Rainy Posted July 7, 2004 Share Posted July 7, 2004 I'm about as new to MA as possible, but my wife and I are looking to find a MA and a Dojo that teaches that MA in our area. What is the best way to find local Dojos in our area? I've tried the phone book and google, but I wanted to see if there were other suggestions. I already have appointments with two Dojos in our area to sit in and talk to students this week but I'd like to have more options than less. Thanks for any help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luckykboxer Posted July 7, 2004 Share Posted July 7, 2004 the best ideas i can come up with are to find the schools in your area. Talk to them, see how they do class, find a school where the instructor will talk to you and get an idea what you want out of the school.. If you dont already know, then right down what your goals are for joining a school... Maybe even post them here and we can help you sort through it. If an instructor doesnt care why you are wanting to start then he may not be the one for you. If the style is not what you are looking for, and if the instructor is an honest person then the instructor should be able to guide you in the right direction. what are are you looking in? If it is in San Diego I can give you some great suggestions Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rainy Posted July 7, 2004 Author Share Posted July 7, 2004 That's part of the problem I'm having is the first step of even locating schools in my area unfortunately. I live about 45 miles and work about 20 miles north of Sacramento, CA if that helps. I am willing to look into any school in the greater Sacramento area. As far as goals are concerned, mine and my wife's differ: My wife is about as girly girl as they come, so she's mostly looking for the fitness aspect although I will be happier knowing she will be doing something that could help her protect herself when she's out alone. As for me, I'm looking to actually get into cross-training, or MMA as I've seen it referred to on these forums, eventually. I will gladly admit that I worry about my ability to defend myself or my wife should the occasion arise as I'm 6'3" but only go about 150 lbs. I would like to develop in this area as well as develop toward the option of competing if I so desired in the future. I'm also very much interested in the discipline and meditation aspect of MA to quite a degree. Some of the MA's I've been considering for both of us are Muay Thai, Kickboxing, Kempo or Wing Chun. Once I've developed in my intial art, I had thought about pursuing training in BJJ as well. Thank for your help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luckykboxer Posted July 8, 2004 Share Posted July 8, 2004 I have a friend who is in sacramento and did an exhaustive search of that area. Ill talk to him tonight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aefibird Posted July 8, 2004 Share Posted July 8, 2004 Well, you could try asking around at work to see if any of your co-workers do Martial Arts - you may be surprised at who does MA or knows someone who does. Alternatively, phone up local sports centres, community halls, church halls etc etc to see if they do martial arts classes there. If they don't, then you could be cheeky and ask them if they know of anywhere in the area that does! lol A further option would be to take out an ad. In the UK, local or regional newspapers often provide a free service for private (non-trade) small advertisers to sell unwanted goods. There's usually a 'wanted' section too. If you have something like that in a local newspaper in your area you could put in an ad saying "Wanted- quality martial arts instruction in the Sacrament area. Instructors please phone xxxxxx with your details" (or something along those lines). I hope you manage to find a Martial Art that you and your wife both enjoy! "Was it really worth it? Only time and death may ever tell..." The Beautiful South - The Rose of My CologneSheffield Steelers! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rainy Posted July 8, 2004 Author Share Posted July 8, 2004 Thanks to both of you. I'd really appreciate you doing that Lucky. In the meantime, I'll try some of the things that aefibird suggested. Thanks again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karatekid1975 Posted July 8, 2004 Share Posted July 8, 2004 I did a search. Here's what I came up with (from your choices above): http://www.kenposites.com/lks/ Action Kenpo-Karate Academy 5706 Broadway Sacramento 916-739-0379 Bob Liles' Kempo Karate 2350 Fruitridge Rd 916-451-8997 Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Training 6235 Belleau Wood Ln 916-394-2755 Bruddas Brazilian Jiu Jitsu 9327 La Riviera Dr 916-369-2384 Sacramento Wing Chun-Pak Mei 7039 S Land Park Dr 916-424-4710 These are within ten miles. But there were other joices like Judo, Tang Soo Do, Tae Kwon Do, Goju Ryu, Aikido, ect. If you want those, some are farther than 10 miles, but I will list them for you. Laurie F Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rainy Posted July 8, 2004 Author Share Posted July 8, 2004 Wow, thank Laurie. Question, for my goals, what would be a good MA to start in? I listed the ones I did from the reading I've done on these forums. Am I off base? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aefibird Posted July 8, 2004 Share Posted July 8, 2004 Well, I'd say that each MA you listed is a good choice, but it depends what you want from MA. Do you think that you'd want to enter competitions? If so, then you'd need to find a school that catered for that, maybe looking more towards Kickboxing or TKD. What about grappling? Do you think that you'd prefer that to striking or vice versa? Also, how about your wife? If she's really a 'girly girl' (as you described her! lol), then she may prefer to join a club that has point sparring or light contact, rather than full contact. If so, Muay Thai is probably not the best choice for her. Well, the best plan is probably for the both of you to go along to each school in your area and watch a lesson - maybe even try a couple too, before fully making up your minds. Make a list of the pro's & con's of each school and decide what sort of 'feel' you get from each place. Could you see yourself doing what they do? Do you think you could stick with it for more than a few weeks? Does the instructor seem competent? Do they seem welcoming? Is the main instructor the person who'd be teaching you, or would you be taught by a lower grade? Are they willing to answer any questions? What about prices (and contracts!)? Are adult and childrens classes separate? If not, would you mind training with the kiddies? Also, ask about any 'hidden' charges - eg, grading fees, the fact that you may have to buy special uniforms from that school, registration fees, association membership fees, insurance, etc etc. Finally, if you join a school that has a grading/belt system then it might be worth enquiring roughly how long it takes to get your first grade and also how long it generally takes in that club to get to black belt or equivalent. If they promise you things like "you will get your black belt if you train here" or "you'll get your black belt within 2 years" (or another length of time that seems short) then it's probably a McDojo/belt factory type of school. Good luck in your search for a club! "Was it really worth it? Only time and death may ever tell..." The Beautiful South - The Rose of My CologneSheffield Steelers! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drunken Monkey Posted July 8, 2004 Share Posted July 8, 2004 Sacramento Wing Chun-Pak Mei is that eddie chongs class? i hear good things about that line (despite a little dispute about hierachy....). post count is directly related to how much free time you have, not how intelligent you are."When you have to kill a man it costs nothing to be polite." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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