University of Wyoming's Martial Arts Legacy migrates to Arizona

Soke Hausel at Grizzly Creek where he
discovered a world-class gemstone deposit in 2004. 

In 1977, Sensei Hausel was hired by the Geological Survey of Wyoming on the University of Wyoming Campus in Laramie to search for base metals, precious metals, gemstones, radioactive minerals and industrial minerals along with developing publications and maps to provide information to the public, state and mining industry on these deposits. He was also charged with researching both Precambrian geology and Igneous Petrology, both which had been neglected up till 1977.

Teaching jujutsu at UW with assistance of 
Sensei Jason Gies.

As a polymath, this was a perfect job for the geoscientist: over the years, he more than fulfilled these obligations finding hundreds of mineral anomalies, major mineral deposits and even some world-class mineral deposits - both gold and gemstones and finding new mining districts. Never in the history of the Geological Survey had one person accomplished so much. 

In addition to finding mineral deposits, he published nearly 1,000 documents including books, magazine articles, professional papers, geological maps and abstracts, mapped more than 1,000 square kilometers of complex Precambrian geological terrain, and mapped kimberlite and lamproite fields, investigated mineral deposits associated with porphyry gold-copper deposits, mapped and investigated gold deposits associated with alkaline volcanics, discovered major gold deposits in Wyoming and Alaska, and presented nearly 500 talks around the country about the geology of Wyoming. He was presented many awards and inducted into two Halls-of-Fame for his work in geological sciences and public education.

At the same time, Sensei Hausel taught martial arts at the University of Wyoming for 30 years as part of University Clubs, Club Sports, Department of Physical Education, Department of Kinesiology and University of Wyoming Extended Studies. Five thousand or more students, staff, faculty and members of Wyoming community attended these martial arts classes, karate clinics and self-defense short courses. These include Karate, Jujutsu, Kobudo, Self-Defense and Samurai Arts. He also taught martial arts clinics to the public on self-defense, rape prevention, jujutsu, karate, and kobudo (martial arts weapons).

Another Hall-of-Fame
induction for
grandmaster Hausel.

Special martial arts classes and clinics were also taught to Colorado, Wyoming, Utah, Idaho, Nebraska, and Montana martial artists and communities and included hanbo, hojojutsu, tonfa, nunchaku, kama, sai, manrikigusari, naginata, yari, shitai kori, bo, kuwa, eiku, tanto, kibo, katana, nitanbo, kobuton, and others. Most of the clinics were taught at the University of Wyoming, but others were taught in Afton, Alpine, Cheyenne, Casper, Gillette, Riverton and Saratoga. To further educate people in martial arts history and benefits, he spoke to many groups about traditional martial arts. 

And like the geological sciences, this fit well with a polymath. Sensei Hausel was inducted into Halls-of-Fame and several Who's Who for his teaching martial arts, influence on students, and developing a hybrid traditional martial art. From 1998 to 2012, he had been inducted into 14 Halls-of-Fame recognizing his accomplishments in the martial arts and became one of the better martial arts instructors in the world. Few other karate instructors had accomplished as much. 

In 1999, he was awarded the rank of kudan (9th dan) in Shorin-Ryu Karate and Kobudo and certified as Sokeshodai of Seiyo No Shorin-Ryu Karate Renmei. In 2004, Soke Hausel was awarded the highest rank in Shorin-Ryu Karate (Judan). As a 10th dan Soke, he continued to develop his martial arts. 

In 2006, Soke Hausel ran into a dilemma. He had to chose between his love of his profession at the University and continue to work at the Geological Survey, or to take early retirement because of ethical conflict of working for a corrupt director. Three people died at the Geological Survey and nearly half of the staff resigned, transferred or retired. Even though it was his original intent to stay at the Wyoming Geological Survey until they carried him out in a box, he retired and moved to Arizona in protest of treatment of employees.

Since leaving Wyoming, Soke Hausel continued his geology career as a consultant for several mining companies, VP of US Exploration for and Australian diamond company, offered several book contracts, and has even been contacted by a half-dozen companies about doing reality shows related to gemstones and diamonds. In the past, Soke Hausel found several diamond deposits and identified nearly 300 anomalies that likely include additional diamond deposits. He also found dozens of gemstone deposits and hundreds of gold anomalies.

Along with geological consulting, Hausel continues to teach martial arts in Arizona. He also operates an international martial arts association (Seiyo No Shorin-Ryu Karate Kobudo Kai) with martial artists in more than a dozen countries and teaches several times a week at the Arizona School of Traditional Karate in Mesa and Gilbert, Arizona. 

Soke Hausel's classes were always filled at the University of Wyoming. His Beginning Karate PE Classes filled to 110 students with waiting lists.

