Not sure what to do?

[Makalakumu]

There are so many great martial arts to train in out here in Hawaii, that I just can't pick. Due to family, job, school, and other stuff, I'm probably only going to be able to focus on one at a time...and then, I want to stick with it long enough so that I can actually learn something.

So, here's where I sit. I could do what everyone else does and do MMA/BJJ. It is HUGE over here, with lots of great gyms and schools just about everywhere.

I could go back to doing FMA, just about any style you can think of has representation over here and lots of the teachers are the original people who brought it over from the Fillipines.

I could practice karate. Korean karate. Japanese karate. Okinawan karate. There's like six or seven or more different styles in each national flavor to pick from.

Right now my background is in Tang Soo Do and I would like to carry that forward to a certain extent, in my small school Mauna Kula (http://www.martialtalk.com/forum/album.php?albumid=17), but I'm sure that I'm not going to be able to learn what I want to learn from the TSD instructors here. I'm more interested in the japanese or okinawan versions...so I can perhaps incorporate some of that into what I already do.

Or maybe I just need to start over see things with a beginner's mind again. Not sure what to do...

[Kacey]

I would go to a few classes, talk to the instructors - and possibly more importantly, a few of the students - and find places where you like the atmosphere, without regard to the style, and then go from there. When you have a list of places that you like the feel of, start doing more in-depth research into them and then decide. You may find a dojang you fall in love with, in a style you wouldn't have considered any other way.

Have fun!

[arnisador]

So, here's where I sit. I could do what everyone else does and do MMA/BJJ. It is HUGE over here, with lots of great gyms and schools just about everywhere.

I could go back to doing FMA, just about any style you can think of has representation over here and lots of the teachers are the original people who brought it over from the Fillipines.

I could practice karate. Korean karate. Japanese karate. Okinawan karate. There's like six or seven or more different styles in each national flavor to pick from.


I don't know what to say! You have me green with envy, but like you I'd still just have to pick one or maybe two to train and would be frustrated.

Picking BJJ is an excellent idea for anyone--we all need to work on our ground game, and if you haven't done it then you honestly don't know what you're missing. Picking Karate would let you see more of the basis of TKD and to a lesser extent TSD. Picking the FMAs would really sharpen your weapons skills.

Visit the schools and see what's a good fit for you. Then, think: Is it mroe important to augment your TSD for your school, or broaden your training for your own personal interests?

If I were you I'd likely pick something exotic that I couldn't find elsewhere. Look for Lua (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lua_%28martial_art%29)!

[kenpofighter]

You could always try Ed Parker's Kenpo. That's what I train in. You know, Ed Parker started the system and he was from Hawaii.

[Makalakumu]

Yeah, so many systems got their start here in Hawaii. There is a lot of Martial Arts History here. I'm leaning toward BJJ and Okinawan Te - particularly one with a strong kobudo element.

[Tames D]

I would shop around for a good Kajukenbo school. I hear there are plenty in your area.

[shesulsa]

You're in freakin' Hawai'i, dude. If I were a young person in their prime and were to move there, I'd look for an old Okinawan sweeping his garage with his feet.

Tho Lua sounds interesting ... if you're willing to risk it. It may only be taught on the forbidden island.

[chinto]

Yeah, so many systems got their start here in Hawaii. There is a lot of Martial Arts History here. I'm leaning toward BJJ and Okinawan Te - particularly one with a strong kobudo element.
I would suggest Shobayashi Shorin Ryu, or Matsubayashi Ryu.. or perhaps Kobayashi shorin ryu .. all teach Kobudo and exelent unarmed combat systems... I prefer the Shobayashi system and so train in it myself... but like people said.. go ask questions and observe and see what is really there and pick the best fit.

[IcemanSK]

You're in freakin' Hawai'i, dude. If I were a young person in their prime and were to move there, I'd look for an old Okinawan sweeping his garage with his feet.



Yeah, what she said! We're green with envy. :ultracool

[Brian King]

If you are not in an absolute (yum) hurry to find a school, getting on the seminar circuit might be an option. Start attending various seminars in your area and get to know the different instructors and students. Find out the local history, being new and non-affiliated is a great bonus while exploring areas martial arts. By talking to and earning the trust of the local martial artists you may find a treasure that is off the beaten path, that old guy who has been training at his house or on the beach for the last 65 years, or maybe find that group that trains hardcore on weekends in some warehouse, or get tied into a small group of like minded instructors that share their various expertise and skills.

