JohnASE

Are you IOGKF? If so, maybe you can have it signed. I'm not sure how much time Higaonna spends in the USA anymore though.

How about a large, framed photo of the black belts, or all the students, with a wide mat where people can write a sentence or paragraph expressing their appreciation for him being in their lives?

I was wondering if this is a universal truth, or do some people disagree? The general consensus seems to be that a heavier gi pops better than a light weight gi. By "pop", I mean the snapping sound made when performing certain techniques. Has this been your experience? Is this at all useful during kumite or just kata? 12 oz is probably the most popular weight among heavy weights. Is that the sweet spot for the average karateka with 10 oz being too light and 14 oz a bit too heavy? Some people say that brushed cotton doesn't pop as well as canvas. Is that true? What if the material is brushed on the inside only? Obviously, the quality of the technique is the important thing, but when being judged in a tournament or during testing, appearance and sound can have an effect on people watching. How much does a heavy weight gi help with that?

First, owning your own business doesn't mean not working for the rest of your life. A lot of businesses don't make enough profit to retire on comfortably. Second, in general, the less you invest, the harder you'll have to work, plus the chance of failure goes up. Losing money is bad, but so is working for months or years with nothing to show for it. You risk something either way. I can't suggest a "hit" for you, but if you want people to pay you to do something, it'll have have to be something they don't want to do or can't do themselves. This might be because it requires a special skill, is very unpleasant, or takes a lot of time. If you hope to own a business where other people do the work for you, you'll have to learn the skill of managing people. If you want a business where you buy and sell something, you'll have to become an expert in your product and in selling. Personally, if I were young, and my main goal was to not work for the rest of my life and not invest capital, I'd be looking to work for someone with a good, early retirement plan. Some government jobs and some union jobs have this. My friend's mom retired in her sixties from a government job, and her pension plus her retirement fund pays almost the same as her salary did. A friend retired in his forties at half salary after 25 years at a non-union corporate job. Last I heard, he was working as a consultant part-time, making more money (including pension) than he was as a regular employee.

You might want to try the new dojo before quitting the old one, just to be sure you want to switch. Regarding informing your current sensei at some point, that might depend on your dojo. I guess you don't have a contract, but some dojos ask students to give them some kind of notice as a courtesy.

I don't know much more about Shindo Jinen Ryu than you already know, but Mina's great! She competes on an international level and really seems to care about coaching, but what I really like is her sense of humor. Not sure how much of that shows up in the dojo though. She's relatively young, but she's a 2nd generation karateka with a lot of experience. Her father is Kiyoshi Yamazaki, a long-time leader in the JKR organization. Another notable JKR leader is Junki Yoshida who's also known for Mr. Yoshida's Marinade and Cooking Sauce. I hear he's a very interesting character. I'm surprised that you say good dojos are hard to find near you. I'm not sure how near you mean, but I know of many in the Orange County area. A few senseis off the top of my head are Fumio Demura, Chad Eagan, Akira Fukuda, and Paul Godshaw.

Congrats, Bob, and belated happy birthday! May you have many decades of training and teaching ahead of you. And since others are doing it... I was born 10 days after the started karate!

Should age be a barrier to being awarded a black belt? Maybe some characteristics of children should be a barrier, but I don't think numerical age should be. People's characteristics vary greatly and don't always correlate with age. Younger people aren't always less mature than older people. Younger people aren't always weaker than older people. Picking an age and saying everyone under it is incapable of being worthy of a black belt would not be accurate. I understand that in groups, we need to abide by generalizations that will not be fair to all people. You need to be 21 to buy alcohol. You need to be 16 to drive a car. But, I believe that awarding a black belt is a more personal experience, where the tester knows each candidate intimately, making it much easier to judge worthiness individually than it would be for the department of motor vehicles or a bartender. Personally, that's what I believe, but I get that it makes sense to have general policies to keep things uniform, especially in larger organizations. Maybe the greater good is served by a policy that reduces the chance that an undeserving person might be awarded a black belt. I'd just hate to see exceptional kids held back.

This is the best 1980s karate rap video evar! It reminds me of the days of Jeri Curl, gold lamé, and parachute pants, but even less cool.

"Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: The Green Legend" is due to come out in August of 2015, released both on Netflix and in IMAX theaters. Michelle Yeoh stars, reprising her old role. http://variety.com/2014/digital/news/crouching-tiger-hidden-dragon-sequel-netflix-weinstein-co-1201316645/#

Yeah, the convertible backpacks are great! My wife and I travel with them all the time. We have a couple that are perfect carry-on size.