So, the martial arts legacy continues in Arizona, where he operates a martial arts hombu (hombu is a world martial arts center or karate school) and continues teaching adults and families about traditional martial arts, but misses the university environment.

In the past he taught not only at the University of Wyoming, but also at the University of New Mexico, University of Utah and Arizona State University (ASU). ASU could have been a good fit, but the "bureaucracy was impressive" and after a year, Soke decided to leave ASU. Hopefully, one day, ASU, Grand Canyon University, Mesa Community College or a similar school will recognize they need a traditional martial arts program and a top martial arts instructor. Martial arts are not just about breaking rocks, they are mostly about improving a person mentally and physically. If all members of our society were receiving traditional martial arts training in the public schools and universities as they do in Japan, violence related to drug drivers, drugs, etc. would almost go away.

Since leaving Wyoming, the Campus Shorin-Ryu Karate & Kobudo Club invited Grandmaster Hausel back to teach some martial art and self-defense clinics. The club has also experienced a group of different instructors and faculty advisors starting with Shihan Froidevoix (5th dan), Sensei Martin (1st dan), Shihan Larson (5th dan) and Sensei Nicole Maxwell (2nd dan). Faculty advisors included Dr. Florence Teule followed by Professor Mark Bittner (both black belts). 

Soke Hausel left a legacy at UW that included 2,000 to 3,000 students who participated in the club's activities. This program was one of the top martial arts educational programs in North America for many years.

30th Anniversary Clinic at Corbett Gym at the University of Wyoming. Soke Hausel kneeling (center). 



UW students learn self-defense at Soke Hausel's clinics

Self-defense classes for women, students, faculty, ROTC, sororities, etc
were always very popular with attendees filling the University of Wyoming
gymnasiums.

SEIYO SHORIN RYU KARATE ANNIVERSARY

Where did the time go? 

Soke-Dai Eric Hausel and Soke Hausel

In 2010, Soke found himself in Phoenix's East Valley. People around here call this area Mesa and Gilbert. In 2006, he was living in the remote village of Laramie, Wyoming, not quite the North Pole, but cold enough in the winter that its climate is often compared to Fairbanks, Alaska and Yellowknife, Canada. If you ever experienced -50 degrees Fahrenheit, you will understand: the grease in your truck gets close to freezing making it difficult to turn a steering wheel, while tires freeze with the flat surface that had been in contact with the road all night, and the oil in the crankcase doesn't want to wake up and complains if you try to turn the engine over, and then there's the problem of turning the engine over. Sometimes you give up and ski to work - bad idea.

Soke Hausel teaching jujutsu in PE
classes at the UW with Jason Gies.

With the wind blowing at non-stop 30 to 50 mph with gusts up to 80 mph (at nearby Arlington, they recorded gusts of more than 120 mph in the winter) (other places call this a hurricane, Wyoming calls it another day), it is almost impossible to catch a tail wind. So don't ski to work, or ride a bicycle unless you want to work against hurricane-force winds in both directions (never could catch a tail wind in Wyoming).

Then there is the problem of frostbite, where windchill reaches fingers through the best of gloves - it makes you wonder if the Apollo Spacesuits would keep you warm in Wyoming winters. Still, it is a wonderful place.

Soke took early retirement from the Geological Survey at the University of Wyoming for ethical reasons. He could not work for a completely incompetent director and went to work for DiamonEx Ltd (an Aussie Diamond Company), consulted for other mining companies and packed up and moved to the other extreme on our planet: Phoenix. But on our way to Phoenix, Soke thought about buying a building to house the new Hombu dojo where he could introduce people to traditions of Okinawa martial arts.

A rare day in Wyoming (right) - no boulders are blowing by. Photo by Sharon Hausel taken of the Red Mask mine
west of Laramie. Below, typical day in Gilbert as the sun sets the lake on fire.

In the Phoenix Valley, temperatures are high enough that Soke Hausel periodically checks his Wyoming truck (which has no air conditioning - didn't need one in Wyoming) to see if it has melted into a puddle of red metal, rubber, and plastic. It is so hot in Phoenix, that he was under the impression that it got up to 123 degrees Fahrenheit in the early Spring of 2006. However, his wife thinks he was delusional (heat does that to the brain). It only got to 119 degrees (maybe a little lower, but it was hot)!

But really, it does get upwards to 125 degrees in the summer. Hot enough to fry eggs and feet on the pavement. The only heat Soke Hausel reports that he ever experienced this intense was in the outback of Australia while searching for diamonds near the Fitzroy River.

Photo by Hausel (1996) in the Australian Outback.

