Is this school/teacher legit?

[gunner]

Hello everyone I am a new member to the forum and to kajukenbo as a whole. I am only 2 weeks into my training and I wanted to make sure that the instructions I'm getting are from a legitimate source as I don't have any prior martial arts experience besides the extremely basic and essentially useless army combatives they teach you in basic training. The school I go to is called Agoge martial arts in omaha Nebraska, my teacher is Mark Nicholas, and his teacher is Greg James. Yesterdays class was the first time we wore a gi, and none of the other students have called him "sibak", and in general it is a very informal kind of class. I just wanted to make sure that I am actually being taught kajukenbo as it is really the main martial art I want to learn, and if it is real kaju then that means that this is just a laid back informal kind of teacher which I am ok with. As someone with no martial arts experience I haven't had anything about his teachings strike me as odd or out of place, he seems to know what he is talking about and to me I don't doubt his black belt status but at the same time I don't know much so I could be wrong. I would like some reassurance and I don't want to disrespect him by asking for his credentials myself. If you guys could help me out I would appreciate it. Hopefully everything turns out good to go and I can keep training in this artform, Thanks!

[Rob Poelking]

Nick,

see this post: http://www.kajukenbo.com/cafe/index.php/topic,6427.msg56342.html#msg56342

As far as I know, no one ever got a call back. All legit black belts can trace their lineage back to Sijo Adriano Emperado--but I know this is confusing as there is much misinformation out there. Some want to claim that lineage but can't back it up.

That said, it doesn't mean your SENSEI is not a good and valuable instructor. No one says you have to wear a Gi.

Kajukenbo is more common on the West coast and Hawaii, with sprinklings in TX, NM, etc. but it begins to thin out as you travel east.

[gunner]

Thank you for your reply I saw that post before I was a member, which lead me to requesting to become one, I saw it was from a few years back and there were varying thoughts on the legitimacy of them so I was just curious. As far as the gi goes that is good to hear that that is not a required piece for a legit school. The instructor seems to know what he is doing and I have already started to learn a lot from the few classes i've been to. I will keep going and learning as much as I can on kajukenbo as this is the only place in the state that offers it. Look forward to when I don't feel completely lost in most of the techniques but everyones gotta start somewhere right lol.

[Dave Jones]

As Rob mentioned, stuff like gis and titles do not make a school Kajukenbo.
It is the lineage that matters, IMO.

In fact, in my classes we only wear gis when grappling or at formal events.
If a student called me by a title, I will (and have in the past) smack them in the face.
That is literally a question on the written portion of our black belt exam.
We are very informal, probably appearing irreverent to some people at times.

IMO, parts of the Army Combatives program are more useful and effective than what you get at many martial arts schools out there.
I teach some of it myself as part of our Kajukenbo.

As for Greg James, the circumstantial evidence seems to imply his claim to kajukenbo to be questionable at best.
It would be nice to see some proof of the claim - like Sijo's signature on his certificate.
But that doesn't necessary mean you wouldn't learn something worthwhile from the training program.

[gunner]

Hey sorry for the late reply but i appreciate your response! As far as the lack of formality goes thats good that thats not an indicator of legitimacy. As far as the instructions credentials go i just kind of have to take their word for it as im not going to disrespect them and ask for proof but i would like to have that peace of mind that what I'm actually learning is real kajukenbo. Unfortunately had to take a few weeks off due to a torn adductor but wasn't too get back in there asap because it is fun but just wanted to know if I'm actually being taught kajukenbo or just a mix of mma styles. 

[gunner]

How do I find out the lineage of these instructors? All I know is that mark nicholas got his black belt from greg james. I dont know who gave greg his black belt though. Is there an online source where I could find this?

[Bautista's]

The Kajukenbo family tree which most of us kajukenbo schools have to verify our lineage belongs to GM Philip Gelinas, one of the best way to fine what you may be looking for. He goes by Sleddog
happy hunting