Charles Bland Sensei 5th dan demo

Bland-sensei performed a go-dan (5th degree) demo at Aikido of San Leandro on 2026, August 22nd under the direction of Patricia Hendricks Shihan.

Ukes: Keith Fink, Tyffany Stipetic, Noah Levine 

2025 Patricia Hendricks Shihan Colorado Seminar

Join us for a seminar lead by Patricia Hendricks Shihan, 7th dan in Denver CO. Dates are June 6, 7, and 8th 2025.

More information and registration

See you on the mats!

11 Years and New Dojo Space

This week we celebrate 11 years as a dojo. And it happens to coincide with our recent move to a new space which we are cohabitating with Denver Aikikai and Denver Ki Aikido. Our new address is: 

1195 S Lipan St, Denver, CO 80223

The entrance to the dojo is behind the building, so park on Arizona street and you're right there. Our class schedule remains mostly unchanged except for Monday which will be the same time slots as Friday: 5-6 open-hand, and 6-7pm weapons. 

We are considering the possibility of an all weapons practice once a month on Saturdays for students interested in refining their knowledge of Iwama aiki-ken and aiki-jo. 

We're looking forward to our new venture and hope to see you on the mat soon!

Kinjo Dojo Schedule for the week of Feb 19-26, 2024

Tyffany and I will be in San Leandro attending the 40th anniversary of Hendricks Shihan's dojo for the week of Feb 19-26. 

There will be class on Saturday, 2/24 taught by CJ.

We will be back to our regular schedule Friday, March 1st.

Hope to see everyone on the mat when we get back!

- Charles

Michael Friedl Shihan Seminar at Denver Aikido

There will be no class this Saturday, 12/2 at Kinjo Dojo. We will be attending the Michael Friedl Shihan seminar at Denver Aikido. 

Info and Registration

Seminar Flyer

Holiday Schedule and Updates for 2024

Always check the calendar for schedule changes, I update that first before even announcing on here or other social media outlets. 

Holiday Schedule 2023:

• December 2nd (Saturday): No class, Friedl Shihan Seminar
• December 18th (Monday): No class 
• December 22nd (Friday): Keiko Osame or Last Practice of the year; we will close out 2023 with training and see everyone in 2024!

January 2024:

• January 5th (Friday): Keiko Hajime or First Practice of 2024. Welcoming everyone back to training in the new year
• January 13th (Saturday): Kagami Biraki or "Opening the Mirror" - a traditional Japanese ceremony common in martial arts schools. We will have training, followed by Embu-kai (demonstrations). 

2024 Schedule Updates:

• Weapons for the week will be for Friday and Saturday only as we are adding new dedicated weapons classes on those days
• NEW Friday hours: 5-6pm (Open Hand), and 6-7pm (Weapons)
• NEW Saturday hours: 1-2pm (Open Hand), and 2-3pm (Weapons). Weather permitting we will have weapons practice outside. 

See you on the mat! 

- Charles

2023 Hendricks Shihan Seminar

 Join us November 3-5th for our 2023 Colorado Seminar with Patricia Hendricks Shihan!

2022 Colorado Seminar with Pat Hendricks Shihan

Hendricks Shihan will return to Colorado for a 2 day seminar on December 3-4th, 2022. Details and Registration info/tickets. 

Open-Hand, In-Person Practice Resumes!

And we're back! 

This weekend we will move mats back into the pilates studio and our first post-pandemic class will be Monday, 6/14 from 7:30 to 8:30. 

For the foreseeable future we will have classes Monday and Fridays (adults: 6:15-7:30) at the studio/dojo, in addition to weapons at Memorial Park in Arvada (Sundays from 1-2pm weather permitting - text the dojo at 720-588-DOJO (3656) to let us know you're coming and/or to confirm we're having practice).

As always, the dojo schedule is online here:
https://aikido.kinjo-dojo.org/p/location.html 

Vaccination policy: be vaccinated. We won't ask for proof/cards/nasal swabs but if you're going to train a martial art in close proximity to other people be considerate. We don't want your COVID cooties. 

What else? I guess we'll see you on the mat! 

