against an opponent."
And, he said, when you step into a ring for any kind of fight, you are doing something the vast majority of people will never do.
For the spectator, the ring looks big, Rice said.
"But when you are the one fighting, it seems very small," Rice continued. "No matter how good you think you are, you are going to get hit."
As he looks back at his time teaching and participating in combat sports, Rice is happy.
"I was hard headed. But these experiences taught me that you can't give up," Rice stated. "We have had some hard times, but you have to stick with it."
Rice and his wife Anita have two sons, both of whom earned black belts. Some of his other students went on to compete in various karate, kickboxing, mixed martial arts, and tough man competitions.
Rice hasn't given up on martial arts entirely, as he continues to train himself, and sometimes assists others at a martial arts school in South Carolina.
At his school he always emphasized living a positive, healthy lifestyle.
"Martial arts instills discipline, a work ethic," Rice added. "It helps build the mind, body, and spirit."
He believes that now, more than ever, young people especially are in need of something positive to pour their energy into.
"My experience with martial arts has made me a better person," Rice added.
