Bring Your Own....

Throwing Knife.

Wednesday night is black belt night. Our first class of the New Year was BYOK. Several dojo members recently purchased throwing knives, stars and darts. Another person brought his personal collection which included a throwing axe. The recent interest in throwing knives was a direct result of trip to Tennessee by two instructors. They stopped at the Smoky Mountain Knife Works. The returned home to PA with a bag full of purchases. It did not take long before other black belt students purchased their own set of throwing knives.

The one wall of the dojo was transformed into our target board. Extra sheets of plywood were added to the wall. Two wooden targets were made as well as several cardboard barriers. For two hours, we took turns throwing. (black belt adults only).

Personal observations from a first time thrower:

It is not easy.
Most of my attempts went splat against the wall.
Knives can bounce back quickly.
The axe makes a cool sound when it flies through the air.
I can only imagine the hours and hours (and hours) of practice to become proficient at knife throwing.
You could hear the knife throwing (in my case knife splatting against the wall) activity from outside the dojo. I wonder what the neighbors thought?

At the end of the night, we packed up the cardboard and targets and removed the extra plywood from the wall. We cleaned up the floor and all the knives were taken home. It was an interesting evening and a different way to start training in 2011.

You can check out this video on Combat Knife Throwing featuring Ralph Thorn and his no spin style of knife throwing.




A quick disclaimer: This activity was supervised in a dojo and the participants were adult black belts. This is my personal weblog which documents my experiences and training.

Kata Is....

...the beginning.

These words were spoken by my instructor this weekend at the monthly black belt workout. The focus on the session was on sai and sai vs bo applications. We practiced the kata Kyan no Sai a few times. The remainder of the session was partner drills working sai vs bo.

The class explored distancing, blocks, parries, striking opportunities. We worked on various ways to hold the sai...open, closed, one open /one closed. We defended against bo side strikes, overhead strikes, pokes to the body and pokes to the face. For two hours, all you could hear was the crack of sai hitting the bo. Music to the karate practitioners ears...

It was a great session and I am grateful for the monthly training opportunities at the Honbu.


Kata is the beginning.

As a kyu rank, I remember learning a kata pattern and looking forward to learning the next pattern. The patterns came easy to me. But did I really know the kata? The answer is NO. I knew a series of movements. It takes practice and exploration to learn what the kata is teaching. Interpretation can change over time as a result of experience, preference, physical strengths, limitations or injury.

As a class instructor, I remind the students that kata is not just for a single test or promotion. Kata requirements are cumulative. Students are expected to keep improving earlier material. A brown belt student's material should be performed with brown belt level ability.

As a black belt student, I view my kata as a work in progress. I strive to explore, improve and refine. I learned the pattern of the first kata 18 years ago. There is always more to discover and something to improve.

Enjoy...Train...Discover!

“I Don’t Know”

“I Don’t Know.” I hear myself saying that in the dojo more frequently these days. We have been working on the kata Odo no Kama Ichi and Tsuken Akachono Nunte Bo. My history with these kata is something like this:

Practice – Learn – No practice – Forget – Review – Remember

I have forgotten these two kata more times, than I care to count. Why? It is simple. I do not practice them regularly. There are 30 weapons kata and 21 open hand kata in Okinawa Kenpo. The kama kata and the nunte bo kata are Yondan requirements. These kata do not often make an appearance during the regularly scheduled classes.

During the last two weeks, we have focused on kama and nunte bo. My husband and I were taught these kata at different times from different class instructors. Our kata are slightly different. We know there have been some corrections to these particular kata through the years. Is it a pivot step back or a shift step back in kama? Is it an overhead on guard or an overhead strike in nunte bo? In kama, is it left over right or right over left? How much rotation on the hook in nunte bo?

Details…Details…Details

I love the details.

It is ok to say “I don’t know”.

View it as an opportunity for discovery.

Fighting with Traditional Weapons

Fighting with traditional weapons was part of the Federation's training events. For some, it was the highlight of the event. For others, including myself, it was great to watch. The session was only open to black belt students. We had the opportunity to gear up and work kobudo against an opponent. The gear was massive and was jokingly referred to as Robocop. There were several layers of padding...think a cross between hockey gear and sparring gear. Weapon fighting was optional and not surprisingly the same group would participate at each training.

Then one session, my class instructor forced...no, wait...I meant to say encouraged me to participate. It took fifteen minutes to put on the gear. The gloves made the weapons hard to hold and there was a full helmet. The weapons were padded and modified to reduce the chance of injury. A different class instructor helped design a suitable helmet. He was a member of the Society of Creative Anachronism, Inc (SCA) and had experience designing modified armor. SCA is an international organization whose members are dedicated to researching and re-creating the arts and skills of pre-17th-century Europe. Check out their web site FAQ page for more information.

