Am I in a mcdojo?

[ShoriKid]

Nothing you've said raises the first red flag with me if I were looking into things. Paying the first quarter likely covers your insurance fees as well as your classes, which means they lose money on you the first three months. Grading twice a year is a bit slow, but nothing terribly so. Paying for gradings covers the instructors' time and can cover the new belt, certificates and possibly the paper work of registering you with an organization.

Gloves when sparring are smart. They protect you and your partner and let you make some contact without too much worry of injury. In the video posted, not to being critical, just observing, little to no contact is being made in the sparring shown. With contact things are very different when training. If you are going to make contact, it is safer to wear gloves so everyone can go about their lives the next day. Kyokushin guys are the exception. They're cray to begin with, but we love them.

[ossemon]

I won't call my Dojo a McDojo. We spar with gloves, both for kumite and jiju-kumite.

It is a matter of protection, both for one's own safety, and that of others. Imagine sending a bunch of beginners out on the tatami with bare knuckles. It simply shouldn't be done.

We do fight, spare bare knuckled on occasion, but our problem is the fact that our insurance only covers damages if we are wearing protective gear...

As for prices: 18€ isn't too bad, really. We charge 40€/month for adults and 29€/month kids, and grading (with diploma and belt) is 25€, twice a year. Though: This isn't really comparable, as Norway is insanely expensive. Our nearby McDojo charges 86€/month... THAT is crazy.

[ElizaDaphne]

On gloves - different dojos do different things, and sometimes on different occasions. One thing I've noticed about some people new to karate is that they need time to get in the swing of full-on impulse control. It's definitely an empowering sport! However, kyu ranks do not need to be beating the tar out of each other - gloves are a nice cushion. It also takes time to learn to punch in a way that won't trash your joints.

Like it's been said, sparing in-dojo doesn't always mean gloveless, especially with lower ranks. I enjoy lots of padding myself - I'm mostly in it for the self-discipline - but a lot of folks will wear gloves that just cover the knuckles and tops of hands. Protection while allowing lots of movement.

Another thing - different dojos use differing levels of contact. Some don't mind a few bruises and a little blood *wink*, others keep it mellow, and some try to go along with the student's disposition (and rank, of course).

Happy kicking! Shotakan is great.

[evergrey]

If you are going to make contact, it is safer to wear gloves so everyone can go about their lives the next day. Kyokushin guys are the exception. They're cray to begin with, but we love them.

Hey, are knuckles supposed to have skin on them?

Actually half the time we do wear MMA gloves in my dojo... but that half of the time, we do face punches.

Er, my Sensei and I might have hit each other in the fact last night, even though we weren't using mouthguards or handpads... MAAAAYBE.

[sensei8]

On gloves - different dojos do different things, and sometimes on different occasions. One thing I've noticed about some people new to karate is that they need time to get in the swing of full-on impulse control. It's definitely an empowering sport! However, kyu ranks do not need to be beating the tar out of each other - gloves are a nice cushion. It also takes time to learn to punch in a way that won't trash your joints.

Like it's been said, sparing in-dojo doesn't always mean gloveless, especially with lower ranks. I enjoy lots of padding myself - I'm mostly in it for the self-discipline - but a lot of folks will wear gloves that just cover the knuckles and tops of hands. Protection while allowing lots of movement.

Another thing - different dojos use differing levels of contact. Some don't mind a few bruises and a little blood *wink*, others keep it mellow, and some try to go along with the student's disposition (and rank, of course).

Happy kicking! Shotakan is great.

First of all...Welcome to KF!!

Solid post!!

[ShoriKid]

If you are going to make contact, it is safer to wear gloves so everyone can go about their lives the next day. Kyokushin guys are the exception. They're cray to begin with, but we love them.

Hey, are knuckles supposed to have skin on them?

Actually half the time we do wear MMA gloves in my dojo... but that half of the time, we do face punches.

Er, my Sensei and I might have hit each other in the fact last night, even though we weren't using mouthguards or handpads... MAAAAYBE.

Not until you're a brown belt or so and then...well it's not normal skin. MMA gloves that

don't cost $100 are great. You can make good contact and still grab very well.

[evergrey]

Yeah, I have a pair. I put them on when I'm under orders to... but honestly they make it harder for me to make a nice solid fist, and I feel like I'm "declawed" in them. Useful for some things though. Good for bagwork when you're using a communal bag and you don't want biohazard grinding into your knuckles...

[ShoriKid]

Yeah, I have a pair. I put them on when I'm under orders to... but honestly they make it harder for me to make a nice solid fist, and I feel like I'm "declawed" in them. Useful for some things though. Good for bagwork when you're using a communal bag and you don't want biohazard grinding into your knuckles...

If you can't form a solid fist, you either have poorly fitting gloves or poorly designed ones there Evergrey. The only gloves I've ever had trouble making a fist in were low quality and poorly designed, usually around the finger stitching. A good glove really conforms to your fist, it doesn't change the way it's formed. My solution for bare knuckling the bag had always been wiping it down when done once I was smart enough to realize the dangers of leaving personal patterns tattooed all over it.

[Ryukyu_lover]

I noticed you said Japanese don't train with gloves. I've trained with a few shotokan dojos here in Japan, and all of them have worn gloves. Even, for the younger studets, Bogu.

Your dojo sounds fine. Keep with it.

[pdbnb]

Hi all,

I've joined this forum specifically so I could post on this topic, as I noticed it is very recent, and I, too, have doubts about this matter.

[Pasted from my Yahoo! Answers UK entry for convenience]

I'm thinking of joining a TKD/Hapkido/TKB club that runs classes in my small English country town, but after reading up (a lot!) on McDojos, I'm still not sure whether this one counts as one.

To wit:

"IT'S A MCDOJO!" arguments:

- Registration fee + monthly installments & contract, even though they teach in village and school halls.

- "Self-confidence, self-respect, etc" used as selling points

- They organise birthday parties (?!)

- 'Family' used as selling point

- Kiddie classes have a franchise-like name.

- Emphasis on forms and patterns.

- Instructors under 40 who are black belts.

- I overheard the instructor tell a parent there was to be a grading early next month...

"IT'S NOT A MCDOJO!" arguments:

- ...but he then told the kid not to take it if they weren't ready.

- At least a couple of the kids in the Juniors class are genuinely skilled,and the class as a whole is made to work and behave.

- As far as I can tell, the entire operation is run by two, maybe three people (I'm not sure whether the Hapkido instructor is one of the TKD instructors or a third person)

- The instructor is a genuinely nice guy and not an egomaniac.

- The instructor tells people to watch the Korean guys on YouTube rather than him.

- No pressure to pay the fees - I'll be going to my third class tomorrow and am still not registered and haven't paid a penny.

- Free suit, license, membership and insurance offered with the registration fee.

- Sparring does take place (although with pads).

- Few students above green belt (I only spotted a couple).

- No kid black belts (but there is a kid red belt).

- "No student is turned away" stated on their website.

- For a little bit more money a month, you can attend unlimited classes rather than just 1/2 a week.

What do you guys think? Is this a McDojo or isn't it? I'm only going there to keep fit and brush up on my martial arts (I got to borderline brown belt in a different martial art as a kid), but I'd hate to finance an operation of that sort.

[/paste]

So far the contract seems to be the biggest potential red flag with regards to this dojo.

I trained from ages 10-14 in a different martial art, and when I quit (after 3-4 years) I had just been passed up for 1st Kyu examination (brown belt). So I know that one was not a McDojo. How about this one?