Instructor

David Bal is the instructor at the Ridgecrest Karate Club.  He studied Shotokan karate during three periods of his life.  He practiced as a adolescent, college student, and now a mid-life adult.

First, he practiced karate from 3rd dan Sensei Osvaldo Robles in Miami, Florida from approximately ages 9-12.  At age 12 he moved from Miami to West Palm Beach, Florida and stop training until he went to college.

In college at the University of Florida (UF) he trained under 4th dan Sensei Jerome Guilford.  The UF Shotokan Karate Club was affiliated with the South Atlantic Karate Association led by 8th dan Sensei Shigeru Takashina, who performed kyu and dan testing.

After college he moved to Ridgecrest, California to begin working as an engineer at the Naval Air Weapons Center.  Unfortunately, there was not a traditional Shotokan karate school in Ridgecrest.  After approximately a decade of not training karate, and due to encouragement from his children who wanted to learn karate, he began teaching children karate in 2011.  After two years of teaching at a local church and middle school the opportunity arose to instruct at the Kerr McGee Community Center operated by the City of Ridgecrest.

Since 2011 he has trained karate at the West Los Angeles Karate School under the instruction of 6th dan Sensei Stephen Young and 6th dan Sensei Alan Weil.  He continues to train there most Saturdays.

He holds the rank of shodan from the American Federation of Independent Shotokan Karate-Do, the parent organization of the West LA Karate School.  He continues to learn and endeavors to advance in skill and rank as the years unfold.  He enjoys practicing karate and hopes to share that experience with others.