AOK starts Photography Services

Sensei Joseph Claycomb is launching a new division of services at the Academy of Karate.

AOK PHOTOSHOTS is a photography service for MARTIAL ARTS action, TEAM Sports like soccer, softball & basketball, FAMILY Portraits, CAR shows, RACING & DRIFT events.

All Photo Packages will be introduced at very competitive rates with quality, variety and affordability at mind.















AOK Photo-Shot's first DOJO Plaque & Photo Shoot day will be FREE of charge to all AOK Members who wish to participate. Ask Sensei for more details.

Everyone will have the option to purchase pictures of the following sizes including 8x10, 5x7, 4x5 and wallets. Additional large print sizes include 11x14, 16x20, and even posters at 24x30 !

In addition to traditional studio photography, AOK Photo-shots will also provide digital backgrounds and special text effects for those who want to add to flair and spark to their pictures.

TEAM SPORTS:

For those of you who would like to have your child's games and special events covered, based on availability, AOK photo-shots will come to your games and take those action shots that you've always wanted for those ever lasting memories.

KARATE TOURNAMENTS:
As a member of the Academy of Karate, you will be potentially involved in many competitions and tournaments on a regular basis. What better way to capture those moments than with a trained photographer. How many times have you taken a shot that just was not the way you wanted it to turn out? Not enough light, not close enough or too blury?

Sensei Claycomb not only gets the action when it happens, he also preserves the quality of the action!








SPECIAL BACKGROUNDS:
If you like adding different backgrounds to your images, AOK photoshot can help you out. for an additional service fee, You can have your images added to any background.







RACING EVENTS:
Sensei Claycomb is a Fan of Drifting and CAR shows, So shooting this type of action is not only fun but the final products are also very exciting!

Take a look!

AOK students promoted and receive awards.

Congratulations to all of our students who passed their rank examinations this past weekend.

I have seen a noticeable improvement since everyone's last examination and I look forward to even more growth and progress in the future for everyone.

On the day, many people were nervous about their testing but managed to show patience and perseverance to get through the challenge of performing under pressure.

Everyone's techniques were crisp and their KATA were performed with good rhythm and timing.

I wish for all of my students the best of luck and success for many years to come.

My advice to everyone is to keep training and practice every chance you get, even if it is only for a few minutes at a time. Everything you do counts toward your goals and your journey to black belt excellence.

Just remember that If you put your mind to something, DON'T give up and see it through, one day you will LIVE your dreams.

Congratulations to everyone and good luck!

Oss!

Undefeated in the MMA - Shotokan stylist Lyoto Machida

One of the most misinformed views in the MMA scene is that many people are under the impression that martial arts such as Traditional Karate-Do are not as effective as other martial arts in the ring. In fact many think that grappling and kickboxing skills are the standard to a consistent record of success.

Regardless of opinion or preference, it is safe to say that every method of fighting has its advantages and it is the person who can wheel his craft to his advantage vs. another fighter that makes the superior fighter.

Another uninformed opinion is that Traditional Karate-Do is simply a one dimensional art, when in fact it is one of the very first, if not THE "original" mixed martial art of modern times. Not only does Karate-do offer a variety of principles within its teachings, but it is very practical and approaches things from a no non-sense and strait forward mentality.

Karate teaches a variety of techniques ranging from striking and kicking, to leg sweeps, take downs and some basic grappling as it also incorporates joint locks and manipulations as well. All of these techniques were at one point adapted from other arts but are now considered Karate Techniques.

One person who has proven himself in the MMA world is a SHOTOKAN Karate Stylist

by the name of Lyoto Carvalho Machida.

Lyoto is a Brazilian professional mixed martial arts fighter and is the 3rd son of Japanese-Brazilian Shotokan Karate master Yoshizo Machida. Lyoto is considered by many to be a rising star in MMA, having secured victories over many UFC and PRIDE Champions from the likes of Tito Ortiz, Rich Franklin, B.J. Penn and Light Heavyweight runner-up of the UFC's The Ultimate Fighter 1, Stephan Bonner.