Regards
Brian King

[kidswarrior]

I would shop around for a good Kajukenbo school. I hear there are plenty in your area.Kaju's as Hawaiian as it gets, and a very effective and well-rounded system from what I can tell. Unlike many styles that blossomed in the late-40s to early 60s many old timers are still around, and seem to have hung together. I believe Sijo Emperado's still around, and seems pretty approachable, too.

But, all that's heavily slanted by my own preferences, so take it w/ a grain of salt.

[Makalakumu]

I would shop around for a good Kajukenbo school. I hear there are plenty in your area.

Emperado's school is within a mile of my home. That's the kind of the dilemma I have. There are so many choices. I could have moved here for the martial arts choices alone...

[Makalakumu]

Another option that struck me is that there are alot of old school japanese martial artists here that are teaching naginata-do, kyu-do, etc...

I could learn an actual koryu art here. Maybe I have to Japanese first, but that isn't so difficult when they start teaching your daughter in the first grade...

[Pacificshore]

I could only wish to be living back on an island!!! I vacation on Kauai as often as I can...one day I will move there or any other island there for that matter. Choose what you feel is best for you at the moment. Then just focus on that, and when the time comes, add to your tool box ;)

[arnisador]

Another option that struck me is that there are alot of old school japanese martial artists here that are teaching naginata-do, kyu-do, etc...


Wow, more great opportunities! You're going to talk me into moving there. We've visited twice and loved it.

[shesulsa]

Gawd ... is anyone else salivating? Ya know, maunakuma ... just start somewhere. :lol2:

[Flying Crane]

I kind of experienced the same thing when I moved to San Francisco. Lots and lots of choices here, it's kind of a fun smorgasboard.

How's the Chinese arts scene over there? Much to choose from? Maybe some little old guy teaching an obscure art in his back yard to a handful of nephews and nieces and the occasional kid from Wisconsin if you are really patient and you pester him incessantly until he lets you in...

Like Shesulsa mentioned, maybe look for a good Lua teacher. Might not have that opportunity anywhere else... location, location, location...

[kidswarrior]

Emperado's school is within a mile of my home. That's the kind of the dilemma I have. There are so many choices. I could have moved here for the martial arts choices alone...


Gawd ... is anyone else salivating?Yeah, I'm getting so depressed I'm gonna have to opt outta this thread. :cool:

[Makalakumu]

Sorry, Kidswarrior. I suppose people tire quickly when the "thrice-blessed" starts bitching. I've got a sick daughter right now, so I'm stuck at home instead of checking out the island or surfing or fishing or whatever...sigh.

I guess, in order to be productive, I could post some websites of things that I'm interested in and get some comments.

As much as I'd love to find Mr. Miyagi up in Kaaawa, I think I'm going to start with something more commercial just to get my feet wet in that scene.

[Makalakumu]

I'll start with arts that I have ranking in and then move out from there...

This is the Shobukan Judo club (http://www.shobukanjudo.org/). It started in 1908 and is one of the oldest Judo clubs in the country. This club has produced many champions including a current Olympian, Taylor Takata (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rO6un5HSM10). I'll be rooting for him in a few weeks...and so will the rest of the island.

I have a brown belt in judo and I'm interested in taking it back up again, but not so much for competition. After my injury, that kind of took the drive away. I'm more interested in getting my children into the sport. I think it would be really good for them.

[Makalakumu]

This website is dedicated to the Hawaii Karate Kodanshakai (http://hawaiikodanshakai.com/). I would consider any of these karate dojos. Some of these places like Hikari no dojo (http://hikari.us/index1.html)have a karate history that goes back over 100 years. People like Choki Motobu walked through the doors of these buildings.

[Makalakumu]

This (http://www.onzuka.com/o2academy.html)is a very active BJJ club. Not Relson Gracie's school, but one run by a couple of his black belts. I'd throw up Relson's schools webpage but its down for now.

[Makalakumu]

Here's (http://www.onzuka.com/oahu.html) a partial list of whats offered...

I'm overwhelmed. I'm going to stop this now...

[Flying Crane]

Here's (http://www.onzuka.com/oahu.html) a partial list of whats offered...

I'm overwhelmed. I'm going to stop this now...

That list reads like the San Francisco yellowpages.

Personally, I'd check out the lua first, because that might be a rare opportunity.

If I decided to not train in that, I'd go with the Chinese stuff, but that's just where my own interests lie.

[arnisador]

I guess, in order to be productive, I could post some websites of things that I'm interested in and get some comments.

Sure!


