Equipment and Fees

Low Fees

Flynn Sensei teaches for free.  However, club dues will be $10 per semester.  This $10 goes into the club slush fund.  Also, there will be a $15 fee for each belt test that you pass.  Please understand that you will not be charged for testing.  Some instructors charge for testing because doing so creates a nice little cash cow.  They charge you to take the test and then fail you so that they can charge you again and again until you pass the exam.  Our $15 fee is only paid if you pass.  Furthermore, we don't allow anyone to take a belt test unless they will pass.  Of the $15, we send $10 to register your rank officially with the JAA/USA.  The other $5 goes into the club slush fund to pay for parties, incidentals, and for the colored belts that you will receive as you get to each new belt level.  (However, please note that we recycle colored belts, so take good care of them!)

Equipment

You will need to buy a dogi, also known as a judo uniform.  Dogi are sized using a weird system that ranges from a Size 1 (very small) up to a Size 8 (really frigging huge).  Most adults fit into either a Size 3, 4, or 5.  In the chart that follows, rely on the height range more than the weight range.

You can get dogi and other equipment on-line at martial arts supply stores, but we can get volume discounts if we order 5 or more at a time.  The price is $35 for the bulk order or $50 one at a time.  Please tell Flynn Sensei if you would like him to order you a uniform.  The costs for dogi and other items are listed below.  Try to organize group orders so as to save yourself some money.  If you are going to order a dogi on your own, be sure to get a bleached uniform.  Bleached uniforms are truly white.  The unbleached uniforms are a sort of ugly tan color. 

Books

As your Aikido gets better, you should read some aikido books.  The best book for beginners is Flynn Sensei's book Understanding Shodokan Aikido: Basics through 7th Kyu.  As your get further along, you should read Aikido: Tradition and the Competitive Edge by Fumiaki Shishida and Tetsuro Nariyama.  Both are available on line from Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com.  In addition, you can order them directly from the publisher by clicking on the hyperlinks earlier in this paragraph.