THE KARATE KING
RICK ROHRMAN’S BUDO KAI HAS 40 YEARS BELOW ITS BELT By Kevin Czerwinski
R
ick Rohrman says it seems like a minute since he first opened Budo Kai Traditional Karate and Fitness in River Edge.
is set up in a traditional manner. All the classes are conducted on a suspended maple wood training floor, replicating the way karate is taught in Japan. He achieved his first black belt in 1976 and currently holds the rank of Sandan in traditional Goju Ryu and Isshin Ryu Karate in addition to holding a Kyoshi grade in an eclectic form of Goju Ryu.
That minute, however, covers 40 years, a span during which Rohrman has been a constant in the town’s business community while serving as a friend, teacher and confidant to thousands of students who have passed through the doors of Budo Kai Traditional Karate and Fitness.
While all the ranks, promotions and titles are wonderful accomplishments, it’s Rohrman’s approach, ability to work with and communicate with people of all ages and a genuine love of what he does that has made him so successful for so long.
Rohrman teaches Goju Ryu Karate for beginners through advanced levels and operates in a dojo that
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