There are some duffel bags that convert to backpacks that might work for you. They're narrower and longer than the Battlepack Pro and don't have as many features, but the volume might be similar and they're a lot cheaper. They have handles and a shoulder strap like a duffel bag, but also straps in a pocket that can be pulled out and clipped for backpack use. We used to have an Adidas bag like this, but it was discontinued. It's similar to this one at AWMA (but not exactly the same), and the price was a lot less than this one. http://www.awma.com/productdetail/4794-adidas-wkf-sports-bag.html I probably shouldn't say anything without confirming, but I've heard a rumor that the quality of the AWMA Adidas bags isn't as good as the quality of the Adidas bags we sold. I heard they were made by different factories. Again, I have not confirmed that there is any problem with these bags in general. I just heard that one dojo that had problems with several of the bags. Maybe they just got a bad batch. Anyway, I like the versatility of this type of bag. We're out of a Tokaido brand version that I think retailed for something like $60 or $70. Maybe you can find something similar somewhere else. Maybe for less if it's not a name brand.

Like previously mentioned, most schools will provide and award a black belt. Some even won't allow you to wear one not provided by your instructor. I assume that's not the case in your school. To answer your question, how long a satin belt will last varies depending on the brand and your definition of unusable. Most satin belts have a satin cover with some type of padding inside, often made of cotton. This covering begins to fray or shred faster than cotton covers, but cotton wears, too. As they wear, the padding begins to show. Typically, they will wear first on edges and at the knot. I can't speak for all satin belts, but my impression is that they start to tatter fairly quickly and will look pretty well worn within a year or two, depending on use. Maybe others can chime in with their experiences. Some people like their black belts to look shiny and new. Others prefer their belts to look tattered and worn, as if it's seen years of hard use. I've seen belts where there is less cover than stuffing showing, and their wearers still don't consider them unusable. A satin belt will last many, many years for someone like this. Some people like the look of a new satin belt, and want to extend its life, so they use it only on special occasions, like testing or tournaments, and use a more durable belt for training.

I finally got the info the Demura Sensei's 50th Anniversary Celebration Banquet. Tickets are $100 per person! It's on Saturday, February 21, 2015, at the Hilton Hotel in Costa Mesa. Attire is formal or semi-formal. There's a form for purchasing tickets. I have a contact email address, but I didn't get permission to post it, so if anyone is interested, shoot me a PM. Info might be available at the Genbu-kai website. I believe the dinner will be on the day of Demura Sensei's kobudo tournament, and the next day should be the karate tournament. We always have a booth at the latter event, but not the former. I haven't heard anything lately about the dojo moving.

One of my customers answered a similar ad once. They started him at white belt, and he earned his black belt. I don't think they skimped on teaching him. I believe his intention was always to open up his own studio one day, but I don't see anything wrong with that being one of the motivations to train. I concede that "accelerated" is a red flag as is this type of marketing, but they might teach quality martial arts. By the way, that customer started training about 40 years ago, did open a studio, and is now the grand master of a small organization. He valued what he learned, and he shared it with thousands of others.

That's funny! I JUST met this sensei at the USA Karate (USA-NKF) Nationals in Reno last month. Judging by the number of people walking around with his logo, he must have brought a fair number of competitors. I mention this because you said something about wanting to compete in the future. The USA-NKF is part of the WKF. If karate gets into the Olympics, it will likely be under the WKF, as the WKF and the IOC have been working together for many years. I only spoke with this sensei briefly, but he seemed like a good guy. Based on what little I know about him, I'd recommend checking out his dojos.

Actually, it looks like the Tokyodo SP-1000 is a rayon/polyester blend, but I otherwise agree with what Wastelander says. The "other normal heavy GI" that the original poster refers to might be the Tokyodo K-10. If what I've been told is correct, Tokyodo used to be called Tokyo Shureido, but Shureido in Okinawa had a problem with that, so they had to change their name. My guess is that the Tokyodo K-10 is comparable to the Shureido K-10 and the Tokyodo SP-1000 is comparable to the Shureido KC-10, which is also rayon/polyester. I have no experience with Tokyodo, so I don't know whether the quality really compares to Shureido or not. Long ago, we used to sell Shureido. The K-10 was much more popular than the KC-10. Most of that was probably because of the price difference and people not knowing what a rayon/polyester gi would feel like. Sorry, other than what's already been said, I don't recall the differences between the two types.

Tokaido and Hirota gi might cheaper in Japan than the USA, but I doubt it's a huge difference. What's more likely is that many of the gi you see in photos are a less expensive student gi that isn't readily available outside of Japan.

First, Roninkai, I see you're located in Vegas. In the USA, the Kamikaze America and Kamikaze Monarch are sold as the Tokon America and Tokon Monarch. They're the same, but there were trademark issues, so here, it's Tokon instead of Kamikaze. I'm not familiar with the Kamikaze Kata gi. Tokon does not include it in their product line. We stock the America, but not the Monarch, so I'm more familiar with the former. Coincidentally, when you posted this, I had a booth at the USA Karate Nationals, and Tokon had brought some Monarchs for us to sell. Unfortunately, I didn't see this post until now, a couple of weeks later, so I can't physically compare them, but while we had them, I made sure I knew a little about the differences. The America is a nice, thick gi. It's a traditional canvas. The Monarch is thick, too, but I think it's a little thinner. The Monarch material is nicer though. It's smoother and softer. Some people prefer hard, while others prefer soft. You didn't mention the Tokon Europa. It's between the America and the Monarch in price. It's lighter than either, but still heavy, and it has smooth, soft material, like the Monarch. If I were to guess, I'd say the America is about 14 oz, the Monarch is maybe 13 or 14 oz, and the Europa is about 12 oz. Oh, and be aware that Tokon has a reputation for running on the large side, so be careful about which size you order.

