Goals

Many martial arts rely on small joint manipulation to gain compliance through pain and or damage to the joint. In Aikido, we train to subdue an attacker by connecting to and controlling their center (of gravity) through their joints. Though pain may be a side effect, it isn't the goal. We prefer to preserve the joint as a broken one severs the connection to their center (of gravity). That and a larger, stronger attacker likely poses difficulty for a smaller, physically weaker defender when it comes to damaging their joints. But we can manipulate to the point of effective control of their center. Once we control that, we have their own strength at our disposal to deal with them as the situation calls.

DATE CHANGE---Dojo Testing

DATE CHANGE:
We will be having testing on Thursday 10/19 Wednesday 10/18 at 6pm.  Please come out and support your fellow students!

July 2017 Dojo Updates

Firstly, due to summer camp the 7pm class on this Thursday 7/27 is canceled. All other classes will run per schedule.

Camp is upon us which means Sensei will be in Rochester very soon. We run an all volunteer dojo so please offer to help where you can. Please help orient our guests! We will have at least 8 people from other dojos joining us which is awesome! Be sure to avail yourself of every the opportunity to train directly under Sensei.

Last but not least, this month (7/12) we had some great testing in the dojo so don't forget to congratulate:
For 6th Kyu
Alaina Wong-Canissario
Christopher Enoch

For 5th Kyu
Tyler Mills  

For 4th Kyu
Aaron Micheau

Remember...Aikido is best when shared! 
As students we all know how much better we feel at the end of class than when we walk in, even though we are still surprised that even this day could be made better. Your friends, family and coworkers need that, too. Share it! Encourage them to come and try it out for themselves.

Independence Day

In honor of Independence Day this year, there will be no classes July 3rd and 4th. We will be back to our regularly scheduled classes on Wednesday, July 5th. All the best to you and yours and our deepest gratitude to all those who have and continue to sacrifice for the dream of freedom.

June 27th - 7pm (only) class cancelled - There will be a 6pm.

FYI, we will only have the 6pm class this Tuesday June 27th. Enjoy the rest of the evening.

The myth of a fair fight.

If you think martial arts are just for the testosterone enriched, think again. Martial arts are (supposed to be) an intellectual endeavor aimed at giving the practitioner a distinct advantage in a fight. Each of the many styles lends itself to specific a context, some to warfare, some to law enforcement, some to James Bond style license to not have to worry about paperwork, and others to self-defense. But all of them are share the purpose of giving you a distinct advantage. Don't confuse sport with practical application. Weight classes, height, and age classes are all designed to level the playing field to make the game more interesting to watch. In reality, those that would do us harm are smarter. They seek out those smaller, weaker, fewer, and apparently less able to defend themselves. This is why we train. Skill and awareness to prevail over strength and numbers. Martial arts are for all sizes, shapes, and ages. The context of Aikido is self-defense and relies on a near certainty of physics, that the aggressor is big enough to hurt themselves. We don't overpower our attackers, we develop principles and reflexes that convince them to "throw" themselves. Any strength we add is icing on the top and at our discretion to apply depending on circumstance. Come find out why we have the saying in our dojo, "You are the perfect height." #perfectheight #grrrls

Winter Camp 2017

Winter camp 2017 has come and gone but it has left indelible footprints.   In its wake are left clear and unmistakable signs of progress.   We were witness to the graduation of Jason McEvoy to the rank of shodan; a gateway to a deeper level of study.  Alone that would be quite satisfying, however the long hours and decades of cumulative dedication of two of our members were made evident in their sandan tests.  Alan Tamayo and Ray Easton clearly demonstrated their skill and competence in Sunday's testing. 

As Sensei has often said, progress is happiness.  Thanks to the continued dedication of our dojo and especially these exemplary aikidoka, we can be both proud and happy.

Stellaaaaaa! - Wednesday 3/15 - Class Cancelled

Since winter storm Stella continues to blanket us with snow...class is cancelled for this evening - Wed. 3/15.

Hope to see you on Thurs. 3/16 at 6:00 pm to celebrate our great winter camp tests and to present some certifcates from summer camp testing.

Stay warm, stay safe!

March 14th Classes Cancelled

All, 

Welcome to March in Rochester.  Based on current conditions and the projected additional snow fall / wind combination,  let's plan on enjoying a night off tonight.   

Save your energy and be sure to come out Thursday night to celebrate the great testing efforted at camp this weekend as well as provide certificates from summer camp testing.

Stay warm and get home safely, 

-b

Belts and Certificates

Please join us on Thurs. 3/16/17 at 6:00 pm for after camp belt and certificate presentations.

Winter Camp 2017 - Test/Camp Prep

It’s time for camp/test prep!

Winter Camp is scheduled for March 10-12 at The Hun School in Princeton, NJ and that means…

The 2017 winter session of camp/test prep kicks off tomorrow Tues., January 24.

All are welcome and as usual, we will kick it up a notch for camp/test prep classes. Beginners will be taken good care of so don't hesitate to come as well.

Camp/test prep will run for 6 weeks, every Tuesday night from 6:00-7:00 pm with additional prep as needed on Thursday.

As usual, week 1 and 6 will run a little longer to accommodate videotaping of test candidates and review after class. Remember, if you are not testing, we will need ukes of all types, so please come and support your fellow aikidoka.

Camp/test prep has been a long-standing tradition in Rochester which, with your support we’ll continue to enhance everyone's quality of practice.

Thank you,

Marcella and Brian

Congratulations due for the latest kyu testing!

We had an awesome turnout on Saturday (1/14/17) to support and witness the growth of our fellow students and dojo. Please join me in congratulating them on their progress and continued dedication to the art and their own personal development. 6th Kyu: Tom Gilbert Tyler Mills 5th Kyu: Aaron Micheau 4th Kyu: Yingtong (Bobbi) Bu

Dojo Testing Saturday 1/14/16

There will be testing in the dojo this Saturday in the 10 o'clock class. Please come and support you fellow aikidoka! Keep an eye out for details for Senior Testing Boot Camp starting the last week of January.