Traditional Okinawan Karate
Proud to be a member of the United Ryukyu Kempo Alliance

-- Announcements --

Date: 7/11/04
  • For future announcements, go to the message board announcement forum. It's easier to just post information there than to fiddle with an HTML file.
    Date: 7/5/04
  • Added sai photos
    Date: 7/4/04
  • Happy Birthday America! We are THE Greatest Country on the Planet!
    "Thus may the 4th of July, that glorious and ever memorable day, be celebrated through America, by the sons of freedom, from age to age till time shall be no more. Amen and Amen."
    --The Virginia Gazette, 1777
  • Click here for information on our Independence Day
    Date: 6/28/2004
  • Updated Naihanchi Shodan no Kata video.
    Date: 6/24/2004
  • Message board is up and running. Feel free to register and join in the discucssions.
  • My ISP is experiencing some difficulties. Access from time to time may run a little slow.
    Date: 6/19/2004
  • Currently working on getting some chat forums setup. Go here to see the forums.
    Date: 6/18/2004
  • Wow! I didn't realize that Bravenet counter created pop-ups until just now! Well, needless to say, I nuked it. I get no revenue from this site and don't see why Bravenet should. Phpthphtphtpthpht and all that.
    Date: 6/16/2004
  • Attended the United Ryukyu Kempo Alliance Summer Camp 2004 over the weekend. Met some really nice folks and formally joined up as a member. Was lucky enough to walk away with a couple of new kata including the nunte-bo (thanks Depue Shihan!) If any of you URKA members happen to pass through North Dakota, remember you've got a friend up here!
    Date: 6/14/2004
  • "Fixed" the jo kihon kata again. Currently posted version utilizes MPEG-1 encoding rather than MPEG-2.
  • Unbanned everyone. We'll see how it goes.
    Date: 6/5/2004
  • Banned a couple of people from accessing the karate portion of this server due to excessive downloads.
    Date: 6/2/2004
  • I've been reading the book Tennozan by George Feifer and came across an interesting tidbit. On page 70 with respect to the invasion of the Ryukyu's by the Satsuma in 1609, he states:
    After three years of imprisonment, the [Okinawan] King pledged an oath recognizing an (imagined) "ancient" dependency on Satsuma, apologizing for recent troubles and swearing indebtedness and obedience for himself and his heirs "forever". A royal advisor who refused to sign the documents specifying those terms was beheaded.
    This reminded me of something I read in Taika Seiyu Oyata's book, Ryu-Te No Michi (page 2-6):
    My bloodline goes back to the Zana family. Mr. Zana was one of five advisors to the King of Ryukyu...He felt Ryukyu should only be ruled by the Ryukyu Kingdom, not under the Satsuma Clan of Kyushu. Since he felt the Ryukyu Kingdom was equal to Kyushu in each of their governments, and because Ryukyu was an independent country, Mr. Zana was executed for his beliefs.
    Mr. Zana must have been the royal advisor that was beheaded!

  • Don't be too surprised if you can't occasionally reach this site. I've been bringing it down in order to attempt to run an Unreal Tournament 2004 Alien Swarm server (without too much luck, unfortunately.)
  • Some good exercise descriptions and downloadable videos can be found here.
    Date: 5/31/2004
  • I don't know what I've done, but looking at the web stats for this month have shown a huge increase in visits. From June 2003 through Jan 2004 (when the server died), I was averaging about 200 hits or so a month. For May alone, I currently stand at over 1200 hits. The server came back on-line on April 22nd. From then until the end of April I garnered 267 hits. Woah.
  • For those of you that are interested, here are the top 5 most popular kata that have been downloaded for May:

    1. Bo kihon
    2. Nunchaku
    3. Sai
    4. Naihanchi Shodan
    5. Chizikunbo
  • Top 5 search strings used to reach here:

