Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

Sensei asked me to pass on his wishes that you all have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. This year has been quite a big one for the club. We have entered more competitions than ever before and been out and about with the kendo community, making friends and building on the previous years foundations for good kendo.

We held three beginner's nights and managed to keep some of those eager to start the long kendo journey. We lost quite a few members for one reason or another but a few returned from absences which brought vital skills and spirit back to the club.

We also held our first seminar and Kyusha Taikai on behalf of the BKA, inviting Howell Sensei to impart some of his vast knowledge into our training. The event went with only a few hitches, to be expected considering it was our first time, but overall it was a great success with around 40 people attending the weekend and 8 of the 24 kyusha competitors being home-grown and one of these coming 3rd.

2012 will be very different no doubt. We will still be holding the BKA Seminar and Kyusha Taikai on 31st March/1st April 2012 but whether we can field the same numbers as last year is hard to say. A number of us will be attempting gradings, ranging from ikkyu to sandan and your continued input and support will be invaluable in helping us be successful.

A reminder also that some may need to renew their BKA membership. If you have had problems recently it's because the dojo has also had to renew it's membership, this includes the insurance cover for both Sensei and those of us with the Coaching level. If you've had problems then they should be sorted by the end of the week [or next] so please try again, it should be OK.

And lastly a reminder of the training dates over the festive period and beyond, please try and make Wednesday's last practice of 2011:

Monday 19th December [kata] CLOSED
Wednesday 21st December, last practice of 2011
Wednesday 28th December CLOSED

2012
Wednesday 4th January, first practice of 2012 [Winter Training, tracksuits, no bogu required]Wednesday 11th January [Winter Training, tracksuits, no bogu required]
Monday 16th January [kata]
Wednesday 18th January [Club photograph]
Wednesday 25th January [beginner's night]

Thank you once again for your efforts over 2011.

CLOSED - Monday 19th December, Kata

Just to let you know that the Kata night of 19th December has been cancelled, as the school will be closed. Here's a reminder of the training dates over the festive period and beyond:

Monday 19th December [kata] CLOSED
Wednesday 21st December, last practice of 2011
Wednesday 28th December CLOSED

2012
Wednesday 4th January, first practice of 2012 [Winter Training, tracksuits, no bogu required]Wednesday 11th January [Winter Training, tracksuits, no bogu required]
Monday 16th January [kata]
Wednesday 18th January [Club photograph]
Wednesday 25th January [beginner's night]

CLOSED - Wednesday 30 November

Just to remind everyone that we will be closed on Wednesday 30 November, as millions of public workers stand up for their rights in a bid to protect their pension. Please do not turn up as the Egg wil not be open and you will be disappointed. Next practice is Kata on Monday 5th December or next Wednesday 7th December.

Christmas/New Year Training Dates

Some club dates for your diary, though I'll update the Calendar too. If the situation changes we'll let you know.

Wednesday 30th November CLOSED 

Monday 5th December [kata]
Monday 19th December [kata]
Wednesday 21st December, last practice of 2011
Wednesday 28th December CLOSED
2012
Wednesday 4th January, first practice of 2012 [Winter Training, tracksuits, no bogu required]Wednesday 11th January [Winter Training, tracksuits, no bogu required]
Monday 16th January [kata]
Wednesday 18th January [Club photograph]
Wednesday 25th January [beginner's night]

Kata night

Thanks go out to the seven guys who turned up to kata last night. Sensei sent his apologies as he has been ill over the weekend. I really appreciate your turning up, your efforts and your patience with my tuition. Hopefully you were able to get some greater understanding through last nights practice.

At Liverpool Kendo Club we practice, on average, twice a month for two hours each session. Very few clubs nationwide will devote so much time to kata and certainly not in such detail. The club pays for the venue, and at £36 a session the more people that turn up the better value it is all round. Because we believe so strongly in the importance of kata and the benefits it has shown in the beginners who have attended for club members this lesson is FREE! The cost of practice is included in your monthly fees so the only thing stopping you going is getting there.

We will continue to subsidise kata sessions this but it's down to the individual to turn up, without this knowledge you will not be able to attend gradings both within the club and further down the line for National gradings.

If this was not enough to convince you of the importance of kata just remember it was only through kata that 'Daniel-san' wins in Karate Kid 3. Go on, do it for Mr Miyagi! ;)

Bogu care

Just a bit of information to those members who have recently started to get into club armour. Please ensure that after practice you keep the bogu in a space at home that is warm, dry and ventilated. Ideally the armour should be out of the bag, at the least the bag should be rolled down. Failure to look after your bogu this way WILL result in mould growing, particularly if you can't attend practice for a couple of weeks, or over the holiday period when we are not training.

Due to having a new kitchen fitted I've not been able to attend to my bogu in the usual fashion and my spare kote have mould growth on them and that's been just a couple of weeks! It just goes to show it can happen to anyone and it can happen very quick, so please take care of the armour on loan to you.

Should the worst happen don't panic. I've used cleaning products such as Oxi Clean and an old toothbrush to remove any mould without any harm to the bogu. Don't use bleach cleaning products under any circumstances. Any questions or tips just ask us, either on practice night or the forum.

Beginner's Nights all right for fighting.

Thanks to everyone who turned up for the Beginner's Night. I think there were eleven, hopefully we'll see you all back at the club next Wednesday, where it'll only get better and more confusing. Just a reminder to all that next week will be the first Wednesday of the month, which is 'fees night', £20 for the gainfully employed, £10 concessions. This includes all the Wednesday practices and any kata sessions.  Details of all practice dates are updated on the calendar so please keep an eye on it or add it to your RSS readers [details on the forum on how to do this, feed link below].
Liverpool Kendo Club Training Calendar RSS Feed


There is also kata on Monday, beginners welcome too. Some clubs find it can be difficult to grasp kata early on, but Sensei believes there is a lot a beginner can learn which can help with the Wednesday night sessions. We've also noticed those Beginners who attend kata progress much quicker than those that don't and as it's included in your fees anyway there's little excuse to not be there. So come along to Chesterfield High School in Crosby, details in the Training section.


Anyone who missed Beginner's Night and still wishes to attend, next week is your 'last chance to dance' until January 2012. Anyone who wants to try kendo can do so but after next week, for the benefit of all the beginners, you will have to wait till our next Beginner's Night. Thanks for your understanding. Oh some links for our new friends:


Liverpool Kendo Club is on Facebook
Liverpool Kendo Club Forum
Liverpool Kendo Club Google Calendar RSS
Liverpool Kendo Club Clothing (we make no profit from this)
British Kendo Association website

Beginner's Night 28th September 2011

Just to remind everyone that Wednesday is Beginner's Night. For existing members please try to be on time so we can get ready and please bring any spare shinai you have.

Beginners please be in the dojo no later than 7:15pm so we can go through all the Health and Safety aspects. Please remember to wear loose fitting clothes, tracksuit pants or three-quarter shorts are ideal. For more information click the Beginners link on the website. Just a reminder that your first session is free and if you cannot manage it this week then we will only accept new beginners up to October 5th [next week]. If you miss these dates anyone wishing to start kendo will have to wait until the next Beginner's Night in January 2012

Apologies for last nights practice cancellation.

Sincere apologies to all those who turned up for practice last night. As you know it was cancelled due to scaffolding left in the dojo which prevented practice. As this knowledge was not passed onto us we couldn't let people know in advance not to turn up using the blog, the forum, facebook or even by phone.

 

It was a disappointment made more frustrating as Sensei Needham from Bolton Kendo Club made the journey to practice with us. Also, it would have been Dave Parkes, who has been visiting us for the past few weeks from Oxford University, last practice as he will be leaving us and travelling to Japan to train. Thanks for your attendance and safe journey.

