# Northern Nevada



## mdavidg (Jan 14, 2016)

Hi Everyone, 

I just joined the forum today and I'm looking for recommendations of you have any. I was debating long and hard between Northern and Southern Nevada but I think Northern has won me over. The prices for real estate is just too darn affordable and I have everything I need for me and my boys. Anyway, we're going to be building a home outside of Reno and I'm looking for recommendations. I know we have a Choy Li Fut school and it is very appealing. There's also a mixed martial art school combining real kenpo and jujitsu. And there may even be a Songahm TKD school worth considering but I shy away from any school that uses the name blackbelt in their name. 

So, I know this is a long shot but I'd like to put down the names of a few schools and I am hoping someone may chime in and offer their personal testimony or experience. 

ZMA
Sierra Jiujitsu
High Desert Martial Arts
Bujinkan Buyu Dojo
Wolf Den Martial Arts Academy

Or any other recommendations that you can offer. I will let you know ahead of time that I try to avoid most TKD unless it's ITF or Songahm and I will not go anywhere near BJJ because I spent a lot of time in Japan and have not found anything about BJJ that I like.


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## tshadowchaser (Jan 15, 2016)

No help from me on schools in that area  just want to say
Welcome to the forum


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## Brian R. VanCise (Jan 15, 2016)

I am not as familiar with those schools as I should be as I live in Las Vegas.  There is a Modern Arnis club though that I can recommend in South Tahoe. (Nevada Side)  It is Operated by Mangilonging and here in there website: 

California | World Modern Arnis Alliance

I know there is some Silat in and around Truckee and Reno so check them out if you can find them.


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## mdavidg (Jan 15, 2016)

Thanks Tshadow. It's good to be here.


Brian, thanks for your recommendation.  I was eyeing your school in LV a few months back when i was debating between North and South. Luckily, I'm not far from the California line and there are a few Kali/Escrima schools just over the line if I choose to pursue that path.


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## Brian R. VanCise (Jan 15, 2016)

That is perfect!  Hope you find the right instructor and get some great training in!  I get up to Tahoe once in awhile so if you ever want to meet up for a beer just pm me here!


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## mdavidg (Jan 15, 2016)

Thanks Brian. Sounds like a deal. I was actually looking at a Kajukenbo school in Henderson before I decided on this move. Shame because that was really a great school. There aren't any Kaju schools up here but we do have non Parker Kenpo schools in N Nevada, which is important to me. I'm leaning toward one of those schools but we do have others to choose from. ZMA is high on my list and only gets raves. And we do have a Songahm TKD school up here. In the end, it will be a family decision based on what we all agree on.


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## Kurai (Jan 21, 2016)

mdavidg said:


> Hi Everyone,
> 
> I just joined the forum today and I'm looking for recommendations of you have any. I was debating long and hard between Northern and Southern Nevada but I think Northern has won me over. The prices for real estate is just too darn affordable and I have everything I need for me and my boys. Anyway, we're going to be building a home outside of Reno and I'm looking for recommendations. I know we have a Choy Li Fut school and it is very appealing. There's also a mixed martial art school combining real kenpo and jujitsu. And there may even be a Songahm TKD school worth considering but I shy away from any school that uses the name blackbelt in their name.
> 
> ...



Sierra Jiujitsu, High Desert Martial Arts, and Bujinkan Buyu Dojo, have good reputations in the area.  No info on ZMA or Wolf Den.  A great reference to find out more info on schools in the area is a martial arts shop in Reno.  The proprietors pretty much know/know about any schools in the area. I'll message you with more info.


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## mdavidg (Jan 22, 2016)

Kurai, thank you so much for commenting. I also have a message into L7 Martial Arts. They are another Choy Li Fut school that is in Northern Nevada that may have closed. They were high on my list but I saw a comment on their page a few weeks back that leads me to believe they are no longer. So, I put my super snooping mind to work, found an email address for their website and sent off an email asking for verification that their school had actually closed. 

Cheers.


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## kuniggety (Feb 1, 2016)

I'm just curious but what about your experience with BJJ in Japan turned you off about it?


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## mdavidg (Feb 1, 2016)

BJJ has nothing to do with Japan. It's not real jiujitsu. It's judo with a brazillan tophat. In fact, if you go to Japan and mention BJJ most practitioners of JJ will probably laugh at you because they know exactly what the Gracie family was doing by renaming judo. Anyway, this is all I'm going to say on the subject. I know some people practice it and enjoy it and I say good for them. However, I do hope they realize that all it is is Judo revamped and renamed and it has none of the core, or very little that makes up jiujitsu.  Does this help?


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## kuniggety (Feb 1, 2016)

mdavidg said:


> Does this help?


I trained BJJ in Japan for my first couple of years studying it and just moved away from there which is why I asked. It's pretty popular there and there's over a dozen schools just in the Tokyo Prefecture. In its core, much of it is the same (I've opened up a judo manual and knew everything in the newaza but far from it with the nagewaza), but has evolved differently. What I thought interesting is a branch of judo called kosen judo that also focuses on newaza that has had some parallels with BJJ in its development. Different strokes for different folks so I'm not here to turn you towards BJJ but was just curious behind your reasoning is all.


