North American Links

NEW!

Northwest Koryukan teaches Goju karate-jutsu. We are a certified dojo of the US Goju Karate-jutsu Kai, teaching tradition Goju kihon and kata, supporting the kata's defensive themes with solo and two person exercises. We are progessive in the manner of teaching the traditional Okinawan empty hand tradition.

Located in Ontario, Canada, Kerr's Karate is a dojo that is under the direction of Paul Kerr. As a site which is largely an advertisement for the club there are still lots of nice photos for the club members to check out and enjoy. I had noticed that there are a lot of guys in non-white dogi (karate uniforms). The impression I get is that this club is influenced by other styles and other martial arts, trying to fuse a workable club between them. Having not had enough exposure to karate in Canada, and thus to such marriages in the martial arts world, I have no comment. But I do like the family atmosphere to the site though! Nice work.

A karate club located in Portland Oregon, this is a club that teaches traditional Okinawan style of karate. They are connected with Patrick McCarthy and his organization. This site has an absolute wealth of information, and a ton of articles. I was very impressed with the serious approach these guys take to learning and studying their craft. This organization follows a curriculum of martial arts study which is simply daunting, to say the very least. If you live in the area, these gentlemen would be well worth a visit.

A beautifully designed site, with some recent changes (nice work!). Sadly, this site is still on a geocities location, and as a result has cheap pop-ups and other irritants. It is a most commendable idea to develop global connections between JKA groups and teachers, but I think that someone should spring for hosting this site properly so that it is not confused with cheaper looking sites out there. There is not a lot of information on this site as I believe that the organization is still in the midst of getting everything put together. Good luck on your programs gentlemen, and by all means, as soon as possible, please let me know when you have a more suitable domain and home for the beginnings of a lovely site.

The Academy of Karate is headed by Mr. Hojati and Mr.Claycomb both teaching in California. This site navigates quite nicely, has nice looking images and has a crisp look to it. There are a few pages on the history of karate, and quite a bit of club information. The Academy of Karate also offers kickboxing and kobudo training as well. Interested members in the area can contact the instructors through their website. Nicely done, gentlemen, and thanks for linking back to KTJW!

This is still the home of Jon Keeling, article writer of karate, and organizer of a substantial seminar coming soon. If you are in North America and can only attend a single seminar this year, you should get in touch with Jon. Check this out: www.jkasv.com/hoitsuganseminars.html. Jon is a professional and a perfectionist when it comes to karate. He also makes some of the most articulate explanations about how the body works when it does karate. Always an inspiration, Jon Keeling is a man to read. The guy ought to write a book!

Peter Lindsay is a senior instructor at the FUNAKOSHI SHOTOKAN KARATE ASSOCIATION of Victoria, and a very nice guy to boot. The club in Victoria is called West Shore Karate Inc. This site has quite a bit of material, ranging from the practical to the introspective to the philosophical. Peter is a serious karate instructor who has been at this for a number of years. His site seems to reflect a seriousness to the craft. Peter is also deeply involved in kobudo as well. Should you also be looking for a new home in the Victoria area of Vancouver Island, he is also your guy for real estate too. Thanks for linking to KTJW Peter. Corresponding with you over the last year or so has been a delight! Check out this site.

This link is so overdue it makes me ill to think about it. This is Jon Keeling's site and he is THE dealer for Tokaido dogi. So if you need the best karate uniform in existence, a belt, or related material you simply must call on Jon. He is THE MAN. He is the DOGI MASTER. Seriously, Jon is a good guy and you will enjoy working with him. So if you are a teacher looking to properly clad your students in the appropriate wear, or a student looking to trade up from the flimsy sham of a dogi that your instructor got you to buy, you need to click above.

These two links are particularly flattering. Apparently my research into the parallels and connections between Japanese bushido and French chivalry are of interest to the snooty hoity-toity academic world at large. How is that for a kick to the head? Cool. I knew it was the right thing putting my graduate work on-line. Most people's theses sit on their shelves collecting dust. Mine gets to collect dust AND be referred to by undergraduates looking for a place to plagiarize their term papers. Groovy.

