Dayton Bujinkan Dojo History

The Dayton Bujinkan Dojo Martial Arts School had its first class on November 3, 1997. Many factors contributed to the opening of our dojo. The following explains how we came about....

Shidoshi Kurt Rittenhouse of Kurt Rittenhouse Martial Arts ran two dojos from 1990 to 1997, and had over 250 students training under him. He was responsible for instructing many of the senior students and teachers of the Dayton Bujinkan Dojo in Budo Taijutsu. Kurt's Taijutsu was based on strong striking skills and knowing the kihon happo (basic techniques, and he taught that way.

When Jeff Ochester worked at Kurt Rittenhouse Martial Arts School, he came to know Greg Sherwood

In the summer of 1997, Shidoshi Rittenhouse chose to close his dojos and stop teaching publicly in Dayton, Ohio. Many of his students wanted to continue training in Budo Taijutsu after the dojos were closed. Tony Maddin & Jeff Ochester, both students of the now-closed Kurt Rittenhouse Martial Arts School, were able to establish training classes twice a week at a local recreational center. As time went by, the need to open a small training studio became obvious.

Greg Sherwood, who's son trained at the Kurt Rittenhouse Martial Arts School, knew Jeff from training. Greg was a Lieutenant at a local fire department, & Jeff ended up joining the same fire department to work volunteer & part-time. Greg's son wanted to keep training in Budo Taijutsu, and the opportunity to co-partner in a dojo was offered.

As a few months passed, Greg Sherwood & Jeff Ochester had figured out a way to open a school using their own money and the money donated by many of the students. They approached Kurt Rittenhouse with the idea to open a small dojo, and he gave them permission to do so. By October 1997, a small 460 square foot studio was found and a rent agreement was signed. On November 3, 1997, the Dayton Bujinkan Dojo Martial Arts School was opened with an incredible amount of help from Tony Maddin and the recreational center students.

From 1997 to 2000, the Dayton Bujinkan Dojo moved twice to larger facilites in order to provide larger training space for its students. It also regularly brought in senior Bujinkan instructor Dan Klug for special seminars in order to help senior students continue to grow in Bujinkan Budo Taijutsu.

From 2000 to 2005, the Dayton Bujinkan Dojo moved to a 1500 square foot facility and expanded its training mats from 18 to 27 tatami. Training expanded to seven days a week, and guest instructors Dan Klug and Sean Askew taught regular seminars at the dojo. A children's program also began twice a week.

In 2005, the Dayton Bujinkan Dojo expanded to its largest facility to date - 5600 square feet. The new dojo has over 100 tatami training mats, two large changing rooms, two office rooms, and a conference room. With all of the new room, additional training classes are now offered - Budo Taijutsu training, groundfighting/sparring classes, and fire arms classes. The Children's program expanded to twice a week with three instructors, and nine adult classes are offered weekly.

Since 1997, the Dayton Bujinkan Dojo has moved four times to larger facilities as it has continued to grow. In 2004, Greg Sherwood retired from "running the books" at the dojo, and three new co-owners merged with Jeff Ochester: David VandenBos, Marty Dunsky, and Pam Dunsky. The four new owners are making positive changes to insure the success of both the dojo and the students who train within it. We look forward to see what lies ahead!