 

Lastly, there was lots to catch up on from the Bowden and I'll be posting the remaining links to the matches on youtube, though they are easily found now if you can't wait. Apologies once again and thank you for your understanding.

Sir Frank Bowden Taikai 2011 - Round 1 Liverpool Vs Kobudokan

Sorry about the delay in posting this, I've actually uploaded the three sets of matches between ourselves, Kobudokan, Mumeishi and eventual winners Wakaba. Here are the Kobudokan matches:

Senpo -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WEU0AfZYboc

Jiho -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3UCN7uXqdRI

Chuken -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oqgH0h_jDUU

Fukusho -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-xhmi5dBhc

Taisho -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5je8EN_QHoY

I'll post the remaining links once I've cleaned up all the youtube descriptions. It was a good day and overall the impression was that we fought well [although my 40 second match with Safraz Aziz will not sit alongside my highlights of the day :( ] Regardless, thanks for all your efforts we will continue to improve, as always.

Club armour

Liverpool Kendo Club has long held the position that we should provide club armour to those that have shown progress and commitment to their training. This obligation was explored in the post about Giri 義理. However, we are beginning to notice that those that do loan armour are not showing the level of attendance expected to justify the use of bogu, when there are regular members of the club who could benefit more from it's use.

We have discussed a number of options, including a deposit but instead we have decided to limit the loan of club armour for three months unless a valid reason for extending the loan is agreed by either Sensei Ware or Sensei Carter. Ultimately if you currently have armour you are expected to attend practice on Wednesdays and kata every other Monday. If you cannot make this commitment then we expect you to return the bogu so that someone who fully participates in the club can progress.

If you cannot attend specific practices for valid reasons then please keep in contact with us so we know why, that is your duty in taking care of the bogu. It is disheartening that not only are we not seeing regular use of club armour we are also having to chase up those who have borrowed it and eventually recover it at club expense, this is totally unacceptable. Therefore we expect everyone with club armour to return it to the dojo next Wednesday so we can re-allocate it to those members who deserve use of it.

For those that want to continue to train irregularly then it will be your obligation to invest in your own bogu. That way you can come and go as you please and you will not be slowing the progress of other club members.

Sir Frank Boden Memorial Taikai 2011

Once again members of Liverpool Kendo Club will go forth to compete in the biggest team even in the kendo calendar. It's a team that will feature old hands and new blood so we hope to go in with strong fighting spirit and see what we can achieve. The team features:

• Richard Crosbie
• Anthony Francis
• Martin O'Shaugnessy
• Dave Weston
• Joe Willmott

We'll try to update the blog as the action goes down.

Attendance

Thanks once again for attending last nights practice, in particular our visitors from near and far, your efforts were appreciated. It's been a good week for kendo in that we've had two days of Intensive Training with the British Squad and two weeks where new practice partners have stretched our abilities and challenged our skills.

Summer is a time where many dojo find numbers slowly drop off as there seem to be far more interesting things to do on a warm evening than stand in a hall and sweat yourself stupid for two hours. Thankfully, for the most part, we have had relatively good numbers attending which is rewarding for us as we are seeing people week in, week out, improving through our efforts. Presumably it's also rewarding for those who attend regularly as they will be experiencing that progression first hand and not feel intimidated by the challenges ahead.

It's understandable that every day life can impact on training which may prevent attendance, therefore can you please make every effort to let us know if you cannot come to practice. If we know individuals are not coming we can aim to start practice sooner rather than later. Aside from that, it's part of dojo etiquette and common courtesy to those who do attend that they will not be benefiting from your presence. More importantly, if you have been loaned club armour you have taken on the responsibility of turning up regularly. If you cannot make that commitment it is only fair that you return the bogu so that someone else who can be at practice every week can benefit and progress. For greater understanding of this please refer to my post on Giri 義理

So, if you can't make it to practice please let someone know through the forum, facebook or email [use the link at the bottom of http://www.liverpoolkendo.co.uk/]. There's plenty of options so there's really no excuse. Thank you for your understanding and as a reminder there is NO kata on Monday, it's a bank holiday so please DO NOT turn up, you'll be disappointed!

Last Night's Visitors

Thanks go out to Tom Widdows from Kobudokan Kendo Club, Dave Parkes from Oxford University Kendo Club and Mark Welsh from York Kendo Club, who attended practice. Tom has visited a couple of times and helped out with our support for the Etsu Restaurant Japan Fun Day Charity Event. Having a squad member turn up for practice is always a treat.

It was Dave's first time with us, although he did come to the Kyusha Taikai back in April. His Kendo was a real challenge for me, as you saw when his near perfect uchi-otoshi waza on my failed attempt at katate-tsuki sent my shinai across the dojo, always there to entertain. Lastly, it was regular visitor Mark Welsh's last visit for a while as he moves down south to start a new job. It's always a pleasure to have him visit and his kendo has improved greatly over the years, hopefully we'll see you again at Christmas, good luck with your new job

It's great to have visitors, the variety their kendo brings is extremely useful to mix in with the people we practice week in and week out. It's for this reason Sensei is keen to have us compete in competition so we can get out and experience kendo from around the country.

Equally, when those people come to you it makes it even easier, so take advantage of the Squad training this weekend:

Hope Park Sports Hall, Liverpool Hope University, Taggart Avenue, Liverpool, L16 9JD
Saturday 20th 14:30 - 18:00
Sunday 21st 09:30 - 13:00
Each session costs £5.

Grading Success

'Liverpool Old Boy' Andy Checkly, now resident in Japan, has just passed his Ikkyu grading there. He will be preparing for his Shodan in November and his Japanese Sensei seems confident he will pass. It's great news for Andy and also testament that our Club is teaching people in a way that is recognised favorably in the home of Kendo [not that there was any doubt, but it's nice].

Congratulations Andy, keep up the good work, we look forward to hearing back from you in November!

More information about intensive training with the GB Kendo Squad

Just to give you a little more information about Squad Training. Our old friend Daniel Antoni, now resident in Japan went to a couple of squad practices. You can read about his efforts on the Kobudokan Kendo Club forum. There's clear indication of how a session runs so forewarned is forearmed.

Additionally The Kendo Hypochondriac Blog also features a short report from the last squad training in Cardiff, you should be plugging that into your RSS readers as it's an interesting read from 'one of us' a 2nd Dan kendoka who's occasionally injured and is beset by the typical kendo concerns we all have.

And just to remind you, where, when and how much it is.

Hope Park Sports Hall, Liverpool Hope University, Taggart Avenue, Liverpool, L16 9JD
Saturday 20th 14:30 - 18:00
Sunday 21st 09:30 - 13:00
Each session costs £5.

PS don't forget to be on time tonight.

Intensive Training with the GB Kendo Squad

If you were unaware the GB Kendo Squad holds regular monthly training sessions, they are open to all BKA Kendo members. One goal of these sessions is to build a pool of talent from which the Great British Kendo Team will eventually be selected. In order to become a GB Kendo Team member, you must  be committed and demonstrate that you will make a consistent contribution to the BKA and the GB Kendo Squad. Joe has been attending these sessions regularly and his progress not only shows in the dojo but he has come close to being included in the team.

