On Saturday February 4, 2017, I had the pleasure of taking the Louisiana Concealed Handgun Permit…read more(CHP) class with my dad. The course was taught by NOLATAC instructor Kenneth "Kenny" Fernandez inside of the St. Bernard Indoor Shooting Center. This nearly 10 hour class (including the shooting course) fulfills the mandatory requirement of 9 hours of classroom instruction necessary for a lawful citizen to apply for a CHP. This is a long day and I recommend that students bring their lunch, as we only had 30 minutes to eat lunch, as well as 2 separate 5 minute restroom breaks. This may sound extreme to some, but it was the goal of NOLATAC to provide a course that could be completed in a single day, rather than having a 2-day course. The classroom is set up with tables and has room for approximately 20 students. Thankfully, the chairs are extremely comfortable and there is a lot of legroom between rows. The classroom also features a Keurig coffee machine with at least a dozen varieties of coffees, as well as snacks, water and sodas. Kenny Fernandez is an excellent instructor. By law, he is required to cover a lot of topics. Louisiana Revised Statute was covered in depth through a series of lectures and videos, with emphasis on "Use of force or violence in defense", "Justifiable homicide", "Illegal Carrying of weapons" and "Statewide permits for concealed handguns; application procedures". Discussing law can often be mundane, but Kenny's approach includes a lot of relevant videos, slideshows and scenarios. To get his students thinking, a lot of "what would you do if" scenarios were presented and discussed. From the onset of his presentation and throughout the day, the importance of safety being paramount was drilled into our heads. Our particular class had a good representation of demographics to include both sexes, multiple ethnicities and ages ranging from mid-20s to mid-70s. Kudos to Kenny for being able to keep all of us engaged and keep us all moving forward through the class until it was actually time to shoot. Topics were covered in a way that even if a student had never touched a firearm, he or she would have a solid foundation by the end of the day. Some of the basics taught were firearm nomenclature, the 4 components of a pistol cartridge and the 3 causes of ammunition malfunctions. The essential 6 fundamentals of shooting (listed below) were explained in great detail, with significant emphasis on sight alignment and follow through. 1. Grip 2. Position (stance) 3. Breath control 4. Sight alignment/sight picture 5. Trigger press 6. Follow through We were taught that as CHP holders, "lethal force should be our last resort and we should exercise confrontational avoidance whenever possible; and our ultimate goal is to avoid a confrontation by not presenting ourselves as a target". Kenny was realistic in that he advised us that sometimes, good people are placed in situations where they may have to use lethal force to protect ourselves or the life of another. But he emphasized that "We do not make the decision to shoot someone. He/she makes the decision to get shot". Furthermore, we were taught that we shoot to stop the threat and we shoot until the threat stops. We received a lot of handouts at the beginning of the class to include: 1. United Stated Concealed Carry Association 2. Louisiana Open Carry Awareness League 3. The Louisiana Shooting Association 4. National Crime Prevention Council 5. National Rifle Association 6. Armed Citizen Educational Foundation 7. Pocket Constitution (my favorite) The actual shooting portion of the class took place at the very end of the day after all the academics were complete. The shooting portion, in my opinion as a somewhat experienced shooter, was not challenging. However, it served a valuable purpose for the newer shooter and met the requirements for a CHP. The course was a 36 round course with 12 rounds being fired at a black silhouette target from 6 feet, 10 feet and 15 feet. There was also a mandatory magazine change (for semi-automatic firearms) after each 6 rounds. Kenny was able to get us through the range portion of the class quickly and safely by utilizing some of the St. Bernard Indoor Shooting Center firearms instructors. I thoroughly enjoyed this class and I highly recommend using NOLATAC if you ever consider taking a CHP class. And if you do, I'd find out when Kenny Fernandez is teaching and try to get in his class.

I have attended the chp class on numerous occasions just for refresher knowledge in regards to the…read morelaws. For those that want to claim false facts in regards to the class or the instructors and say it's a racist class that would be a flat out lie and false. At the beginning of the class it is even states that the class will cover issues which have happened in the past and may be controversial, but only 100% of the truth in regards to the legal outcomes will be put out. There has never been any personal feeling or thoughts injected into the classes at anytime and it's always a great thing to hear people ask questions in regards to all situations and matter that is displayed during the course. Again the has never been any bias given in regards to anyone's race, color or sex during the class or in any of the items covered during the class. In fact if anyone is evening extra knowledge or guidance in regards to there chp permit the owner as well as the instructors are always available via email or even to the side during the class on breaks to assist. Great class and it's obvious due to the amount of other chp instructors within the state who have come and sat in the class as well as sought out additional knowledge for their personal classes. Even if you don't intend on getting your chp I highly recommend atleast at a minimum attend the course for the knowledge it provides

Dropped by the gym while in town and Charlie was so welcoming. Great coaching and the members were…read morefriendly and informative . I felt so comfortable and had some good rolls. Appreciate the warm welcome and definitely coming back when in town again. The gym is nice and clean. I've been to a few gyms and this one is top notch. Thank you for welcoming me and my gf. We had a great time.