As much as I'd love to find Mr. Miyagi up in Kaaawa, I think I'm going to start with something more commercial just to get my feet wet in that scene.

Yeah, that's probably realistic at first.

[arnisador]

This website is dedicated to the Hawaii Karate Kodanshakai (http://hawaiikodanshakai.com/). I would consider any of these karate dojos. Some of these places like Hikari no dojo (http://hikari.us/index1.html)have a karate history that goes back over 100 years. People like Choki Motobu walked through the doors of these buildings.

Wow, too cool! You do have to check out the lua school, though. What a unique opportunity!

[Makalakumu]

Thanks for everyones replies so far.

Part of my dillema is that I've trained up to 3rd dan in Tang Doo Do and I'm not really sure how much stuff I want to relearn when it comes to karate. I've been around the block long enough to know what I'm really interested in...which is developing the kata that I do know and learning some really effective bunkai.

With that being said, I'd like to find a couple of okinawan karateka to train with, but not neccessarily test and grade with.

I am interested in kobudo and other weapons. I think that is something I could really get into...perhaps even compete!

Hawaii has a huge kendo (http://www.hawaiikendo.com/dojos.html)federation. This is something that I've wanted to do for a long time, but never really had the opportunity. Maybe I could use that to build some relationships and perhaps get introduced some of the really cool very traditional koryu arts that are present in Hawaii.

I'm also interested in kenjutsu, but I don't know much about organizations or styles to really know what I'm looking at.

This dojo (http://www.kaifukan.org/Default.aspx?tabid=181)is fairly close to my house. Only one town down the road.

[DavidCC]

If you wanted to stay close to your TSD, I would look for some Okinawan style of kempo or karate.

If you want to do something new, I would look for BJ Penn's school of JJ.

If it was me, I wouldn't go into another striking system that wasn't related (kata etc) because that would probably be only back-tracking from what you already know; what could it teach you that you don't already know? That's why I suggested the Okinawan styles - find a teacher who teaches the same kata that TSD uses; that will expand and amplify your previous training

[Flying Crane]

Part of my dillema is that I've trained up to 3rd dan in Tang Doo Do and I'm not really sure how much stuff I want to relearn when it comes to karate. I've been around the block long enough to know what I'm really interested in...which is developing the kata that I do know and learning some really effective bunkai.



Well, when I started training with my sifu, I began with taiji. After a while, I expressed an interest in learning an external art, since I knew he had a background in several. I suggested that I'd be interested in learning some Shaolin longfist, or perhaps White Crane. He knew about my kenpo background, and said that Shaolin would be the most similar, and White Crane would be quite a different thing altogether. I also knew that White Crane is his "family" art, as he learned it from his uncle.

I said that it seemed to me that if White Crane is really different, then that is what I ought to do. He felt that was a good decision.

Why would you train in something else, just to do the same thing? If you want to train in something else, do something that is different. Whether it's a completely different combat arena like striking vs. grappling, or just a very different methodology as White Crane proved to be compared to kenpo, it seems to me that doing something different is what you ought to do. That's how you broaden your perspective and gain new insights.

[Flying Crane]

If it was me, I wouldn't go into another striking system that wasn't related (kata etc) because that would probably be only back-tracking from what you already know; what could it teach you that you don't already know?

In my opinion, quite a lot. Some things are surprisingly different, even tho they are primarily striking arts.

[MJS]

There are so many great martial arts to train in out here in Hawaii, that I just can't pick. Due to family, job, school, and other stuff, I'm probably only going to be able to focus on one at a time...and then, I want to stick with it long enough so that I can actually learn something.

So, here's where I sit. I could do what everyone else does and do MMA/BJJ. It is HUGE over here, with lots of great gyms and schools just about everywhere.

I could go back to doing FMA, just about any style you can think of has representation over here and lots of the teachers are the original people who brought it over from the Fillipines.

I could practice karate. Korean karate. Japanese karate. Okinawan karate. There's like six or seven or more different styles in each national flavor to pick from.

Right now my background is in Tang Soo Do and I would like to carry that forward to a certain extent, in my small school Mauna Kula (http://www.martialtalk.com/forum/album.php?albumid=17), but I'm sure that I'm not going to be able to learn what I want to learn from the TSD instructors here. I'm more interested in the japanese or okinawan versions...so I can perhaps incorporate some of that into what I already do.

Or maybe I just need to start over see things with a beginner's mind again. Not sure what to do...

Seeing that you're in Hawaii, I'd check out some of the Kajukenbo schools there. :)