Class led by Stewart. Stretch, then we moved directly into Kanku. We then paired for ippon kumite for a bit and finished with light mock jiyu kumite with a designated attacker and defender/counter.
Category: Uncategorized
-
Class led by Mirv. I led stretch and then we moved into some kihon. Oizuki, gyakuzuki, maigeri kiagi, mwashageri. We then did some combinations: maite/gyakuzuki/maigeri, and maite/gyakuzuki/mwashageri.
Next the class split and the upper ranks worked on kanku.
We finished with a few self defense technique. -
Started a new tues/thurs lunch workout schedule.
Today to start things off, did a five minute walking warmup, then moved into three repeats of 30/30 sec stations:
– Pop Squats with 20lbs
– Unstable one-arm bench press with 20lbs
– Pull-ups
– Mountain climbers
Finished with a three minute walking cool down. -
Class led by (mirv?). Stretch and then nidan kihon, practicing multi-technique combos: maigerri/mwashagerri, maigerri/yokogerrikokime, maigerri/mai-te, gedanbarai/gyakuzuki, shutouke/niponuchi/nukite, and maigerri/fumikomi/mwashigerri. Finished up with a brief review of Kanku.
-
Class led by Haycraft sensei. Stretch followed by some drills going from mai-te to mai-te/gyakuzuki and then defending and responding to that pattern. The later portion I was assigned to work with a couple lower belts on Heian Godan.
-
Class led by ?. Stretch followed by extensive repetition of uke/gyakuzuki basics, both moving forward and back. We moved into chudan sanbon kumite for a bit and then jodan ippon kumite, and we finished with Basai ten to fifteen times through.
-
Class led by Blain. Warm up run and stretch. With the up coming kyu test, we then focused on kihone, going thoroughly through all of the basics. We finished with solo performances of our favorite kata.
-
Second day of the Ravenswood event. For the morning session we started with 15 steel melees and then held 10 bokken melees. For the afternoon, we were down some steel fighters so we began with round-robinned best-of-three steel duals and then held a number of bokken melees, most of them being team scenarios.
Afterward we packed everything back up, including Steven, Elijah and John (from Nevada dojo) helping to load and return the straw bales. -
First day of my Ravenswood Coliseum event. Yesterday Elijah and Michael helped me pick up straw bales from a local rancher and setup our arena, and Sal brought his new structure for our enclosure. We didn’t have enough steel fighters for melees in the morning, so Kaiden David, Ryan E.B. and I round-robinned some steel best-of-three duals and then we moved to bokken melees to include the rest of the present fighters. The afternoon melees included the additional fighters from the bay area, so we started with 10 steel melees, then followed with 10 bokken melees. In the evening, I hosted a feast at my mother’s house.
-
Class led by Merv. Stretch and then kihon, performing each technique on average 80 times (one or two 60, a few more more 100). Finished with some partner practice using them as a target to practice faster punches, getting in sooner.
-
Class led by Haycraft Sensei. Jog and stretch, then a focus on gedan barai and oizuki, getting the first half of the motion to happen faster and put the hips into it sooner to effectively defend/evade the incoming attack (gedan barai) or initiate the attack faster (oizuki). We then followed up trying to apply the same to age uke with a partner making jodan attacks, first oizuki then gyaku zuki, and after that we stood against a wall defending against jodan attacks (including countering in the later portion). We finished with kata, the upper ranks going through Basai some 10+ times.
-
Class led by Stewart (Iwasaki Sensei?). Stretch and then right into the Heian series, Tekki Shodan, and Basai, several times (minimum of 10) on each. Followed with partner kicking drill, kicking off front leg, then back leg, after which partner returns with same, back and forth: Mae gerri, mwashigerri, and yoko gerri. Finished with several partners of ippon kumite.
-
Class led by Merv. Stretch and two dojo lengths for each kihon. Partner ipon kumite drills on various gedan barai / gyaku gedan barai variations, working up to kiba oitsuki and related techniques. Finished with katas, full heian series plus teki shodan.
-
I attended SKA class tonight led by Blaine. There is a kyu test soon, so the focus was on basics/kihon. After the stretch, we spent the entire rest of the time doing over 100 reps of each basic (oizuki, gyaku zuki, gedan barai, age uke, ude uke, tetsui uke, shuto uke, mai geri, yoko geri, yoko geri kokome) and, because we were running out of class time, 40 of mwashi geri and mikazuki geri, and finished with 10 fumikomi.