This weekend Saturday 20th and Sunday 21st August, Intensive training takes place here in Liverpool. They will be using the same venue as we did when holding the Kyusha Taikia:

Hope Park Sports Hall, Liverpool Hope University, Taggart Avenue, Liverpool, L16 9JD
Saturday 20th 14:30 - 18:00
Sunday 21st 09:30 - 13:00

Each session costs £5, so it's great value for money, three and a half hours of kendo with Britains strongest competetive kendoka under the watchful eye of the Squad coach. This is an event not to be missed as it is highly unlikely to return to Liverpool, but looks set to move to Wolverhampton, so if you get a taste for it this weekend you won't have to go to the ends of the Earth to show you're interested.

Rest assured though, this will be a hard practice, Joe has described it as 'relentless'. If you are up for the challenge you must remember you are joining practice with the GB Squad and it is your responsibility to do your best to improve their kendo as well as your own, they are not there to 'hold your hand'. Therefore if you want to participate please feel free to take advantage of this opportunity. Come with a strong fighting spirit to do your best and learn with the best. Equally if you are not in armour and wish to come along to watch you are more than welcoem to do so to learn what goes on and what it takes to be a squad member.

We shall overcome!

Thanks go out to those who were at practice last night. Unsurprisingly the dojo was not stormed by the disaffected youth of Merseyside on the hunt for large screen TV's, iPhones, and booze. Although it might have been fun if they had... Sensei was grateful for your attendance and efforts and has asked to remind folk that Kata is on Monday. A reminder has gone up on the Liverpool Kendo Google Calendar  and another one will go up afterwards to let you know there is no kata on the 29th as it's a Bank Holiday, if I do it now you'll only get confused.

Additionally I'll be adding a bit more information over the next week about the intensive GB Squad training course being held on the Saturday 20th and Sunday 21st of August at Hope University, where we had the Kyusha Taikai. Hopefully everyone will be able to attend but I just want to clarify details.

Training still on tonight

I contacted both Sensei and they are keen not to let the current disturbances disrupt practices and are confident that the situation was in hand last night and will probably remain so, particularly with the weather being so miserable.

You are however advised to take care and travel with plenty of time to ensure any possible diversions can be negotiated. If you feel there is still risk in attending then please find a way to let us know if you are not coming so we can begin on time and also that we are not concerned for your arrival. Forums, Facebook, email, text, these are all useful ways to convey this.

The Northern Open / The Komatsu Cup

Good luck to the two teams we are sending to The Northern Open / The Komatsu Cup this weekend. Hopefully you'll get some good experiences in Gateshead and show good fighting spirit on behalf of your club.

Hopefully Joe shoud be keeping me informed over the day so I can post updates online.

Ganbatte - Do your best!

Grading Success

Congrats to Geunsu Lee for passing his Nidan test at the Stoke grading this weekend. Nearly a year ago to the day he passed Shodan! So that shows that you can work hard and grade up to the next level within the minimum time frames set out by the BKA. Hopefully he'll have some information abut the weekend and how it went when next we meet.

Oh, and it transpires that Mark Welsh, regular visitor from York Kendo Club, also passed Nidan so we look forward to his next visit with great anticioation.
Next step on the ladder, back to square one.

Last Night's Visitor

Thanks go out to Sensei Mark Needham [5th dan] who came to practice last night. Needham Sensei runs the Bolton Kendo Club which practices on a Sunday between 10am and 12pm. His instruction is extremely valuable to us.

As a kyu grade he came 2nd in the Kyusha Taikai in 1995. Today he represents one of the highest grades in the North of England, so it's a lesson to us that with time, practice and effort we could all reach his level. Hopefully everyone got to take away some advice from Needham Sensei whatever he had to say to you please take time to focus on it at your next practice.

A number of Liverpool members regularly travel to Bolton to practice. If you wish to attend ask around, there may be a lift available, however please check with Sensei beforehand if this is OK. Sometimes it can be detrimental in the beginning of your kendo training to take instruction from too many instructors, Sensei will know best regarding your ability.

Beginner's Night July - CANCELLED

Due to a number of factors we will NOT be holding a Beginner's Night on July 27th as previously indicated. We will decide later on whether to hold the next Beginner's Night as advertised on Wednesday October 26, 2011 or to bring it forward. Information will be here, on the forum and on the Beginners page as and when we know it.

Sorry for any inconvenience.

Back to basics - the ebb and flow of a lesson

In preparation for tonight's class I hope everyone gets this latest news update and will think ahead about how they approach their training.

 

Training usually follows a similar set pattern:

 

warm-up > suburi > kihon/kiri-kaeshi > jigeiko

 

There is reason for this order, because each part supports and informs the next part. You do not undertake strenuous exercise without a proper warm up. Once you have done the warm up suburi will teach you tenouchi. By practicing without someone in front of you you should be able to see distinctly where you are cutting, to the correct height specified. Each and every cut should be made to this height and tenouchi, the tensing/wringing motion made with the hands at the point of impact, should stop your cut at this desired height.

 

Without suburi practice you do not undertake kihon practice, otherwise when you come to be hitting living human beings you will be treating them like tent pegs and pounding them into the ground. Understanding of tenouchi is essential to prevent inflicting pain on your practice partner and it is important that lessons learned in one exercise are carried forward into the next.

 

Similarly the skills learned in kihon practice are the exact same skills used in in jigeiko, free practice. Abandoning those areas you have just been practicing to deliver some sort of 'win at all costs' kendo is missing the point. You are only short changing yourself because those skills are not being translated to the real world scenario. Equally nerves and the stresses of free practice can rob you of the abilities you have been exploring. Take time to compose yourself and do good, basic, big cuts with tenouchi and strong kiai and zanshin.

 

Please try to focus hard on the instructions given tonight. We will be going through a period of consolidation of all the basics to form a good foundation for your future kendo. Please try to come with a ready spirit and willingness to improve, that's all we ask.

Referee Seminar - Stoke

It may be late in the day for some but there is a Referee Seminar in Stoke tomorrow. Time 10:00 - 17:00 Cost: £10 You may pay on the door. Seminar lead Mike Davis. This is an excellent opportunity to practice your referee skills with one of the best instructors. Please also note that this is also an opportunity for shiai practice.

The venue is:
Wallace Sport and Education Centre, Abbotts Road, Abbey Hulton, Stoke-on-Trent, ST2 8DU

We went on this course last year and it was extremely rewarding, you can read my review here:
http://kendo.org.uk/2010/06/23/referee-seminar-kagami-shin-kendo-club-stoke-19-06-10/

If you can make the effort to go then you won't be disappointed.

Status Update: Kendo on Facebook

Alan Thomson, GB Squad Member and the new BKA Events Officer has just created a Facebook Group for people doing kendo in the UK. He says that the BKA website will be undergoing an update and so if you want to be kept up-to-date with the most recent news to sign up. Any problems let me know and I'll 'add you' in.

And for those that didn't know Liverpool Kendo Club is also on Facebook some of you may check your status update every five minutes and this website, erm, never. However through some arcane jiggery-pokery I have linked this news blog and our Google Calendar RSS to the group. Every time we post anything here it is mirrored on the group so you can still keep in touch with what's going on if you join the Group.

'So DO IT! DO IT NOW!'

British Kendo Association Membership

A reminder that everybody should now be members of the British Kendo Association. Temporary membership is available to new starters in Kendo, Iaido and/or Jodo. This is intended as a cheap entry to cover you while you are deciding if this martial art is for you.

Temporary membership lasts 3 months and covers you for practice in your local dojo. It does not allow you to participate in seminars, taikai or gradings. At this stage in your kendo training you may have decided you're likely to be committed to the art and will be with us for a year, at least, so it may be wise to upgrade to full membership so we can grade you and get you into bogu. Fundamentally, your membership is your insurance to train. In a full contact martial art the importance of insurance coverage cannot be understimated.

