# Central ohio dojo's



## KFSNJS (Apr 11, 2019)

Been looking for a dojo in central ohio for my 10 year old. I plan on over the next month going with him to several to see what he's most interested in. Not knowing much I have no idea what to really look for. 

The Mrs wants him to go to quinlin karate in west Jefferson( can't really find info on instructors) or with the YMCA. But I feel we need to broaden our scope. I would prefer judo for him but ultimately it's his choice.

I seen a list of dojo's when I did a search, but it's over a decade old.

Any thoughts or suggestions?


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## Monkey Turned Wolf (Apr 11, 2019)

I think I said something like this on your post a week ago, so sorry if I'm repeating myself. But unless his plan is to go to the olympics or become a professional fighter, the credentials of the school aren't all that important. What's important is that it's close (much easier for you and the wife scheduling-wise), you guys like it, and your kid enjoys it. Those aren't things we can tell you online.

Of course, someone may have a specific recommendation of a kid-friendly school super close by that's more helpful than what I just said 

dojos.info has a list of schools, but it's not comprehensive, nor is it 100% updated (the two closest schools when I type in my address I know are closed for a fact)


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## KFSNJS (Apr 12, 2019)

I'm only asking because I have no real idea what to look for the one list I seen here is over a decade old with a lot of now closed places. 

As far as how far he intends to go I have no idea. When I started in archery it was because my dad was left handed, left eye dominant and I was right. He was getting too frustrated trying to teach me to shoot for bow hunting so we went with JOAD. I never intended to compete at the beginning but I ended up loving it and managed to get to the state level competition for the organization. Funny thing is, I never went bow hunting. Only reason I stopped was due to an injury.

If this is something he loves, then we intend to let him go as far as he able too, but coaches/instructors can have a big part in that.


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## Tony Dismukes (Apr 12, 2019)

There are a bunch of good BJJ schools in and around Columbus.


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## DocWard (Apr 14, 2019)

As I'm reading your original post, it appears you have several points to ponder. You can correct me if I'm wrong.

First, what to look for in a dojo. I believe this question has been answered in other posts on the subject. Close proximity, a clean environment and instructors that you are comfortable teaching your child would be the top priorities I would look for. Other opinions may vary. If you're in the West Jeff area, it seems Quinlan's would be a good option to consider. Go in, discuss their philosophy, get an idea of how their programs are structured, and go forward from there. See if things click. Then, do the same with others you might choose. Both Yelp and Angie's List have positive reviews for Quinlan's, although they are a few years old.

If you move toward Hilliard, then you have several more options that open up, including Aikido, Arnis, Taekwondo, and more. There is also a dojo in Galloway, USA Martial Arts Southwest, that wouldn't be too far from West Jefferson.

Second, In the original post you indicate a preference for Judo, but you don't mention why that is the case. You do say ultimately, it is up to him to decide, and to me that is a good thing. If it isn't something he instinctively gravitates toward, but is doing so because you wish, it may not be something he sticks with.

Third, when you say you need to broaden your scope, is that because you want to have more options, wish to go beyond the West Jeff area, have heard bad things about Quinlan's, or some other reason? When you indicate your wife wishes to go with Quinlan's or the YMCA, what is or are her reasons for doing so? Convenience? Does she have a friend, or a friend of a friend, who has practiced there? Some other reason? What is it about the instructors that you wish to know? The basic information on the instructors is on their website. https://quinlandojo.wordpress.com/38-2/?frame-nonce=78dc86dd3f  Are you wanting more info, such as lineage or tournament experience and the like?


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## KFSNJS (Apr 14, 2019)

Thanks for your response

I think my wife is looking at quinlans purely from a cost and convience perspective. They practice matsuyabushi ryu which I never heard of before I looked at their website and I know nothing about.I mention judo because when I was younger I had a cousin that studied it, and whenever he was in town if he convinced me to spar with him I typically ended up looking at the sky.

I'm willing to consider any style as long as my son would maintain his intrest. YMCA programs in my experience seem to be cookie cutter in their approach so I'm not looking into them seriously. That's what meant by trying to broaden our horizons.

As far as the instr


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## Monkey Turned Wolf (Apr 14, 2019)

KFSNJS said:


> Thanks for your response
> 
> I think my wife is looking at quinlans purely from a cost and convience perspective. They practice matsuyabushi ryu which I never heard of before I looked at their website and I know nothing about.I mention judo because when I was younger I had a cousin that studied it, and whenever he was in town if he convinced me to spar with him I typically ended up looking at the sky.
> 
> ...