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## Kurai (Feb 5, 2016)

mdavidg -- How goes the hunt?


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## mdavidg (Feb 20, 2016)

Kurai said:


> mdavidg -- How goes the hunt?


Just saw your message. The hunt goes. 

There is a kenpo school in Gardnerville I mentioned but I haven't had time to check it out. Also, a school affiliated with Takemusu Aikido that also offers traditional jiujitsu and a few other japanese martial arts. 

And, of course, there is my default Choy Li Fut school that is top on my list. Unfortunately, I'm out of state at the moment so I haven't had a chance to check out any. Oh, I almost forgot. There is also a  Songahm TKD school although they can be a hit or miss depending on the instructor.


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## mdavidg (Feb 23, 2016)

I did track down two songahm tkd schools in the area. One looks ok but the other looks particularly salesy. I know, not a real word but I couldn't think of another word without being mean. 

The first is Cancino Blackbelt in Reno and this school appears to be worth checking out. 

The second is called Carson City ATA. This is the one that is a bit strange. When I click on the adult martial art it takes me to another page where they are promoting getting in shape, getting a flatter stomach, etc. Then if you click on the link for children you are taken to a second website that is clearly marketed for children. 

Anyway, I'm sure I'll have my hands full checking out all of these schools or at least the ZMA, Cancino, High Desert, the school that Brian recommended, Mizu Shin Tao, and a school that Kurai kindly mentioned to me.


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## mdavidg (Mar 10, 2016)

After serious deliberation, I have changed my mind about No. Nevada for a few reasons. The main being vegan support. I have been a vegan for 26 years and need to be in a location where there is some support for me and my children. Northern Nevada has a small group but no vegan restaurants and it's a different environment. I'm not looking at property in the outskirts of Nevada that is offgrid. This keeps a lot of money in my pocket, which is the way I like it. Anyway, I'm going to be searching for schools in the las vegas/henderson, pahrump area. No shortage of martial arts to study and practice. I have access to Tribal Advantage, which is a quality escrima school. There are several Songahm tkd schools, a kempo school that intrigues me and a shoshinkan aikido school that teaches aikido, judo, and karate. And, of course, there's a great kajukenbo school that is top on my list.


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## kuniggety (Mar 10, 2016)

The Las Vegas valley has a crap ton of schools as I'm sure you're finding out. I think the main thing is where you wind up settling at. I was in N. Las Vegas for 3 years. My last year there I studied at the Lohan School of Shaolin. A lot of great folks there.


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## mdavidg (Mar 10, 2016)

Kunigety, I know. I'm probably going to buy property in Overton so that means at least an hour drive to get to Vegas. Also, I do know Lohan and have a tremendous amount of respect for the owner and all he has done for the community. They are on my radar. There's a Kajukenbo school in Henderson too that I really like. They have great instructors and are very affordable like Lohan. There's also a CHA3 Kenpo school that I would like to check out. The only thing missing in Southern Nevada is real jiujitsu. Seems like all the traditional jiujitsu schools are North in the Reno area. Oh, and of course, Stanley Pranin, who is the editor for Aikido magazine, teaches Iwama style Aikido in Las Vegas. So, I have plenty to choose from.


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## mdavidg (Mar 10, 2016)

This school is the other kung fu school that I want to check out. I know they are not a McDojo because I have spoken to other students that have studied with this guy. 

Shaolin Kungfu Chan


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## kuniggety (Mar 10, 2016)

mdavidg said:


> This school is the other kung fu school that I want to check out. I know they are not a McDojo because I have spoken to other students that have studied with this guy.
> 
> Shaolin Kungfu Chan



I've seen them perform at one of the festivals in Chinatown. The sifu is pretty amazing. They teach the wushu that is currently taught in the Songshan temples in China so it's a bit more acrobatic and less fight focused than Lohan. It's good stuff though. My former teacher's wife (I learned from Sigung Steven Baugh and had many conversations with him but mainly studied privately under a student of his) actually trained at both because she likes the acrobatics of wushu along with the more traditional training of Lohan. You wouldn't go wrong with either.


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## mdavidg (Mar 11, 2016)

Thanks a bunch. As I said, I have other schools that have piqued my interest including a Aikido school and, of course, I love TKD and I've heard great things about Quest ATA from friends.

And here's the Shoshinkan school that I have to admit caught me off guard. I love the newer Aikido schools that understand that we cannot survive with just Aikido. I believe this is an evolution that Aikido is destined to take if it is to survive. This school teaches Aikido, Judo, and Karatedo. 

Home

I don't know if all Shoshinkan Aikido schools are the same but I hope they are. 

Anyway, there are a lot more choices in the LV area for me to choose from so I should be taking enough free lessons to choose the right school.


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## Brian R. VanCise (Mar 11, 2016)

Make sure once you get back down here that you look me up for a drink!


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## mdavidg (Mar 11, 2016)

Brian, will do but my drink will have to be virgin. I stopped drinking around 30 years ago and now that I take MSM regularly, I can't drink. One drink will put me under the table.


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