After Memorial Day, Elkhorn Martial Arts Center is Making a few changes to our summer schedule.
Summer Weapons Classes
Congratulations to those of you who just tested! Some of you now have some green on your belts. At tournament, green belts are welcome to participate in weapons forms and padded weapons sparring; however the ability to swing a staff isn’t suddenly imparted the minute we tie that belt around your waist. The time to start learning and preparing for tournament is now. To accommodate, we’re offering 3 weapons classes all summer long:
- Monday 7-8 pm – Jian/Chinese Straight Sword
- Wednesday 7-8 pm – Bokken (Wood Katana)
- Friday 5:45-6:30 pm – Bo Staff
If you have tested for green stripe, please join us to discover what weapons work best for you. Every student will need to learn and develop a weapons form with at least one weapon. Giving each weapon a try and finding what you like early will only help you on the road to black belt.
For those among us who don’t know which weapon to choose, I recommend you try out multiple weapons. You may think you’ll love one weapon only to find it doesn’t work well for you. I, myself, wasn’t that enthusiastic about nunchaku when I came back to martial arts; however, I found classes with Masters Bob and Audrey to be some of my most enjoyable memories to date.
Each weapons class will consist of 45 minutes of guided practice with their chosen weapon, where you will practice, blocks, strikes, theory, and partner drills. Additionally, Jian and Bokken each feature their own flavor of padded weapons sparring. Additionally, on Monday and Wednesday, instructors will give 15-20 minutes of free practice so you can start work on your own weapons forms.
Tai Chi is Moving to Fridays!
The Tuesday night 8-9 pm class has grown. In order to give Judo and Tai Chi the room they deserve, Tai Chi will move from Tuesday night 7-8 pm to Fridays. Over the summer, the Tai Chi schedule will be as follows:
- Monday 7-8 pm – Jian
- Friday 4:45-5:30 pm – Tai Chi Fundamentals
- Friday 5:45-6:30 pm – Bo Staff
- Friday 6:45-7:30 pm – Tai Shou/San Shou Self Defense
- Saturday 9:30-10:30 am – Tai Chi
So much more
Finally, some of you will be waiting 4-6 months before you can test again in Kimudo. I encourage you to use your time this summer and try some of our other programs. If you ask Master Nick, Miss Amanda, Master Audrey, or any of our black belts, they will tell you how much their skills improved when they started another style of martial art.
There is so much more beyond Kimudo that we just don’t have the time to teach in regular class. I personally found a lot of joy in Aikido, and my efforts translated into better self defense as a whole. Judo could improve your grappling. Tai Chi might help your stances and find that explosive core power. It costs nothing extra to give these classes a try.
Aikido
- Thursday 7-8 pm
- Saturday 12-1 pm
Judo
- Tuesday 7-8 pm
For our full schedule, check out our monthly Google Calendar below.
Amanda and the Perks
Elkhorn Flying Dragons
262-743-2111