So first: Why I rated it funny. All of us have probably, at some point or another, experienced that with a judo practitioner. It's insane how good they are at throwing you without you realizing what happened.

Judo is definitely effective, and has the options for competition, if he wants it, and can be useful if he doesn't. A good style to try out if you can find something.

As for YMCA programs-a lot of the times, with MA specifically, it isn't a "YMCA program". Martial artists will essentially 'rent' part of the YMCA to teach their classes, but it has nothing to do with the YMCA itself. @gpseymour or @Dirty Dog could probably explain it better, since I believe they both either currently do that, or have in the past.


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## Monkey Turned Wolf (Apr 14, 2019)

KFSNJS said:


> Thanks for your response
> 
> I think my wife is looking at quinlans purely from a cost and convience perspective. They practice matsuyabushi ryu which I never heard of before I looked at their website and I know nothing about.I mention judo because when I was younger I had a cousin that studied it, and whenever he was in town if he convinced me to spar with him I typically ended up looking at the sky.
> 
> ...


Forgot to mention-I think part of the end got cut off while you were writing.


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## Gerry Seymour (Apr 14, 2019)

kempodisciple said:


> So first: Why I rated it funny. All of us have probably, at some point or another, experienced that with a judo practitioner. It's insane how good they are at throwing you without you realizing what happened.
> 
> Judo is definitely effective, and has the options for competition, if he wants it, and can be useful if he doesn't. A good style to try out if you can find something.
> 
> As for YMCA programs-a lot of the times, with MA specifically, it isn't a "YMCA program". Martial artists will essentially 'rent' part of the YMCA to teach their classes, but it has nothing to do with the YMCA itself. @gpseymour or @Dirty Dog could probably explain it better, since I believe they both either currently do that, or have in the past.


Yes - most YMCA programs were pitched by the instructor going to the Y and asking if they had space for a program. I can think of 6 instructors I know (off the top of my head) who have taught at a YMCA (not including me or Dirty Dog - I taught at one for 2 years, and he still does). None of the ones I can think of teach significantly differently at the Y from where they taught before or after. The one thing that may make Y programs look more cookie-cutter is that equipment and room customization can be more limited than at a dedicated space.


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## DocWard (Apr 14, 2019)

KFSNJS said:


> Thanks for your response
> 
> I think my wife is looking at quinlans purely from a cost and convience perspective. They practice matsuyabushi ryu which I never heard of before I looked at their website and I know nothing about.I mention judo because when I was younger I had a cousin that studied it, and whenever he was in town if he convinced me to spar with him I typically ended up looking at the sky.
> 
> ...



I'm not so familiar with the Okinawan styles, so I'm sure there are others that can fill you in better. But Matsuyabushi Ryu is a style of Shorin Ryu. Looking purely from the perspective of the art itself, from what I do know I would have no qualms about sending my child, or myself, to learn that style. That leaves the instructor and cost as the variables. I would add that I would expect the instructor to be able to give his lineage, and assume the school is actually affiliated with the style's organization.


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## Gerry Seymour (Apr 14, 2019)

DocWard said:


> I'm not so familiar with the Okinawan styles, so I'm sure there are others that can fill you in better. But Matsuyabushi Ryu is a style of Shorin Ryu. Looking purely from the perspective of the art itself, from what I do know I would have no qualms about sending my child, or myself, to learn that style. That leaves the instructor and cost as the variables. I would add that I would expect the instructor to be able to give his lineage, and assume the school is actually affiliated with the style's organization.


Okay, now I'm going to ask for some info. I'm mildly interested in Shorin-ryu, as that's the primary style at the dojo I now teach at. So, how is Matsuyabushi-ryu related?


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## Dirty Dog (Apr 14, 2019)

kempodisciple said:


> As for YMCA programs-a lot of the times, with MA specifically, it isn't a "YMCA program". Martial artists will essentially 'rent' part of the YMCA to teach their classes, but it has nothing to do with the YMCA itself. @gpseymour or @Dirty Dog could probably explain it better, since I believe they both either currently do that, or have in the past.



It varies. Our program is a YMCA program. They provide a room, we provide the equipment. Neither Master Valdez or I have any interest in the money side of things; we do it as volunteer work. So this works well for us. Now, this is not to be considered the norm. As far as I know, we're the only program run wholly by volunteers. But that's our choice.


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## DocWard (Apr 14, 2019)

gpseymour said:


> Okay, now I'm going to ask for some info. I'm mildly interested in Shorin-ryu, as that's the primary style at the dojo I now teach at. So, how is Matsuyabushi-ryu related?



