Back in his second home, Sean Haley shares his passion for martial arts in Tigard
Sean Haley has been doing martial arts for around 24 years. Of those 24, he’s spent the last 20 teaching. Originally from the Troutdale/ Gresham area, he met his first instructor there.
“I was such a go-go gym rat; he asked if I wanted to start teaching,” Haley recalls.
The instructor taught Haley about the business side of teaching, which proved an invaluable lesson to Haley. Being skilled in a sport and being able to teach a sport are entirely different, Haley points out. If you wanted to learn boxing, for example, you wouldn’t necessarily want to learn from Mike Tyson.
“Not only am I an educator who teaches people how to use martial arts, I also have to be an entertainer. I have to keep people’s attention for the hour-long class.”
When this instructor moved his school from Gresham to Tigard, Haley decided to go with him. In high school, he would spend 2½ hours on a bus getting from Troutdale to Tigard and back to teach classes.
“Tigard’s always been like a second home for me,” Haley says.
A while ago, Haley accompanied his wife, a nurse, on a traveling nurse expedition across the country. During his travels, he stopped in at the top martial arts schools and took notes on what they were doing.
When they arrived back in town five years ago, Haley knew he was going to open his own studio. When he learned the owner of a school in Canterbury Square wanted to get out of the business, he took this as his opportunity to get in.
The classes at Oregon Martial Arts Club reach men, women and children. The youth program is divided into three age groups: Tiny Tigers (ages 4 to 6), Junior Dragons (ages 7 to 10), and Teen Tigers (ages 11 to 15).
“Working with Teen Tigers, I can emphasize more fitness, whereas with Tiny Tigers, I’m obviously not going to make them do 100 push-ups and sit-ups.”
The adult program is divided into two parts: Muay Thai Kickboxing (punches, kicks, knees, elbows, striking) and Gracie Jiu Jitsu (grappling and defense).
“The idea is not to use your athletic ability but rather use leverage and technique to subdue an opponent,” he says.
Haley says his school attracts average Joes and Janes who are looking to learn technique and enjoy themselves. This is not, he emphasizes, a tournament school. The focus is not on competitions.
“People walk in wanting to fight in a cage,” Haley says. “We’re a private martial arts academy, and usually I let them know they need to go somewhere else. What I want is a G-rated environment here.”
Haley’s goal is to help each of his students earn a Black Belt in a fun, safe and challenging environment. He compares the Black Belt to a high school degree: Both take four years to acquire. Both endeavors require a certain minimum amount of classes.
“Seeing somebody progress, especially during test time, is really awesome,” he says. “It’s awesome to see someone you really worked hard to test and all of a sudden they look picture-perfect.”
One of the biggest challenges of teaching Thai kickboxing and Jui Jitsu, Haley says, is disguising the repetition of the basics. If he wants someone to master the jab, for example, he’ll have to get that person to jab 2,500 to 5,000 times. In order to keep students interested, he has to mix up the kinds of jabs – in the air, on a bag, on a person, with various elements added.
“We’re trying to develop a small community of people interested in martial arts who are in the local area,” Haley says. “It’s nice to have a community center, a place where you can go and you don’t have to think about the stresses in life.”
Haley is now offering two new programs: wrestling and fitness kickboxing. He always offers private, complimentary tours.
The Oregon Martial Arts Club is located between McDonald Street and Bull Mountain Road in the Canterbury Square shopping center. The address is 14355 S.W. Pacific Highway in Tigard. The Web site is www.oregonmartialarts.com.
(Kristen Forbes is a freelance writer. To view her blog, visit www.krissymick.blogspot.com