-
I attended the Portland SKA dojo tonight with practice led by Haycraft Sensei. Stretch warm up followed by some kumite oriented drills, working up from shuffle forward, shuffle in mai te, shuffle in mai te gyaku zuki, shuffle in mai te gyaku zuki switch stance, slip inside of an oi zuki switch stance mai te gyaku zuki. All of this was first solo up and back, then partnered to provide a target. Upper ranks also worked on proper control/distance of the mai te.
We then moved into kata, performing both Haian Sandon and Basai approx 10 or so times each. -
I attended the Best of the Best 2014 tournament today, taking 3rd out of the eight competitors present (Steel Wind, Brennan, myself, Kris, David, Sal, Patrick, and Blight, plus Gad fought but was not competing).
-
I attended and participated in the 30 minute non-stop battles for both Steel Wind and Patrick today.
I also demonstrated my Cutting Pattern 4 for Kaiden Gad:
* Attacker – Right stance, Thrust (with shuffle), Jumping Tiger 2, Whispering Wind (with short chop to mid torso, rather than short circle), return to defensive stance.
* Defender – Right stance, Right thrust deflection, Left neck block, Cross step back and block right leg, Right decap/torso block, Left neck block, return to defensive stance.
The intent of this cutting pattern is to work on the minimalist thrust block provided by the deflection, and to reinforce good lateral movement around opponents. -
Sal and I journeyed to the Hayward Dojo for their 2014 closing class, held by Head Kaiden Gad. Over the course of the class, I went through my silver chain requirements with PJ, and later with Gad.
Gad had the following notes for me:
– The I Move should be applied against targets other than just the arm in combat,
– I should move further laterally on Musashi for greater safety,
– The thrust when demonstrating Dragons Tail solo should be angled up to catch the falling opponent squarely,
– The Raven should always be demonstrated as a temple/eye cut (though it may be applied against any available target),
– The Shadow should be a double temple attack (not neck),
– Start applying Spike more often, aiming for the middle of the forehead, even if it means asking students to wear additional safety glasses if they’re face guards are inadequate.He also finished instructing me on Kata San:
* Akira, look left, bring right foot forward and then rotate 90 left stepping back with the left and making advanced thrust block, cross-step forward with FC to opponents right torso, 180 left rotate on left foot, bring sword to jodan with an in-place foot change to right stance, spring forward cross stepping with head chop, right right and step out with right performing Crescent Cut, follow through rotating 180 to left stance with FC to opponents right leg, cross step forward with The Illusion.By the Best of the Best (Jan 10) I must craft my Cutting Pattern 4, and I need to remember to invite him to a game of chess at that time, both as part of my silver chain requirements.
Kaiden Gad provided a list of four goals as “my end of year homework” (though with no time stipulation):
– Win the Best of the Best,
– Earn the rank of Black Belt in the WCoS,
– Earn the rank of Silver Chain,
– Grow my new class (to-be) in Portland while continuing to support and lend guidance from afar to Sal and the Redding Dojo.Lastly, I am honored that my student Sal has been granted Honorary Kaidenship to continue the Redding Dojo.
-
Final Redding Dojo class of the year, attended by Sal, Steven, Joshua, Elijah, Dalton, Michael and Caleb. I took the class out to an unlit, undeveloped space of land where we did some night training. After a quick stretch, we did requirements, paired by rank and working on light altered terrain. After a break, we did refined strikes, followed by 200 full circle cuts (bokken only), and finished with unarmored parry.
By final tally, Dalton had the highest attendance percentage, followed by Sal and then Steven.
The weather was cool, lower 40’s perhaps, the only light was ambient city light from the sky and periphery (no moon).
-
Class with Sal, Steven, Elijah, Dalton, Michael and Caleb. Tonight was a special sparring field trip. We gathered at the Redding Dojo and then traveled to a near by open space that I had identified. We hiked in a short distance with our gear, armored up, and had a total of 60 one on one matches in altered terrain by the light of just three small torches.
Due to the location, Sal and I used bokken tonight. -
Final class at the current Redding Dojo location, attended by Sal, Steven, Joshua, Elijah, and Dalton. Stretch and requirements, myself with Sal. After a break, we started with three circuits through the gamut and doing kneeling advance down the dojo and back, then 200 full circle cuts (Sal and I did 100 iron sword, 100 steel, and I had Steven do 100 steel, the other 100 bokken). While catching our breath, we did a couple lengths of forward cross-steps in stance and a couple lengths backward cross-steps in stance, then a few minutes of moving around the dojo in stance. Next I setup balance 1 and 2, and we finished with a full round of Blind Man’s Boffer.