What are the good points and bad points of your dojo?

[Slihn]

What things do you like about the place that you train?

What things to you dislike at the place you train?

Is it too far away from where you live?

Does it have very bad training hours that dont match your schedule?

Does you Dojo(Dojan,gym etc) offer everything you are looking for are do you have to go to different schools in order to obtain what your looking off.

Is is it a fun, friendly and safe environment or do you find yourself racing to your car after class is done?

I really enjoy the studio where I train.Even though it appears to have a "rough" crowd,it is a really friendly enviorment.They teach every range in fighting.I learn stand up from the Muay Thai/Boxing class.From the MMA class ,I learn all of my standup grappling,groundfighting(submissions,chocks,armlocks ,leg locks etc).The MMA class also has alot of open grappling instead of just going through drills.Dont get me wrong,drills are very important,but without sparring it is almost impossiable to get a true feel for the art.

Another really good point about my gym is the hours you can pretty much come almost anytime m-f to train and a few hours on Sat.Also you can continue to spar after class and get specialized training without specialized prices;if you know what I mean.

The bad points,well its a bit aways from where I live so a few days out of the week ,so I cant really stay to late after class.Also the style of Thai Boxing I orginal learned of quite different than the one my current gym trains in, so I sometimes wonder if that will conflict in my fighting ability.

 

[Aqua4ever]

The things I like about the place I train?
The instructors: loving, respectful, knowledagable, patient!
The people: interactive, outgoing, polite, helpful
The area: close to my house, well lit, clean, organized

What I don't like about the place I train?
I have to leave in nine days for University...and its not coming with me

I wouldnt change anything about my club if I could. Except move it to Peterbourough
Aqua

 

[RheaHS]

What things do you like about the place that you train?
#1 Friendly people, not far away, in a leisure centre so plenty of support
#2 As 1 but it's a permanent dojo area not a centre. Soft mats, lots of nice weapons to train with, training with the founder of the style.

What things to you dislike at the place you train?
#1 In a sports centre so you can hear other classes, badminton shuttlecocks flying over the dojo wall, sometimes an aerobics class
2# involves a 7mile bike ride, so quite a way to go in the dark after, bit too small really.

Is it too far away from where you live?
#1 short train journey, but now i go straight from work and go home with my partner after so not too bad
#2 7 mile bike ride. Not too bad but would rather I didn't have to do it.

Does it have very bad training hours that dont match your schedule?
matches ok, but I wish there were more sessions for adults that I can get to

Does you Dojo(Dojan,gym etc) offer everything you are looking for are do you have to go to different schools in order to obtain what your looking off.
all fine, but I'd like to do another art eventually.

Is is it a fun, friendly and safe environment or do you find yourself racing to your car after class is done?
luckily they're both in fairly good areas, especially #2. I don't feel safer than when i'm there.

 

[Cirdan]

What things do you like about the place that you train?
Both: Very good instructors, friendly people, provides challenging training, no BS.

What things to you dislike at the place you train?
Karate: sometimes the floor will be a little dirty from other people training before us (but since the school lets us use the locales without payment we can`t complain can we? ).
Ju Jutsu: the rules concerning removal of rings etc and cutting of nails should be enforced . Also, some people here seem to be under the impression that everybody wears a cup.... :vu:

Is it too far away from where you live?
Karate: no, it is practically next door.
Ju Jutsu: a plesant 20 minute walk.

Does it have very bad training hours that dont match your schedule?
Both: no, and they fit each other very well. There is only one class a week that I can`t attend. (training six times a week is enough anyway)

Does you Dojo(Dojan,gym etc) offer everything you are looking for are do you have to go to different schools in order to obtain what your looking off.
I started doing JJ in addition to Karate because my original school only held two classes a week. I wanted to train more.

Is is it a fun, friendly and safe environment or do you find yourself racing to your car after class is done?
Both: definately fun, safe and friendly. I usually spend some time stretching and talking before going home. I keep my eyes open when walking home from the JJ club tough. We sometimes finish a little late and there have been occational robberies etc in the parks I pass trough. :ninja:

 

[empty cup]

stuff I like about where I train.

Caring, patient instructors, who push you gently, but do push you.

It's a great workout--( Two and a half hours long. The first forty five minutes to an hour is just for warm ups)

The feeling of acomplishment, that I am doing something that is harder than I thought I could do.


No uniform or special equipment to buy.

fairly inexpensive ( $40 a month, $75 yearly association fee)


some stuff I dont like.

Class in not held in a nice fancy studio, but in congregation room of a church( but then again, hey thats part of why class is so cheap). A punching bag , wooden dummy or something like that would be nice.

This church is fairly close to a major college campus , so now that classes are back in session no place to park !!!!.

Infrequent sparring.

Only two nights a week-I do practice on my own though.

 

[terryl965]

This right here is the easiest answer of all ME, MYSELF and I, I train everybody hard including myself and I'm also caring towards all my students.
Terry

 

[Grenadier]

I'm just going to talk about the dojo itself, and not the system.

What things do you like about the place that you train?

We combine the best of traditional style and modern amenities. We use very nice hardwood floors that are actually made of a synthetic composite. Tougher than hardwood, feels like hardwood, yet is immune to almost anything that would normally attack wood.

We have a good sized training floor area (1500 sq ft), a water fountain, and a state of the art air conditioning system that's also highly efficient.


What things to you dislike at the place you train?


We're a bit short-staffed at the location where I teach. For now, I'm teaching more classes, which cuts into my training hours, but at least help is on the way, since we have some good assistant instructor candidates rising through the ranks. Besides, I can't really complain about the extra money!