    1. karate kata
    2. okinawan karate
    3. karate exercises
    4. kata mpeg
    5. karate belts
  • The top referrer is www.google.com. Probably explains the increase in traffic, although this site was listed there in the past.
    Date: 5/29/2004
  • I hope everyone has a great Memorial Day weekend. Don't forget to display the flag if you have one -- in honor of those that gave the ultimate sacrifice so that we may have the freedoms we are privileged to have today. God bless.
  • Look here for information about how Memorial Day came about.
    Date: 5/23/2004
  • I'm planning on updating many if not all of the videos seen on our kata page. Stay tuned.
    Date: 5/18/2004
  • Interesting stats from my weblogs... Currently, for the month of May, the top 5 downloads are:

    1. nunchaku.mpg
    2. sai.mpg
    3. bokihon.mpg
    4. tonfa.mpg
    5. tanbo.mpg

    Date: 5/16/2004
  • Just for fun, I looked at the old web site and copied the old announcements to the area below.
  • I'm toying with the idea of "garage bunkai". I'd present short video clips or snapshots taken in my poorly lit dojo (aka my garage) of various kata or motions and then present some bunkai ideas or concepts. The difficulty would be in getting a couple of people together to do this -- one to man the camera and another to be the uke. Since class ended, I haven't been able to drum up enough interest for anyone in getting together. What does that tell you?

    Why provide this kind of information for a bunch of freeloaders (aka web visitors)? Good question. I get zero feedback regarding the junk that is currently posted here and when I do see stuff, it's typically of the nature "Your stances suck" or "Your katas are pretty poor." Hey, I enjoy constructive feedback as much as the next guy. But these same people haven't posted any of THEIR stuff for me to view and have the opportunity to critique. I'm reminded of the old lead guitarist joke: How many lead guitarists does it take to change a light bulb? 10. 1 to change the light bulb and 9 to sit around saying how they can do it better.

    What's the point then of running this site? Another good question. There are three reasons that come to mind. First and foremost, when I started this site back in early 1998, there really wasn't a lot of stuff on the web about Ryukyu kempo. I think this art form is about the best there is and I wanted to share that with the world. Secondly, it's provided me with an opportunity to connect with other martial artists that are also interested in Ryukyu Kempo. Being part of a small / non-existant school makes meeting folks outside our immediate group kind of difficult. It's nice to find other people to share ideas with. Thirdly, I get my kicks out of working with computers. Being able to tie that interest in with my passion for karate is an awesome double-plus happy fun time bonus!

    Keep in mind that I was never asked to put this site up. I have never received any support from my instructor for it. Everything I do here is pretty much a labor of love.

    So, have I talked myself out of doing the "garage bunkai" thing? I dunno. If it sparks just one person to e-mail in saying, "Hey! I liked the idea you came up with. Here's an idea it gave me....", then it would definitely be worth it. Hmmmm, maybe the first thing to post will be some bunkai derived from the eiku kata I posted.... Let's see here.....

    Date: 5/15/2004
  • Added a lineage link to the kata page.
  • Added a timeline link to the karate / belt information page.
    Date: 5/10/2004
  • Added a counter to the front page courtesy of Bravenet.
    Date: 5/9/2004
  • Added a new page for karate related exercises.
  • For those of you not aware, Master Seikichi Uehara passed away on April 3rd, 2004. I've read about this from two difference sources but haven't been able to find an obituary yet.
    Date: 5/8/2004
  • Someone posted this on e-budo.com and I thought it was an interesting take on why we do martial arts.
    By recognizing the ritual and sacrificial nature of sport we can understand how it is that competition, which seems to many commentators to be a necessary component of sport, is merely secondary. Man does not run or throw in the first place for the purpose of demonstrating that he can run faster or throw farther. It is an easy enough task to find someone than whom one can run faster or throw farther; likewise it is not difficult to find someone by whom one can be surpassed in these endeavors. Rather, man runs and throws in order to demonstrate that, although he need do neither, he can run and throw.

