Kenpo Near Central PA?

[Karikokun]

Just asking if anyone knows of any American Kenpo dojo's, or, lessons, or whatever they are [ Sorry..Not really sure what they are called. ] in or near Central Pennsylvania. When I was about five years old, my father took American Kenpo lessons from a place in Clearfield, Pa, And I never got a chance to take any lessons. I really wanted to take American Kenpo like my father, but the guy that was teaching in Clearfield moved. Currently, I am only fifteen, I will be sixteen next month. I did not really know if me being sixteen and never having done anything like this before, would be.. well.. fine. Almost everyone I know of who has taken some form of Martial Arts started when they were really little, and I have always wanted to take one as well, but I was never able too. Would sixteen be too late be begin something like this..?

Well, If anyone knows of any place for American Kenpo, or something similar to it near Central PA, It would be greatly appreciated. I have looked around online, and I have not been able to find anything.


Thank anyone for your help,

Kyler.

 

[MJS]

Just asking if anyone knows of any American Kenpo dojo's, or, lessons, or whatever they are [ Sorry..Not really sure what they are called. ] in or near Central Pennsylvania. When I was about five years old, my father took American Kenpo lessons from a place in Clearfield, Pa, And I never got a chance to take any lessons. I really wanted to take American Kenpo like my father, but the guy that was teaching in Clearfield moved. Currently, I am only fifteen, I will be sixteen next month. I did not really know if me being sixteen and never having done anything like this before, would be.. well.. fine. Almost everyone I know of who has taken some form of Martial Arts started when they were really little, and I have always wanted to take one as well, but I was never able too. Would sixteen be too late be begin something like this..?

Well, If anyone knows of any place for American Kenpo, or something similar to it near Central PA, It would be greatly appreciated. I have looked around online, and I have not been able to find anything.


Thank anyone for your help,

Kyler.

Not sure how far these are from you, but here are a few schools.

http://www.nackordkarate.com/index.asp

http://www.millersdojo.com/

http://www.philadelphiakenpo.com/

http://www.americankarate.com/

www.unitedparkerskenpo.com

 

[Karikokun]

Not sure how far these are from you, but here are a few schools.

http://www.nackordkarate.com/index.asp

http://www.millersdojo.com/

http://www.philadelphiakenpo.com/

http://www.americankarate.com/

www.unitedparkerskenpo.com

According to MapQuest,

Nackord is 200.29 Miles from me.

Millers is 98.74 Miles.

Philadelphia is 226.20 Miles.

American is 222.71 Miles.

United is 176.08 Miles.


Thank you for the help. I am still looking around trying to find something closer to me. Closest would be Millers and that is about a two hour drive. Thank you a lot for your help, I will still look around some more.


Kyler

 

[MJS]

Glad I could help. I didn't realize that there was such a long drive.

Good luck in your search.

Mike

 

[Karikokun]

Thanks. I am reading up on some other styles right now, trying to find something else. No luck so far in any Kenpo near me.

Another question for you, if you do not mind. Do you think that sixteen would be.. like.. too late to start in something like this..? I would prefer not to feel like a outcast surrounded by a bunch of little kids or something.. Lol..

 

[MJS]

Thanks. I am reading up on some other styles right now, trying to find something else. No luck so far in any Kenpo near me.

What are some other schools in your area? Anything nearby that interests you?

Another question for you, if you do not mind. Do you think that sixteen would be.. like.. too late to start in something like this..? I would prefer not to feel like a outcast surrounded by a bunch of little kids or something.. Lol..

Too late?? Not at all. Most likely, you'd be in an adult class. Its never too late to start training!:ultracool

Mike

 

[Karikokun]

Well, from looking at all the places on MartialTalk, I only found one place about a half hour away, and they only have "Muay Thai Boxing" which does not sound like something that would intrest me. There is a Taekwondo [ I think it is Taekwondo ] place in town.. but I do not know if I would like Taekwondo.. Like, everyone I know who has done anything has done that. I really dislike doing things that are popular, and plus in general, It seems like something I would not enjoy. I was told the guy who teaches it here in town is.. erm.. "not nice" I can say.. Lol..

 

[Flying Crane]

Do some research and find out all the schools, commercial or otherwise, that exist in your area, that are close enough for you to attend. Check the yellowpages, internet, YMCAs, etc. Get creative and see what you can find. List them here, what art they teach, who the teacher is if you know, and any other info you can find. List them here and I bet a lot of people will give you their opinion.

Keep in mind, a good instructor is better than a specific art. Even the "best" art, however that might even be judged, is no good if not taught well. A good instructor is far more important, and you will get much more out of the experience this way. Good luck.

 

[MJS]

Well, from looking at all the places on MartialTalk, I only found one place about a half hour away, and they only have "Muay Thai Boxing" which does not sound like something that would intrest me. There is a Taekwondo [ I think it is Taekwondo ] place in town.. but I do not know if I would like Taekwondo.. Like, everyone I know who has done anything has done that. I really dislike doing things that are popular, and plus in general, It seems like something I would not enjoy. I was told the guy who teaches it here in town is.. erm.. "not nice" I can say.. Lol..

Flying Crane brought up some very good points.

As for the schools in your area, I'd take some time to check them out and form your own opinion. Just because someone else did not like the school or the training, does not mean that you wouldn't. It wouldn't hurt to check the school out, take a trial class, talk to the inst. and students, and see if its something that interests you.

