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Jim Driggers 
Concord, CA
Technical Writer
Age: 40

  I started Aikido because I like the idea of a martial art that was defensive rather than offensive. I stay in Aikido because it's an art I can use as I get older. I also stay because it's an art that teaches how to relax in all kinds of conflict -emotional as well as physical. It's not about hurting or killing. Aikido can do both those things - it offers the choice not to.
  I train at Aikido of Diablo Valley because I like the way the sensei take the time to explain the techniques and demonstrate the underlying principles. It's not a competitive environment. It's a supportive environment with patience not patients.

Bruce Wells
Concord, CA
Banker
Age: 54

  I have found Aikido to be a means to learn more about myself. After about the first month on I experienced revelations about myself. What is real interesting is that these are things that I pretty much intellectually knew but I guess hadn't emotionally accepted.
  (Years later) . . .  I train mostly for the shear joy of it. A good 25% of the time I am on the mat it is just total joy. Another 65 to 70% it is fun and about 10% it is horrible. Other than skiing I've not found anything else that provided as much joy or was so good so much of the time.

Chris Ward 
Walnut Creek, CA
Student
Age: 14

  I like the senseis and fellow students at ADV. I used Aikido once against a bully in school. At first, I started running. When I saw that he wasn't giving up, I stopped. He started trying to hit me, but I kept deflecting the blows to the side. Then finally, I'm not sure what I did, but all I know is that I threw him onto the ground and landed on top of him.

Ayesha Riggins
Benecia, CA
Respiratory Therapist
Age: 32

  Aikido of Diablo Valley has a welcoming energy. It is truly inclusive, and you feel it when you walk through the door. There is no competition anxiety. There is no need for emotional armor.
  I have noticed that my training in Aikido has shifted my perspective in verbal arguments. I don't have to fight an individual to resolve a situation. While others seem to focus on the person being argued with, I have found it more effective to redirect that person's aggression to the issue being argued. I don't win the debate. We win the debate, and problems get solved.

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