Groovy site for the Penn State karate club and has all the trimmings that such a site needs. It introduces the club, tells its members where to meet and assemble, and has some material for an on-line handbook. Looks nice. If I have any criticism of this beautifully designed site it is the lousy translation of the dojo kun, where they have what every karate club on the Net does with its “Seek perfection of character” blather... There are better ways to translate this material. They also have a recommended reading section where they suggest books that interested students should read. Sadly, they have at least ONE serious glaring omission... (ahem ahem)... Otherwise, nicely done! Thanks for the link guys!

Nice little club site for the JKA of Tulsa. Clean, easy to follow, this nice site links back to KTJW. Thanks for the link! If you live in Tulsa, inquire within.

This is home of the Georgia Karate Academy and haunt of my very good friend, David Gomez. David has been in karate for well over 2 decades now and is a wealth of information on how karate is supposed to look and work. He is also the brains behind the Essential Shotokan video series (which is a MUST for those serious about getting the best videos on Shotokan anywhere) David Gomez is also the karate instructor at Gainesville College (Beginning Karate and a 10 week self-defense program, accredited PE courses for Gainesville College). David is DA Man. If you live in the area, he is the first guy you should call.

Throughout my site, you may find mentions of Ed Otis and his phenomenal work with the Idiot's Guide to Karate, and the must-have Essential Shotokan series. Well, this is the home of the AJKA and it's commander-in-chief at this time is Ed Otis. This site does not have a ton of information about doing karate, but rather, directs students where they may get the information that they need. In addition, this site also has registration and information about their annual seminar. I am going to make it down there one of these years. They have quite an extensive line-up of top-notch instructors who make that annual pilgrimage. If you want to do the karate that top karate guys do here in Japan and still stay in America, this is the place to go. 'Nuff said.

Homepage of the University of Minnesota Shotokan Karate Club. This club is run by Robert delMas and the famous Robert Fusaro. A nice looking site, with smooth navigation, this club seems to be just what you expect from a university karate club -- friendly, helpful, collegial. Almost makes me wish I were an undergraduate again. Thanks for the link guys and thanks for putting together a smooth looking site Aaron!

David Jones is the head of the ISKF for Alberta, Canada. Having had a chance to meet the man a couple times, train with him, and see the man in action, I can say with certainty that he is a very serious karate instructor, extremely knowledgeable, and someone that inspires excellence in his students and colleagues. He is also a very nice man too. This site is quite nice. Go check it out and cruise around. There are some shots of a very beautiful dojo as well. Wow. Should you find yourself in Calgary, Alberta in need to find a good karate teacher, David Jones is the man. Contact him through this web site. You will not regret it.

George Kalomiros has put together a very meaty site here. There is not much flash to this site, much like this one (which I like), and there is a whole lot of content. I spent about an hour looking at all the pages I could. This site is home of the De Anza College Shotokan Karate club and has membership information, and a whole lot of stuff on terminology, testing, etiquette, book reviews, links, kihon, kata, and video, which is available to members only. Good job.

Joe Duncan is the man behind the scenes of this university karate club. Although small in membership this site has a surprising amount of information. Joe asked to have this information posted about his club:

Nice job Joe. The site looks very clean and easy to read. It was nice to browse through the photos too. I am looking forward to the updates when they are ready to go.

Randy Patterson has kindly linked to KTJW and has asked that this description of his site be added:

As for the site itself, it navigates quite well, has a fair bit of club information, and is well laid-out. Good work. This organization also has some connections to karate in Italy. I thought that was quite interesting too. Thanks for the link Randy!

Tony Annesi is the head hancho with this organization. The website is quite interesting, expansive, and has a lot of information on it. There is a section dedicated to promoting the organization and discussing its merits. Located in Framingham, Massachusetts, the Bushido-Kai is a hybrid style of teaching the martial arts that attempts to fuse the best of different schools. Looks like a nice school, and the material is presented very intelligently. I also like the checklist for potential students who are thinking about enrollment. Take a look at it and see what you think.