- Charles and Tyffany 

Bland Sensei's Yon-Dan Demo at ASL

Charles Bland sensei was recently promoted to the rank of yon-dan (4th) by Patricia Hendricks Shihan. The demo was on Saturday 2/21 and can be viewed on YouTube here:
Part 1, Part 2, Part 3

Hendricks Shihan 2020 CO Seminar

Hendricks Shihan will return to Colorado for our 2021 seminar on September 25th and 26th. Hope to see you there!

Details and registration

Hendricks Shihan Seminar Pics

Better late than never! Here are the pictures from our seminar in June 2017 with Pat Hendricks shihan.

Aikido and Self Defense

Aikido catches a lot of criticism from other martial arts for its lack of Real World effectiveness and competition. This is all well-deserved. I had a thought this morning about martial arts practice, and specifically aikido:

Practicing aikido for self defense is like exercising to lose weight: for all its benefits, the last is the reason you started in the first place.

It's not just aikido. Without stress-testing in real-world scenarios, many, if not most martial arts fall into the trap of narrowing their focus to a specific set of techniques for a specific set of attacks. The Real World is random, chaotic, and dangerous. The dojo is safe and controlled with a set of rules to follow. As a result, those of us who practice martial arts in the dojo might find ourselves ill-equipped to handle situations outside.

This raises the inevitable question: why even bother with martial arts? Short answer, in regards to self-defense: it won't hurt, and it'll probably help, but not how you think.

Martial arts train us to be aware of our bodies and surroundings. We don't see people and environments the same as non-practitioners. There is a raised sense of space, and intuition you don't get from any other hobby or training. Martial artists hold themselves differently: a little more relaxed, grounded, and when something does go sideways, we're more equipped to deal with it. Over time, practicing a martial art also provides a level of confidence. We learn to walk a little taller and with intent, avoiding looking like a victim or easy prey to a would-be attacker.

All martial arts work well within their contexts. Aikido is good for escaping standing grabs or holds by one or more attackers, and some weapon strikes. It fails in groundwork and defending against quick jabs and close quarters striking.

So why not take BJJ (Brazillian Jiu Jitsu)? If I had time I would love to! But even BJJ has its strengths and weaknesses: it's virtually unstoppable on the ground against one attacker, but won't help much if the attacker has a buddy (or several), or refuses to go to the ground (see the last two Ronda Rousey fights where her opponents successfully avoided going to the mat where Ronda was strongest).

Boxing is excellent for striking (and dodging, very important!) but weak in other areas. The list goes on, but I'll bring up one more example: MMA (mixed martial arts) might be the most well rounded as it addresses the three main areas of unarmed combat: striking, standing grappling, and mat work. Criticisms of MMA might include, "focusing on one area is better than trying to cover everything," or that there is too much emphasis on competition. Either way, being well rounded is not a bad thing when it comes to self defense and preparing yourself for a variety of encounters.

I recommend anyone (myself included) who has only practiced one specialized martial art to get out there and try something else. Break out of your comfort zone and be a beginner again. If what you try isn't for you then move on and try something else.

But find something you enjoy and stick with it above all. My aikido teacher, Pat Hendricks recently said in an interview, and I'm paraphrasing:

Find what works for you and devote yourself to achieve mastery, but don't be afraid to look outside your style and see what else is there.

Side note, but related: If you want to learn more on the topic of violence and self-defense, Sam Harris recently had Gavin de Becker on his Waking up Podcast. They discussed a wide range of topics on violence and how to best prepare and protect yourself. Gavin recommended IMPACT training for straight up self-defense.
#90 — Living With Violence

2017 Pat Hendricks Colorado Seminar

Kinjo Dojo will be hosting Pat Hendricks Shihan in CO, June 10-11, 2017.

• Seminar information on kinjo-dojo.org (and registration link)
• on Facebook

Hope to see you there!

2nd Anniversary Embu-kai

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We will be having our 2nd Anniversary Embu-kai on Saturday, November 7th. Come on out and see demos from all levels of Aikido.

Most members of the dojo will be doing short (~5 minute) demos based on the material they are working on. This will include open-hand, weapons and everything in between.