We expect everyone to be members of the BKA if they wish to continue practicing at the dojo. You can find all the information regarding membership and online registration on the BKA's website here. Any questions, let us know either by the forum or at your next practice.

Bowden 2011 - POSTPONED

It's been confirmed that this years Sir Frank Bowden Taikai and Premiers Cup on Saturday and Sunday 4th/5th June has been postponed. I'll post more information as and when but early reports suggest it may be moved to September.

A note of thanks

Minako and Ian Jackson from Smiles for Japan have sent through a message of thanks to all those who took part in the display at CUC at the weekend. Joe will write up a little report when he gets chance but in the mean time here's what minako had to say:

We would like to express our big thanks to all the Liverpool Kendo Club members for presenting the demonstration at Smiles For Japan event last Saturday. We heard quite a lot of positive comments about the demonstration, people were thrilled and impressed. Some commented 'artistic' too.

Please pass our gratitude to Sensei and other members for us. Also please accept our apologies for any inconvenience caused with regards to the facilities arrangement.

We hope that everyone had sometime to look around and enjoy other parts of the event as well.

This Smiles For Japan event has raised £3,408.00 and we have handed over the money to British Red Cross yesterday.

Thank you very much once again for taking part of Smiles For Japan.

Best wishes,
Minako & Ian Jackson
Liverpool For Japan/Artinliverpool.com

My own personal thanks to those who stepped in to help with the display.

Smiles for Japan Charity Event

Just a reminder we have been asked to put on another performance at Smiles for Japan

This is a day and Night of Music, Performance, Film, Art & Fun! Give your smiles and support from Liverpool to Japan, here are the details:

Venue: CUC Liverpool, 41 -51 Greenland Street, Liverpool, L1 0BS 
Date: Saturday 14 May 2011, from noon til late. Entry by donations.

Any volunteers please step forward to help with our display. We have been asked to be there for 3pm



BKA AGM

For those that are interested this years BKA Annual General Meeting is scheduled as follows: Date: Saturday 21st May
Location: Caroline Chisholm School, Wooldale Rd, Wootton, Northampton NN4 6TP
Map Link: Here
You can find more information about the AGM and all of the End of Year Reports here:
http://kendo.org.uk/agm/

As the AGM also includes over two and a half hours of kendo with the most senior kendoka in the country it may be worthwhile considering attending [sadly I'll be on holiday]. At the very least, take a look at the reports and see what is going on with the Association. The BKA is it's members, that's you, you pay to be a part of it so it's worth your while to understand what goes on, and if you can add more to the Association than just your weekly practice.

Flickr

I mentioned in the past that I had set up a Flickr account to display photographs of the club. I've just added photos from the BKA Seminar and Kyusha Taikai and also a few photos from the display for the Etsu Restaurant Japan Fun Day.

The plan is eventually to link these images to our gallery page, which I'm trying to figure out, but in the mean time you can access them directly via the links.

Etsu Restaurant Japan Fun Day Charity Event

If you recall last week Joe mentioned the Japan Fun Day organised by Etsu Restaurant Liverpool (where we had our Christmas Meal) which was yesterday.

Firstly I have to apologise for turning up late, by the time I got there the first display was already underway. Sensei Ware, Joe Willmott, Geunsu Lee and Kobudokan Kendo Club and GB Squad member Tom Widdows put on a demonstration of kata, kiri-kaeshi, cutting each of the targets and finished with jigeiko. After they finished, and I'd accepted the jokes about my poor time-keeping ;) I was informed that the other martial arts demonstrations had been cancelled due to various reasons. Which was sad but also a prime opportunity for us to show what kendo was about.

We put on two more demonstrations around displays from a Taiko Drumming Group. It was made difficult with the fact that we were practicing on granite paving slabs but we put on a spirited display with many people impressed by our efforts. Hopefully a lot of money was raised.

Further to our display we have been asked to put on another performance at Smiles for Japan

This is a day and Night of Music, Performance, Film, Art & Fun! Give your smiles and support from Liverpool to Japan, here are the details:

Venue: CUC Liverpool, 41 -51 Greenland Street, Liverpool, L1 0BS 
Date: Saturday 14 May 2011, from noon til late. Entry by donations.

We believe this will be an even bigger event than Monday so we would ask for any volunteers to step forward to help with our display.



Beginner's Nights all right for fighting.

Thanks to everyone who turned up for the Beginner's Night. I think there were seven, hopefully we'll see you all back at the club next Wednesday, where it'll only get better and more confusing.
Just a reminder to all that next week will be the first Wednesday of the month, which is 'fees night', £20 for the gainfully employed, £10 concessions. This includes all the Wednesday practices and any kata sessions. There is no kata on Monday though, as it's a Bank Holiday. Details of all practice dates are updated on the calendar so please keep an eye on it or add it to your RSS readers [details on the forum on how to do this, feed link below].
Liverpool Kendo Club Training Calendar RSS Feed

The next kata session will be on Monday 16th May, only one seeion this month, so any beginners wishing to attend note it in your diaries. Some clubs find it can be difficult to grasp kata early on, but Sensei believes there is a lot a beginner can learn which can help with the Wednesday night sessions. So come along to Chesterfield High School in Crosby, details in the Training section.

Anyone who missed Beginner's Night and still wishes to attend, next week is your 'last chance to dance' before our next Beginner's Night. Anyone who wants to try kendo can do so but after next week, for the benefit of all the beginners, you will have to wait till our next Beginner's Night. Thanks for your understanding.

Lastly, Joe mentioned the Japan fun day organised by Etsu Restaurant Liverpool where we had our Christmas Meal. Here are the details -

Japan Fun Day at Etsu Japanese Restaurant – 2 May 2011
Venue: Etsu Restaurant, Beetham Plaza, 25 The Strand, Liverpool L2 0XJ
Date: Bank Holiday Monday 2 May 2011 from 12noon – 18.00
Entry fee: £1

And you can get more information here: http://www.liverpoolforjapan.com/?p=456 hope some of you can make it, we'll try to be there in bogu for a little display.

Beginner's Night 27th April 2011

Just to remind everyone that tonight is Beginner's Night. For current members please try to be on time so we can get ready and please bring any spare shinai you have. I checked mine and found I'd broken one last week so we're another spare one down. Oh, and please check yours, just in case.

Beginners please be in the dojo no later than 7:15pm so we can go through all the Health and Safety aspects. Please remember to wear loose fitting clothes, tracksuit pants or three-quarter shorts are ideal. For more information click the Beginners link on the website. Just a reminder that your first session is free and if you cannot manage it this week then we will only accept new beginners up to May 4th [next week]. If you miss these dates anyone wishing to start kendo will have to wait until the next Beginner's Night in July. The 2011 Beginner's Nights are:

• Wednesday January 26, 2011
• Wednesday April 27, 2011
• Wednesday July 27, 2011
• Wednesday October 26, 2011

BKA Seminar and Kyusha Taikai 2011 - Videos

Finally I've got the videos uploaded to Youtube from the BKA Kyusha Taikai, sponsored by http://www.eurokendo.com/

Knockout 4, Enoch Cheung Vs Alan McCarthy - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nLBEk5jO6FE
Knockout 5, Philip Law Vs Kimry Coleman - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VTX14eNzTH8
Knockout 6, Graham Williams Vs Kenneth Douglas - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jy_afcBKfk8
Knockout 7, Andy Checkley Vs John Paul Cain - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jgct8hLlDPQ
Knockout 8, Ben Greenhalgh Vs Brenden Roche - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j1IkSHcC-YY
Quarter final 1, Richard Crosbie Vs Anthony Francis - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YB7uhIUT9a0
Quarter final 2, Tatos Shahbazian Vs Alan McCarthy - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lJ3fJ1Q7Aik
Quarter final 3, Philip Law Vs Kenneth Douglas - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UihU7UXY-8o
Quarter final 4, Andy Checkley Vs Ben Greenhalgh - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NZaoz6v3ksw
Semi-final 1, Richard Crosbie Vs Tatos Shabazian - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uPOvF8Df0DM
Semi-final 2, Philip Law Vs Ben Greenhalgh - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8u2KGnpOAqs
Final, Tatos Shahbazian Vs Philip Law - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0z5z4FHcQhk
Presentation ceremony - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zo1jcTDxkOU

Let me know if I've made any mistakes with those titles and links.

