The AOKA Training Weekend was held August 26-28 in Bolingbrook. I was only able to attend Saturday (after a very long and eventful workweek), but Teri was able to attend all three days.
Saturday’s training started at 9 a.m. and finished at 9:15 p.m. Even with 15 minute breaks between each session and an hour off for each lunch and dinner, that’s a heck of a long time to do…well, anything.
Sensei Edward Cavazos led a great session on Filipino fighting sticks: a lot of take downs and chokes. And, even after a 12-hour day, he stuck around Saturday evening so Teri and I could interview him for the blog. (See above)
Teri and I had some trouble with the fighting sticks at first. The main issue is that Teri is left handed and I’m right handed. So, we held our weapons on the “mirrored” side. “Sensei Eddie,” as his students called him, had no trouble translating the moves for the mirrored sides, but we definitely provided a challenge for the other sensei that were there. I’m thinking we should rent Teri out to local karate schools, so they can all have turns working with a left-handed uke.
Eventually, Teri and I figured out that if I attacked her with my left hand, she could practice the defensive moves with her dominant hand. Then, she used her right hand to attack me. It probably wasn’t a very realistic situation for Teri (who, statistically speaking, would most likely have to defend herself against someone who’s right handed), but we were able to catch onto concepts more quickly this way and allow the sensei to help other pairs.
It’s impossible to cover the entire weekend and do everyone justice. Plus, even though I just attended Saturday, the day was a huge blur. Certain moments and concepts seemed to jump out and stay with me. So, here’s the more memorable moments. (Sorry, these are just the “socially” memorable. If you didn’t get to attend the seminar, you’ll have to attend the next event.)
The hurricane on the east coast played havoc with the class schedule, Master Albert Mady was unable to come because of the hurricane and Master Denny Shafer had to leave early because of it.The sessions were switched around and Master Shafer took over Mady’s time slot, running two sessions in a row. Both masters are involved in MMA and full contact fighting, so it worked out perfectly for those in attendance.
Master Shafer actually taught the first MMA seminar I ever attended, two years ago at a training weekend held in Iowa. That time, I was a hot mess, who dissolved into giggles every few minutes. Shafer rewarded me for my levity by wrapping me on the forehead with two of his knuckles. This time, Teri and I faired much better in the giggling department, but we fell apart after failing … uh, some move. (To be honest, much of Saturday is a blur of black belts and bruising.) So, we were reprimanded publically by Shafer. Not that I blame him. (But to be honest, I would have preferred getting knocked in the head again.)
Shafer has said before that, with the popularity of MMA sports, any yahoo with a TV will try MMA moves in a street fight. His position is that TMA (traditional martial arts) need to adapt and learn how to defend against the “new” style of fighters.
So, we spent a long time working on take downs, escaping from pins/holds (guard position, anyone?) and kick-ass choke hold that’s totally illegal in the MMA.
Master Robert Crosby led the session on Tonfa. So, Teri and I got to learn Hamahiga! OK, Teri learned Hamahiga. I got frustrated and successfully resisted the urge to throw a tonfa at Teri’s head. But, having grown as a person, I was able to admit my jealousy in a calm and semi-mature way while still admiring her ability to learn new concepts so quickly. And, because Teri knows it, she can help me learn the rest. (Assuming she doesn’t read the part above where I said I wanted to throw one of my tonfa at her.)
I kind of felt bad for Master Crosby, I don’t think he intended to teach the kata during his session. The description of the session was a little vague on the handout and included the line “some knowledge of Hamahiga would be helpful.” So, for me “some knowledge” meant having seen the kata on YouTube. (And, in my defense, I watched that kata a lot.)
Master Dan Harrison covered applied bunkai for seisan and kusanku kata. He taught from the a competition perspective, using the most basic and visually apparent bunkai from the kata to create a good performance kata. (I hope the way I said that makes sense.)
Master Harrison admitted there were several different bunkai applications for each move, but the bunkai he taught was what he used when performing his kata. The applications are easy to remember, make the kata look pretty (my words, not his) and could be performed quickly. Besides, he added, it was his session and he could use whatever bunkai he wanted. (Good point.)
In my opinion the highlight was when I got to experience the wansu dump from the the uke perspective. And, by that I mean, the traditional, over the head throw, not the hip throw most of us learn as the more practical application. Despite Master Harrison calling people over to “spot,” I had no idea I was going to be lifted over his head. In addition to the cool sensation of flying head-first through the air, there was the added excitement from the fact that Master Harrison not have been able to do that to me last year. (Well, I’m pretty sure he couldn’t have.)
I found out later, that Teri was actually held upside down for a while during that move. (I’m so sorry I missed that. The way she described it was hysterical.) If I remember correctly, they were holding that position for the photographer to snap a picture.
The very last event of the day was a presentation on two-man drills by Master John Holwager. He started with the the block, trap, punch exercises most of us are used to, but became increasingly more complicated. But, not so complicated we wouldn’t be able to remember them later.
And Holwager and his uke demonstrated some far more complex drills that involved 30-50 separate offensive and defensive moves. It was a phenomenal demonstration that practically had Teri and I salivating, just thinking of the workout and skills we could develop. There are instructional DVDs available. As soon as I get the right link, I’ll include it here.