Machida is still undefeated in MMA and the UFC with an impressive record of 16 - 0 and is now the current Light Heavy Weight Champion!

Lyoto is noted for his SHOTOKAN oriented style of evasive movement and quick counter striking. Many opponents find Lyoto's methods to be unorthodox and difficult to figure out.

In Addition, he currently trains with such fighters as UFC Middleweight champion Anderson Silva, former UFC Light Heavyweight champion Vitor Belfort, and former PRIDE FC and current UFC Interim Heavyweight champion Antonio Rodriga Nogueira.

Machida's most recent fights were victories over Tito Ortiz, Tiago Silva (KO), Rashad Evans (KO) and Mauricio Shogun Rua (unanimous decision)

Lyoto began his SHOTOKAN training with his father master Yoshizo Machida at the tender age of four, earning his black-belt "SHODAN" at the age of 13. He began training in Sumo at 12 and Brazilian Ju-Jutsu at 15.

Lyoto has won a number of amateur karate tournaments, including the 2001 Pan American Karate Championships. He was also runner up in the 2000 Brazilian Sumo Championships in the 115-kg division. At 16 - 0, his MMA record speaks for itself.

Whenever he is asked about his fighting style, he is always thankful for his extensive Shotokan foundation.

While watching his fights, it is easy to recognize his Karate like methods of attack, elusive footwork "Tai Sabaki", leg sweeping "ashi barai" take downs and lightning speed punching.

Another great skill Lyoto possesses if his ability to avoid shooting attacks and takedowns from other grappling based fighters. These are all tactics he utilizes to systematically dismantle his opponents which has led him to an undefeated record.

Athletes Honored at INNER DOJO Sparring Tournament

Michael Claycomb, Xena Mohammed and Karina Cisneros were the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Finalists respectively at AOK Duarte's Sparring Championships last Friday the 18th of april 2008.

Everyone who participated displayed great improvement and demonstrated tiger-like attitude in their desire to win the gold. Needless to say, this was the best performance from our students and the most entertaining and exciting event we have experienced at AOK Duarte to date. 

It was the 4th Inner-Dojo Tournament in Duarte and the 2nd sparring competition overall.

 

Our next competition will be the KATA Championships on Friday May 30th, 2008.  We look forward to intense and thrilling performances from all or our  athletes.

Don't Miss It! See You There!

Black Belt Magazine Photoshoot

Upon the return from the US Open Karate Championships at Caesar's Palace, Sensei Claycomb was invited to assist in a photo-shoot session at Black belt Magazine with Sensei John Fonseca.

Sensei Fonseca is the Current USA National Karate Team Captain as well as the the owner and Chief instructor of Fonseca Martial Arts . Sensei Fonseca has earned many national and international competition awards, He is the only male athlete in the world to win repeat gold medals at the Pan American Championships, as well as the only American karate athlete to win the Paris Open.

The Photoshoot took about three hours to complete, but after alot of action shots and sparring combination thrown it was all over with. Needless to say, the shoot was a great success and many of the shots came out very impressive.

Look for Sensei Fonseca's Article in Black belt magazine in the next few editions. It will be covering Winning Kumite Combinations for tournament sparring.

Below is a video clip of Sensei Fonseca in Action! Check it out!

Sensei Mark Kupsz visits AOK

Sensei Mark Kupsz of the Burleigh Shotokan Karate Club in South Wales flew in to Los Angeles to visit Sensei Claycomb after 13 years of seperation.

During the time of his visit, sensei Kupsz conducted a few training sessions at the academy of karate in Duarte as well as taking a road trip to Caesar's palace to watch the US OPEN Karate Championships over the Easter Weekend in Las Vegas.



Sensei Kupsz was Sensei Claycomb's First mentor in Shotokan Karate when he started his training at the Awali Shotokan Karate Club in Bahrain back in the 80's.

