History

In the beginning

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Master Andrew Gause began his Martial Arts training the same way so many other kids have --one of his neighbors was doing it, and when Andrew’s parents asked him about trying it, he thought it sounded “cool.” 

Andrew started his training in 1989 at the Providence Recreation Center in Falls Church, Virginia -- and at that time, there weren’t very many martial arts schools to choose from.   Andrew was hooked almost instantly and started practicing outside of class in his backyard with school friends (who were also in the martial arts) and his skills quickly improved.  It wasn’t long before his skill far surpassed those training with him and at the rank of Green Belt he was invited to go train at the main school in Falls Church in September 1990.    

The training days

The school in Falls Church looked like most other martial arts school did back then, it was small, smelled (like a sweat sock as his dad would say), blood stains on the canvas floor covering, no water fountains--just a sink, an old industrial fan for an air conditioner, and hardly any training equipment.  There was no office--just a desk near the front.  When you tested for belts (which was held once every two months) you had to return your old belt when you got a new one --and you never knew if you were going to get a “new” or a “used” belt.  

None of that mattered, as Andrew loved training two days per week --and soon, up to six days a week by the time he earned his 1st Dan Black Belt in 1992.  In the fall of 1993 the Falls Church school business closed down.  Between the school closing and losing touch with his Master, Andrew was devastated.   Later on, when he made the decision to have his own dojang -- he vowed never to put any of his students through that experience and continues to run a school that is both respected for its martial arts and its high-integrity business practices.

Staying focused

Luckily, there were many other branch locations nearby and Andrew resumed his training at the Mclean studio.  After a few months of training at this new dojang, Andrew was offered a position as an assistant instructor in the spring of 1994.  Over the next few years, Andrew worked at this dojang and soon started working at other branch locations as well.  Being able to work at so many different dojangs (Mclean, Burke, Springfield, Ashburn, Chantilly, and Gainesville) allowed him to work with more instructors and students. This presented the opportunity to give him a chance to view different approaches to learning, managing and leading within a martial art school.  

During high school, Andrew began to seriously think that this was what he wanted to do for a career.  Upon graduation, Andrew decided to attend James Madison University and worked towards earning a Bachelor’s degree in Marketing.  During the summer after his freshman year Andrew wanted to make sure he was making the right career choice and so he spent a summer working in the corporate world and it only took a short while to solidify what he had always known, that the Martial Arts life was the life for him!   

Making a career from a passion

Andrew graduated from James Madison University in May 2002 and immediately went to work full time for his mentor, John Cassidy.  After a year and a half of working for Mr. Cassidy, Andrew said that he wanted his own dojang by the end of 2004.  Mr. Cassidy had two schools and offered to sell Andrew the Ravensworth Shopping Center location in Springfield.  Andrew hadn’t contemplated taking over an existing school, but it had a small student base and he thought that it would be easier than starting from scratch. So, on September 1, 2004, Andrew Gause took over ownership of the Ravensworth Dojang.  

Andrew immediately set out to make changes in the curriculum that he had seen could be improved and added to and has been in control of all aspects of the dojang since the very beginning.  Master Andrew has always sought out skills and drills that will complement the Taekwondo base that he learned.  These skills include aspects from Kung Fu, Muay Thai, Boxing, Hapkido, Judo, etc --and help make the students more well-rounded.  Since that time, the student count and quality has taken off and continues to improve (“we can always do better” is a motto we try and apply in every aspect of the school).  

Over the years Master Andrew Gause has had the opportunity to train under many great Masters, applying many of the different styles and approaches they used.  In addition to his physical training Andrew has continually improved his martial arts education through extensive research (books, dvd’s, magazines, etc) and has a continuing education curriculum in place to make sure that all of his instructors continue to grow as well.  

From today on...

In 2012, after many years of preparation, Andrew Gause’s Martial Arts is ready to expand into a second location (Fairfax Station).   This expansion allows more opportunities to our current instructors/staff and will give current students the chance to become the next generation of dedicated instructors.   
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Instructors studied under by Master Andrew Gause:
  • Master Jim Ramsey (1st instructor)
  • Master Song, Yunho
  • Master Wong, Abram
  • Grandmaster Kim, Young S (Former National Team Coach)
  • Master Park, Sang Joon (Andrew earned his 1st Dan with Master Park and considers him his main Taekwondo instructor as a student)
  • Grandmaster Kim, Moon Ho (Grandmaster in both Taekwondo and Judo, instructed Andrew in Taekwondo, Judo and Haidong Gumdo)
  • Master John Cassidy (Primary business mentor)
  • Master Patrice Remark (Olympic athlete and Coach, and former US National Team Head Coach)
  • Grandmaster Maurice Allan (Judo) (also a world Sambo champion and Olympic Freestyle Wrestler representing the United Kingdom in 1976). 
_Award-winning Taekwondo instruction proudly serving the Springfield, Annandale, Burke, Falls Church, West Springfield, Alexandria, Fairfax, Fairfax Station and Clifton communities in Fairfax County, Virginia since in 2004.