Picking a dojo

[cclucky04]

I'm in the NW Houston area, looking for a Shorin ryu dojo, I was in one for 2 years and really liked it, when I moved to Houston awhile back I stopped and would like to start back up.

P.A.L had mentioned awhile back he found the sensei he was looking for (post is from 2007) 3 years ago (2004?) and its been great since.

Thanks!

[bushido_man96]

Do a Google search of the area, or try the phone book. That should get you pointed in the right direction.

[cclucky04]

I should have added i've been using google, and haven't found any shorin ryu schools in my area.

Thanks for suggesting a phone book.

[Wastelander]

You may have to ask around at the dojo you do have in your area to see if they know anyone teaching Shorin-Ryu, if you're that dead-set on a style, because they might be teaching out of their house. Then again, they may not be teaching anywhere, anymore, and you'll have to take a look at what you do have available in your area.

[sensei8]

Do a Google search of the area, or try the phone book. That should get you pointed in the right direction.

What about the schools of the MA that don't utilize either the net and/or the phone book? Many great schools are overlooked because they don't use either to attract students.

[DWx]

Who are the governing bodies for Shorin Ryu in the states? Just give them a call.

[cclucky04]

If I understand correctly the different styles of Shorin Ryu are based on lineage? The style I took before was Matsumura, headed by Grandmaster Kise.

After reading more on history and googling different names I ran across one school in Houston pretty close to me(30 minutes) and was wondering if anyone knew any more information about it.

The website is https://www.kenshinkai.com Kazumasa Yokoyama was a student of Grandmaster Shugoro Nakazato, digging further into that side Grandmaster Shugoro Nakazato was a student of Chosin Chibana who was a student of Anko Itosu and we're back up to Matsumura again.

Back to the original questions I was going to ask, it looks like Kazumasa Yokoyama isn't attached to any of the Shorin Ryu governing bodies at this time??

I can't seem to find any information on how long Kazumasa Yokoyama was a student, what rank he is, or if he's attached to any organization.

These questions might be better in a different section of the forum, but for this thread, would this be pretty close to the style I was learning before?

[Wastelander]

If I understand correctly the different styles of Shorin Ryu are based on lineage? The style I took before was Matsumura, headed by Grandmaster Kise.

After reading more on history and googling different names I ran across one school in Houston pretty close to me(30 minutes) and was wondering if anyone knew any more information about it.

The website is https://www.kenshinkai.com Kazumasa Yokoyama was a student of Grandmaster Shugoro Nakazato, digging further into that side Grandmaster Shugoro Nakazato was a student of Chosin Chibana who was a student of Anko Itosu and we're back up to Matsumura again.

Back to the original questions I was going to ask, it looks like Kazumasa Yokoyama isn't attached to any of the Shorin Ryu governing bodies at this time??

I can't seem to find any information on how long Kazumasa Yokoyama was a student, what rank he is, or if he's attached to any organization.

These questions might be better in a different section of the forum, but for this thread, would this be pretty close to the style I was learning before?

You could contact the Shorinkan (Nakazato Shugoro's organization) and ask about him. I'm part of that organization, but I've never heard of him. His biography is disconcerting to me because it talks about "completing" his training by studying Shorin-Ryu. There is no such thing as "completing" karate training, and it looks like he may have done all this bouncing around so he could found his own style. I would definitely check with the Shorinkan regarding his credentials and knowledge. Competition records are not really relevant, in my opinion, and neither are movie credits.

[cclucky04]

Thanks wastelander, i'm going to do that. I went back and re-read his website and couldn't find where it said he "completed" his training anywhere.

To me the competition records and movie credits make me want to look somewhere else, but the only other dojo I can find near me is sensei Darrell Craig with Houston Budokan but it seems more centered on Kendo and Judo.

Like you said before, I might just have to ask around until I find someone teaching.

P.A.L. mentioned he found a teacher he's very happy with but it doesn't look like he's active on the forums anymore.

I've been reading through his posts to see if I could figure out who it was but i'm not having any luck.

This was like 6 years ago though so it might be hard to follow up on that one.

[Wastelander]

Sorry about that--he said "finalize," not "complete," but they mean the same thing, to me. If you "finalize" something, then you have completed it.

Regardless, I do know that there used to be a Shorinkan dojo in Houston, but it has closed. I'm not sure whether the instructor moved, or if he is still in the area, but asking local martial artists may give you a lead. You can check with the Shorinkan, of course, but since they still show the dojo on their website, they may not know.