Shorinryu Sensei

You don't think you can strike with your mind? It's called "thinking". I know, a difficult concept for some to understand. Use your wits, not your fists is the first rule of self-defense and street fighting. Out think your opponent. Be aware of your surroundings. Plan strategy. Look for weaknesses in his defense. Get the idea? Haven't you ever talked your way out of a fight? I have..dozens of them. Fighting, on the physical level, is a last resort.

Yes, the body is good...but the mind is better.

Just to give you some idea of the magnitude of the question you're asking, let me change the wording a bit to maybe get it into perspective. I am very interested in Cars, but am unaware of the comparative Car Styles. I was wondering, if someone could be a help and list some of the more common models of Cars and what they incorporate over the others. When you take into account Japanese, Korean, American, French, Swedish, etc "cars", there are so many factors involved. They all have things in common, but also many things that make them unique, as do the various big karate systems. Does that make sense? You're asking a very general and broad question which really is going to be difficult for anybody to answer.

I don't do TKD, but I figure this poll/question is applicable to all systems. We don't have "numbered" one-steps.

I've heard of "no belt" before when you start (I don't do it however). Do they charge test fee's to go from no belt to white belt? If so, it's probably an excuse to get more money out of you. The same thing applies sometimes if they have 10 below black belt ranks, but have stripes for different levels of the same colored belt. It's often times used to get more testing fee's. It's often a good sign of a McDojo also. Let the buyer beware.

Well, I guess we all know who's going to getr "Member of the Month" now, don't we.

I'll second that motion! lol Just a quick story. I got married back in 1978, just 2 months after getting my Shodan. We couldn't afford a honeymoon as exotic or nice as Hawaii, but went to Spokane, Washington instead (it's fairly close to here). When we checked into our hotel, there was a karate school right across the street from us, and the 2nd evening I went over there to watch for a few minutes and ended up taking a two hour class. This is while my wife was sitting in our motel room and I was just supposed to pop over and watch the class "for a few minutes". Needless to say, I didn't have a good reception when I got back to the motel. A word of advice. Concentrate on making your new bride happy and spending the time with her instead of working out. Unless of course, she's going to go with you and try a class? If it's just you..pass on it bud. The grief and resentment aren't worth the hour or two of enjoyment on your part, because she'll NEVER let you forget it! Women are funny that way.

@ harleyt26

Well, I'm older than most of the people on this forum, and been in the arts longer than many on here have been alive, so I'll add as a "disclaimer" that I'm not even going to attempt to be politically correct and "nice" about my comments. This young man, talented as he is in twirling, is on a martial arts forum, asking martial artists what we think of his martial arts technique...so here's mine. I think if you want to become a twirler in a marching band..you look GREAT! If however, you are trying to pass off twirling a nunchaku around like your video's depict, and think you're doing good, REAL technique, you are terribly misguided and misinformed as to what good technique is. If this was a twirling forum, you'll no doubt get much more favorable responses....but then again, I wouldn't be in here either. If my comments offend you just remember, you asked for our opinions. Perhaps you might want to consider joining a reputable martials arts school, and learning good, solid and bone shattering nunchaku technique. Either that, or find someone to teach you twirling a baton so at least you might make some money as a twirler in a marching band.

matbla...if you ask a silly question, you have to expect silly answers. It's as simple as that. No one can pick a tattoo for you, you need to find one that YOU, and you alone, like, because you are the one that is going to have to live with it on your body for the rest of your life. I've always sort of liked full rigged sailing ships on a mans chest myself...but hey, that's just me!

Don't get me wrong kicks..what you do in yoru dojo is your business, and I can either agree, or disagree with it. Personally, I don't think there is a 16 yr old kid on the planet that has the maturity to go along with what a 4th Dan black belt represents. Yes, he may know the movements and recite verbatum what he has learned..but does he really understand it is my concern? Question: You list his winning this and that tournament...are those exclusively TKD tournaments, or are they open tournaments (any system can enter)? The reason I ask is that I had sort of this same discussion with a local TKD school here a few years ago, where one of the instructers senior black belts was pounding his chest telling me how much they dominated at All TKD Tournaments. I asked him if he'd ever entered an Open Tournament, and he replied "My instructor won't let us go to open tournaments because he says we would dominate all of the events, and they wouldn't invite us back again." I kid you not people, that's what he told me. I suggested he attend a tournament the next month about 240 miles from here and afterwards, tell me the same thing. I was a judge/referree at that tournament, and this black belt actually came (he didn't tell his instructor though). The guy lost every match he fought in, and I think hardly scored a point) and didn't fair well in the kata competiton. Afterwards, he told me he thought the tournament was rigged against him. Anyway Kicks, have you and your son competed in open, all styles, tournaments? I'm just wondering.

Well, if you put "Mommie" on your ankle, you're going to learn to be a real good fighter on a daily basis I would think.