BKA Seminar and Kyusha Taikai 2011 - Scorecards

I know it's been a couple of weeks, there's been a lot to get through from the weekend, but finally here's the score sheets from the BKA Kyusha Taikai, sponsored by http://www.eurokendo.com/

https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=explorer&chrome=true&srcid=0B97Rk-BalgZbZDZiNzg3MzYtYTM3Yi00MzhjLWI4NTAtZGRlMGE2MGIzZTM0&hl=en

I've uploaded all of my videos to youtube but a few still need some descriptions filling in so I'll post links here when they are ready. Thanks again to all those who attended once I get the feedback forms to work correctly I'll send them along, but if anyone wants to leave their thoughts on the forum for everyone to see I'd be more than happy [good or bad].

Statistically speaking

I'm continuing the task of recording all the aspects from last weekend and the task 'du jour' was to prepare some score sheets we can use in the future and also that we can record 2011's results for posterity. 24 people entered the British Kendo Association Kyusha Taikai, of which eight were members of Liverpool Kendo Club. These were:

• Mulyo Rutherford
• Joseph Smith
• Andy Checkley
• Anthony Francis
• John Paul Cain
• Richard Crosbie
• Alan McCarthy, and
• Geoff Cunliffe

Of these eight, five went through to the second round of 16 individuals. Four of the five went through to the final eight (that's half the quarter finals were Liverpool Kendo Club!). By the semis there was only Richard left to uphold the dojo's honour and secured a third place spot.

These results were fantastic for us with the statistics proving we can stand tall amongst the other clubs taking part. There were plenty of achievements for all, from first taikais to third time in armour! We showed what we are made of and will build on this foundation for next year. Thanks for your efforts.

Thinking ahead

I've just added a couple of dates to the Liverpool Calendar that may be of interest to us in the future. Firstly the Bowden Taikai on Saturday the 4th June (with the Premiers Cup on the Sunday). Secondly there is the Stoke Seminar and grading on the 16th and 17th of July. There's a grading in Watchett, Somerset, before then but as Stoke is the nearest grading event to us it's usually the 'grading of choice' for those who have thoroughly got the bug having been 'blooded' in the Kyusha Taikai.

I'll add more dates to the calendar as time goes on but if you want to check in advance what's on the BKA Events Calendar it's here:

http://kendo.org.uk/bka-calendar/

BKA Seminar and Kyusha Taikai 2011 - Liverpool

Well that's it for 2011. Thanks go out to Howell Sensei and Schofield Sensei for their patience, tuition and understanding over the two days. I would like to thank all those that traveled to Liverpool, in particular those that believed 'the North' was another country. I hope they all had a good time and will let everyone in their dojo know if they did. We learned a lot from all our kendoka friends who visited and I'll be sending out feedback forms so we can improve the event for next year and their dojo's beginners who will follow in their footsteps.

I will collate all the photographs and videos I took over the weekend and have them online via youtube and flickr [I hope no one minds] as soon as possible and let everyone know here. I'll also write a report but if anyone wants to share their thoughts about the event to other BKA members I'd love to see it. All that's left is to say thank you once again, give you the result and say we'll see you next year.

BKA Kyusha Taikai 3rd April 2011, Liverpool

First - Tatos Shahbazian, Hizen Dojo
Second - Philip Law, UCL [I think]
Third - Richard Crosbie, Liverpool
Third -Ben Greenhalgh, Doshinkenyukai

And I think Fighting Spirit also went to Philip Law

Well done all!

OH, it's kata on Monday, although I will not be there and it will be practice as normal on Wednesday so please put to good use any knowledge you have gained from this weekend we will be discussing things further the week after next...

BKA Seminar and Kyusha Taikai tomorrow

After months of preparations 'the event', first revealed on the 26th November, is finally upon us. If you haven't registered yet [why not?] you can still pay on the day. For any beginners who wish to come along to watch and help out on Sunday they are more than welcome, you should know the address by now - Hope University Taggart Avenue. For everyone else - see you all tomorrow 9.30am for a prompt 10.00am start. Safe journey and don't forget bogu, shinai, tenegui, BKA book and your fighting spirit!

Getting to Hope University for the BKA Seminar and Kyusha Taikai

For all those travelling to Hope University by car and in particular those coming from the M62. Currently there are roadworks in one direction at Taggart Avenue so the best approach is via the Five Ways Roundabout on the A5058 taking Childwall Priory Road. You will come to a triangular shaped roundabout which you can only go one way until you double back to Taggart Avenue. I will adjust the Google map to show what I'm talking about.

Additionally I've been told there should be a refectory open on campus for light food should anyone not bring a packed lunch.

Last Wednesday's visitor

Thanks go out to Sensei Dennis Smith who came to practice last Wednesday. It was a welcome return for Smith Sensei who has been dojo leader at Liverpool in the past and it has been too long since his last visit.

Whatever advice Smith Sensei had to offer you please take time to focus on it at your next practice. I was left with many things to think about the least of which may actually help ease a persistent injury I've been carrying for months. It's amaxing what a tiny adjustment to posture can do for your kendo.

Smith Sensei current dojo is at Taiseidokai Kendo Club in Glasgow so if you are ever in Scotland and wish to practice here's where to go.

Japan Earthquake and Tsunami

As most will no doubt be aware a massive earthquake hit Japan on Friday. The quake, the tsunami and the continued dangers from the damaged nuclear power plants have killed and injured 1000's of people. Our thoughts are with our Japanese friends, families and all people affected by this tragedy.

Google has a crisis response page which offers plenty of information and help in these sorts of situations and also offers you the opportunity to donate to aid the relief fund for those in Japan.

Kiai during warm up

Thanks to everyone for their efforts in supporting the new format for the warm up. Kendo clubs around the country have different ways of doing things. In particular this type of warm up with kiai is very popular in other dojos. It's a high energy start to a lesson, without high impact, builds fighting spirit and dojo cohesion and helps practice your kiai.


I have the firm belief that letting go of inhibitions in your kiai is the quickest way to feel part of the club, to feel like you are actually taking part and contributing. Also your progress in things like footwork, cutting, following through and later waza can seem long winded and often non-existent. At least putting your all into how you shout is something everyone can do, regardless of experience!

As this is such a common warm up elsewhere and it will be an ideal way to set the tone at the BKA seminar and Kyusha Taikai we will be continuing this format. I hope everyone takes the opportunity to give it their best. Just in case here's a reminder of what I say:


"ichi, ni, san, shi " (1,2,34)
and you respond:
"go,  roku, shichi,  hachi" (5,6,7,8)

That's not to say our more relaxed warm up won't return. No doubt on our next Beginner's Night on Wednesday April 27, it will return. It's much easier to get the first lot of warm up exercise done properly and safely with a bit of instruction.

If you have any thoughts about the new format let me know, either by the comments or on the forum.