Public Event links are on Facebook and Google+.

san-dan test video

The video has been posted for Charles-sensei's san-dan test from Aikido of San Leandro on youtube so go check it out!

Also testing: Victor (3rd dan), Lana (3rd dan), and John (4th dan demo).

September at Kinjo Dojo

Weapons training with Hendricks Shihan Saturday 8/29

We're back from Aikido of San Leandro and starting up a new month at Kinjo Dojo!

Thank you for your patience while I went out to train for my san-dan test for 2 weeks. Big thanks to everyone that came out to train with Tyffany sempai while I was gone.

Congratulations to Brian on a great sho-dan test Friday night! Brian came out Monday and stayed for the week as uchideshi. When he signed up for the trip he didn't know he would be doing a test at the end, but Hendricks sensei agreed to do it in order to get his official sho-dan processing underway.

Huge thanks to Tyffany who came out Wednesday and did most of the ukemi for my san-dan test! She did some awesome falls which we'll see as soon as the video is posted online.

What does all this mean for the dojo? Most important: with the rank of san-dan I can now test/transfer people up to sho-dan (1st black belt) here in Colorado without you having to go to San Leandro. It also means that we are officially a dojo according to the CAA requirements (Sensei was ok with me calling us a dojo before, plus I would have had to change all our marketing stuff!).

In other words: when I level up, we all level up [insert playstation trophy sound]!

One more thing:
We will be having a 2nd kyu workshop on Sunday, September 13th. Everyone is welcome to attend. We will cover everything we can fit in from the 2nd kyu requirements.

See you on the mat!

Charles

Upcoming Seminars 2015

2015 April 4: Aikido Summit, Denver, CO
Denver Aikikai hosts the Aikido Summit every year at the Buddhist temple downtown. It is a good opportunity to practice a variety of styles and see aikido from different perspectives.

More information (PDF)


2015 April 11-12: Spring Seminar, Collegeville (St. Cloud) MN
Every year Mark Larson Sensei and Minnesota Aiki Shuren Dojo host a seminar on the St. John's campus in Collegeville, MN.

Minnesota Aiki Shuren Dojo, with dojo-cho, Mark Larson Sensei (6th Dan), and the College of St. Benedict and St. John’s University Aikido Club invite you to join us for our annual Spring Seminar, April 11 & 12, 2015, at Saint John’s University.

Information - Seminar Flyer (PDF)


2015 July 25-26: Stephanie Yap, Bismarck ND
from the FB event description:
Seminar is instructed by founder of Aikido of South Florida, Stephanie Yap Sensei, who has earned a 6th degree black belt and the Menkyo Kaiden in Aiki-Ken and Aiki-Jo, awarded to her by the late Morihiro Saito Sensei, 9th dan.

Stephanie Yap Sensei represents Iwama Shinshin Aiki Shurenkai, USA, and is the highest ranking woman in the organization.

Facebook event - Web - PDF

ASL 2015 March

Evan and I are back from a week at Aikido of San Leandro and training with Pat Hendricks Shihan.

Evan did a successful 4th kyu test during the teens class on Friday so congratulations!

Being the only uchideshi has its advantages. Sensei spent all week focusing on the 4th kyu requirements for Evan, and san-dan requirements for me. I am feeling more confident about my upcoming test in August.

I brought back a lot of updates so come on out and get the latest! Since we're still transitioning from another style, the updates will be a constant fact of life for a few years. Not that what we're doing is wrong, but sometimes it is not the current variation of a technique or pin. These are important to keep up to date for when people who train at Kinjo go out to practice and/or test in San Leandro.

Also last week we worked on the 10 kumi-jo and variations. Coincidentally, that is what we're doing at Kinjo this week! Open hand attack will be moro-te-dori.

See you on the mat!

Charles

Ken-tai-jo This Week

This week we're working on the ken-tai-jo forms currently practiced in Iwama and shown by Pat Hendricks Shihan a couple of weeks ago at the CAA Division 1 training.

In the video, note the first (standard) ending of each form as we will be working on the first 3 this week.

Yasuhiro and Mitsuyoshi Saito, 7 kumi-jo

Open hand attack this week: kata-dori

See you on the mat!