I expect you might know more than I. The school lists itself as teaching "Matsubayashi Shorinryu Karate." I recognize the name Shorin-ryu as one a civilian employee practiced when I was on active duty in San Antonio, and he seemed pretty adept. A quick google search shows a lot of information about it, including the organization home page, youtube videos and more.

http://matsubayashi-ryu.com

While obviously I can't vouch for the accuracy of it, there is much information posted at the site linked to below, which is the one I initially clicked on:

Matsubayashi Ryu - Shorin Ryu Karate style


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## DocWard (Apr 14, 2019)

For those with Facebook, this is the school the OP is interested in:

Quinlan Karate

Interestingly, I didn't spot the school listed among Ohio dojos on the association page, but there could be a good reason for that, if the instructor were asked.


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## Gerry Seymour (Apr 15, 2019)

DocWard said:


> I expect you might know more than I. The school lists itself as teaching "Matsubayashi Shorinryu Karate." I recognize the name Shorin-ryu as one a civilian employee practiced when I was on active duty in San Antonio, and he seemed pretty adept. A quick google search shows a lot of information about it, including the organization home page, youtube videos and more.
> 
> http://matsubayashi-ryu.com
> 
> ...


According to their sites, it looks like Matsubayashi is the Japanese reading of the kanji, while Shorin is the Chinese reading. So, the off-shoot just decided to use the alternate (less common, though I'm not sure why that's so for an Okinawan style) reading.


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## JR 137 (Apr 19, 2019)

gpseymour said:


> According to their sites, it looks like Matsubayashi is the Japanese reading of the kanji, while Shorin is the Chinese reading. So, the off-shoot just decided to use the alternate (less common, though I'm not sure why that's so for an Okinawan style) reading.


I don’t see the different reading of the same kanji at all. I’ve never heard that before and didn’t see it there, although maybe it’s in a link somewhere?

Matsubayashi Ryu is a type, or better yet sect of Shorin ryu. Matsubayashi ryu was named that by its founder Soshin Nagamine. Matsubayashi practitioners use Matsubayashi and Shorin Ryu names interchangeably. Quite often the Matsubayashi Ryu name is used with Shorin Ryu in parenthesis. 

As far as I know, there isn’t much difference between Matsubayashi and other Shorin. Kata lists are pretty close, stances, kihon and  principles are pretty close. There are some variations on stuff, but not gross variations IMO. 

Matsubayashi-ryū - Wikipedia


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## Gerry Seymour (Apr 19, 2019)

JR 137 said:


> I don’t see the different reading of the same kanji at all. I’ve never heard that before and didn’t see it there, although maybe it’s in a link somewhere?
> 
> Matsubayashi Ryu is a type, or better yet sect of Shorin ryu. Matsubayashi ryu was named that by its founder Soshin Nagamine. Matsubayashi practitioners use Matsubayashi and Shorin Ryu names interchangeably. Quite often the Matsubayashi Ryu name is used with Shorin Ryu in parenthesis.
> 
> ...


At the bottom of the second link, it says:
The meaning of Matsubayashi-ryu.
"Matsubayashi" is the Okinawan/Japanese pronunciation of the ideograms for "Pine Forest." "Matsu" means "pine" and "Hayashi" means "forest." When the two words are put together, the "H" of Hayashi is pronounced as "B," hence Matsubayashi. "Shorin" is the Japanese pronunciation of the Chinese words for the  same ideograms. The origin of this name is the Shaolin Temple in China. "Ryu" translates as style or system. Literally, it means "river," which conveys the image that an art is a living, flowing thing.​


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## Deleted member 40465 (Apr 19, 2019)

I've been to several MA schools in Columbus. If you're looking for Karate, or BJJ, I could recommend some good programs for kids.


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## JR 137 (Apr 19, 2019)

gpseymour said:


> At the bottom of the second link, it says:
> The meaning of Matsubayashi-ryu.
> "Matsubayashi" is the Okinawan/Japanese pronunciation of the ideograms for "Pine Forest." "Matsu" means "pine" and "Hayashi" means "forest." When the two words are put together, the "H" of Hayashi is pronounced as "B," hence Matsubayashi. "Shorin" is the Japanese pronunciation of the Chinese words for the  same ideograms. The origin of this name is the Shaolin Temple in China. "Ryu" translates as style or system. Literally, it means "river," which conveys the image that an art is a living, flowing thing.​


Interesting


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