So this is it! We're moving. It's the last few days in Ballyboggan, and I'm spending the first of them at home sick! Luckily, everyone is in capable hands in the gym, but I'm not happy to be missing the last few sessions.

We'll close the doors on Thursday for the last time. While it's great to be moving, I've a lot of memories here. A lot of people took their first steps on to the mat in this place.

But move we must, the old building just can't match up to our expectations anymore. We need a nicer place. Let me take you through some of the thinking behind selecting a new building.

You basically have 2 choices for a martial arts gym. Light Industrial, or Retail/Commercial. Where we are now is Industrial. Where we are going is sort of retail, but more like community space (which is rarer than hen's teeth, but more on that later).

In Light Industrial, you've got plenty of indoor space, usually free of columns, and a bit of parking. If you're lucky, you share with businesses who don't use their spaces in the evening when you have classes.

In Commercial positives, you've got accessibility, visibility, and walkability. You might be in a shopping centre, a village, or in above a shop, that kind of thing. All of which are really nice.

In the negative columns, in Industrial, you've got a lack of walkability, you can have dirty neighbours, and at night, Industrial Estates are not very welcoming. Commercial properties are currently crazy money. Oh and most places give you the sum total of 2 parking spaces for our size.

In negatives for Commercial, you might be in a busy area with congestion, have no parking, and it's expensive. Really, really expensive. It'll also likely be small. Most uits run to about 150sqm if you're lucky. They're thinking hairdresser and coffee shop, not gym, when they're building.

So when you're moving, you've to pick what you want, and balance the positives and negatives. Having spent 12 years in Industrial, I wanted to get out and move into somewhere much nicer. I wanted kids to be able to walk or cycle here without parents worrying, and I wanted adults to walk into a nice space that they wanted to spend time in. Ultimately, we're a community club, so we should be in the community.

More and more over the years, that community has diversified from Finglas/Cabra and into Ashtown and Royal Canal Park as that area has grown. About 60% of our under 18 members are from that area. It's a nice place to walk around in, and I'm looking forward to Kyuzo being a part of the fabric there.

It's crazy, but we'll be the ONLY sport in the area. You've to cross the canal or the Tolka to find another! Every kid in the area is going to walk onto the mats at Kyuzo at some stage!

Anyway, the new premises is like the universe smiled on me for a brief moment. I have been thinking of moving for a few years, but when I made the decision to go, I rang 3 places, viewed 2 within 24hrs, and this place was the first of them. It's a former community space in a nice retail building. It spent time as a school with 2 classrooms, and it's got a nice vibe inside and out.

It's as big as a light industrial unit, without the dirt, there are no columns, and there are no heavy trucks clattering up the road. It's in a quiet, residential neighbourhood. There's less parking, but on the positive side, you won't be afraid that your car is going to get crushed by a truck!

Inside, I'm making my dream gym. We got finished with a sprung floor last weekend. 110 sheets of timber had to be passed into the basement down 2 flights of narrow stairs, and they are now laid on top of 2,000 high density foam blocks that make the floor feel forgiving underfoot. This is for safety in throws and high impacts, but also for longevity for your joints. It feels great to walk on, so I can't wait to train on it!

We'll also have showers and changing rooms for men and women, our full equipment shop, and a parent's waiting area. Oh and it's air conditioned. I've never had an air conditioned gym before!

It's a really nice space to train and to hang out in.

We'll be having our last session on the old mats on Thursday 12th February, followed by a ceremonious "Carrying of the Mats", or, as it's otherwise known, free labour to get the mats down the stairs for the big move on Friday morning.

And then it's goodbye Ballyboggan Road, and on to new things in Rathborne Place.

I can't wait!

See you on the mat,

Barry