Looking at that website Kicks, you and your kids started in 1993..right? 11 years ago? And your youngest, if my math is correct, was 4 at the time, so is 15 now..and a 4th Dan black belt? Tell me it isn't so?

And what, if I might ask, does this have to do with a karate discussion forum?

The local aikido sensei, who has been invovled in the art for many, MANY years and has trained extensively in Japan, told me that the founder of the system (forgot his name right off hand) could literally stand in the middle of a room and project his ki in such a way that a person could literally not touch him. This is without him moving or dodging at all..just standing there. I'm a skeptic myself, and would like someone make that claim to me, then let me take a practice swing at his head with a baseball bat and see if he moves...or I hit him in the noggin. If I can't, and his projected ki protects and deflects my blow, I'll be a believer on the spot! Until then...I don't believe in it. Or at least, not to the point that it is used to deflect blows without movement of your body.

Well, i guess I'm full of doo-doo then. I'm not saying my chosen system is perfect, but for me, it is. It fits every aspect that I feel is important in a martial art. If I didn't think so, and found something that I felt as better, I'd do that instead. So...does this make me a doo-doo head? No, just someone that has found what he considers "the perfect art" for himself.

I wonder if this guy is afiliated with Ashida Kim, the legendary (in HIS mind anyway) Ninja master?

Oh gee..did I make a typo someplace? I guess I just wasn't paying attention...no ill will intended of course.

Hey bud, get with it will ya! This is the 21st Century now you know. Weapons for all, back flips, splits...it's all good, right? What are you, a traditionalist or something? In case you couldn't tell, I'm kidding around here.

No but I wish I had. All of my instructors have studied extensively on Okinawa. Do you have a question that perhaps I can help you with? Or was that just your question?

Something else I picked up off the website. You can train PERSONALLY train with Master Van Dork for 2 1/2 days (minimum of 20 hours with the Master) "$1750 (Includes a personal gift) without airport pickup or $1,950 with Master Van Donk personally picking you up". I knew it, Master Van Donk drives a cab in his off hours! Hell, for that kind of money, he'd better pick me up in a limo, with a tall blonde driving it, and have a chilled beer in it! Here's the schedule of events that you're paying for: DAY ONE - 5pm Get to know each other Dinner Eve- Discuss your desires and make a custom schedule of training. OK, so Day One is a waste of time. Dinner and a * session. DAY TWO - 8am - 10am Mountain Meditation 10am- 11am Energy Attunements 11am to 12 noon Martial Arts lesson Noon to 1:00 lunch, open discussion 1:00 to 2pm break 2pm to 4:30 martial arts training 4:30 - 5pm break 5pm - 7pm Dinner 7 pm to 9+? Life Philosophy [ Looks like a total of 3 1/2 hours of actual training so far. Not looking good to me! DAY THREE - 9am - 10am Meditation 10am- 11am Energy Attunements 11am to 12 noon Martial Arts lesson Noon to 1:30 lunch open discussion 2pm to 4:00 Martial Arts training 4:00 - 4:30 Integration [ And another 3 1/2 hours of actual training. So, for my $1750, I get a total of 7 hours of training? What a bargain, huh? [/b]

Hey now, let's not judge these people so quickly. After all, they have The American Bujinkan Dojo International division of Bushindo University, so they must be legit, right? http://www.ninjutsu.com/am-bujinkan-dojo.shtml Plus, take a look at this. These people are MAYBE my age (51'ish), and look at this rank. Richard Van Donk, 14th dan Linda Van Donk, 10th dan 14th Dan? Wow..I'm SOOOOOOO IMPRESSED! There are times that I wish I could afford to travel at will. I'd love to fly down to Orlando and check this dojo out. It's gotta be incredible! Also interesting, on another page of that site, he's listed as Master Richard Van Donk, 10th**** degree BlackBelt. Maybe he got a quick promotion to that 14th Dan and hasn't updated his website yet? And for just a mere $399.95, you get 10, one hour videos that have all information for you to get your black belt! Wait a second. Everything you need for black belt is in just 10 hours of training? Wow, have I been in the wrong system or what! I could do that in a day...two at most! COOL! ARGH! This sort of crap drives me CRAZY!!! Isn't there some forum rule about blatently advertising?

WHEW! That was a long, and very interesting read Shorin Ryuu...GOOD JOB BUD!

Many of the Okinawan/Japanese systems teach both karate (empty hand) and kobudo (weapons), such as *cleaning my throat here* Shorinryu. We also do a Okinawan art called Tuitte, which is similar to JJ in that we do joint manipulations, take downs, etc also. I';ve found it to be as complete a system, and keeping with a certain amount of tradition, as there is. But then again, after nearly 30 years in it..I might just be a wee bit biased. Gotta love those free plugs, huh?

Sorry, but I can't stop myself! DRAGONS WHELP, are you self-taught also in English? Sorry people, but this stuff drives me CRAZY!!! I don't mind typo's, but intentional slaughter of the English language is a crime!