We were up early for morning training with Soke Sensei again this morning. I am finding that seiza is easier every day and this morning went by quite quickly. Todd Sensei joined us for training this morning too. We started with the usual morning kihons. Todd Sensei certainly up’s the ante when it comes to speed training. I felt like a lost little kid trailing behind the big kids beside me this morning! I was trying to remember some of the pointers that Todd Sensei gave me on Wednesday in the beginning but then I just was trying desperately to keep up- All good form went out the window! Soke was there on the side encouraging me the whole time.. faster, faster, go, go, go! I am reminded that I have a long way to go when it comes to speed training. After Kihons we did some Kata practice. A good oportunity to cement some of the things I have been learning this week. After Kata practice we did a few more laps of kicking and rinten to finish off.
After Souji and a chat with Todd Sensei we had some showers and breakfast and headed in to Kumamoto Castle. We planned to go there earlier in the week but didn’t make it so today that was our plan. I had an enjoyable couple of hours wandering around reading the history of the area.. Oh and doing more shopping of course! Sandra had gone her own way for a bit.. a nostalgia trip for her back to her early days of competing and training in Japan. We met up again and had some lunch then Sandra came back to the dojo while I caught a tram over to the Suizenji Gardens.

The walk into the Castle

Sandra and I in front of Kumamoto Castle

On the tram I met another lovely local lady who spoke very good english. It turned out she had lived in New York for 6 years with her husbands work. She had kids the same ages as mine (but both girls) and we chatter about a few things, and she gave me some advice on appropriate gifts!
The gardens were beautiful, I didn’t do much, just a quick wander around the paths and then I sat and enjoyed the  view and the stillness by the water for awhile before heading back to the dojo for evening classes.

Suizenji gardens

The kids class was just a small one again tonight, I spent part of the time working with a young green belt on Kihon Kata Ichi, Ni, and San. It’s amazing how easy it is to communicate in the dojo even with my terrible Japanese.

Tonights training buddy

If I felt like a beginner out of my depth this in this mornings class, tonight was no better, just add an extra Sandan and another Shihan to the mix! There are a few theme’s starting to emerge in my training and the feedback I am getting though. What seem like small little technical or sequence corrections are all starting to come together now in a more coherent form and I am seeing that underlying those technical things are a few key basics I need to work on.
One of the aspects of this trip I haven’t really touched on all that much in my blogs is the incredible atmosphere here and the welcome that we have had. Staying here at the sohonbu it feels like Soke Sensei and his family have welcomed us into their family home. We try to show our gratitude by bringing gifts, being respectful and leaving the place clean and tidy at all times but I can’t help but feel sometimes that it is never enough. Whether it is Soke Sensei waiting to greet us the day we arrived, Minowa Sensei sharing her dance class with us and taking us out for the day, or the blankets that turn up in our room one day because the weather is cooling down, everyone is just amazing. Tonight after the kids class Naoyuki Sensei was asking about my elbow. Most of you are probably aware I have been carrying an injury for quite a few months now, lots of rest and physio in the last few weeks before I came has made quite a difference and it has held up quite well to the training but today it has been a bit achy and sore again. I mentioned this and he prescribed more onsen! We had a laugh but then, later, after the adult class Naoyuki’s wife Yuko came with some heat patches for me to try. It is this kind of care and thoughfulness that makes me feel I am really a part of something very special in the Chito-Ryu family. If there is anything I would like to pass on to the people it home it is this sense that Chito-Ryu really is more than just another style of Karate or a form of exercise. It is a community, a family that spreads worldwide, and the relationships you will build in and out of the dojo have the potential to be lifelong and life changing. Once you embrace the dojo community your karate and all other area’s of your life will grow enormously.