Eurokendo sponsors the Kyusha Taikai

As previously mentioned Eurokendo the online kendo suppliers will be in attendance at the BKA Seminar and Kyusha Taikai. Young Park will be bringing his stock to the seminar and taikai so if you want to make any advance orders so you can pick your items up in person then check out what's on offer. For many kyu grades this may be the first opportunity to get to 'handle the goods' before you buy, so don't miss out.

The latest news update is that Eurokendo have also agreed to sponsor a new trophy to be presented to the winner of the Kyusha Taikai. Eurokendo has sponsored many kendo events all around Europe and it's an honour to have the Kyusha Taikai acknowledged alongside such events. Thanks to Young Park for his increased support of our event.

Howell Sensei

We are pleased to announce that Sensei John Howell, 7th Dan Kyoshi, will be presiding at the Seminar and Taikai. As the most senior kendoka in the country we are extremely lucky to benefit from his 44 years of kendo experience. Howell Sensei has been Chair of the BKA for 25 years and President for 5 until 2009. He has worked as a Kendo Official not only in Britain, but also in the European and International Kendo scene on the board of Directors for over 20 years. He is also one of only six people outside of Japan to receive the 'Korosho' award, this award is given to mark a lifetime of service to Kendo. We hope everyone will gain much from his instruction at the seminar.

You can read more about Howell Sensei and the 'Korosho' award here:
http://kendo.org.uk/2009/12/10/a-signal-honour-for-our-ex-president/

Bogu Babies

Well done to Amir and Mulyo for their first full practice in Bogu last night. It shows true spirit that given the option of only having to complete a couple of fences they chose to practice with everyone for the entire jigeiko. I hope they finally see what kendo can be and realise it's all back to square one.

It's a whole new 'stick game' once the armour comes on and it's very difficult to think about all the basics learned up to this point. As beginners, and even more experienced kendoka, it's always important to reacquaint yourself with the basics - footwork, posture, how you cut, tenouchi, kiai and above all RELAX!

It's important to take you time with these things and all the 'big cutting' basics we do in the main kihon practice is the exact same set of skills you employ when you get into armour. Cut big and commit to your attack with full spirit and kiai. If it fails so be it, you learn from the experience and move on. Hopefully the guys will post something up on the forum on their thoughts of their first time in bogu. This is a momentous occasion worth recording for posterity. Sadly my own experience is lost to me but I can guess how they feel, well done and keep going, gambatte!

P.S. kata Monday, I'll put it on the Calendar n'all

Things to consider for beginners

Week 3 for some of our beginners and you'll have noticed how you are slowly being integrated into the main practice. Direct instruction will be replaced by direct action. You will be lining up with the rest of the kohai ['junior' students] and expected to follow the drills prescribed by Sensei.

At this point you need to remember the instruction given so far. To ensure you get the most out of every drill before you begin check your footwork is in the right position, feet parallel, left toe in line with right heel, left heel off the ground, feet shoulder width apart. Make sure your grip is correct, similar to below with your left hand on the end of the shinai and a fist away from just below your navel. The kensen [tip of the sword] should be aimed towards your partners throat. Arms should be relaxed and bent, shoulders back, head up, chin in.



When you're happy everything is in the correct place push off from your left foot. Unlike walking where we use our front foot to pull our body forward kendo footwork works by pushing forwards on the left foot with the hips driving towards your partner. At the moment you strike the target call out it's name ["men", "kote" or "do"], when I say call I mean shout as loud as possible, everyone can get that right.

Lastly, whatever instruction your partner gives to you to help you improve try to follow it. By setting yourself up like this and trying as hard as possible you will progress quicker and reward those who are helping you. Any questions just ask on the forum and we'll try to help.

Kata focus

It was a fantastic turnout for kata last night, 17 people with just over half beginners. I think that's a record for a kata session and it was great to see everyone trying to get to grips with the 'technical aspect' of kendo. Hopefully you all benefited from the extra training. It's a very different setup with a little more explanation and a slower pace to help digest the amount of instruction on offer. With a bit of luck it will help you with your Wednesday night practice. We've seen good progress from the last group of beginners who also attended kata so we think it's a key component to improvement.

If you want further insight into kata there is a section on the forum devoted to it, as well as waza [which are specific kendo techniques. You can read up on some of the interesting thoughts and discussions here.
Also if any of the beginners wish to jot down their thoughts on both kata and Wednesday night practices then feel free to add them to the forum or even a review on google would be nice. It can be useful to record your progress, although from experience it's often a different opinion from Sensei but useful all the same if only to show that some weeks you can do it!

The morning after the night before.

Thanks once again to our beginners for coming. 10 out of our original 14 were mad/brave/inspired [delete as appropriate] enough to return, with one beginner sending an apology they couldn't make it this week. Hopefully you were suitably impressed by Sensei's words and tuition and we'll continue to see you over the coming weeks and months.

Additionally we had two visitors last night:
Young Park Sensei from Nenriki Dojo, the oldest Kendo club based in London [est. 1966]. Past members include Charles Lidstone and Sir Frank Bowden, founding members of the BKA and kendo in Britain and who's names continue to be associated with National competitions - the Sir Frank Bowden Taikai which we enter each year and what was the Lidstone Taikai is now the Kyusha Taikai, which you're all aware we're hosting.

Young Park Sensei also runs the online kendo shop Eurokendo and will be attending the BKA Seminar and Kyusha Taikai with his stock so please check out his website to make advance orders. He has specifically chosen to attend our event instead of a well known competition in France so make his visit worthwhile.

Also Tom Widdows, from our neighbours Kobudokan Dojo in Manchester, was in attendance. Tom was recently picked to represent Britain at the upcoming 5 Nations Taikai. It was a pleasure to have him visit, hopefully we will see more of him as he prepares for the competition. I know my brief fence with him was extremely enjoyable and challenging, I really should get to Kobudokan more often...

Thanks again to everyone and don't forget it is Kata on Monday, everyone is welcome!

BKA Seminar and Kyusha Taikai Registion NOW online!

Despite the cyber terrorists [the BKA's website was the target of a malicious hack the other night] the Membership Secretary has managed to get the online registration for the BKA Seminar and Kyusha Taikai in Liverpool [April 2nd and 3rd], erm, online.

You can register here www.membership.kendo.org.uk/html/book_events.php [you'll have to log in to your BKA membership account to do so]. Don't forget if you are competing to also tick the 'Taikai option [which is an additional £5]. Sadly, I think only full BKA members can enter the competition.

Please try to book as soon as possible, particularly those who just got membership, we need to know if their registration will be 'problematic'. Any issues, let me know as soon as possible and I will move heaven and earth to help!

Just checking

As in previous posts I've stated I will always try to keep the Club Calendar up-to-date. Sometimes this isn't always possible so if you have any doubts if Kata, or even normal Wednesday practice, is on then please ask on the forum. I check it numerous times a day in case there any questions from members that need answering so please make use of it.

I would rather answer a simple question on the day and save someone some hassle than field a phone call at 7:30 in the evening where one of you is alone in Crosby going 'where is everyone?', only to worry how you're going to get home and what a wasted journey you've had. Yes, they know who they are ;) So any question, no matter how trivial - ask. We are keen to get the forum used more to ensure that questions can be asked all week, not on a Wednesday when really we should be practicing instead of chatting.

Beginner's nights all right for fighting.

Thanks to all the guys and girls who turned up for the Beginner's Night. It was a massive turn out, I think there were 14, only four short of our all time record. Hopefully we'll see you all back at the club next Wednesday, where it'll only get better and more confusing. If things go to plan there'll be different senior grades taking you next week so it should be altogether a different experience, with a bit of luck we'll get you moving more and getting more involved so you begin to understand what it's all about.

