Well that's kind of been what I've been trying to get at this whole time. That yes, there are schools like that out there, but they are not really the norm when you look at the total karate landscape across the country.
Most of the karate schools around here are not competition focused. That's what I've been looking for--a karate school with a strong competitive element--but the only ones I have found pretty much only have kids that actually want to compete.
There is a school a little to the north that is VERY competitive, but it's like a different kind of competition. They are really into the NASKA/NBL kind of thing. Go watch a class and you'll see a bunch of kids doing modified kata and spinning glow-in-the-dark bo staffs around.
There is one guy here locally who runs a JKA dojo and he does train students to compete, but again, he doesn't have many adult students and has told me that those he does have aren't very interested in fighting or competition.
There is a Shotokan dojo--the same dojo that I've mentioned a few times already--that has one guy who is super competitive and he teaches a class one day a week that is focused on fighting and competition. But every other night, it's a much more relaxed, no-contact-kumite, low-impact kind of thing. It's really sort of the opposite situation than with a lot of the other dojos. Instead of being composed of a bunch of kids, it's mostly composed of older guys whose fighting days are in the past. I will be going to the "fighting" class tomorrow, though. The impression I've gotten is that if the instructor who teaches that class was the head instructor and all their classes were that way, then it would be exactly what I'm looking for. But that unfortunately is not the situation.
Then there's the wado-ryu dojo. I spent two months there before hurting my should and dropping out to let that rehab. That took about six months. Those guys are pretty intense in their attitude and the sparring, while not full contact, can get a little rough for sure. But they are not really competition focused. They used to be . . . but not anymore. There are shades of the same situation that you find at the Shotokan dojo, that is, old lions that are kind of toning it down as they age. I do think those guys are pretty bad ***, though. I may end up going back.
Or, if I can make sure no one will get upset about it, train primarily at the wado school, but make an arrangement to drop in on the competition class on Fridays with the Shotokan guys.
We'll see. It sucks not being able to just find a place that does exactly what I want, though.
