A martial artist is always, always, always a beginner. Why? Because a true martial artist is someone who has embarked on a path of lifelong learning and has come to realize that you never arrive.

In the past, the so-called “hard style” of some martial arts was in many cases simply foolish and dangerous. For example, wearing your knuckles raw on a makiwara actually wound up having the effect of causing needless injuries and distracting from a “warrior spirit.” Bravado attitudes are the mark of a novice. The path of a martial artist is a path of self discovery, self control, self awareness and service to others. The toughness developed in this path is far more than simply tolerating physical pain.

When I received my black belt my teacher said this…”Congratulations. Now you’re an interested beginner.” That’s what a black belt really means to me. My goal is to make certain that what I’ve been so fortunate to have been given is passed on in such a way that my students inherit a love of learning and the path of karate-do. And then together we learn as a community of practice, a partnership that changes lives and makes a difference.

Well now that I’ve shared a bit about my approach to teaching the martial arts let me share how I arrived here. I am truly humbled to say that in the following summary you’ll see that in the last 20+ years of my life I’ve been incredibly fortunate to have been trained by some of the best in the world. Not just in martial arts, but music, logic, teaching pedagogy, the military, self defense, and business.

But before all that, let me just say this: My greatest training and joy has been from my wife of 12 years and my 5 sons. They are my truest instructors and I owe them the greatest debt.

Me and the Mrs.

Judah and Aidan

Jackson and Sam (Liam not pictured)

The Summary

• Husband of 1 Amazing Wife
• 5th Degree Father (5 Amazing Boys)
• 2nd Degree Black Belt Traditional Japanese Karate-Do
• 27 time Karate Championship Medalist
• Bachelors Degree in Education, Belmont University
• 3 Time World Champion DCI Brass (trumpet)
• Performed & Toured w/ World Renowned Canadian Brass
• Founded Total Integration Program for Business Owners
• Principle Consultant, Beck Consulting, LLC
• Education Innovator – The Galileo Project (9th Grade)
• SPC, US Army, Infantry Air Assault (ret.)
• Keynote Speaker on Innovation and Business Development
• Techno-Utopianist
• Rugged Individualist

Military:

• 29th Infantry Brigade, 1st Battalion, 184th Infantry, Charlie Company (AASLT)
• The AASLT in the unit title, stands for Air Assault. The 1-184 infantry’s wartime mission is to serve as air assault infantry. As an enhanced readiness unit, the 1-184 infantry conducts very strenuous and fast paced training and must be ready to deploy within 90 days of a federal call-up. In fact, the 1-184 infantry is currently the top ranked Air Assault battalion of the 32 air assault battalions.

My Karate-Do Instructors:

• Sensei D. Peacocke – 4th Degree Black Belt
• Shihan B. Edwards – 7th Degree Black Belt
• Shihan K. Iwabuchi – 9th Degree Black Belt (Founder)

Founder (Saiko) Iwabuchi (click this link to see our Japan schools)

My Full Contact Self Defense Instructors:

• Bill Kipp – FAST Defense (Black Belt Magazine rated #1)
• Dik Chance – FAST Combatives, Ministry of Defense UK

My Martial Arts Tournaments Include:

• Cupertino, CA
• Los Angeles, CA
• Las Vegas, NV
• Colorado Springs, CO
• Yuba City, CA
• Oakland, CA
• Santa Rosa, CA
• San Francisco, CA
• Foster City, CA
• South City, CA
• City of Industry, CA

Sensei Eric Mae Geri

Sensei Eric - Ashi Barai

My Weapons Training (Military and Martial Arts)

• M-16 A4 Assault Rifle
• M-9 Pistol
• M-203 Assault Rifle – Grenade Launcher
• M-247 SAW – Heavy Assault Rifle
• AT-4 – Anti-Tank Rocket
• NRA Pistol Certification
• Okinawan Kobudo – Shihan Fumio Demura
  • Tonfa
  • Bo
  • Sai
  • Nunchaku (made famous by Bruce Lee)
  • Ekubo
  • Kama

Shihan Fumio Demura