I have a question about a school

[Deskins]

http://www.baltimoremartialarts.com/

I'm looking to cross train in Judo and Muay Thai

I don't believe it to be one. I watched a class and I looked for some of the signs of a Mcdojo: kids wearing black belts, 30 year old instructor with 10th degree black belt, etc..

(At least the instructors don't have a black belt in MT) Lol

I'm not sure on the sparring rules, but I saw the students seemed to be sparring pretty heavily.

Thanks for helping me out

[Deskins]

Here's an example of a class. The video is pretty short but it's better than nothing I guess

[CheeksWWAC]

That video wasnt that helpful, as we didnt get to see any sparring, but the gym looks pretty well equipped for what thats worth.

I highly doubt you're seeing anyone 30 years old with 10th dan in Judo, if you are you need to post the name of this instructor because that is definitely bullshido. Double check on rank for us and make sure youre not using hyperbole and youre using credible information.

from http://www.baltimoremartialarts.com/programs/judo/
Sensei John T. Anderson is a Shichidan (7th Degree Black Belt) in the sport of Judo. He has been studying Judo since 1946 while stationed in Honolulu, Hawaii with the Navy. As a pugnacious competitor, Sensei gained many inspiring achievements such as: a 12 time U.S. National Masters Champion, a 5 time A.A.U. East Coast Champion, a 4 time East Coast Masters Champion, and a 10 time A.A.U. Maryland State Champion. Through out his Judo career, he has studied under many Senseis including Takehiko Ishikawa, Donn Draeger, Kenzo Uyeno and Lanny Miyamoto.

Learn Judo techniques from Sensei John T. Anderson as he demonstrates moves such as the compression arm lock, forearm lock, Hadaka Jime (rear stranglehold), uremia (breakfalling), Juji Gatame cross body armlock, Kate Te Jime stranglehold, Kessa Gatame, Kata Gatame (straight arm lock), Tai Otoshi (dropping body throw), passing guard, Ko Uchi Gari (minor inside reap), leg throw, arm entwining, and Uke Otoshi hand drop.

That looks like a legit rank for the amount of time he's has been training (1946).

A lot of places (namely karate dojo's) offer a junior BB program which a lot of us don't necessarily agree with, but just because a place has McDojo attributes doesnt necessarily mean it's a terrible school. You said they train alive and thats a good thing. Do they compete?

[CheeksWWAC]

BTW the lead instructor for the BJJ program is Master Pedro Sauer who definitely has a legit background and lineage. theres nothing about who teaches the Muay Thai so Im not going to dig for that, but so far the Judo and BJJ look legit. They offer Aikido, Karate, and Kung Fu though, which is what Im sure you saw when you saw little kids with BB's. If youre there to train combat sports, they look like they have a good program, or at the least have qualified instructors.

I think you would be hard pressed to find many Aikido/Kung Fu/Karate schools that arent McDojoish but since you dont seem interested in training those arts I think you should be safe at that gym.

[yli]

I know that gym. It has one of the better Judo programs in that area, so if that interests you, feel free to enroll.

[Deskins]

Alright thanks for the input. When I said that I looked for the signs of a Mcdojo, I should have said that I didn't see any. I didn't see an instructor that was 30 years old with 10th dan (thankfully).

[It is Fake]

Title change:
Is This a McDojo

[Styygens]

I have no direct experience with BMAA, but I know the Judo program is something of a follow-on to the old, venerable Baltimore Judo Club (http://users.erols.com/cdp9000/) which was run by John T. Anderson until a couple of years ago.

BMAA has been in business for several years and recently moved to their current location. They've always had an interesting collection of different styles being taught on their schedule, but the Judo, BJJ, and MT have pretty solid reputations around here. If you are interested in any of those programs, I would not hesitate to recommend you check them out for your needs.

It's my understanding that this BMAA Judo Instructor was (is?) active on Bullshido: http://www.baltimoremartialarts.com/instructors/164-2/

Of course, YMMV; with so much going on at the school their approach might not be what you're looking for. For example, they may not have classes with the frequency or intensity you might want. I also don't know how much emphasis they place on competition; although I'm pretty sure the Judo and BJJ students do some competition. You're going to have to ask them.

I have always found the mix of other arts curious. This was new to me:
http://www.baltimoremartialarts.com/...s/fight-craft/

A primary influence of Fightcraft is the practice of espionage tradecraft, which deals extensively with hand to hand combat and draws from various existing systems including: Judo, Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, folk-wrestling, and Bartitsu. Peripheral areas of study include: situational awareness, improvised weapons, urban survival methods, applied psychology

This sounds awfully LARPy to me, but maybe it's a gem. I should round up DerAuslander (to hold my naturally LARPy Ninjer tendancies in check) and go visit a class some Friday night.

Bottom Line: I think BMAA is worth your time to look, but you're going to need to look under the hood to be sure it's for you.