Obukan Judo (Portland, Oregon)

**watchman** · Posted On: 2/09/2013 11:58am

Originally Posted by afterthefall

I plan on competing. I feel like I probably know you, what's your name? send in a PM if you want. I've been at Obukan for close to a year now.

You can't get PMs yet. Find me at practice, I'm almost always there. Currently a blue belt.

**Cuddles** · Posted On: 2/09/2013 6:56pm

Originally Posted by Budo_Brown

There's another Judo club in Portland called Seiwakan. They practice at a community center as well. I've nothing but good things about them too. Also, $30 a month. Apparently Portland has some really good Judo that's affordable for most. Where are you located?

I'm in Socal, Cerritos (Somewhat near LA, living 6 miles away from Orange County Judo, which I plan to join after volleyball season ends)

Unfortunately, the martial arts here are very very expensive and equally useless. Karate Kempo is $185/month if you sign up for 2 years (otherwise, $230/month, though they train full-contact and it takes around 10 years to get a black belt, so it's good), while TKD is over $260/month not counting their monthly belt testing fees, which are $100 and get progressively more expensive. (and "trains" no-contact. I watched a few classes and kids are pulled out for making light contact, though they wear bulletproof, shatter-resistant armor)

(Belt testing in TKD costs more for higher ranks. My friend took it for a year, his first ever MA, now he's a red belt and an instructor but can't throw a proper roundhouse. Wha-. In order to take the black belt test, it costs an insane $800 according to him)
Shaolin Kung Fu is an astonishing $300/month, takes around 1-2 years to rank up, and are comprised almost purely of private lessons. Sparring is done light-contact with gloves and a mouthpiece and strikes to the head are forbidden. (Horrible place too)

It seems like you can just call yourself a martial art master and make bank here. I'm guessing it's because this is a "nice" city, where people have money and no one actually fights, so they don't see how good/bad they are.

So a $30/month MA place is unheard of here (especially a good one! Many McDojos and Bullshidos here) and completely foreign to me. (You'll have to travel out of the city to get to a half-assedly decent MA studio.)

I have fought with members inside these respective schools and beaten them (except the Karate Kempo studio where they're used to full-contact sparring). Please note I didn't waltz in and ask to fight, rather I'd watch a few classes and the instructor would usually invite me in to practice. After practice he (or she in Shaolin) would ask me to spar some students, making me borrow equipment from another student.