Now with both sensei's running their own schools, they plan to strengthen their professional relationship in hopes of building an international Karate alliance between the USA, WALES and Bahrain as well as continuing to build upon their friendship.

for more information about Sensei Kupsz's dojo in Wales , just visit their website at www.burleighskc.com

or you can browse sensei claycomb's profile page at AOK's website at www.academyofkarate.net

Tekki Sandan reply on the shotokan way

Tekki Sandan blog from the shotokan way

Here is a copy of a blog from the shotokan way that i replied to ...
so i am only attaching what i responded with ..

The poster wrote:
I'm currently studying Tekki Sandan. I was taught when you do the morote uke, the left hand open on the forearm that you should kick mae geri straight ahead.

I'v seen videos and pictures for example of many JKA Instructors who simply just raise their knee.

What is the general happening here?


My response:
Hello everybody...

I would like to add to this topic from a neutral stand point of view.. although that might seem difficult...

In Tekki Sho-dan , Ni-dan or San-dan.. the kick that everyone is talking about is found in all three Kata. If i am discussing the same kick.

Since the only kick referred to as a fumi-komi to my knowledge is found only once in San-dan on the final sequence with the right leg, twice in Ni-dan on left and right and twice in Sho-dan on the left and right leg all following the kagi tsuki's. going into an uchi-ude-uke.

In kata, the fundamental movements of each technique are performed for the sake of training the body to do certain motions or movements..

I dont personally think there is a correct way or a incorrect way to execute any given technique in any Kata after you have obviously built a solid foundation for the basic movements. Again we are talking about the finer points of tekki not the general idea... I think there are many different ways and all are correct.

I think it is a matter of preference.... the fact that every well known and high ranking sensei teaches a different way, tells us that everything goes back to preference. Some teach uchi-mikazuki-geri, some teach mae-geri and many teach it as a fumi-komi.

With that said.. I strictly follow a committed means to learning.

Since many people have trained with multiple sensei's, myself included, I find it very difficult to determine what is the right way to do anything.. I think the easiest way is to follow what your Sensei says unless he tells you to start experimenting with things. but mean while your brain should be actively looking into it from a different angle all the time.

If at some point you find your self learning from someone else later on in your career then again by all means follow your sensei again.

Learn what you can from everyone whether it be this way or that way. When you have gotten to the point that you are looking for a deeper meaning, then you should simply try to apply each method you have learned and put it into application within your kata. I think that brings out the mental freedom of Kata.

Honestly, I don't think it matters what you do. So long as you are doing your techniques within the guidelines of the kata.

Now if you are exchanging a fumi-komi for a spinning hook kick then I would say you are doing something totally out of the question because it is not relevant to the Kata and has no validity.

But if it is a matter of mae-geri vs. fumi-komi or uchi-mikazuki-geri or Hiza-geri then i honestly feel it is a matter of preference since they all start with identical initial movement from the hip. They all require to lift the knee up to get anything going.

I have been taught Tekki Nidan and Sandan several ways. But if you go back to Nakayama's Kata, I think it is safe to say you are closest to the well.

My Sensei, Toshiatsu Sasaki is an 8th dan and a direct student of Nakayama. Needless to say, I follow his instruction without question.

Previous instructors have shown me Tekki differently, but never with a Mae geri. I have been taught it as a hiza-Geri as well as a mikazuki-geri.. but mostly I have been taught it as a Fumi-komi.

I also think many teach it depending on their own body, level of flexibility, and mobility.

Performing a hiza-geri I think is the easiest. Fumikomi seems much more difficult to do since you practically have to twist you leg out of socket with your hips remaining strait forward while in a kiba-dachi...lol

This takes a much longer time to master and become proficient at than the other ways. That might be a reason why variations came about.
But then again it could all be due to the different Oyo-waza that are translated from the movements themselves.

If you want my preference I believe it is a Fumi-komi because Nakayama taught it that way and it seems to flow better once you understand it and mold your body to execute the right way.

Thanks for the opportunity of this topic..
gook luck...

