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!'