A nice view of the Sohonbu through the grass from the path we took in to town

Today was a big day. For some reason I didn’t sleep very well at all Tuesday night and so it was a big day on very little sleep… gotta love those! We were up early for training with Soke Sensei. This morning was a little different from traditional morning training. We did some partner work focusing on shime and strength in our stance as we were stepping with resistance from our partner. I need to work alot on my breathing and shime I am finding. The woodne floors here are really slippery and while it makes suriashi really easy it also shows up the holes in my Shime and posture. My stances are still a bit all over the place as I adjust. We then did some rinten, rinten hanten, shiko dachi etc with the bo on our shoulders aiming to keep it flat as the body turns and also with the bo behind the hips aiming getting a fast spin the stop sharp without letting the bo wiggle back and forth. Next we did some speed kicking and full length of the dojo with kihon dosa San- I think the biggest thing for me here is just to do more of it, try to relax and get faster. Also from the evening class Todd Sensei gave me some feedback on breathing which will help this area of my training.
We finished morning training a few minutes early as Minowa Sensei was due to pick us up at 8.30am. A quick Souji, freshen up and get changed and we were off on our day’s adventure.
Minowa Sensei and her friend Tomiko picked up and we headed off to Mt Aso for the day. Aso is one of the largest active Volcano’s in Japan. It is constantly emitting steam and gasses which mean’s sometimes it it too dangerous to go near the vrater because the toxic gasses are too thick. Unfortunately this was the case today so after a quick group selfie in the carpark (as you do) we jumped back in the car and headed down the mountain to the Aso Museum. The museum has lot’s information about the Aso region and Volcano’s. The entire area was once a huge mountain range until there was a massive Volcanic eruption causing the ground for 100 miles around to collapse in on itself forming a massive crater which then formed a lake. Over the next few million years the current volcanos formed in the centre of the massive caldera. The valley floor in the middle of the caldera and around the base of the volcanos is now rich farming land which produces some fantastic produce.
After the Museum we went into Aso to visit the Shrine and then found some lunch. As many of you probably know, I am a coeliac and finding food I could eat in Japan was one of my biggest worries but Minowa Sensei has been fantastic, she did some research so she knew what was ok and helped find a place where we could all eat and ordered for me. Lunch was great- it was a little one man show, the Chef cooked, took orders, seated guests, served and cleared away the plates afterwards, and considering how busy the place was, he did it all in exceptional time!
After lunch we were headed off to an Onsen, but not before stopping off for Ice-Cream.. Tomika San loves her Soft cream!
The Kurokawa Onsen was amazing, it is a massive complex (we may or may not have become lost as we went back to the car!) Like a little village of its own full of lots of different Onsen and Ryokan and shops etc. The onsen we went to was like a natural spring with rock pools.. the water coming out of the ground there is so hot that they have a bowl of boiled eggs out the front that are just sitting in the water! Gotta love those volcanoes nearby hey!  We looked in a few shops on our way back to the car and then started back towards Kumamoto. On the way back we stopped off a few times to sample some of the Aso regions produce, Seet potato at a roadside vegetable stall, Corn on the cob at the Aso lookout where you can see the Caldera wall extending for miles around and the central volcano range off in the distance, dried fruits at another fresh produce/ local crafts shop along the way. All in all it was a fantastic day but also very tiring. Bythe time we got back to the dojo we had missed the kids class so wehad a bit of a rest before the adult class.
The adult class was taken by Todd Sensei, who is a canadian living in Japan. He was a wealth of information and gave me heaps of great feedback. I seem to be finding a bit of a theme in my training… breath and relax the top half, focus more on the bottom half. We did lot’s of kihon’s, basic punchng, stepping, kihon dosa and kihon kata etc at speed then had a drink break and came back for our own paced kata time. After we had all finished all the kata we knew we broke down Bassai and looked at it in more detail. I would love to have a session with Todd Sensei focussed solely on the bunkai behind the moves we do in kata.. not just the punching, blocking bunkai we do but the real, traditional purpose behind the moves, like gouging eyes and crushing windpipes and all that fun stuff!
After training it was a shower, food and bed for this little duck although as is usually the cse, I didn’t feel nearly as exhausted after training as I did before. I love how Karate fuels my body.

Corn at a roadside lookout

Group Selfie at Mt Aso

After training tonight

This year our local association is hosting the 2014 QLD Chito-Ryu Karate State Titles. In addition, this tournament will also be incorporating the 2014 Sunshine Coast Friendship tournament. So whether you’re a seasoned competitor or even if you’ve never competed before, this is a great event for you.

With this in mind, we’d like to invite you to enter and start preparing as this is a great way to put your skills to the test. If you’ve never competed before don’t worry, there are divisions for all ages and levels. Where possible, you will only be competing against other people of similar ability to yourself.

Tournaments are a great way to grow your skills, especially if you embrace the experience and work hard in your training in the lead up to the event.

Entry forms are available now from the dojo or download the 2014 State Title entry form (PDF) here.

And the important details:

• When: Sunday, 15^th June 2014
• Where: Sunshine Coast Grammar School
• Entries: Available from the dojo
• Entries Close: Friday, 30^th May

For those who attended our first tournament of the year, we are had the pleasure of utilising the Sunshine Coast Grammar School sports stadium as our tournament venue, and we’re very happy to be back there again, as it’s such a great venue for a tournament.

Also, thanks to some funding from Cr Jason O’Pray (plus some of the association’s funds) we will be purchasing an additional tournament mat so that we now have 2 matted rings rather than just one, so we’ll be able to get through our kumite divisions a lot quicker.

See you at the tournament

Entry forms are now available for download for the first Sunshine Coast regional Chito-Ryu Karate tournament for 2014.  Entries are open to all Chito-Ryu members throughout Australia.  This event will also be the 1st round of the 2014 QLD Chito-Ryu tournament circuit and your first opportunity to earn points towards season ranking.

Download entry form here (PDF)

Here is the committee’s July newsletter which has also been printed and distributed to all member’s.  There are a couple of key points to note;

• Special Thank you’s to all our volunteers
• We wish our Soke Cup team members all the best at the world championships
• Take note of the calendar of events

We are developing a sponsor page on the the back of the newsletter where members are invited to advertise their businesses and support the committee.  Please take a moment to view our sponsors and read the information.  As the newsletter grows more room will become available.

ICKFA (SC) Newsletter #7 July 2013