Questions, answered
Starting late, a first class, belts and moving on.
How old do you have to be?
The youngest students are 8, in a class with others their age. Teens have their own class, and adults have classes of their own, with a beginner night on Thursday. A parent and child can train together on Saturday morning.
Can I watch a class?
Yes. Parents and friends are welcome on the bench by the viewing window in any class. Please keep voices low while the line bows in and out.
What do I wear to the first class?
A plain t-shirt and loose pants, with bare feet. If you decide to stay, we fit you for a uniform after that first class.
What is a class like?
It runs about an hour. The line bows in, warms up, practices basics and a form, does a little partner work and bows out.
Can adults and children train together?
On Saturday morning, yes: the family class is for a parent and child side by side, ages 8 and up. Other classes are by age, so no adult has to keep pace with a child and no child with an adult.
Do I need to be fit or flexible?
No. Everyone starts as a white belt, and the instructor adjusts each technique to what your body can do. Tell the instructor in person if something is sore.
How do belts work?
A student tests when the instructor sees the skills, at the end of a regular class. There is no timetable.
What is kobudo?
Kobudo is the Okinawan study of weapons, taught as slow forms and partner drills with a wooden staff, then the sai. It is taught to green belts and above, ages 13 and up.
We move with a posting. Can we still train here?
Yes. Tell us when you arrive and when you expect to go, and we will find the class that fits the time you have. When you leave, we write down what each student has worked on, to hand to the next instructor.
How does tuition work, and how do I stop?
Tuition depends on the class group, the classes a week and whether kobudo is added. The first term is three months, then it runs month to month, and you end it in writing with thirty days' notice. Ask us how to pause for a posting.
Still wondering?
Send a message and the front desk will answer, or come and watch a class from the bench.