John Eley: Aikido in Chicago, Through His Eyes, Part II

In 2023, I was in conversations with an intermediary to scheduling an interview with John Eley, one of the longest American students of Koichi Tohei and active member within the Ki Society. Unfortunately, the interview never materialized, however I was offered a previous interview Eley did in 2008. The quality is not the greatest, however, … Continue reading John Eley: Aikido in Chicago, Through His Eyes, Part II

John Eley: Aikido in Chicago, Through His Eyes, Part I

In 2023, I was in conversations with an intermediary to scheduling an interview with John Eley, one of the longest American students of Koichi Tohei and active member within the Ki Society. Unfortunately, the interview never materialized, however I was offered a previous interview Eley did in 2008. The quality is not the greatest, however, … Continue reading John Eley: Aikido in Chicago, Through His Eyes, Part I

Interview with University of Chicago Ki-Aikido Club Instructor Kağan Arık: The Similarities and Differences, Part II

Kagan Arik began learning Ki-Aikido while attending the University of Pennsylvania almost by accident. There, he trained under Hal Abramson Sensei, from whom he learned fundamentals. When he moved to Seattle, Washington, Arik started training with Koichi Kashiwaya Sensei and was exposed to different approaches that opened him to the different possibilities of Ki-Aikido. Arik … Continue reading Interview with University of Chicago Ki-Aikido Club Instructor Kağan Arık: The Similarities and Differences, Part II

Interview with Athens Ohio Ki-Aikido Founder Stan Haehl: Ki-Aikido from Kansas to Ohio, Part II

Stan Haehl heard of aikido before, but it was not until 1978 that he found a class in his small town in Kansas. He first learned the art under Barbra Bloom, then traveled to Boulder, Colorado to train under the Midland Ki Federation head Koichi Kashiwaya, and lastly, under Andrew T. Tsubaki. In 2008, his … Continue reading Interview with Athens Ohio Ki-Aikido Founder Stan Haehl: Ki-Aikido from Kansas to Ohio, Part II