Calgary schools....help

[Kara]

I'm moving to my home town of Calgary, though i dont know what to practice nor what school to go to if i do decide to switch styles.

I believe I'm open to switching styles, i was thinking TWD, kickboxing for fun. but would like to stay serious with with goju if i can find it. but not sure what else to try.

I've been in Gojo and am now a senior yellow. but unfortuanllty i have to leave and start new. i've been doing this for over a year but am still new to praticing the art and enjoy it every much and i'm very focused.

I'd like to find a dojo with traditional values and who are disiplined.

I'm wondering if i can get some help on to discribe the differnt schools form the people in Calgary. Any style and any area, i am however in the NE. i see that there is alot of aikido and jujitsu in the city, though i dont know exactly what it's like.

Include prices too, i'm on a budget. I used to pay $65 a month. i'd like to stay in that area, but i've heard that it's more expencive in Calgary....?

I love sparring and kata. i am open to differnt styles and people.

Could anyone help me out and let me know what it's like in your dojo? where you are and your sensei's and the teachings and atmosphere.

Thank you!!

Edited September 26, 2005 by Kara

[cathal]

Here is a list of Shotokan (JKA-ISKF) dojos in Alberta, looks like at lesat 5 are in Calgary.

http://nsjka.ca/clubindex.html#ab

Not too sure about prices but there are links for e-mail inquiries.

[Gregory]

I can't speak for any other schools in Calgary, but I have trained with the folks at the Calgary Academy of Karate and I would recommend it.

I also began my training in Goju Ryu. I attained my blue belt at McMaster University under Phil McColl (sr. student of Don Warrener). I moved away and tried about six or seven dojos over ten years until I found the Toronto Academy of Karate. This is where Bruce Winstanley (the sensei at the Calgary Academy of Karate) got his black belt.

The style has its roots in Washin Ryu, but our sensei (Burt Konzak) separated from Hidy Ochiai about 35 years ago, so I imagine there has been a fair bit of divergence. Dr. Konzak was probably most heavily influenced by his training in Japan at Nittaidai (Nippon Sports Science University), where he trained over a period of several years. This training included black belts (primarily Japanese) from a large variety of styles. As such, we have influences from many of those styles in our kata, training methods, and sparring.

Although most of the kata are drawn from Shotokan (or the same source ... I have not seen any Goju kata taught here), the karate is stylistically quite different from the Shotokan I have seen. There is more emphasis on flow and speed with much less of the 'rigidity' I have observed (my apology for the term to any Shotokan practitioners - you would probably say we rush our kata ). It's also a bit less 'linear' if you take my meaning. I've heard this identified as one of the differences between Japanese and Okinawan karate, but I can't say how accurate that is. The Goju that I learned definitely had more circular and round techniques than the Shotokan I have studied and our style of karate definitely has the same feel.

At white and yellow belt, we teach/learn several Taikyokos as is often the case in Goju Ryu. The actual techniques used in the Taikyokos are a little bit different, but you won't have trouble transitioning.

[Kara]

Thanks you! i'm intersted in JKA before i moved i almost joined that assosiation in Ontario. And i'll be contacting the Calgary Academy of Karate. It's too bad i'm on a tight budget at the moment, that'll pass soon though.

is there anyone on this forum who is in calgary? and practices here?

[Kara]

Is there no one else in Calgary here? =(

hum... well i'll be around if ya need me for anything and if you have advise or anything to share with me it'd be appreciated.

[kyospirit]

here's a link for a kyokushin dojo in calgary

http://www.members.shaw.ca/iheiter/karate.html

[ivette_green]

Or this other kyokushin site...

http://www.kyokushin.ca/dojos/calgary.html