i want to learn a japense sword art

[samuraiblake]

i wnat to learn one but im 13, how old do you have to be to start.


and if i can, my mum wont let me use a sword, but i really want to. what should i do? i might try kendo. if i cant convince her.

[Charles Mahan]

How old you need to be to start depends entirely on the dojo. Different places have different minimum ages. At our dojo it's 13, so you would be in luck. But you and your parents would want to know that it is very uncommon for someone so young to stick with Iaido long term.

Kendo is probably a better place to start. Kids tend to enjoy it more often as there is a great deal more action involved.

The usual way to go about picking a sword art is to first determine what, if anything, is available in your area. Then you will want to do some checking. There are an awful lot of poor training oppurtunities around and some outright frauds. It's a good idea to checkup on whatever oppurtunities are available to you. You can also tell us what city you are located in, and we can make suggestions.

[samuraiblake]

thanks alot you are very helpful. i live in a small town called grimsby,ontario. canada.

i am looking for one in st.catherines,vineland,beamsville,hamilton,or my town. something close to me. i am about an hour away from toronto. maybe an hour and a half. i found a place called glenridge martial arts academy and it does tai chi karate jiu jitsu and kobudo and kendo. i was interested in the kobudo and the kendo. here is their site. do you think this place is good?

http://www.glenridgemartialarts.com/index.shtml

thanks soo much.

[Charles Mahan]

Apparently that dojo is a member of the Canadian Kendo Federation. They're linked up with a legitimate kendo federation. Should be a good place to start. According to the CKF website they do Iaido as well. More than likely Muso Jikiden Eishin Ryu Iaido.

You will need to speak to the instructor there to determine the minimum age.

[samuraiblake]

this martial arts academy does iaido?hmm, i think ill phone them about age group. but my mom wont even let me join kendo. shes scared about me holding a sword. i want to do iaido but ill never get their. what should i do?

[David Craik]

Unless you do seitei, you don't hold 'swords' in kendo, you hold shinai. She won't let you hold a bamboo stick?

[Dennis Monk]

im really interested in starting ninjitsu. can someone help me find a club in ontario, canada. around hamilton or st.catherines.
Blake, come on. No one here can help you if you won't narrow the field yourself, somewhat at least. In one thread you want to study "ninjitsu", in another you are wanting to take up kendo or iado, in another it was "swords or staff or those things police use". You may still have a broad search going on, but no one here can make up your (or your mother's) mind for you. To do so would be inherently foolish on our part. You are going to have to make more of an attempt to look some of these things up for yourself. Yahoo and google search engines are great tools to find schools. If you cannot find a school of interest in your area, call one that does not interest you. Just because they do not instruct an art that you wish to study, doesn't mean that they won't know someone who does.