Just a reminder to all that next week will be the first Wednesday of the month, which is 'fees night', £20 for the gainfully employed, £10 concessions. This includes all the Wednesday practices and the two Monday kata sessions. Details of all these are updated on the calendar so please keep an eye on it or add it to your RSS readers [details on the forum on how to do this, feed link below].
Liverpool Kendo Club Training Calendar RSS Feed

The next kata session is on Monday 7th February, so any beginners wishing to attend feel free. Some clubs find it can be difficult to grasp but Sensei believes there is a lot a beginner can learn which can help with the Wednesday night sessions, so come along to Chesterfield High School in Crosby, details in the Training section.

Lastly, anyone who missed Beginner's Night and still wishes to attend, next week is your 'last chance to dance' before our next Beginner's Night at the end of April. Anyone who wants to try kendo can do so but after next week, for the benefit of all the beginners, you will have to wait till our next Beginner's Night. Thanks for your understanding.

Eurokendo Visit

Young Park, the proprietor of eurokendo will be making a visit to the North West next week. He'll be hitting both Kobudokan and Liverpool Kendo Club on Monday and Wednesday respectively. He's a really nice guy and his kendo is also very good so hopefully we'll all get a lot from his visit.

Additionally he mentioned if anyone wants to order any kit he can bring it with him so please check out what he has on offer. He will be bringing his store to the BKA Seminar and Kyusha Taikai we are running on April 2nd and 3rd so it's a perfect opportunity to meet someone who knows a thing or two about bogu.

Beginner's Night 26th January 2011

Just to remind everyone that Wednesday is Beginner's Night. For existing members please try to be on time so we can get ready and please bring any spare shinai you have.

Beginners please be in the dojo no later than 7:15pm so we can go through all the Health and Safety aspects. Please remember to wear loose fitting clothes, tracksuit pants or three-quarter shorts are ideal. For more information click the Beginners link on the website. Just a reminder that your first session is free and if you cannot manage it this week then we will only accept new beginners up to February 2nd [next week]. If you miss these dates anyone wishing to start kendo will have to wait until the next Beginner's Night in April. The 2011 Beginner's Nights are provisionally:

• Wednesday January 26, 2011
• Wednesday April 27, 2011
• Wednesday July 27, 2011
• Wednesday October 26, 2011

Class photo

You may have seen that I've uploaded the Club photograph to both Facebook and our Flickr account. For some reason it still downsampled it. If anyone wants the original picture for printing out it clocks in at 3MB. Send me a PM on the forum with your email address if you wish to receive this version, otherwise you can make use of the links below:

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10150098444138497&set=o.12481791270

http://flic.kr/p/9bTe2E

Status Update: Liverpool Kendo Club on Facebook

For those that didn't know Liverpool Kendo Club is also on Facebook some of you may check your status update every five minutes and this website, erm, never. However through some arcane jiggery-pokery I have linked this news blog and our Google Calendar RSS to the group. Every time we post anything here it is mirrored on the group so you can still keep in touch with what's going on if you join the Group.

'So DO IT! DO IT NOW!'

LAST REMINDER - British Kendo Association Membership

A LAST REMINDER that everybody should now be members of the British Kendo Association. Temporary membership is available to new starters in Kendo, Iaido and/or Jodo.  This is intended as a cheap entry to cover you while you are deciding if this martial art is for you.

Temporary membership lasts 3 months and covers you for practice in your local dojo. It does not allow you to participate in seminars, taikai or gradings. We expect everyone who is able to participate in the Kyusha Taikai to do so BUT the Kyusha Taikai rules state

All participants must be fully paid up members of the Association for a minimum of 3 months prior to the date of the Taikai and will be required to show their BKA membership at registration.

Which means you may have already missed the boat if you haven't joined up. You will definitely have had to have joined by the end of the month regardless as we expect everyone to be members of the BKA if they wish to continue practicing at the dojo.

Mike has a list of all registered BKA Members, and it isn't pretty. I would recommend everybody make a concerted effort between now and tomorrow to get their membership in order! Fundamentally, your membership is your insurance to train. In a full contact martial art the importance of insurance coverage cannot be understimated. We will NOT risk training with you if you are not fully covered.

You can find all the information regarding membership and online registration on the BKA's website here.

Kit bashing

Next Wednesday we will be taking a club photograph. Sensei suggested you should all be looking to get Hakama and Keikogi before Christmas, this was one of the reasons why. If you didn't and hurry you may still be able to secure a set before next Wenesday. There are numerous online vendors for this and some are listed in our links page. Don't worry though, you will still be allowed in the photograph if you're in a tracksuit ;)

Whilst you are at it I would urge everyone to purchase their own shinai as well. We've discussed this on the forum and recommend you purchase from one of the reputable suppliers in the link page. Local sports shops do stock shinai but we have found them to be unsafe.

We will be getting a new batch of Beginners at the end of January and as we are loaning our own personal shinai, in some cases, there is a severe shortage. The club has some 'club shinai' but these, like our personal shinai, are prone to breakages - Beginners do tend to hit hard. The situation will only be compounded by another 6-16 members turning up on Wednesday 26th January. So please make the investment. We would hope all existing beginners have their own shinai, hakama and keikogi by 26th January.

Additionally you MUST have BKA membership as Sensei pointed out last night. In case you still need to get it there's information here. If you have not secured membership by the end of the month for insurance purposes we will be unable to continue training you!

Winter Training part 2. is complete

Thanks once again for all those who made it to Winter Training, I trust you will all look forward [with dread] to the same next year. As always I injured myself, but hopefully not too severe to impact on proceedings next week.

Just so you know there was one point where Sensei revealed to us that we had passed the 2,000 suburi mark and we did a few more sets after this so you should all be very proud of the achievement. To put it into context we usually only do around 200 suburi per night so to lay down ten times as much is a good effort all round.

It was also really good to see some Liverpool 'old-boys' back in the fold, we hope you'll be able to make it regularly in the year I think Liverpool will 'come of age'. Your experience is much appreciated and a big support to the club, thanks for your renewed commitment

Kata Monday

Sensei didn't get chance to say but it is Kata on Monday, the first of 2011. Please attend, although I will be otherwise engaged. A reminder will go up on the Liverpool Kendo Google Calendar later this week so if you haven't already put it in your RSS reader then do so. If you need help with any of this ask on the forum and I'll direct you. These communications tools are really important particularly over the coming year, please make every available opportunity to engage with them so you know what's going on, thank you.

Mumeishi 3s

Mumeishi 3 report
The Mumeishi 3 tournament is an annual competition for three player teams held in the Mumeishi Dojo in Cranford near Heathrow. One of the most important rules is that each team must contain at least one kyu grade. There is also a ladies individual team and a junior individual competition.

As we already know this year we were unable to field a Liverpool team (which we need to change next year), however two Liverpool players were able to play for Kobudokan who had entered two teams. After much discussion over who would be going I was finally asked to play in one of the teams as sempo. However, when I arrived in Cranford I discovered that I would be playing as taisho of the B team. The A team was strongest on paper, consisting of Rick Edmundson (Taisho), Gregg Barron (Chuken) and Tom Widdows (Sempo). The B team was made up of myself (Taisho), Vera Barron (Chuken) and Johnnie Boswell (Sempo).

We all woke up early on Saturday morning as we had stayed on the cold, hard floor of a classroom but after coffee, bananas and cake we made our way to the dojo. As we entered the dojo we realised exactly how big this competition is, there were teams from Poland, France and players as far away as Ballerat, Australia! We said our hellos to our friends from other dojos and then we warmed up in one of the upstairs rooms. We came downstairs and got ourselves ready for our first shiai.

