I began training in Shukokai Karate in Elizabeth, NJ in 1980 and after I moved to Flushing, NY, started practicing at a self-defense oriented dōjō in Jackson Heights that taught a mixture of Aikidō, Daitō-ryū and Nippon Shorinji Kempō it called aiki-jūjutsu and atemi-jutsu.
My first exposure to koryū kenjutsu was in seminars held by Kato Kazuo in Port Washington on Yagyū Shinkage-ryū heihō in the early 1990s. It turns out I was quite allergic to the red laquer of the fukuro shinai and did not continue my practice.
In NYC, I attended workshops from more direct lines of Daitō-ryū, including Daitō-ryū Takumakai, and came to realize what I had first learned in Jackson Heights, while effective for urban combatives, was an amalgamation instead of a traditional line of practice.
I moved to Maryland in 2001 and began teaching the syncretic aiki-jūjutsu I had learned, first in Silver Spring and then in Baltimore's Federal Hill.
In 2004, after I received my final teaching license, I visited a koryū enbu, a demonstration of classical Japanese martial arts, at the St. Louis Botanical Garden. Schools such as Tenshinsho-den Katori Shintō-ryū, Shindo Muso-ryū, Araki-ryū, Toda-ha Bukō-ryū, and Yagyū Shinkage-ryū were represented. Each of these seemed to have a more subtle and refined method of weapons practice than the methods I had been taught along side our aiki-jūjutsu in NYC.
There, while talking with Ellis Amdur, he asked me what was next for me. I had several friends who had practiced Chinese martial arts in NYC and I told him about my desire to learn Baguazhang, once my skill in jujutsu was good enough. He told me he knew of teachers in Maryland – in fact, he had practiced Xingyiquan while in Japan under Su Dongchen, and was interested in its sister art of Gao Lineage Baguazhang.
Shortly thereafter, I began training in Chinese internal martial arts and classical weapons traditions from Japan, both of which radically changed my perspective on martial arts.
I began a practice of Gao Lineage Bagua in Maryland and also attended seminars in Minneapolis with students of Su Dongchen, whom Ellis had studied with in Japan. Over time, I adapted my aiki-jūjutsu practice to align with my understanding of internal martial arts, which improved it substantially, but I still did not understand higher-level concepts — especially aiki.
Bob later introduced me
to Yin Cheng Gong Fa North America, where he was learning Tai Chi,
and I quickly became interested in their approach to training.
I now practice
Northern Wú [
Bob also introduced me to the leadership at Capital Aikidō, which hosted a study group of Tenshinshō-den Katori Shintō-ryū. I trained there from 2005 to 2015, reaching the level of mokuroku in 2010.
I should have practiced aikidō there as well — Clyde Takeguchi was very helpful to me in examining the aiki I had learned and explaining what teachers of Aikidō had favored those variations of technique (e.g., iriminage, kokyunage, sankyo, etc.).
I was introduced to the Hōbyōkan in 2005 by a former aiki-jūjutsu colleague from Pittsburgh, Michael Heiler, who was learning Yagyū Shinkage-ryū there. I began practicing Kashima-shinden Jikishinkage-ryū at the Hōbyōkan around 2008-2009, when our study group lead at Capital took a military assignment overseas — I wanted access to more regular instruction and was curious what arts related to Katori's sister shrine of Kashima were like, especially Jikishinkage-ryū, which Takeda Sokaku of Daitō-ryū trained in.
I eventually received
a chuden menjo from David Hall in 2018.
In addition to Jikishinkage-ryū, from 2014-2016 and then 2021-2022
Michael and I
exchanged some kata we each knew — I thus wound up continuing
the practice of Yagyū I first began in Port Washington, albeit without
the aka-urushi (
I moved to Seattle in 2016.
I occasionaly work with experienced martial artists interested in aspects of traditional internal martial arts practice, but most of my time is spent on solo practice and visiting my teacher and senior colleagues when I am able.
I did not attempt to join an orthodox line of Katori Shintō-ryū after moving to Seattle. Around that time there was a split in one of the major lines of practice and the politics were too confusing to make a good decision about who I might work with.
Instead I continued training on my own, and eventually was able to pressure test my understanding. I wound up maintaining a condensed practice of some of the kenjutsu I had learned, but outside of formal lineage. The result is mostly centered around the kata of Jikishinkage-ryū and exploring its tactics based on related lines of Shinkage-ryū, but I draw upon my background in Shintō-ryū at times as well to contextualize the practice. Moving in a way that respects internal martial arts principles is an important part of my kenjutsu but this activity is not a replacement for my formal practice of Tàijíquán and other arts.
The Gassankan [