It was time to choose a weapon. I picked up a bo and my opponent (my class instructor) had a bo. The match lasted only two minutes before exhaustion set in. The gear was heavy and the helmet made it hard to breathe.

I participated in this session one time over ten years ago. What did I learn from a two minute session of weapon kumite?

• I am slightly claustrophobic. When I put the full helmet on my head, I felt a moment of panic. I had to take a few breaths in order to calm down. The helmet was heavy and hot and it made it difficult to breathe. I should have known this before I put the helmet on. I do not even like to wear turtlenecks.


• Hands are a great target. I know this because during my two minute session, the other bo found a chink in my so called armor. The bo smashed down on my thumb and I actually saw stars. I could not bend my thumb for weeks. It was swollen and bruised. I never went to the doctor to have it check but I should have.


• Angles, angles angles.


• I held the bo in thirds with one hand palm up, the other palm down. This allowed me to use both ends of the bo fairly quickly. There was no time for hand changes as seen in our kata.
  
  
• The exchanges happened faster and at a closer range than I expected.
  
  
• Go for the disarm.

Certain lessons make a huge impact on your training. The difficulty is recognizing those lessons when they are happening. I did not realize it at the time, but this two minute session impacted my subsequent kobudo training. I am glad my class instructor encouraged me to participate because this session is no longer on the schedule.

Is there any particular session that made you look at your training differently? Did you know it at the time? Or did you realize it days, months or even years later?

Disclaimer: Do not mistake this blog as advice or instruction. This is a personal weblog. I am merely documenting my karate training experiences. The weapon fighting described in this post was performed under the supervision of an Internationally recognized kobudo instuctor with over thirty-five years of experience.

Kata and Kumite

In my previous post, I discussed the importance of evaluating kata. I study traditional Okinawa Kenpo and there are fifty-one kata (21 open hand and 30 weapon). BobSpar, the author of the Middle Aged Martial Artist blog, asked the following question.

"When you spar, how close do you think your execution is to the form you strive for in kata?"


Hopefully...very close. The techniques used in kata should be of the same caliber as the ones used in sparring. The techniques should be clean and technically correct. A punch or kick done properly will generate more power and be more accurate. The practice and study of kata develops timing, precision, control of center line, distancing, two foot movement, removal of target, angles and turning. During kata we strive to remain level and connect our body movement. For example, the power of a punch is not created by the arm alone. The body is connected to the floor and the power is generated through the hip and out the arm to the target.

After my initial reaction to the question, I began to think of the best fighters I know. I ran down the list in my mind. Each and every one of them are excellent kata practitioners. I think of the students in this dojo where kumite is part of the curriculum. We practice kumite but the most of the classes focus on kata, kobudo or application. The students love to spar and sometimes compete in tournaments. The students do extremely well in kumite even against fight focused schools. Good basics and good techniques are the key to their success.

When I watch people spar, I look for their kata. I see it in the way they move and how they cut angles. I look at their techniques and often find pieces of kata. Some examples are the parry reverse punch from Wansu, the rolling back fist from Pinan Yondan or a block back fist from Pinan Sandan. A simple inside forearm block becomes a parry strike when using the prep hand as the block so the block becomes the strike. We read our opponents by picking up cues from the body. Movement in the shoulder or hip can telegraph a punch or a kick. Kata practice helps eliminate the extra body movement.

In my opinion, kata training is the core of my kumite.

What do you think the relationship is between kata and kumite?

Obi - Under Construction

I mentioned in a previous post that I felt my obi was in a perfect state of wear – worn but not worn out. I commented that I never added the gold stripe to my belt. I recently decided to buy a new Renshi belt and keep my original belt stripe free. I have been so busy; I have yet to place an order.

My plans suddenly have changed.

Last Saturday, I went to the black belt workout at the Honbu. I was asked to stand up front and lead the group through Odo No Tekkos Ichi. At the end of the kata, my instructor came towards me. I thought that he wanted to inspect my weapon. My tekkos were hand made from ebony. He did not want to see the tekkos.

He wanted to see my belt.

My belt will soon be under construction. My instructor told me that he would mail me what I need. Therefore, I am expecting an envelope in the mail any day with the supplies I need to retrofit my obi. I will be adding a stripe and updating the Federation logo. I need to do this before the Federation training camp next weekend.

Did I mention I do not sew?

For those interested, I am including a link to Crane Mountain weapons. They specialize in custom traditional wooden martial arts weapons. I am fortunate to own a pair of steel kama and nunchaku made by Crane Mountain.