mcdojo???????

Question

www.warriorsdojo.com is this place a mcdojo? its close to me and ive heard about this place is good

Answer 1

Any school teaching asian martial arts and is run by an a clan of overweight white guys is by definition a mcdojo.

Answer 2

If all you want is an exercise program, or recreational martial arts, then any mcdojo should be fine for you. If you want self-defense, you won't find it at any place but a hard-core martial arts school. And, just because they teach kids doesn't mean it's a mcdojo. Most of the world's great martial artists have started when they were young. We teach kids, and we hardly fit anyone's definition of mcdojo. I think much depends on your definition, too. Usually, the big 3 properties are kids, fast pace to black belt, and contracts. That means, it really depends on your tolerance for the mcdojo qualities. If you don't mind, and you don't have serious aspirations of protecting your self (letting Smith & Wesson handle the details), then there's nothing wrong with it. Have fun! Oh, mcdojos are good business for me. when students find out how bad their techniques are, we get a few of them. So, one man's trash is another man's treasure.

Answer 3

Similar to what many have said here are the red flags in my mind:

1) More then one overweight instructor. If you do the martial arts for more then a few years you tend to shed a few pounds along the way. Real martial arts are a great workout and require flexibility and endurance that heavy folks can't muster.

2) Under "our style" they list the lineage rather then the style. That's great that you think you come from so-and-so but what is your philosophy, what styles do you teach? Also that lineage has many glaring gaps in it.

3) They are a TKD studio yet they use Karate terms for almost everything. In one spot they even offer karate birthday parties. That's a whole can of crud I don't even want to touch.

4) You can see in the few photos they have up that they do at least some tumbling. But TKD is a standing art, there is little to no tumbling in it. Most likely these guys are teaching a bunch of cliches and things they learned from all over with a bit of gymnastics in it to make it look cool. Yes, it's impressive that you can jump over people. Does it help you fight? No. More then that, I'd like to see one of those 300 pound instructors do it. I doubt they can.

Answer 4

In my opinion, yes.

The first warning sign: credentials. You should always be leery of any school that has young instructors (i.e. under the age of 50) with high-ranking and/or multiple black belts, particularly from schools and styles that sound dubious (e.g. "American Order of Combat"). A true martial art takes years to master.

Another sign: any instructor that addresses himself as "master" and insists his students do the same is a pretty good tip-off as well.

Yet another sign: contracts. If they insist you sign a contract, be very suspicious.

And last: although not always the case (but usually), be leery of schools that "self-invent" their own martial art system or style. All the legit martial arts of today did indeed start out as one guy breaking away and founding his own style...but through time & overcoming well-deserved criticism, these styles/schools went on to be widely considered legit. Investigate the history of Judo for a perfect example of this.

They mention that their style is Tae Kwon Do. My suggestion is to find another TKD school in your area from more qualified instructors.

Answer 5

I got into the art that I now study because it was taught at a hall near me, like you, and on a night that I had free, and here is the thing different instructors do different things and have different ideas. Check it out if you want to go down that road but do not hand over large amounts of money before you are sure.

Answer 6

I'm not familiar with it bu a couple of things stand out.
1) The designation Tae Kwon Do Mu Duk Kwan. I'm reasonably certain that Mu Duk Kwan uses the name Tang Soo Do rather than Tae Kwon Do,
2) Tae Kwon Do is Korean. Dojo is Japanese. A Korean school should be called Do Jang.

These may or may not mean anything, but they do raise concerns. I would check it out before writing checks.

Answer 7

Look at the head guy's qualifications.

Google (with quotes) "American Moo Duk Kwan Federation" and you'll see only 5 pages.

Google "American Tae Kwon Do Moo Duk Kwan Organization" and you get nothing.

Google "Order of Combat Budokwan" and you get one website. If you go to that website, read "Our Credentials." Sorry, Charlie, not my style.

Those things raise my red flags.

By the way, I train in taekwondo in South Korea. My studio was founded by a man who learned Moo Duk Kwan style. A bunch of kwans did come together to form taekwondo, so calling it taekwondo doesn't concern me (in fact, our studio's founder will be awarded his 9th dan by the Kukkiwon on Wednesday).

But this guy...he just seems a semi-clued jack-of-all-trades master-of-none.

If you're looking for something traditional, this guy certainly isn't it. If you're looking for something you may be able to continue training in elsewhere, this guy doesn't seem to be it either.

Answer 8

oh, its a Tae Kwon Do place. just because you can trace your training lineage doesnt mean you are any good. my ancestors by blood were nobleman with land and castles. but not me, I have bugger all.

and besides, quoting your training prowess because it links to the TKD originals isnt making an appealing statement anyway.

are you sure there are no other places to train in your area?

Answer 9

Short answer: Yes!

Besides, even if it wasn't you shouldn't join them anyway.
How many "Warriors" do you know?

It would be a waste of time and money.

Answer 10

They didn't really give enough infos, so no I wouldn't trust them. Too many tall talents claims.