News
June 20th, 2008 - Our 1st Anniversary
We have been in business for a year already! Thank you to all of the students and instructors that have made our first year a success.
May 1st, 2008 - New Lower Membership Pricing
We have adjusted our pricing to make membership more economical. See the Schedule and Fees section for details.
April 23, 2008 - Grading
Congratulations to:
Mark Ingram - 6th Kyu
David Patterson - 6th Kyu
Excellent grading!
April 2, 2008 - Dojo Reopens @ 340 Southgate Dr, Unit 3. Guelph.
We move into the new location tonight! Classes will resume today! See you there!
March 20, 2008 - Temporary Dojo closure
The School of Martial Arts is moving and we are moving with them. To prepare for the move, there will be no classes from today until further notice. Sorry for the short notice.
We anticipate to re-open sometime in the first week of April. Look here for any updates.
See you then!
March 12, 2008 - Grading
congratulations to:
| Ian McClelland | 6th Kyu |
| Mark Ingram | 7th Kyu |
| Geoff Kerr | 7th Kyu |
Excellent tests for all. Keep up the good work!
March 8, 2008 - Kenshu at Georgetown Aikido
Sensei Mike Klusoczky, 4th Dan is teaching Aikidio From Standing To Flat On The Ground.
March 1, 2008 - Kenshu at Peel Region Police Dojo
Sensei Steve Poplawsky 3rd Dan, Dwayne Balanyk 3rd Dan and Ray Wilkins 3rd Dan host Staying Low In Your Aikido.
February 28, 2008 - All classes are Free over March Break
Come and check us out! Aikido is a challenging and fun activity that promotes fitness and good health.
February 24, 2008 - Grand River Aikido Moves
Due to circumstances beyond our control, we were forced to look for a new location. We have moved to the School of Martial Arts on 115-2 Downey Rd.
John Reel will also be returning to teach some classes.
February 10, 2008 - Children / Family Classes Start again in March
We are pleased to announce that the Aikido Kids class will commence March 8th and are free over the March Break. There is still lots of time to sign up, and since this will be an on going class, new students will be accepted at any time.
The focus of the class is on the children, but parents are welcome to train with their kids. There is no age limit, but a general age category of 6 to 12 years is recognized. Those 13 and older can opt to train with the Adults class should they desire.
Family pricing is available.
March Break is an excellent time to try Aikido!
Grand River Aikido Has a New Home
I am pleased to announce that we are moving to 61 Victoria Rd. South, Guelph. Dave "the Storm" Nash has gaciously offered to share his Boxing/MMA club Inside The Ropes with us.
When classes start again in the New Year, we will be at the new location.
Nov 25th Kenshu - "The Hips Don't Lie"
The Kenshu was a lot of fun as Sensei Jim Stewart 7th Dan, guided us through various principles using the hip:
- Connection
- Posture
- Timing
- Balance Taking
were the hallmarks of the day. We spent the first half working with Suwariwaza Kokyu Ho and developing posture, timing and connection. The first half flew by and before we knew it, it was time for lunch.
After lunch, we worked on using the hips for balance taking and moving through or around Uke's centreline. We practiced various versions of Sokumen Iriminage with emphasis on using timing to capture Uke's balance - a lot of fun. In addition, we looked at various methods of compressing Uke with Iriminage - not so much fun for Uke :-) We finished with some Jiyu Waza using the priciples we had learnt. The day was very enjoyable and the time flew by.
Thanks to all who attented the kenshu and for supporting our new club. Your support is greatly appreciated and we hope to train with you all again soon.
Pictures will be posted in the gallery soon.
Grading
Lee Darke received his 2nd Kyu at Georgetown Aikido on Nov 17th.
Grading
Congratulations to Mark Ingram: granted 8th Kyu.
John Reel
John is leaving the club for the time being to pursue his business and to travel and train in Aikido. We thank him for the time he spent with us and wish him well on his journey.
Orange Belt Grading
Congratulations to our students:
| Chris White | 7th Kyu |
| Curtis McClelland | 7th Kyu |
| Dan Hammond | 7th Kyu |
| Eric Kristensen | 7th Kyu |
| Ian McClelland | 7th Kyu |
| Vince Wesselink | 7th Kyu |
Our First Kenshu
We can host about 30 students in total. There are currently 21 spaces left. Please send an email to reserve your spot.
We are proud to present our first kenshu with Sensei Jim Stewart, 7th Dan and Gordon Blanking, 4th Dan.
Sunday, November 25, 2007.
| Session 1 | 10:30 a.m to 12:00 p.m |
| Lunch | 12:00 p.m to 1:00 p.m |
| Session 2 | 1:00 p.m to 2:30 p.m |
| Theme | "Moving from the hips" |
| Cost | $15 per session or $25 for both |
Our mat space is 54 tatami arranged 9 * 6 (58.5 ft wide * 19.5 ft long) which works out to roughly 1140 Sq Ft of mats.
We are in an arena hall . Change rooms consist of washrooms for both Men and Women. The stage area can be used to store bags etc.
Bottled water will be available at $1.00 each. We don't have facility for a water cooler.
If you are planning on attending, please send an email to dojocho, so we can determine if we need to limit the attendance.
Our First Grading
Congratulations to our students:
| Chris White | 8th Kyu |
| Curtis Mc Clelland | 8th Kyu |
| Dan Hammond | 8th Kyu |
| Eric Kristensen | 8th Kyu |
| Fred Ekema | 8th Kyu |
| Ian McClelland | 8th Kyu |
| Vince Wesselink | 8th Kyu |
Aikido for Kids Program
Starting Sept 10th and running until Nov 28th, we are offering an aikido based program for Youth 8-14 years. This program will run 12 weeks and includes a belt test at its completion. We will offer a 12-week program on a quarterly basis. Check this site for details each quarter.
We Are Moving
As of Sept 10th, 2007 we will be relocating to the Elora Community Centre. 60 St David St, Elora.
Monday Classes
Starting Monday August 6th, we will officially have 2 classes per week. Despite August 6th being a Civic Holiday, class will still run on this day.
More Mats!
We now have about 1160 square feet of mats. This means that we now have almost 3 times the mat space we had before. Lots of room to train, and we now have space to take on more students!
Grand Opening
Our grand opening was a success. Thanks to everyone for coming. Due to the large amount of interest in Yoshinkan Aikido, we are already looking at expanding the mat space to accommodate more students.
I would like to thank Bonsai Martial Arts and Sensei Sharon Champagne for welcoming us into the community and providing the opportunity for our dojo.
Regular classes will commence the following Wednesday June 20th @ 8:30PM.
For more information please email: Dojocho