Is it too far away from where you live?

Nope. 13 minutes of a drive from my house, but since I have to come to the dojo directly from work, it's closer to a 35 minute drive from downtown.

Does it have very bad training hours that dont match your schedule?

Training hours are reasonable. They'd be even more reasonable if I could squeeze in more training than the current amount, but as I stated before, I must be patient while the others come up.

Does you Dojo(Dojan,gym etc) offer everything you are looking for are do you have to go to different schools in order to obtain what your looking off.

Got everything I need at this time. If we want more variety, we can always invite other instructors from different schools to hold seminars. This helps promote some goodwill between different dojos in this area.


Is is it a fun, friendly and safe environment or do you find yourself racing to your car after class is done?

Quite safe. The town is a low crime area. That, plus we have law enforcement officers training with us, and also, one of the local PD lives next door. The parking lot is in plain view, and well-lit.

The instructors are always the last to leave, and the last instructor does not leave unless all of the students have already left. If this means that we have to keep someone's kid indoors while a late parent arrives, then so be it, but we'll still keep calling the parents. If the kid starts growing tired, then I'll break out the camping cot and let him / her doze until the parents show up.

There's plenty to do at the dojo while waiting, such as paperwork, cleaning, etc., so the time can be productive. Even if everything is already done, one need not be bored, since we do have a nice DSL connection available. Martialtalk.com arcade, anyone?

 

[fireman00]

What things do you like about the place that you train? The folks are extremely friendly and supportive of one another. About 20 of us competed in the AAU National Championships in Knoxville, TN this year - we would travel as a group to the Collesium to to watch and cheer on our classmates. Very family oriented.

What things to you dislike at the place you train? 1.) I LOVE the temp in the dojang to be warm, very warm .... even hot but most of the older students want the AC cranked up. 2.) The school is made up of two rooms; both of them are just a little to small.

Is it too far away from where you live? Its 6 miles away; my first dojang was about 21 miles (40 minutes thanks to traffic).

Does it have very bad training hours that dont match your schedule? Nope - classes are very convenient and there's something for everyone at least once a night, opened 5 days a week.

Does you Dojo(Dojan,gym etc) offer everything you are looking for are do you have to go to different schools in order to obtain what your looking off. I wish they offered knife fighting and more real life stick fighting, but other then those two minor issues I'm very happy with what is taught. Bo staff, nunchuckas, knife defense, gun defense, chinese broad sword, double broad sword and of course TKD.

Is is it a fun, friendly and safe environment or do you find yourself racing to your car after class is done? Fun, friendly and safe. Most of the folks wind up talking for 20 minutes in the parking lot afterwards.

 

[karatekid1975]

What things do you like about the place that you train? Nice people. They are all technique geeks like me. No politic BS, and fairly cheap ($60 a month). There's a choice if you want to be "sport" or just train to get your BB, so there's a place for both in this dojang. I can train 6 days a week if I wanted, and the dojang is right behind my job. The classes are an hour and a half long (YAY!).

What things to you dislike at the place you train? A little too "relaxed." I'm a traditionalist and they talk a lot during class. I wish they would bow in, and get to work instead of chatting away.

Is it too far away from where you live? I travel 40 minutes to work one way, and the dojang is right there, so it's not really that bad.

Does it have very bad training hours that dont match your schedule? I don't like the hours. I get off of work a 3pm, and class doesn't start till 6:30pm. I'm not going to drive 40 minutes home, then back again, so I just hang out somewhere near work for 3 hours .... boring.

Does you Dojo(Dojan,gym etc) offer everything you are looking for are do you have to go to different schools in order to obtain what your looking off. For the most part. ITF TKD, and a bit of jujitsu thrown in. But I do jujitsu on the side (I started that before I attended this school).

Is is it a fun, friendly and safe environment or do you find yourself racing to your car after class is done? Very much so (friendly and safe). We cover most of everything in class (forms, self defense, sparring and/or grappling, and basics). The only frustrating part is WAITING for class, but once I hit the floor, I have a ball.

 

[searcher]

What things do you like about the place that you train?
Well for me being the instructor I can say that having the chance to set the hours and my choice of location are very good. I like that I have trained in multiple styles and I can bring that to my students. I have a great core of students and the best assistant instructor that I could ever ask for, My Wife. I love that I can go and train at other schools and in other arts and still have the chance to pick the techniques apart with my students.

What things to you dislike at the place you train?
I would like to have more students that were serious and dedicated, no matter how big your core is you always want the "perihpery" students to be as dedicated. I have to many students who are in other activities and they don't devote enough time to training. Time is limited to one hour per class, I have so much I want to cover in each class and it seems like there is never enough time.

Is it too far away from where you live?
Two blocks from my house for My School.

Does it have very bad training hours that dont match your schedule?
Not bad hours for me and we try to accomodate for different work schedules.

Does you Dojo(Dojan,gym etc) offer everything you are looking for are do you have to go to different schools in order to obtain what your looking off.
I am trying to bring as much to my students as I possibly can, but I don't have enough time in the week to give them everything that they could ever want. I would like to think I give them enough variety that they are content, but who knows.

Is is it a fun, friendly and safe environment or do you find yourself racing to your car after class is done?

We try to be strict while maintaining a relaxed, fun atmosphere. After having trained in some very nasty schools I try to make everything as safe as possible, but I will not have a bunch of students that cannot take care of themselves. After all, we are training in a "combative" art. The streets are not safe and so I try to prepare them for that. But if they are injured from training it will limit their ability to defend themselves.