Our Karate Style
Bonsai Karate, what style of Karate is it?
A good question. The best answer is a mixture of a few different karate styles. If you are new to karate none of the styles will be familiar and initially most will look similar.
Bonsai Karate is predominatly Kyokushin. But we also have elements of Shotokan & Goju.
How long has Bonsai Karate been around?
Bonsai karate 1st class was July 2006, Since then Bonsai Karate has taught thousands of students and has run classes from 10 different venues in Brisbane and now Townsville.
What do we teach?
Kihon waza - Traditional karate techniques performed as a group in lines (Strike / Block / Kick)
Kata - Traditional karate patterns performed as a group in lines
Sanbon Kumite - Traditional karate techniques performed with a partner (Strike / Block / Kick)
Ukemi - Learning to break a fall and land without injury
Nage Waza - Traditional take downs & throws
Kumite (Sparring) - Partnered sparring that focuses on practical defence (not sport karate). our sparring is contact sparring (very light contact only for beginners)
Bag Drills - Learning to strike and kick effectively while using kick shields. Develop combinations
Partner Drills - Learn effect striking, kicking and defence against attacks.
Self Defence - Learn our effective self defence system that is made for the real world.
Japanese Etiquette & Language - we teach students the importance of etiquette and learn to understand karate terminology in Japanese
For Kids
Stranger awareness - we teach kids different situations and appropriate actions
Frustration control - learn breathing techniques and develop focus.
History
Our Senior Instructor, Nick Noordink, started training karate in 1989 at the age of 10. He trained in Renbukan Karate in Toowoomba under Mike Jordan Sensei until reaching a Brown Belt level and needed to stop due to a disease in his knee.
Nick restarted training karate in Brisbane with Gokanryu (Shotokan & Goju) karate in 1998. Within 12 months he was teaching classes at Stafford state school and would keep training and teaching karate with Gokanryu over the next 7 years.
In 2006 Nick opened the Bonsai Karate dojo and began teaching a mixture of the 2 styles (Gokanryu & Renbukan). His philosophy was one of creating a practical style while keeping the traditional karate alive.
In 2008 Nick was only 28 and decided he still had more to learn. He had been looking into and studying different karate styles and decided Kyokushin karate was where he would like to put his energy.
Nick and his most senior student, Martyn, started training karate under Kancho James Casey in his Kenshinkan dojo at Burleigh on the Gold Coast. While learning from Kancho Jim, Nick realized just how practical kyokushin karate really is and devoted his time and energy to learning everything he could from Kancho Jim. Kancho Jim Casey has been training and teaching kyokushin karate for over 50 years and is still involved with Bonsai Karate doing seminars and grading our senior students.
Today Bonsai Karate style follows closely to Kancho Jim Casey's style of karate (kyokushin) and most of our classes are run like Kyokushin karate, But we also still maintain some of the other Kata (traditional patterns) from Shotokan & Goju Karate.
Kyokushin
Kyokushin (極真) is a style of karate originating in Japan. It is a style of stand-up fighting and is rooted in a philosophy of self-improvement, discipline, and hard training.
Kyokushin Kaikan is the martial arts organization founded in 1964 by Korean-Japanese Masutatsu Oyama (大山倍達, Ōyama Masutatsu), officially the International Karate Organization. Previously, this institution was known as the Oyama Dojo. Since 1964, the style has continued to spread to more than 120 countries, becoming one of the largest martial arts organizations in the world, and in Japan itself.
Shotokan
Shotokan (松濤館, Shōtōkan) is a style of karate, developed from various martial arts by Gichin Funakoshi (1868–1957) and his son Gigo (Yoshitaka) Funakoshi (1906–1945). Gichin Funakoshi was born in Okinawa[1] and is widely credited with popularizing "karate do" through a series of public demonstrations, and by promoting the development of university karate clubs, including those at Keio, Waseda, Hitotsubashi (Shodai), Takushoku, Chuo, Gakushuin, and Hosei.[2]
Goju
Gōjū-ryū (剛柔流), Japanese for "hard-soft style", is one of the main traditional Okinawan styles of karate, featuring a combination of hard and soft techniques. Both principles, hard and soft, come from the famous martial arts book used by Okinawan masters during the 19th and 20th centuries, the Bubishi (Chinese: 武備志; pinyin: Wǔbèi Zhì).[2] Gō, which means hard, refers to closed hand techniques or straight linear attacks; jū, which means soft, refers to open hand techniques and circular movements. Gōjū-ryū incorporates both circular and linear movements into its curriculum, combining hard striking attacks such as kicks and close hand punches with softer open hand circular techniques for attacking, blocking, and controlling the opponent, including joint locks, grappling, takedowns, and throws.