A self-proclaimed eclectic mix of Shotokan and other aerobic activities Vaughnada Hilton is the head of this organization located in Philadelphia. For myself, I like to see students in the standard all-white gi, but as I get older and more of a wise-guy, I am relaxing my views a little. Vaughnada poses on the front page in star-spangled glory and I suppose that is all right too in some circles. Interested parties in the ShotoBox should contrast and compare to what is available in the vicinity. Thanks for the link Vaughnada!

K. Langley and Arvin Goberdhan are responsible for the work on this site. It is only a few pages at present but is also the present home of the World JKA organization. Imagine my shock at being the first link on their website! Thank you very much for such a kind placement, gentlemen. This site also explores a few of this new organization's aims as well as introduces an Instructors course. Follow this link to get the information you need. I am currently placing this page in the USA section as it seems that eligible candidates for the Instructors course must be filtered through the USA branch.

Cathy Cline, 6th dan, runs the Western Washington Shotokan Karate Club (ISKF/JKA). A nice club site with photos and club information this club does something that others do not. They have a karate cruise. Now, that is cool! Anchors away guys! Wish I was there.

NASKA is the North American Shotokan Karate Association in British Columbia, Canada. I am sure that although at present this large organization is only in Canada at present, other North American nations may soon join these pioneering Canadians, but only if they are extra nice. Sorin Lemnariu is the webmaster behind this site and Yasuo Sakurai is the chief instructor of NASKA. Nice site, with a fair number of photos from past summer camps. I only wish you guys would have updated some of the material since 1999, but I am sure that will come sometime soon. Thanks for the link to KTJW. I really appreciate it.

After over a year this link finally finds its way on this page. I would not say that it is overdue, but rather, the time is ripe for this link to take place. Rob Redmond and I, for the longest time, have had some different approaches to Shotokan karate. But that is not the problem, and never was a problem. Having differences is natural. Having differences is good. Differences help us flesh out our own thinking, and when articulated well, and gentlemanly, tremendous growth can take place when we contrast our own ideas and thinking against that of other people.

For the longest time I felt that the methods in which discussion takes place at Rob Redmond's site was too harsh for my tastes, and that I wanted to have a gentler approach to how to discover truth about me. But now I am glad to have such sharp-witted and insightful people around. I am grateful for it, and I am grateful for the environment provided where one must make a stand on what one thinks, and while doing your best to support it, must also trust in the constructive criticisms of others. Maybe I have changed in my ideas and opinions. This is probably both good and natural. Maybe Rob Redmond has changed too, but that is not for me to say. At any rate, I am delighted to have this link on my site, and I am very glad to have more regular correspondence with one of the most influential people in the karate world to bounce my ideas off of.

It would be stated too plainly to say that http://www.24fightingchickens.com is the biggest and most popular karate site in the world. Shotokan Planet is the big kahoona of karate sites, has tons of articles, book reviews, extensive kata research, a very dynamic forum, is host to Shawn Jefferson's Kata Analysis, and represents thousands of hours of dedicated work and research. It also attracts some of the smartest people inside and outside traditional Shotokan organizations.

So for this update, there is only one link, The Shotokan Planet. If you have not checked it out, you need to come out of your cave and go investigate this further. The Shotokan Planet is also host to a very active forum, but be advised to read the User's Agreement carefully as the forums are policed very meticulously to ensure that the most focussed, and thus beneficial, discussions can take place.

A Shotokan karate site in the United States. Home of the Shotokan Karate Do Academy of New England. A very nice site with great graphics, navigation, and content. Very smooth. This site seems to have a very nice community focus, something which karate should focus on more.

Cory Searcy has designed an extremely articulate and sensible syllabus for teaching karate and takes his students step-by-step through karate fundamentals in logical order. Where many classes may languish because the instructor may not know how to plan classes, Mr. Searcy has the answers for how to teach. If you are an instructor you need to go to his site. If you are a student, you should go and see the kinds of things you should be learning.

Jon Keeling, a karate instructor that has spent a number of years training in Japan has written many excellent in-depth articles regarding Shotokan training, customs, and technical matters. His excellent site is well worth your time to check out and read carefully. Jon is a very approachable and articulate man, and is well respected in Shotokan circles around the planet.