Bill Bryson wrote in his book on the Australian outback entitled, "In Sunburned Country" that the highest temperatures recorded on earth were in Australia's Outback: 145 degrees Fahrenheit, enough to melt Kangaroo. So after Soke Hausel arrived in the East Valley, he started teaching karate at ASU, prior to opening the Hombu dojo in Mesa.

In 2008, Soke went back to Siberia - err, Laramie. The University of Wyoming Campus Shorin-Ryu Karate and Kobudo Club was celebrating its 30th anniversary. It had out-lasted some departments on campus such as the Department of Physical Education, Department of Kinesiology, Nursing, MMRRI and many others. But the UW karate club and other classes taught by Soke Hausel  attracted many students to UW.

The club was established in 1977-1978, and through the years, we put a few thousand students through this program from all over the world. While students were working on BS, MS, and PhD degrees, many graduated with honors and took home certifications for black belt or mudansha (lower level color belt). Few other universities in North America provided such an opportunity. A student graduating in geology, for instance, had the added benefit of going to work for industry as a geologist and earning a certificate in karate that could potentially be used as an added profession - they could open their own dojo and earn added income, or just teach part time at the local gym. And if nothing else, if they forgot a rock hammer on the way to the field, no problem, we also taught all of our students how to break rocks with their hands!

I know of at least one case where a student in geology graduated with a MS and decided that karate was more lucrative. He still operates a dojo in Albuquerque. The University of Wyoming club includes many faculty, staff and members of the Laramie Community. We even had a couple of priests and missionaries, and are proud to say our organization has more PhDs, scientists, engineers, etc per capita than any other martial arts association in the world! If we can't beat you in a fight, we surely can build a bridge or road much faster than any other martial arts organization.

Over the years, many of our members indicated they had picked the University of Wyoming over other universities simply because of the martial arts program that included training in karate, kobudo, self-defense, jujutsu and other samurai arts and our international associations made our organization impeccable - our primary associations include Juko Kai International, Zen Kokusai Soke Budo Bugei Renmei and Seiyo Kai.

But the UW club was not the only anniversary to be celebrated. In 1964, Soke began training in Kyokushinkai karate at the Black Eagle Federation dojo in Salt Lake City, Utah. Thus, in addition to the University of Wyoming's Karate Club anniversary, 2009 is also Soke's 45th anniversary in martial arts. It's hard to believe he has been  kicking for that long.

In 1969, he began teaching karate at the University of Utah Shotokan Club a form of Shorin-Ryu. This is also his 40th anniversary teaching martial arts. In 1999, he was appointed the Sokeshodai of Seiyo No Shorin-Ryu Karate Kobudo Kai – Thus 2009 is also his 10th anniversary as Soke (Grandmaster) of Shorin-Ryu Seiyo-Kai Karate. And of course, 1999, Soke Sacharnoski and the Zen Kokusai Soke Budo Bugei Remnei certified Seiyo No Shorin-Ryu Karate Kobudo Kai as a new form of Shorin-Ryu. So this style has been officially in existence for 10 years. There are probably other anniversaries he hasn't thought of.

Over the years Soke taught at the University of New Mexico, Arizona State University, University of Utah, University of Wyoming, Gold's Gym, KourtHouse, Methodist Church and elsewhere. He really enjoyed teaching at universities because of the type of students, but all universities are filled with bureaucrats that would make any czars of the Obama Administration look competent - they promise you everything and give you nothing. Our martial arts association now has students scattered all over the world who are geologists, artists, writers, astronomers, biologists, zoologists, law enforcement agents, linguists, civil engineers, electrical engineers, petroleum engineers, mechanical engineers, teachers, professors, physicists, mathematicians, business owners and more.

So, here we are in the East Valley sweating profusely and training at the Arizona School of Traditional Karate. Soke tried teaching at ASU, but they seemed to be more interested in improving their bureaucratic skills. Thus, in 2008, we decided to open a Hombu training center in Mesa at 60 W. Baseline. We made this Arizona dojo look as traditional as possible and we invite everyone to stop by to talk about martial arts. We look forward to meeting you!

At the dojo, we teach traditional karate and kobudo for adults. No person and in particular, no woman in the Phoenix valley should be without self-defense training – it is dangerous here. And with so many illegal drug runners running around from Mexico, one must be prepared for anything. You can find out more about us by visiting our dojo in Mesa and learning about our international martial arts association. We practice traditional karate as it has been taught for the past few hundred years in Okinawa, we strive to be the best people we can be, learn some Japanese, focus on traditions of the dojo and Budo, and strive to meet interesting people and have a great time sharing our art.

The Arizona training center is open to the public - we focus on Adults and Families. Come learn the traditions of Okinawan Karate & Kobudo. Much of the class is conducted in both Japanese and English to help students learn Japanese. We also teach meditation, philosophy and martial arts history interjected in karate classes.