Lots of news and updates for March! Please read carefully!
- The Big Move across the street to the new school is on schedule for March 7! The new facility will have TWO training floors, lots of brand new equipment, and a parking lot! The new address will be 6 Riverside Street.
- There will be a one-day sale on Saturday, March 5, from 12-3pm. Equipment not making the move will be for sale at a discounted price. Remaining stock of shirts, pants, etc. will be half price. The mats will be available at $50 per section. Contact Brian ASAP if you are interested.
- The new school will have a brand new training floor! This means we will be strictly enforcing the policy of no street shoes. Please bring a pair of dedicated mat shoes to class in order to help keep the training area clean and safe.
- Beginning March 7, all students are asked to wear either a Krav Maga Worldwide shirt, a plain white shirt, or a plain black shirt. Krav shirts are available for purchase at the school.
- We will be conducting a Level 1 test on Friday, March 18, 7pm. Depending on the number of students, the test typically takes 2-3 hours with minimal breaks. If you have trained all of the Level 1 curriculum and would like to test, please let one of the instructors know or post a comment below. All students are welcome to watch the testing or participate alongside the students testing. Even if you’re not being graded, the test is an excellent review of the curriculum as well as an intense physical and mental challenge. Review the Level 1 Curriculum (printer friendly) and bring any questions to class so that we may help you best prepare for the test.
Why the shirt requirement? Is that in our contract? I already have plain t-shirts that are my gym/Krav shirts. Do I need to buy a whole new Krav wardrobe now? For this to be practical, I would have to buy at least 10 new t-shirts. This is about how many I go through for laundry to be economical. At $15-$20 each, this is expensive.
Please keep in mind that most Krav schools require official KMW shirt and pants be worn—no exceptions. If this were any other martial art, you’d have to own several uniforms. (A BJJ gi is about $150!) Every sport/activity has its necessary equipment. For Level 1 students, we’re only requiring a plain T-shirt and clean shoes.
Concern about cost is understandable, but you can buy a pack of white or black T-shirts for short money at the Target right down the street. You are not required to buy a KMW shirt at the school.
Couldn’t have said it any better. Thanks Patrick!
This is missing the point. I don’t care about other schools’ policies requiring a uniform….that’s why I didn’t join other schools. I’m talking about OUR beloved academy. One of the things that make it so welcoming, besides the awesome instructors and students, is its accessibility. Our Krav program is so welcoming, convenient, and accessible to everyone EXACTLY because of its non-formal, come as you are, get-in-shape-go-home-safe philosophy. I don’t see the point in requiring a black shirt uniform. Are we under observation from the Krav Maga Worldwide authorities?
Ultimately, I fear that this policy may discourage current members from attending and prospective members from joining. It’s easy to envision the scenario: each of us may already have a dozen or so t-shirts that we sweat through in class (and possibly at the gym) and put through our regular laundry routine. But now we have to worry about a new set of t-shirts, under a separate laundry schedule, that must be sorted, stored, and carried separately. This is not practical, economical, or environmentally friendly.
To address your other point: “If this were any other martial art (BJJ), you’d have to own several uniforms”. Well that’s the thing….this is not any other martial art. The other martial arts are COMPETITIVE SPORTS (e.g. Muay Thia, BJJ, MMA, boxing, etc.). Therefore, they train in the uniform that’s used in competition. Krav Maga, is not a sport or a competition. It’s serious self-defense training for real-world life or death situations on the street. If I ever had to suddenly defend myself on the street I can assure you that I won’t be wearing a Krav Maga t-shirt and matching pants. Krav Maga trains for reality, so we should be training in clothes that come as close to reality as a school setting allows, not a uniform. Now I’m not talking about wearing torn jeans, and a ripped up flannel shirt to class. I mean just what we’ve all been wearing all these years: comfortable gym pants, plain t-shirt, and mat shoes. What’s wrong with that?
Sorry about the rant, Brian and Patrick. You know I love you guys
Lenny, you’ve worked yourself into a frenzy and completely missed the point yourself. You say you’ve been wearing “comfortable gym pants, plain t-shirt, and mat shoes” for years? Great! That’s the new requirement! The only change is that the shirt must be white or black. If you want to express yourself with color, wear the funkiest Krav Maga Worldwide shirt you can find.
No one takes self-defense more seriously than your instructors. Rest assured, the culture and atmosphere of the school are not changing with these policies.
“Comfortable plain t-shirt” is not the new requirement. The new requirement is “comfortable black, white, or KM” shirt. Which means everyone has to buy and maintain a separate new t-shirt wardrobe for class. It’s not been explained why.
Good God Lenny! What color t-shirt is so important to you?!