Managed by Joel Ertl, this web site is primarily designed for the promotion and sale of Shotokan videos. In addition, Joel Ertl has a whole bunch of karate articles on his site, as well as a pile of karate links. I have not seen the video work that he and his partners have done, but they guarantee their work, so it is worth while checking out.

This site is home of the MIT Shotokan Club. This site has some wonderful elements on the web which I have not seen elsewhere. There is an Etiquette and Rules section that has nice sound files for you to hear what Japanese sounds like. The instructions are also excellent. A very nicely designed site. So far there are two chapters, one on History, another on Etiquette. I am waiting to see what will come in Chapter 3. Nice work.

Facilities on the University of Missouri campus, the Budo Symposium brings martial art and research together once a year for discussion, debate, and demonstration. This looks very interesting to me, especially since my graduate studies focus particularly in this area. Go and see what they have to offer. This may be a great opportunity to meet and mingle with people of different martial arts styles and disciplines as well.

Norm Robitza and Brad Carruthers maintain this Shotokan karate site. Located in Nova Scotia, this nicely designed and highly informative Canadian site is another great place that promotes Shotokan karate. David and Janice Pyke are the instructors at this ISKF site. If you are in the Maritimes and looking for a place to train, drop these nice folks a line.

Managed by Angie Van Heel, this excellent resource for women in karate is a must visit. Although Angie has said that there is still much to do with her site, her efforts to date are great. I think that this is one of those sites that is going to really take off. Extremely personably and friendly, Angie Van Heel has put together the foundations of a very exciting project. Highly recommended.

Hanshi Cruz is the head of this organization, the International San Ten Karate-Do Association (ISKA). He is also a gentleman with more than four decades of karate experience. The site looks very good and has a very strong sense of maintaining traditions within karate. The ISKA also has two seminars that it organizes during the year, one is a two-day seminar with Master Nishiyama, and the other is a three-day summer training camp. Go to this site for the details and inquire within.

Site of Stanford University Shotokan. A very nice looking site, beautiful colors, and smooth navigation. This site also has a very nice collection of video material for the Shotokan kata that you can download and take a quick peek at. The video collection also includes Jiin, Wankan, and Meikyo. Very nifty. Very cool. George Candea has been kind enough to put me on to this site and it is worthwhile for you to go and take a look at it.

The Shotokan Karate of Palm Beach club is run by Errol D. Mahoney. This site is a club site and very nice in that there are a ton of pictures of the club and the students. I like that. The site has a very nice family and community feel to it. I enjoyed the many pictures of kids doing karate with their parents looking on. The Shotokan Karate of Palm Beach is a member of the South Atlantic Karate Association (SAKA). Nice site.

Linda Brown in the manager of this site for the 3M Karate Club. This site has a nice layout and a lot of karate information for its members. They have several courses for kids, adults, and a self-defense course. Connected with Robert Fusaro, Joel Ertl (featured in the video review section of this site) and the ITKF. The pages of this site use a lot of variation in the layout and there are nice club photos throughout. Nice work, Linda.

Ken Larkman is the head honcho of this Shotokan organization in Calgary, Alberta. He is also a very nice guy and a fellow compatriot in the ISOK and SRSI. Ken has been doing karate for a long time and is extremely conscientious. His articulate nature shines through in the posts he has contributed to our discussions on some of the lists on Yahoo. He is a gentleman and a scholar. As a fellow Canadian, I am very proud to have Ken's organization linked here.

A martial arts supply outfit in Vancouver, British Columbia run by Viv Legge. Catering to the Shotokan practitioner in Western Canada and around the planet. Give Viv a call and see what kind of deals he has for you.

An independent karate club, run by Patrick Hussey, has a variety of karate programs available to people in the New York area. Mr. Hussey also has a stretching program that is available too. Looks very interesting. For further information, inquire within.