Oss
_________________
We are what we do repetitively, therefore excellence is a habit, not a single act

True Martial Arts compared to SPORT MMA

I think the original purpose of the UFC was to compare each martial art against another. I also think that it was some what of an infomercial to create another mainstream market which has somehow evolved into MMA.

I like watching PRIDE the most. I feel the fighters are the most skilled and good over all at what they do but NOT anything special when it comes to martial arts.

One thing is for certain though.. not one fighter from any MMA circuit that i have seen is an authority in any particular art . Most fighters are not even black belts in anything.. just highly trained physical specimens. Not normal people. So comparing a true martial artist to a highly trained MMA Athlete is very out of the question.

I firmly believe it is impossible to completely compare any style of martial art to another. It is impossible because they are all so different. An orange is a fruit and so is a banana. Both are fruit but very different.

How can you compare them other than give a personal preference in taste? You can compare color, taste, nutrients, smell and so on but what determines them to be better?

In Martial Arts it is even harder because there are too many aspects to even attempt to compare. But the most common and basic comparison is between striking and grappling.

This is pointless in my opinion. I think in combat it goes to who makes the first mistake in a ring fight that determines who has the advantage to carry on to a victory. If a good grappler gets a hold of you then look out! On the other hand you better look out with even more caution to the great striking artist!!! Chuck Liddell is a good example of a fighter who knows how to avoid getting to the ground and punches the lights out of most of his opponents. He has won the light heavyweight title more than once using good striking.

But I would still not consider a credible authority as a good martial artist. He is a well-trained slugger and pit fighter. Take of the gloves, mouthpiece and cup and use practical martial arts methods in the street and he would then appear to be more normal than we would expect. This goes to any MMA fighter in my opinion.

If a MMA fighter is to depend in his striking ability in the street then he needs to develop proper body mechanics, to know that the quickest way to a target is a strait line and also consider other uncontrollable factors like: no mats, no cage, hard ground to think about when getting slammed to the floor.

I guarantee that any human being will start to worry about the ground after hitting it while getting a concussion because he thought he was still on a mat, in a cage and in a controlled environment.

A real fight only lasts a few seconds. There wont be too much hugging on the ground getting hurt by the asphalt, rocks, glass and other hazardous things you find in a parking lot.. Let's not forget CURBS and PARKING DIVIDERS.

Most traditional martial artists train to avoid being taken to the ground and are pretty good at it after a few years of training.

The problem with people who are quick to judge traditional Martial arts as ineffective have no clue of what it takes to become a skilled practitioner because of their lack of patience to go through the process that it takes to to learn real self defense. So they turn to the sport of MMA thinking it will give them what they are looking for and are convinced of its superiority only after a few months.

Since there are rules in the ring, the bottom line is that MMA is sport oriented and not real combat.

We must remember this point before anything. If it is not a sport, then anyone should be able to get in a ring and fight, scratch, gouge eyes, pull cheeks, strike groin and collapse your esophagus and attack very vital points of the body in order to disable an opponent. Then it is no longer a sport and the risks are much higher. We might as well be in the games in ancient Rome at the coliseum entertaining Julius Caesar himself!

But since there ARE rules, then MMA should be considered a sport that is regulated in a controlled environment. So in short, it should be considered a sport with a combative attitude yet still far from REAL COMBAT.

That does not mean that none of these fighters are skilled at what they do. In fact, they are very skilled and more than amazing.

But to call MMA a mixture of martial arts is blasphemous when there is no standard to the level of any art practiced. No one is even close to being an authority in any art. The Gracie's practiced BJJ. Not MMA. If anyone were to be remotely considered a credible martial artist it would be one of the Gracie's. But to think BJJ is better than other arts I would seriously have to beg to differ. Again all arts provide an advantage in certain situations, but in the street it is way different than on a mat for an hour. Anything can go wrong no matter how good you are and no matter what you practice.

We should all remember the basic principles of true BUDO in the martial arts and what they can offer to us. Not try to knock one art for another.

Of course we are not talking about Mc Dojos and their commercial take of what real training is, only schools of credible and authentic training.

Good training!

Oss!