10/10 Would and will recommend to anyone passing through NOLA!…read more Not only did they allow my wife and I to drop in, they let our kids who train jump in on the lesson as well! Outstanding representation of a clean and friendly training environment. If we're ever traveling through NOLA again we won't even look anywhere else.

David was very professional and demonstrated exceptional experience in delivering personalized…read moreservice. He was attentive to detail and to my concerns. I'd highly recommend him to others.

Dave is a great instructor! His concealed carrier basics class is the complete package. He goes…read moreover weapon basics, scenario training, and the law on justifiable self-defense. He is extremely patient and knowledgeable, and a nice guy as well. I will be returning over the course of the next year to take some more advanced training with CC Nola. Highly recommended.

Great place! Coach John was very welcoming, the teaching was excellent and had a great rounds with…read moreeveryone. If you're in the area, stop being a slug and go train there. If you're visiting, stop being a slug and go train there! Beautiful space and mats, was told it was renovated from an old fire house, really cool looking.

What an amazing school, very welcoming. Professor Matthias very knowledgeable and listens to his…read morestudents. Welcomed me and another professor with open arms.

So glad to have my children learning about contributing to a community, behaving with integrity,…read morelearning with dedication and getting physical strength and self-defense training at Chayon Nola. I think it's very important to self esteem development to be involved in sports, but I feel that this dojang emphasizes goal-directed hard work, and builds on previous skills to help students advance. The environment encourages respect and is constructively critical, but supportive. Chayon Nola has been an important part of my kids' personal development, and I am so glad that we found it.

Chayon Nola has the best and the most passionate Sensei, Sensei Faust . My daughter has been her…read morestudent since 2020, she learned confidence, balance , strength, self estime , respect . Sensei Faust pushed her to be firm with discipline, teaches her self defense with no fear. taekwondo also helps her in other sports . It is an art and discipline. I recommande Chayon Nola 100 % to be the best thing happened in my daughter life.

++1. A rare gem among the other karate dojo…read more This is one of the late traditional karate dojos around. If you're looking for a place to learn self-defense, this is the place. Unlike other dojos where you pay for your belt color, Louisiana Karate Association makes you earn it. There are no free things in life. I prefer earning my "stripes," especially if I have to defend myself against an attack. Sensei Mikami is one of the oldest and renowned instructors around. He was a former Japan Karate Champion back in his day...so you know his karate is legit. He focuses on physical and mental discipline. This dojo has a reasonable size class, so you know you'll learn and get the attention you deserve. The other karate students are experienced and really helpful when it comes to needing help. There is a waiting area for parents and guests to sit to watch. If you're unsure, it's a great way to see if this dojo is a good fit for you. So, if you're looking to learn how to defend yourself and get a good workout, this is the karate dojo for you in Metairie.

What made me join was because I wanted to learn better discipline to help me out with my…read moreinvolvement in other sports. I'd be saying a major lie if I said it hasn't helped me in that department. Sensei Mikami is not only the real deal but also a legend in Shotokan Karate. Physical fitness and self defense were some nice bonuses for me that I have gotten out of training here. All of his instructors (too many to name on here because they're all great) are well qualified and specialize in different aspects of karate so if for some reason there is a different teacher than who you are accustomed to having you will still learn something important while being here.

Professor Mattias is awesome! I dropped by to get a little training in, and was shown the upmost…read morerespect and BJJ comradeship! One Team One love ; BJJ!!! Thank you Professor!

I visited NO had the fortunate opportunity to train at a couple of bjj academies. I came here on a…read moreSaturday for an open mat with my friend who also lives here (I am from CA) and had a blast. Some definite class acts here who were more than welcoming. Don't let the lower belts fool you - they have some beasts on the mat here. The upper belts displayed excellent technique and rolled at a nice pace (no egos here). I would love to come back and train again.

Great place to bring your kids to learn karate. Very respectful staff. Everyone is friendly and…read morehelpful. I workout while I wait for my kids. My kids absolutely love it. My wife and I may join kickboxing classes. There's also a hair salon upstairs and a arts and crafts class. All in one.

I had paid $500.00 dollars for 2blackbelt test its been 8 months for1 and 5 months for the other…read moreshe refuses to give my family there embroidery belt that we have paid for she puts the wrong date on my sons certificate. We had a key to this womens business and anytime she needed my family to run her business we were there. We closed her business at night. I was a paying customer monthly . She is keeping the belts out of meanest and spite and to throw it in my families face she gives her step son that was not in class his embroidery belt. So please take your money some where else she will use and abuse you.