After a brief team chat which was based on the fact that we didn’t expect to do anything amazing, but to keep our attention focussed on each cut within each shiai and to enjoy the experience wholeheartedly, we found out when we were to fence our first aites.

Shiai 1 – Kobudokan B v Reading
Johnnie went out bravely but very nervously as he felt he had not done enough kendo since moving to the big smoke. He stood up from sonkyo and immediately charged in for men which was countered with a nuki men. As soon as Johnnie restarted it was like watching an action replay as exactly the same happened again. Johnnie looked very down hearted but as he touched Vera’s kote as he came off the shiaijo, he gave a cheeky little grin and we knew it would be ok. Reading were one shiai up. Vera marched on and what can I say – she was amazing, dispatching her aite with a kote and then a men in a very short amount of time. Vera had pulled it back to a draw. Finally it was my time on the shiaijo and after a nervy start which seemed to be being echoed any Reading’s Taisho, I managed to cut men clearly enough to be given the ippon. A very short time later the final whistle went, meaning we had got through the first round.

Shiai 2 – Kobudokan B v Nagamitsu
This time the first two shiai ended the opposite results. Johnnie scored a lovely ippon with a debana kote and with a very spirited display meaning that we were the first shiai up. Vera was then unfortunately dispatched by the Chuken from Nagamitsu with two ippon, so again we were back to a draw. I touched kote with Vera and entered the shiaijo, bowing to my aite. I rose from sonkyo and cut for men. I seemed to a lot of cutting which was landing but not scoring, I was losing my zanshin after the cut and must work on this. Finally, I had one of those moments when you realise what the missing element is and pulled off a degote against the Nagamitsu Taisho and again, I found myself incredibly lucky with the time as the whistle went virtually straight after the restart.

Shiai 3 – Kobudokan B v St Etienne
I was hesitant in telling Vera and Johnnie who we had in this round as I knew that St Etienne are one of the strongest club teams in Europe, but I relish these challenges personally. I knew I would be fencing Pons who is a great player. Johnnie went out with a single kote, however he wasn’t happy with the score, but this is kendo and not football so we NEVER argue with a shinpan. Vera lost to the St Etienne Chuken with two ippon score within the three minutes allowed. Finally I went out and fought Pons. The pressure built up at the start was quite incredible. I hadn’t felt this before but after fifteen seconds or so of sizing each other up, I cut for men. Pons countered with a suriage men but missed. This was the shape of things to come in this shiai, strike and counter eventually leading to a spirited but inevitable hikiwake.

It was only at this point that we realised that although bested by St Etienne, we had gone further than Kobudokan A, which was pretty amazing and really lucky. I really want to thankHolt Sensei for holding the event, the shinpan and others involved as well as O’ Connell Sensei for allowing me to fence for Kobudokan, Tom, Rick and Gregg for being part of a brilliant weekend and Johnnie and Vera for showing commitment and kigurai. I will definitely attend this competition again.

Website update

Hopefully if you're reading this you should have noticed the website has had a minor update. The text is marginally bigger and a little bit brighter. Mike has already put in a claim for singed retinas!

More importantly there's an orange button to send you to the new page on the BKA Kyusha Taikai on April 2nd and 3rd that we are hosting!

Additionally I've addressed the issue of the missing newsfeed. The Springwidget we used didn't work because their website was down so I've swapped to some other way of doing from a site called Blastacasta [probably too good to be true]. On the one hand it renders the feed seamlessly which is what I had originally envisaged when I set up the blog within Mike's page, on the other I'd just got the Springwidget to include the BKA's news feed as well so it'd have been nice to have wider kendo news available from our home page, "c'est la vie".

Anyway if any of this is beyond you you can always check out the news blog separately. The downside to all this is some pages are acting a little funny but I don't think you will notice any problems if you refresh your browsers, they're more aesthetic errors my picky nature has found. Any comments just drop them in the forum.

News page error

I've noticed that the news feed on the front page of our website is currently not working. I think the RSS is working, although my most recent post hasn't filtered through to my Google Reader

I'm not sure why this has suddenly broke but Mike has a new front page [amongst others] to update the website. Hopefully this will fix the error when he uploads it - over to you Mike...

Google Advert

A while back I registered Liverpool Kendo Club as a business with Google. This means when you zoom into The Egg on Google Maps we have a little marker that hopefully has been seen by people browsing the area [7420 views since I set it up in June and 562 clicks for 'More info' or click-thru to our website!]. This then links through to another page in Google Places which has a descritption, links, reviews, pictures and videos of the club to drive traffic to our Beginner's Nights. Hopefully it has, the success of our recent Beginner's Nights back this up. Although not many people [here I mean none] have filled in my simple survey to find out how they discovered the club.

One of the unexpected benefits of this was Google sent us a £50 voucher for Google Adwords. So I set up a campaign to advertise our upcoming Beginner's Night on Wednesday 26th January. Half the voucher will be used to promote this event, the other half will be used to promote the British Kendo Association Kyusha Taikai and Seminar we're hosting in Liverpool on April 2nd and 3rd.

So, if you do a Google search [or map search] for 'Liverpool' and 'kendo', for instance, you might see a little box at the top of your search results saying:

Liverpool Kendo Club
Learn the Japanese Martial art of
Kendo free Beginners Night 26.01.11
www.liverpoolkendo.co.uk

So far there have been over 1,400 views of this advert in 3 days, which isn't bad and that translates to 7 clicks through to our website. It's very exciting and when I see the advert I do get an urge to click it myself. I shouldn't have to explain to you all but this would be a mistake. Every click costs part of the advertising budget. So, I would ask if you do see the advert you now know what's going on behind the scenes and please resist the temptation to click it.

It's almost as if we're actually getting organised with stuff!

Winter Training part 1. is complete

For those who couldn't make it tonight you missed out on an awesome display of kendo stamina and whole lot of fun. Please make every effort to come next week as Winter Training not only prepares you after a few weeks of gorging on festive treats but it also builds team spirit and is a complete club bonding experience - it's the highlight of the year!

If you want to know what you missed perhaps some of the happy few who did attend may post a description on the forum. However I will describe it as like kendo sports day, with a bit of It's a Knockout thrown in, if that's not selling it I don't know what is [did I mention 1,000 suburi? erm better not]/

So we expect to see all those 'no shows' next week ;) where I will be preparing for my annual Winter Training injury, ha, ha! Sensei says he's bringing the bigger medicine ball as well.

Winter Training

Don't forget it's Winter training tonight - no bogu needed, just tracksuits, t-shirts and shinais/bokkens/suburi bokkens. Bring spares if you have them, just in case.

British Kendo Association Membership

A reminder that everybody should now be members of the British Kendo Association. Temporary membership is available to new starters in Kendo, Iaido and/or Jodo.  This is intended as a cheap entry to cover you while you are deciding if this martial art is for you.

Temporary membership lasts 3 months and covers you for practice in your local dojo. It does not allow you to participate in seminars, taikai or gradings. At this stage in your kendo training you're likely to be committed to the art and will be with us for a year, at least, so it's wise to upgrade to full membership so we can grade you and get you into bogu. Fundamentally, your membership is your insurance to train. In a full contact martial art the importance of insurance coverage cannot be understimated.

We expect everyone to be members of the BKA if they wish to continue practicing at the dojo. You can find all the information regarding membership and online registration on the BKA's website here. Any questions, let us know either by the forum or at your next practice.