Seeking advice on NY Seibukan Dojo

**babo78** · Posted On: 9/09/2005 4:39pm

To All,

I have been searching forum here and on web for few days regarding NY Seibukan dojo (Chief Instructor: Dennis H Fink) which teachs Isshin-Ryu karate and Sosuishi-Ryu Jujitsu. Website is the following.

http://www.nyseibukan.com/

I'd greatly appreciate any advice or insight about this dojo and personal recommendations for any style of MA schools (No TKD, please) around Little Neck, NY. Thank you for your time.

**TehDeadlyDimMak** · Posted On: 9/09/2005 5:46pm

NO. don't attend this school
they advocate
- Vertical punches
- Thumb over top of fist rather than wrapped
- Hit and run attack methods (kick! run away. come back. gauge. kick! useless)
- traditional kumite over hard sparring
among other things. You're better off just joining any kickboxing club you can find.

**Gypsy Jazz** · Posted On: 9/09/2005 6:19pm

I'm in Great Neck, quite literally one town over from Little Neck. I can't personally judge that place because I've never been there. Most of the time if it looks and smells like bullshido, chances are it is. There are of course exceptions.

I have however visisted two schools in Little Neck that were both bad. The first was http://www.ngaikido.com They are not only the typical Aikido limp noodle drills type place, but also they lied to me straight out, which bothered me immensley. They told me the reason that they trained that way was so that nobody would get injured, and that nobody ever had. I talked to someone else watching who literally seconds earlier had told me she had badly strained a tendon in her leg.

The other place I visited was Ben Hur Tae Kwon Do and Hapkido. See here.
http://www.bullshido.net/modules.php...wreview&id=155

There are quite a few places in the area I know of. It really depends how far you want to travel though because I don't want to spend hours digging up old addresses all for naught. I recall that I found some places in floral park, new hyde park, great neck, manhasset. Of course I did all this research not knowing how to drive, so very few of the places I found actually applied to me.

**babo78** · Posted On: 9/10/2005 7:19am

To TehDeadlyDimMak,

Thanks very much for your info.

To Gypsy Jazz,

Yes, I read your review about Ben Hur TKD/Hapkido and also the thread about LI schools. It was really good, because I was actually considering ngaikido & ben hur since it was like 5 min from my house and saved me the trouble. Right now, I'm primarily looking for dojos close by Little Neck and that has classes starting after 7:30ish pm because of my work schedule. Oddly enough, TSK at Great Neck is looking quite good. Thanks for your advice.

**Te No Kage!** · Posted On: 9/10/2005 7:54am

No Judo schools?

**Te No Kage!** · Posted On: 9/10/2005 8:05am

Dude, don't tell me you can't make a quick drive to Queens......

http://www.martialartsny.com/queens.html

I'd check out this place

http://www.themartialartsstudio.com/

**Te No Kage!** · Posted On: 9/10/2005 8:08am

or this place in Ozone Park www.krystekjudo.com

**babo78** · Posted On: 9/10/2005 10:37am

To Te No Kage!,

I'm ok to train with any MA except most TKD (just personal preference). Problem is that I work (m-f) at exit 49 on LIE and I don't get off until 6:30~7:30 pm most of time except fri. So if you throw in the lovely LIE rush hr traffic and soon the winter weather. I can't make it to most schools further out in Queens. As for schools in LI, weekday is fine because of my work location but on wkends I have to head toward NYC for my academic studies.

Since Forest Hills isn't too far out and on way to City for wkends. I was considering MA studio along with NY Seibukan, but MA studio schedule was 8-9pm while NY Seibukan was 8-10pm. But with recommendations/personal time I got, I decided to pass on both schools.

Thank you very much for your thoughts and time. Especially for http://www.martialartsny.com/queens.html link.

**Gypsy Jazz** · Posted On: 9/10/2005 12:20pm

Nice to hear that I helped out some.

If you're not already aware, if you continue down northern blvd from the aikido place (right across from the all-night diner) towards great neck maybe a block, block and a half, there's a JKD place right there. I'd been meaning to check it out before I settled on the TSK in Great Neck. But after leaving 2 messages on their answering machine, and never getting a reply, I felt like they just didn't care. The site is www.nymaa.com Just from looking around a bit it feels like they're doing some major Bruce Lee nuthugging. I really couldn't judge for sure, but it sounds like they're much more into teaching Jun Fan as a style rather than JKD as a way.

Also on northern blvd is this place called JMK group inc. I have no idea what they teach and I am really quite curious as I've seen them in the phone book, but never seen any website for them. I have also never seen the place in all the times I've been on northern. http://newyork.citysearch.com/profile/7312210 for phone # and such. With their mysterious ways, they're bound to be excellent ninjas! It's quite likely that they're a Kumdo place, considering that it's the only vaguely martial art related establishment in that area.

The Great Neck TSK is only a few minutes down the road from any of the aforementioned places. It's a bit pricey, and a total mcdojo, but it's also a totally legit place to train. I've been out of it for about a month now, so I really couldn't say who is training there at the moment, but the crowd there is generally quite friendly. I don't know how it is for you in terms of travel time, but there is also a TSK in Bayside, which depending on where in Little Neck you live, could be closer. If you're near the Aikido place and Ben Hur though, I'd think that due to traffic, the TSK in Great Neck would be closer. Check it out at www.TSK.com (also some free fight videos if you want to kill some time)

Best of luck.

**NYBUDOKA** · Posted On: 4/02/2008 3:08pm

I realize this reply is years over due. I was just directed to it, and felt it was appropriate to address it. The New York Seibukan's Chief Instructor is Dennis Fink Sensei. He is Ku Dan in Okinawan Isshin-ryu Karate-Do, and he has been recently graded as Menkyo, (Menkyo Kaiden) in Sosuishi-ryu Jujutsu by the 16th inheritor of the Ryu Manzo Shitama Sensei. With the exception of Shitama Sensei, he is the senior practitioner of Sosuishi-ryu Jujutsu.

I am by no means looking to debate with someone who has no knowledge of the ryu. However I encourage anyone who is looking to learn Koryu, or Okinowan Karate outside of Japan, by a legitimately graded Sensei, to visit the New York Seibukan and judge for yourself. I can assure you both disciplines are practiced, and taught exactly the same as in Okinawa and Japan respectively.

Keeping in mind a Koryu, (Sosuishi-ryu Jujutsu), or Okinawan Karate-Do, (Isshin-ryu) may not be for you, if you are familiar with true Budo, I'm cofident you will be impressed with the quality of Budo being taught and practiced there.

If you have any further questions or inquiries, please feel free to reach out to me at billwilliams@nyseibukan.com I welcome hearing from you.

Respectfully,

Bill Williams
Yonmokuroku, Sosuishi-ryu Jujutsu
Yondan and Renshi, Isshin-ryu Karate-Do