New City, New Martial Art

[Shiken]

This is a multipurpose thread so I suppose putting it in general should be fine.

First, hello all, I am a beginner martial artist that has studied some karate, Sil Lum Kenpo Ryu, and Tukong Moosul. I've yet to make it past yellow belt in any though, because I seem to keep getting moved around anytime I start getting into a martial art. I've just moved to Monterey, CA, near the DLI, and am looking to start up once again, and was hoping to get some advice either from others living around here, or just in general from the choices I have.

What I'm looking for: an active martial art that would also be good physical training as well; sparring encouraged; small or personal classes also preferred; competetive environment a plus.

What I'm not looking for: MAs that are 99% on the ground groping time; McDojos; spending more time learning values and theories than training itself.

I would greatly appreciate suggestions on styles that fit what I'm looking for.

Unfortunately from googling around, it doesn't seem as if there is much selection in Monterey itself without traveling to seaside or salinas. I have found BodyWorx and GregDows as possible karate places, and am trying to weigh pros and cons between them, they seem to be the same monthly cost; bodyworx has a larger variety of classes, but gregdows has more class sessions per week. if anyone has any personal experience with either itd be great to get a personal review.

I'm sure there's probably more I can add here but for now this is it, have to head out but please feel free to comment or suggest anything. =)

[Ueshirokarate]

This is a multipurpose thread so I suppose putting it in general should be fine.

First, hello all, I am a beginner martial artist that has studied some karate, Sil Lum Kenpo Ryu, and Tukong Moosul. I've yet to make it past yellow belt in any though, because I seem to keep getting moved around anytime I start getting into a martial art. I've just moved to Monterey, CA, near the DLI, and am looking to start up once again, and was hoping to get some advice either from others living around here, or just in general from the choices I have.

What I'm looking for: an active martial art that would also be good physical training as well; sparring encouraged; small or personal classes also preferred; competetive environment a plus.

What I'm not looking for: MAs that are 99% on the ground groping time; McDojos; spending more time learning values and theories than training itself.

I would greatly appreciate suggestions on styles that fit what I'm looking for.

Unfortunately from googling around, it doesn't seem as if there is much selection in Monterey itself without traveling to seaside or salinas. I have found BodyWorx and GregDows as possible karate places, and am trying to weigh pros and cons between them, they seem to be the same monthly cost; bodyworx has a larger variety of classes, but gregdows has more class sessions per week. if anyone has any personal experience with either itd be great to get a personal review.

I'm sure there's probably more I can add here but for now this is it, have to head out but please feel free to comment or suggest anything. =)

If you are near Santa Cruz and want to explore authentic Okinawan Karate:

http://matsubayashi-ryu.com/content/california-dojos

There are also some in California here, not sure exactly where:

http://shorin-ryu.com/dojo-list/

[Shiken]

unfortunately although santa cruz is "close", it's still at least an hour drive from here, so thats a bit too far..

[ps1]

If you're being moved around alot, I would suggest looking for an art that has a large organization behind it. This way you can move around and still continue earning rank.

If you don't care at all about rank, you may want to look into RBSD arts.

[Shiken]

and what exactly is a RBSD art? tried googling it but couldnt seem to get a clear answer.

[bushido_man96]

Reality Based Self-Defense. There are several different organizations out there that are available. You could look into Tony Blauer or Hock Hockheim for some starters.

[Shiken]

ah i see. well for the time being on monday/tuesday i'm gonna go sit in on the classes at the two places i listed above and see if they look good.