Mike

 

[Karikokun]

Yeah, alright. Thank you both. I will have to look around some more. I never thought to look in the Yellow Pages.. Lol. Alright. Thank you. I will go around and look for some more things and see what I find. And I will try and make a list and post it here.

Thank you!

Kyler

 

[MJS]

If Kenpo isn't an option right now, here are a few other things you can check out.

http://onthemat.com/school_database...tor=&country=United+States&state=PENNSYLVANIA

http://www.winjutsu.com/winlinks.html

 

[Karikokun]

From the Yellow Pages, I found two things.

The one says...

"DJ Studio
Classes For Men *Women * Children * Special Children's Classes - 12 And Under * Certifed Instructors * Family Rates
Classes: M & Th 6-8, Sat 10-12, Call For Scheduling - World Tang Soo Do Association"

And the other one just says,

"Kwons Champions School"

Lemme go look in another Phone Book..

Ah! Here we go, Centre county directory..

This one says,

"Central PA Tang Shou Tao *
Hsing-i, Tai-Chi, Pa-Kua"

"Chaar Tae Kwon Do Martial Arts Center"

"DJ Studio" [ Again ]

"Josefik's Korean Tang Soo Do"

"Kwons Champions Schools"

"Titan Fitness"

"Young's School Of Tae Kwon Do Karate"


All those were under the "Karate & Other Martial Arts Instruction" section in the Yellow pages.. Should I call them and ask... about.. erm... something...?

:idunno:

 

[Flying Crane]

yup, give 'em a call and find out what they do, what their focus is, cost, schedule, see if you can watch a class, see if you can try a class to see if you like it, etc. Are they competition oriented? Are they self-defense oriented? Are they health oriented? Maybe they try to focus on all of these things? See how the schools "feel" to you. You will often get a gut instinct from the moment you walk in, whether you will like this or not. Do they want you to sign a long-term contract for a lot of money? Is it just pay month-to-month, without a long term contract? These are all things to find out.

Tang Soo Do is probably kind of like old-school Korean martial art, similar to Japanese Shotokan Karate.

Tae Kwon Do is Korean arts, once they were sort of "unified" by the Korean govt, i think in the 1950s, or so. They often focus on competition, including Olypics, but some of them still train the "old fashioned" way, for real fighting. Those would be very very similar to Tang Soo Do.

the "Kwons" school sounds like a Tae Kwan Do school, or maybe that is the name of the instructor. You'll have to ask.

Tang Shou Tao, Hsing-I, Tai Chi and Pa Kua would be Chinese kung fu. I don't know what Tang Shou Tao is, but the others are the three primary "internal" schools of Kung Fu. They focus on development of inner energy, commonly known as "chi". But the three styles approach it very differently. Tai Chi is often done very slowly and relaxed, but can be a surprisingly tough workout. Pa Kua and Hsing-I would be faster, and would appear more external, even tho they are internal. They are a bit difficult to describe if you haven't had any experience with them.

the others, DJ, Titan, etc., you just need to call and find out what they teach.

Personally, I would go to the Chinese school first, but that is just my bias, because I train and like the Chinese arts a lot.

Call them all, talk to them, get a feel for what they do and what their attitude is like, visit, watch a class, try a class if they will let you. Take your time and get as much info as possible about them, before you make a final decision. Any one of them could be a great place, but also any one of them could be a lousy place. You need to find out.

Also, find out how long the teachers have been training and teaching. Rank isn't something you need to worry too much about, often people inflate their rank and stuff so it doesn't mean anything magical or anything. But if they have only been training for a few years, maybe they aren't the best. But if the teacher has been training for at least 10 years, that is a good start. 20 or more would definitely be better.

Keep us informed!

 

[Karikokun]

Alright, Thank you very much for your help. I will try and call and get some info and such about them sometime soon. I will post some of the things they tell me here, and see what people think, if that is alright? Of course I will make my own personal judgment, but it would not hurt to get a outside opinion. Well, I thank you for your help, and I will try and get some info on them and post it here later.

Thank you for all your help and time,

Kyler

 

[Flying Crane]

Alright, Thank you very much for your help. I will try and call and get some info and such about them sometime soon. I will post some of the things they tell me here, and see what people think, if that is alright? Of course I will make my own personal judgment, but it would not hurt to get a outside opinion. Well, I thank you for your help, and I will try and get some info on them and post it here later.

Thank you for all your help and time,

Kyler

Of course, feel free to post what you find. I am sure more people will jump in and telll you what they think. Make your own decision, but it helps to have some input along the way.

 

[ajs1976]

Is this the Titan Fitness place you found in the yellow pages: http://www.titanfitness.com/ ?

 

[Karikokun]

Yeah, That looks like the correct place. Right location anyways.

 

[Perpetual White Belt]

I don't know of any American Kenpo schools in tis area. There's an Okinawa Kenpo school in St. Marys as well as an Arnis school (Senkotiros mainly, but some other mixed in with it). Niether of those are what you are looking for (Okinawa Kenpo and American Kenpo are unrelated) but they are styles that aren't "popular" so that may fit in with what you'e looking for. (Especially the Arnis school, there are only a handfull of schools that teach Senkotiros on the east coast let alone in PA) DuBois has Tang Soo Do an "kung fu" at their YMCA, and there's a guy that teaches something but I'm not sure what the art is. He's located above the Harley shop there on rt. 219. For the most part the area's dominated by Tae Kwon Do, Tang Soo Do, and "Americanized" versions of those styles.

Sorry I can't be of more help.