Round Hill Class - Thurs. 3/30/2006

I was really in the mood to do some ukemi so as soon as I was suited up I starting rolling around. I did just about every single roll I could think of and even something I'd never done before: zempo kaiten to oten (forward roll to cartwheel). I also threw a front handspring in there for fun because they're fun. When Brian showed up he asked us each to perform one of the rolls we were doing before he showed up and everyone had to do what was shown.

After that we were going to do some sojutsu (spear techniques) but since no one did their homework and made a spear we just worked with the bo. Brian had me show a couple of techniques without the bo and then we had to figure out how to incorporate the use of the bo. Since Shindenfudo Ryu is the theme this year and that's pretty much all I've been doing the past few weeks we started with nichi geki from a punch. With the bo it was pretty simple.

Uke: migi fudo ken
Tori: Shizen no kamae with bo in right hand. Step off to the inside and strike the arm with the bo. Bring the bo up smashing the other arm if it's there or just bring it up to the shoulder as you move into ichimonji no kamae taking the uke's balance. To me this wasn't really nichi geki because taking the balance with the legs wasn't applicable but it was nichi geki still because the uke is defeated the same way but only from a distance. This actually ties into something Jong said on Tuesday and I'll give my interpretation of what he said. If you view the techniques from the uke's perspective then how the uke ends up defines the technique more than how the tori performed it. Our nichi geki with the bo is a perfect example. I didn't perform the usual steps of nichi geki with my body but the uke ended up in the same position in the end.

The second technique was the second one from Shindenfudo Ryu: gekkan.

Uke: same
Tori: same except bring the bo up in an arching motion to strike the uke's head. This strike isn't a crushing blow to the face but more of a glazing blow up the forehead. Step in with the strike. This should cause the uke's head to go back. Keep the bo moving past the uke's head. At this point in gekkan you would have thrown a sokugyaku (kick with toes) to the groin or stomach area instead of stepping in but we skipped that and used the bow against the back of the head/neck to drive the uke to the ground as you stepped back into gedan ichimonji no kamae. You could also secure the uke's punching arm against your wrist and the bo. I didn't get to try that part against any other uke that evening but I want to practice it some more. I need to make some padded weapons.

Brian then talked about the jutte, who used it and why, then we did a simple defense against a sword cut (kesa giri). I had never touched one before and I don't think anyone else had either but I enjoyed working with it.

That was pretty much it. After class Brian talked about his plans for fixing up the dojo: installing windows, a door, and even a porch! It sounds like it'll be pretty nice once it's complete.