Brent Priel, webmastering this site for the Midwest Karate Club in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, has done a nice job here. The colors are clean and the site is very smooth. There are photos to check out, and more promised to come soon. This club, associated with the ITKF, is a karate oasis in the wild tundra of Saskatchewan. Great to see that even flowers can grow in the starkest of wilderness environments. Their website makes me homesick for Canada. Thanks for the good work Brent!

Home of the Muskegon Karate Association. Frank Thomas is the webmaster of this site and I must add here that he has been a very patient, kind and forgiving man. I had neglected to include his site in the last upload of links and am tremendously sorry for that. Sorry Frank! The fault is mine. So now I also need to ask a personal favor of those of you who regularly visit this site. Please take a moment and go to this site and see the work that Frank has put together. Fire up his hit counter! Write a short note in his guest book. I would really appreciate that if you would be so kind. This site has a basic layout, and is used primarily as a links site. It has a kind of newsletter feel to it. The Muskegon Karate Association is affiliated with the American Shotokan Karate Alliance and Randall Hassell (please check out the text he and Mr. Otis have written in the Books Review Section of this site).

This website is one that is devoted not only to karate, but to the wide pantheon of karate deities that may be served. Nicely put together, smooth navigation, this site might be one that is fun for you to cruise around to familiarize yourself with martial arts outside of karate. Enjoy!

Normally, KTJW does not endorse commercial sites. It just goes against the grain. But what also goes against the grain is paying way too much for your Tokaido karate gi. Jon Keeling can help you out with that. If you are looking to save a few pesos, and also want to support one of the smartest guys in Shotokan karate in the Western hemisphere, go and talk to Jon about what he can do for you. While you are out shopping for a snazzy new gi, also check out Jon's website which has the most articulate articles on karate found anywhere. Bar none.

This is Randall Hassell's club and organization. For those of you who do not know the man, he is also the author of Shotokan Karate: Its History and Evolution, as well as co-author with Edmond Otis in the Idiot's Guide to Karate. http://www.damashi.com is home of Randall Hassell's publishing company which has produced some excellent texts, among them, Elmar Schmeisser's book on the Tekki kata. Check out these sites to investigate further.

A nice looking club site, complete with basic instructions and guidelines to beginners to the club. Headed by Phillip Thompson, this club seems to have a nice emphasis on safety for kids in doing kumite. I liked seeing that. It is really important for those little tykes to have head-gear on and protective hand and foot gear. Nice stuff. I also liked the information on judging too. That probably helps parents figure out what the heck is going on during tournaments. The only thing that I did not like about this site is that although it is nicely done, the pop up advertisements and junk trying to sell me things I don't want is irritating. Websites are not that expensive to have hosted. I would suggest taking the site fully into your own hands and punting would-be `sponsors'.

Home of the Ann Arbor Karate club in Michigan and run by Morris Lawrence III. A clean looking club site with a whole lot of pictures. This club looks a little on the small side, but wonderful things can come in small packages. I enjoyed poking around and seeing the same folks in a whole lot of different shots. Nice site.

Ricky Kleinsmith put together the Meibukan Goju-Ryu Okinawan Dojo website here. I surfed around it and enjoyed my visit. Pretty cool. The navigation for the site is all on the left side and is in different Japanese characters. Hold your cursor over each character to see what is behind each one. The site has some interesting stuff. A History of the style by Wade Chroninger, a couple of kata with embusen (with warnings that pop-up that you cannot learn kata through a website!), and some pages that give definitions and explanations of some terminology relating to training methods. Nifty. Check it out.

A fun site full of, well, karate tips. This beautifully designed site is a labor of love, and it shows. Although relatively new in developing content there is a surprising breadth in terms of material available to students and teachers of karate. There is also a nice breadth of contributors in articles and material, unlike this site where you get to read mostly only my stuff all the time. The karate tips are brief, but interesting and the articles worthwhile. This site is also developing its own forums and chat room. Tons of stuff here, and a lot of potential. This is a site to watch.

If you would like to talk about exchanging links with Karate The Japanese Way, please feel free to contact me at mark@karatethejapaneseway.com. Content should be karate based and primarily for the purposes of education or providing resources and instruction for beginners to karate.

North American Links

Copyright Notice