    -- David Sansone, Greek Athletics and the Genesis of Sport

    Date: 5/7/2004
  • The United Ryukyu Kempo Alliance is having their Summer Camp from June 11th through the 13th. I plan on attending. I'm really looking forward to seeing these guys again! Here is the link for registration.
    Date: 5/6/2004
  • Everyone else is doing it. Making blogs that is. I think I might add a space on this site giving my $0.02 on the martial arts, okinawan karate / ryukyu kempo in particular. This page is almost turning into one... Just need more verbiage and I'll be set.
    Date: 5/4/2004
  • Change of plans. I'm going to be checking out another school on Thursday. We'll see how that goes.
    Date: 5/1/2004
  • I'm going to check out NDSU's shotokan club on May 6th. Should prove interesting. They meet a couple of times a week at the Bentson Bunker Fieldhouse. The Fargo scene is pretty much dominated by TKD schools which I can say for certainty I am NOT interested in. Personal bias. So sue me.
    Date: 4/28/2004
  • Updated the links page.
  • Changed school reference info. Changed some graphics. Made things a bit more generic.
    Date: 4/26/2004
  • Well, class has been cancelled since about January. I kinda feel like bailing and joining another school. Most places that I know of teach TKD or shotokan and I'm not interested in either one of those very much. Bleagh. I'd like to start my own school, but don't want to deal with the b.s. that goes with it. Ideally, I'd like one or two dedicated students that show up and we could train in my backyard. No politics, no crap, just martial arts training. Maybe some day....
    Date: 4/22/2004
  • Holy deja vu, Batman! The server is back up and running. Wahoo! (We'll see how long the fixes last this time around!)
  • My connection speed has increased so downloads should be a LOT faster.
    Date: 11/5/2003
  • The server is back up and running. Woohoo.
    Date: 10/19/03
  • I spent the weekend at a seminar given by the United Ryukyu Kempo Alliance down in Oak Grove, Missouri. I can't say enough nice things about these guys! They opened their house, hands, and hearts to me. A lot of what I learned really dovetails into things I've learned in my own studies and I look forward to studying with them in the future. Thanks to Sensei Barker for providing me with a place to sleep. Thanks to the various instructors (Doshu Shintaku, Sensei Lawson, Sensei Barker, Sensei Williams, Sensei Kinsella) for their kata and technique instruction. Extra special thanks especially to Kaicho Amor for inviting me in the first place. Finally, thanks to Sensei Kinsella for also showing me the secret Swiffer® kata.
  • For any of those folks that attended the seminar, feel free to drop me a line (karate at karate.dhs.org). If you are ever in the Fargo / Eastern North Dakota area, look me up! I'd like to attend Summer Camp next year (with Kaicho's permission), so I hope to see you guys in the future!
    Date: 8/29/03
  • Added equipment photos. Re-arranged setup of gallery page.
    Date: 8/24/03
  • Have WMV versions for all the kata except eiku & chizikunbo.
  • Reformatted the layout of the kata page.
    Date: 8/23/03
  • Remember: if something doesn't work for you, please let me know. I can't fix it if I don't know about it! My logs indicate some people attempt to download files over and over again when, assuming that everything goes right, they should only have to do it once.
  • I plan on re-encoding our videos to WMV format to save space (and your download time!) As an example, encoding the tonfa kata using MPEG-1 results in a file size 17 MB; using WMV the same file came up a little over 3 MB.
    Date: 8/22/03
  • Looks like DNS servers are starting to propagate the change... Woohoo!
    Date: 8/21/03
  • The switch over to the new ISP has been relatively painless. It will take some time for my new IP address to propagate to the various DNS servers out there.
    Date: 8/20/03
  • In the middle of updating the belt requirements to include direct links to the various kata pages.
    Date: 8/16/03