FYI, for anyone considering Warrior vs Dyna, the Warrior Shins have an extra layer of foam padding over the impact area. You get close to double the protection but also a bit more bulk.Regarding the Rev Gear Pro Spar Shin Guard linked in the original post, I believe they're vinyl sewn over foam. They're not as dense as Rev Gear's kickboxing shins. I don't have one handy, so I'm going from memory, but I think they're more dense than the Warriors, but they're thinner, so I'm not sure they're more protection. WKF shins can vary from brand to brand, but in general, they might offer similar protection. Rev gear is here in Southern California. If they're not readily available in the UK, I recommend looking for something that is.

Custom gis are pretty expensive. If you can find a gi that's big enough and have it altered, it's probably a better deal. Sizing doesn't run the same from brand to brand or even from model to model within a brand. Some of our uniforms run more narrow than others. Often, student uniforms run smaller than heavyweight uniforms. If you want to contact me directly, I'd be happy to try to fit you. I had a friend who was about 5'6, 240 lbs, and he took our ASE Busho Gi in size 8. The jacket was long, but his group likes them long. He had to have the sleeves and pants shortened, but it was otherwise a decent fit. Today, I'm sending an ASE Deluxe size 8 to a guy who told me he was 5' 10" and 275 lbs with a 50" waist. Until he gets it, I won't be sure it'll work, but I think it'll be fine, again with shortened sleeves and pants. That gi also comes in size 9, but we're out of them for another couple months. Feel free to message me here at Karate Forums, or check our website for our email address and phone number (see link below).

This is interesting. Tailoring ads for your audience could make a big difference.I don't remember anyone mentioning this, but I hear good things about "bring a friend" programs.

From your post, I understand why Okinawan senseis might not want to be ossed, but in my experience, senseis from mainland Japan who relocated here to the USA often teach its use. I'm not sure, but it sounds like you're suggesting that its use is prevalent in Japan but not in Okinawa. Is that true? I have a vague memory of Demura Sensei, or maybe it was his sister, saying that training in karate was not a respectable endeavor when they were younger, at least compared to judo and kendo. Is it different now?Personally, I don't like to be ossed either, but then again, I'm not a karateka. I attend a fair number of karate events every year, and it's not uncommon for someone to oss at me or bow to me or call me sensei. To be fair, I'm of Japanese decent and have more than a trace of gray in my hair, so I suppose it's understandable when a kid doesn't know what to make of me. Anyway, I don't know what the big debate is about. In your dojo, do what sensei tells you, but just like everything else, understand that not all dojos are the same as yours. If it's misuse distracts you, use it to work on your kime. It bugs me when people say "relator" or "nucular", but what are you gonna do?

If karate gets into the Olympics, I believe it will be under the World Karate Federation (WKF). They've been working with the IOC for a while now. The form it takes will likely be similar to what the WKF is doing already, although they're constantly making changes, trying to fit into the Olympics. Oh, and by "karate", I mean traditional, Japanese-style karate. NASKA, ISKA, and NBL open-style groups aren't anywhere near being in the running, as far as I know. The WKF does kata and kumite, but not kobudo. They used to have official versions of kata, called shitei kata, that competitors had to chose from, but I hear they've stopped doing that. I believe the shitei kata were taken from Shotokan, Goju Ryu, Shito Ryu and Wado Ryu, but I know a lot of people from other styles that compete in WKF events. I hear there's a chance that karate will be added into the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. Of course, I've heard that about every Olympics for a long time now. We'll see. It would be kind of fitting as Judo was added to the 1964 Tokyo Olympics. Personally, I'd like to see karate get into the Olympics, mostly because I'm sure it will be good for the business side of things. Interest in karate would definitely grow, plus, we import and distribute WKF approved kumite gear, so we would benefit directly for sure. I don't make a lot of money, and it'd be nice to have a little boost in income! Will it be good for the karate community? I'm not sure. Olympic karate will thrive, but how much will old school dojos suffer? Will it become all about the sport, and will we lose the tradition and cultural aspects? I don't want to see that happen, and I don't think it will, at least not completely. I think it will be like the emergence of MMA. Many people will go with the change, but many will want to stick to the old ways.

I agree with this, but even for a kid, I'd recommend going with something a little heavier than 6 oz. For a few dollars more, you can get something in 7 or 8 oz that will probably last a lot longer. I'd bet that most 6 oz and lighter uniforms are sold to schools that give them away free to new students. It only saves the school owner a couple bucks per uniform, but many students quit within the first few months anyway and don't need them to last any longer.