Help finding dojo in St Louis area?

[Rocket]

All,

I'm a Hakko-Ryu/Kokodo jujutsu practitioner and am looking for a traditional jujutsu dojo in the St Louis area. I actually live on the Illinois side of the Mississippi River in O'Fallon, IL. Any help is appreciated.

Roy J. Hobbs

[Mark Barlow]

Doesn't Dave Lowry live in that area? It might be a good idea to contact him via his website and get his input.

[Rocket]

Mark,

Thanks! I do that.

Roy

Roy J. Hobbs

[Rocket]

Mark,

Oops - Fat fingered the keys. Meant to say: "I'll do that."

Roy

Roy J. Hobbs

[Mark Barlow]

Roy,

I'm not really up on the different Hakko-Ryu groups but I've enjoyed what little I've seen of the style. I've also had the opportunity to train with Palumbo Sensei a few times and he's not only an outstanding instructor but a heck of a nice guy.

Good luck with your training.

Mark

[Rocket]

Mark,

I first met Dennis in the early 80s. Had him over to my place for dinner. He was doing his Shihan Kaiden Sandaikichu at the Hakko-Ryu Hombu at the time. Have only bumped into him a couple times since then. Glad to hear he is doing well.

I got into Hakko-Ryu in 1965. My first instructor was Carl Miller who also taught us Judo. We were all part of the Hakko-Ryu Martial Arts Federation (HMAF) which was jointly headed up by Okuyama Ryuho (Hakko-Ryu Ju-Jutsu) and Kuniba Shogo (Shito-Ryu Karate). Later I also studied Hakko-Ryu and Judo with Dr. Roy Creasy, to be followed by Hakko-Ryu with Clement Reidner and James Benko. Eventually had a couple assignments to Japan and studied at the Hakko-Ryu Hombu. My main teacher there was Irie Yasuhiro, but I also studied a good bit of time with Okuyama Soke Nidai and Segawa Sensei. We called Okuyama Soke Nidai "Waka Sensei" in those days. When Irie Sensei split from the Hombu after Okuyama Soke Shodai's death I went with him. He was my teacher after all.

"Rocket"

Roy J. Hobbs

[Mark Barlow]

Roy,

You've had some great training. If you're ever down on the Gulf Coast, please visit. It's always a pleasure to workout with the real deal.

Mark

[Rocket]

Mark,

Thanks for the invitation. I was actually stationed at Hurlburt Field, Fort Walton Beach, Florida from 1995 to 1997. Taught kobudo/kobujutsu at Ed Erb's Shotokan dojo there. Would love to vist the area again some time. Wonderful beaches.

"Rocket"

Roy J. Hobbs