  • Changed the format of the picture gallery after receiving a comment from one of our many visitors. (Thanks Josh!)
    Date: 8/15/03
  • About a week from now or so I'll be switching ISPs. At that point, I'll have to update the DNS records so that "http://karate.dhs.org" resolves to my new location. Expect some connection problems based on my switching and the DNS information updates.
    Date: 8/10/03
  • Added pictures of Taika Oyata taken at a demo to the picture page. Check them out here.
    Date: 8/8/03
  • Jeremy and I got together for practice today and had Josh take some photos of the action. Added a picture gallery page with a link to a new bogu page containing the pictures. Gallery page can be found here. Bogu page can be found here.
    Date: 8/7/03
  • Things are looking good. My ISP has arranged to transfer its users to another ISP in town. I'll be finding out the details shortly. This web site may still be around as this month ends.
    Date: 8/2/03
  • I M P O R T A N T N O T I C E : I will be losing Internet service on 8/31/03. There is no guarantee that I'll be going to a different ISP so this web site may be no more by the end of the month!!!
  • I am in the process of investigating new ISPs. Look to this page for further developments.
    Date: 7/27/03
  • Came up with a new graphic for the name of the artform and used that as the header for all the various pages. Consolidated it into one file to make future updates easier.
  • Removed a few things from the belt requirements page. Replaced code of conduct with dojo kun.
  • Updated FAQ with a new question I've gotten a few times.
    Date: 7/25/03
  • More than one person was having problems with the Jo Kihon video. Turns out I mistakenly encoded it using MPEG-2 rather that MPEG-1 like the rest of the videos. I've re-encoded it using MPEG-1. If you had problems in the past, try it again.
    Date: 7/21/03
  • Put up photos of all the weapons (except for kama) on the appropriate kata pages.
    Date: 7/16/03
  • The bogu gear has arrived!!!! Two short days after shipment from Japan it arrived safely here in West Fargo, ND, USA. I am amazed!!!! Pictures will be posted soon.
    Date: 7/14/03
  • Beginner kid's class in Mapleton is tentatively set for the beginning of September. We'll be attending National Night Out and Back to School days in August. Stay tuned for details.
  • Bogu gear has S H I P P E D ! It's coming from Japan so I'm guessing we'll see it in the next two weeks. Woohoo!
    Date: 7/3/03
  • Don't know about the exact start date, but a beginners kid's class will be held in Mapleton on Wednesdays from 6pm-7pm.
  • Adult beginners class will be on Thursdays from 7pm-8:30pm. The start date for this also has not be finalized.
  • Bogu gear is still in the works. The order will more than likely not be finalized until after 7/10/03. That places delivery in the 8/10/03 range. Ugh. :(
    Date: 6/21/03
  • In an effort to reduce bandwidth consumption and improve file integrity, I've ZIPped all weapon katas. Let me know if you have problems.
  • If you wish to obtain a CD with all of the katas listed on this web site, contact me at karate at karate.dhs.org
  • I have tentative plans to start a karate class in Mapleton, North Dakota. Stay tuned for further details!
    Date: 6/19/03
  • Added a warning to the kata web page downloads notifying heavy traffic leechers that their presence will not be tolerated.
    Date: 6/14/03
  • Added eiku and chizikunbo MPEG videos. Enjoy.
    Date: 6/13/03
  • Updated the main index so that file updates get automatically highlighted. They stay highlighted until 7 days elapse. This should be good until the year 2037 or so. :)
    Date: 6/10/03
  • Things are back up. Had a loss of power bring the server down. Anyone want to foot the bill for a UPS?
    Date: 6/8/03
  • Bogu gear has been ordered. Estimated arrival time will be 4 weeks (7/8/03?)
