FIGHTING FIRE In-Person/Online Workshop | Bryan Griffin & Mike Messner at Budokai Mansfield, Ohio

Join Bryan Toutoshi Griffin and Mike Suutoshi Messner for a 2-hour workshop, diving deep into To-Shin Do advanced water strategy.
WHEN: Monday, July 20th 7pm-9pm EDT
WHO: Open to all martial artists of any rank, including beginners.
WHERE: Attend in-person at Budokai Martial Arts (in Mansfield, Ohio) -OR- online via Zoom.
REGISTRATION: https://toshindo.online/shop/events-seminars/fighting-fire-workshop-2026/
ABOUT:
FIGHTING FIRE | subdue ultra-aggressive attackers with To-Shin Do advanced water strategy
In sport martial arts we often see two skilled and strategic fighters tactically probing back and forth to study and analyze their opponent’s weaknesses before turning up the heat.
Self-defense is different. A fight can start with reckless rage. An ultra-aggressive attacker doesn’t care about openings. They’re barreling forward, closing the distance between your face and their fists in an instant!
This kind of speed and momentum from an attacker can expose the gaps in our skills. Techniques that felt solid when we drilled them politely with a fellow student can fall apart when the instructor puts on the heavy gloves and comes at you with realistic speed and intensity.
In this 2-hour workshop, we’ll be exploring techniques from the To-Shin Do Nidan (2nd Degree Black Belt) Advanced Water curriculum that offer strategic responses to this type of high-momentum/high-aggression threat. These techniques (like saka nagare and moguri dori) can show us how to use distance and angles to draw this type of attacker out, exposing new openings and opportunities to compromise their balance as they re-orient.
WORKSHOP INSTRUCTOR:
Bryan Griffin is a 7th Degree, To-Shin Do Instructor and owner/operator of both Quest Martial Arts Raleigh in North Carolina and To-Shin Do Online.
A Marine Scout Sniper with combat experience in Iraq and Afghanistan, he’s been through it. While most martial artists teach through theory or stories of warriors from long ago, Bryan “Toutoshi” Griffin teaches from first-hand experience.
But like others who have gained a healthy familiarity with their own mortality, Bryan chooses to enjoy each day. He reminds us that we learn best when we’re relaxed and having fun – that when we get out of our own way, we can achieve that fluid, effortless, and ghost-like ninja movement that we all strive for.
When you watch him teach, you may catch a glimpse of his ability to “flip the switch” and go from light-hearted to deadly-serious in an instant. A powerful skill indeed for real self-defense and survival!
WORKSHOP HOST:
Mike Messner is a 5th Degree Black Belt in To-Shin Do and owner/operator of Budokai Martial Arts in Mansfield, Ohio. You might recognize Mike from the cover of Stephen K. Hayes’ most recent self-defense book: Ninja Fighting Techniques!
FOR MORE INFORMATION or QUESTIONS:
Contact info@toshindo.online