yojimbo

oh if it were only so simple.

Everyone has made good points. I think the point that I was trying to make was that it isn't good to generalize so much and say that someone under 16 shouldn't have a blackbelt. Some may deserve it and some may be able to handle it. That is for the instructor to decide.

I have heard many people argue that one should not be a blackbelt until the age of 16. However I feel that the deciding factor should not be age but skill. I am not under 16 nor do I have any children so this does not apply directly to me. Sure some young people don't have the maturity and/or strength that an adult may have but there are some under the age of 16 that do show a lot of maturity. That is why many dojos have employed the use of the junior blackbelt. If someone recieves the junior blackbelt at the age of 12 and continues his/her training until the age of 14 that person would most likley be more than ready for the blackbelt. If this person passes the test how can we deny them the blackbelt. Should instructors base their decision on maturity and skill and not have anything to do with age. What does everyone think?

Are throws difficult to pull off in real life situations? What might be the factors in this: weight, momentum, etc.?

I'm a college student and I just came home for the summer. I only have three months to train then I have to go back to school. I'm going to continue there but I was wondering what the rest of you college students do. You probably have a regular dojo at school but then do you just pick one for the summer and train there until you go back?

Thanks for all the replies. While Kuk Sool Won (sorry) seems interesting it would be impossible for me to drive to one while at school. By the way I'm going to Iowa State. I know that at the university they teach TKD and Hapkido. But if I were to take Hapkido I might as well start that here (Davenport) instead of Kuk Sool Won. I'll have to look into Hapkido more before I make my decision. In Davenport there is an Aikido school, and while that seems good it has one of the longest learning curves in the martial arts, and I wouldn't be able to continue training at school. Anyway, thanks I'll look into Hapkido and try to sort out my other options.

I'm going home for the summer, I'm in college now. There is a Kuk Sool Wan school nearby and I was wondering what exactly this art is all about. I tried to do a search on the subject to no avail. I'll only be able to do it for the summer, there is no kuk sool wan in the college town that I live in. Would I get anything out of it in three months. When I come back to college I might take up jujitsu or karate, kind of want to stay away to TKD. Or should i just start the karate training now and then when i go back to school i can continue it then rather than starting a new art? thanks

Does anyone know if there is a martial arts search engine or something that I could use to find places around me? A database that has reviews of some of these places would also be useful. If not, any suggestions in the quadcities area of Iowa? thanks