  • Personal comment: It's AMAZING the amount of people that visit the web pages, leech the kata vids, and then don't so much as leave a comment. Especially the dweebs in FRANCE and CHINA that open 20+ download connections sucking up all my bandwith. That's gratitude for you. For the three folks that have expressed their thanks -- you're welcome and thank YOU for being polite enough to e-mail your appreciation.
  • Chizikunbo video may be coming soon. Hmmmm. Should the eiku kata be posted? I better consider the legal ramifications of that one. ;) We had shot some tape of techniques on the same day as the kata videos that are currently up, but the sound was TERRIBLE so I haven't put that stuff up.
  • Added my personal martial arts book collection to the reading list along with little snippets / scores of each book.
    Date: 6/7/03
    Had a major hard drive failure on the server. Things appear to be back to normal. Email me if you see anything strange.
    Date:5/25/03
    Curious about how people reach our webpages? Check this out. It's a grep of our web logs for the word "search".
    Date:5/22/03
    Congratulations to Josh on his promotion to Kukyu - Yellow belt. Good job!
    Date:5/17/03
    Congratulations and a job well done to the following people for their recent promotions:
    Shodan - Black Belt, 1st Dan: Tim, Kirk, and Brad
    Sankyu - Brown Three: Brandon
    Date: 4/2/03
    Have all the new videos up. If you see any problems, please send me an e-mail.
    Date: 3/23/03
    Currently updating the kata page with some new video that was taken yesterday. Stay tuned!
    Date: 11/02/02
  • Congratulations and a job well done to the following people for their recent promotions:
    Shodan - Black Belt, 1st Dan: Brian, Roger, Shawn, Jeremy, and Patrick
    Ikkyu - Brown One: Kirk and Brad
    Date: 12/22/99
  • Congratulations and a job well done to the following people for their recent promotions:
    Ikkyu - Brown One: Roger and Tim
    Sankyu - Brown Three: Brian and Shawn
    Date: 11/18/99
  • Congratulations and a job well done to the following people for their recent promotions:
    Rokkyu - Blue: Brad, Daren, Hector, Jeremy, Kirk, Martha, and Brian
    Hachikyu - Orange: Ben
    Kukyu - Yellow: Patrick
    Data: 9/20/99
  • Much needed update: Added .MPG kata files to kata page. This includes Naihanchi and Pinans. Step-by-step graphical presentations to follow.
    Date: 3/1/99
  • Made a correction to the jo kihon crib notes.
    Date: 2/28/99
  • Added Jo Kihon description to 'Kata Crib Notes'.
  • Updated FAQ.
  • Tips and techniques are definitely coming, they're just slow going.
    Date: 2/6/99
  • Congratulations and a job well done to the following people for their recent promotions:
    Sankyu - Brown Three: Roger and Tim
    Yonkyu - Green One: Brian and Shawn
    Hachikyu - Orange: Brad, Daren, Hector, Jeremy, Kirk, and Martha
    Kukyu - Yellow: Tony
    Date: 12/13/98
  • Added 'Kata Crib Notes' to Belt Requirements page. Started entering text descriptions on how to perform specific katas to crib notes.
    Date: 12/05/98
  • Added 'do' graphic to "The Way" page.
  • Added guestbook.
    Date: 10/11/98
  • Added the announcements page.
    Date: 9/19/98
  • Updated appropriate pages with copyright information. Updated class times. New logo is up. Belt requirements have been updated.
    Date: 9/13/98
  • Updated school name on all pages. Have kanji for school name in place of the school logo which is still being worked on. Stay tuned. Belt requirements are undergoing updates as well and will be posted as soon as they are available.
    Date: 8/20/98
  • Updated dojo times for beginners. Our school name and logo are currently being updated, and will be posted to the web shortly.
    Date: 5/31/98
  • Posted belt requirements.
    Date: 5/29/98
  • Updated page look.
  • We are currently looking for people interested in our beginner's courses.
    Date: 5/10/98
  • Updated school symbol look on starting page.
    Date: 5/2/98
  • Initial implementation of web page info. My apologies for the lack of information at present.
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    Current document was last updated: Tue Oct 19 00:24:55 2004
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