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Jujitsu group tumbles into future Thrown for a loop Photo by Drew Fleming Bruce Mason of Medford throws John McNally, of Yreka, Calif., to the mat during a jujitsu competition Sunday in Phoenix. The event, drawing several dozen jujitsu practitioners from Southern Oregon and Northern California, marked the 40th anniversary of The Medford Judo Academy, one of Oregon's oldest martial arts schools. Martial arts rites mark 40 years of Medford Judo Academy By BILL KETTLER PHOENIX -- Men and women dressed all in white spent a rainy Sunday hurling each other around the Grange Hall. Several dozen jujitsu devotees from Southern Oregon and Northern California came to Phoenix for the weekend to mark the 40th anniversary of one of Oregon's oldest martial arts schools. Few people knew anything about martial arts when the Medford Judo Academy opened in 1960. World War II was still a recent memory and most things Asian were greeted with suspicion or outright contempt. Judo and its cousin, jujitsu, a thousand-year-old Asian self-defense discipline, was essentially unknown. "We got a kind of a bad rap," said Larry Nolte, of Medford, the first student to earn a black belt at the academy. Nolte became director of the academy in 1962, at the tender age of 20, and has been sensei (teacher, or master) ever since. "It's 100 percent his energy that has kept the school going," said Troy Shehorn, of Medford. Shehorn began his studies at the academy in 1976 and now teaches jujitsu. Asian monks originally developed jujitsu as a way to defend themselves without weapons. Some of the physical movements have changed over time, but students still learn how to refocus an assailant's energy and use that energy to overpower him. "It's like a chess game," said Nolte, who retired from Central Point's Scenic Middle School after 35 years of teaching. "If somebody does something to you, how do you respond? Not everything works." On Sunday, pairs of students performed a kata, or ritualized confrontation. They combined kicks, blocks, punches and throws to create a dance that simulated real combat. "The challenge is how to link the techniques together so they flow," said Tom Ball, who founded the academy in 1960. Ball now lives in Northern California, but he returned to Phoenix Sunday to mark the academy's anniversary. He said most people are drawn to jujitsu at first because they want to defend themselves. Many soon discover they enjoy its mental discipline, too. "It's almost like a way of life," said Shehorn, a millworker. "You have to love it. If you don't love it you aren't going to put in the time to do what needs to get done." "There's a lot of philosophy in it," said Earl King, a merchant seaman who makes his home in Talent. "It teaches you how to stay calm in your body. "It instills a sense of confidence," said King, "not that you can beat people up, but that you don't have to." Nolte said martial arts began to attract more interest in the late 1960s when karate arrived in North America. "Karate was far more flashy," he said. "You could do kicks and break bricks and boards. All of a sudden more people became involved in martial arts. There was more diversity." Movies and television generated more interest. Today more than a dozen martial arts schools advertise in the Medford Yellow Pages, and students can study aikido, karate, kung fu, as well as jujitsu. The school still works out of the same building in Phoenix where it settled in 1960, at 104 W. First St. Ball and the other founders chose Phoenix because they couldn't afford Medford rents. Members pay dues, Nolte said, but the fees cover only rent and expenses. Teachers work without pay. For every student who stays, many decide jujitsu is not for them. "I wish I had a nickel for every person who went back out the door," said Shehorn. "I'd be a millionaire." "There's always a few out there who want to learn," said Nolte. "We just keep plugging along." Today's Edition : News | Sports | Business | Weather | Tempo | Classifieds Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, Oregon USA