Well, it was a nice weekend. Doing what? Aikido, of course!
Saturday was brutally humid before Hurricane Hanna arrived. Certainly the most humid day of the year in New York, I think. What happened to the calm before the storm? Well, it was calm, but hot!
But it didn't rain in the morning, so Ruth's class was filled up. We did lots of morotetori, with tenkan -- lots of leading. It was just the right thing for a sultry Saturday morning.
Sunday was much cooler and less humid. The storm had done it's work and took away the heat. That might have been the last hot day of the year. We can only hope.
Chuck taught again. He had been away for a while. It's nice to have him back. The class was filled with usual Chuchness: Tenkan, ikkyo, koshinage, etc. All good fun.
Friday afternoons at 12:15 at the Aikikai are usually taught by Hal Lehrman. Hal has his own dojo in Brooklyn, Aikido of Park Slope.
There's something very special about Hal's aikido, though I can't really describe how that is so...
He's extraordinarily relaxed, for one thing. When I watch him, I realize just how relaxed one can be.
He's also extremely powerful. Sometimes even dangerously so. He's demonstrated for me/on me a few times and I learned quickly that I'd better expect a hurricane, though to look at it, his movements seem utterly smooth and quick. Hardly anything at all, it seems.
He has a way of putting his center in the action without being overly obvious about it. Subtle, that's the word. It may be moving a quarter of an inch, but some how that motion generates a huge amount of power. I just don't know how he does that.
So, I keep going and hoping it'll rub off someday... Since his class is filled with yudansha, I guess I'm not the only one who feels so. A lot of heavy hitters don't miss it. Even Kjartan Clausen of the great Aikido FAQ fame practices with Hal in Brooklyn, so at least I'm in good company.
UPDATE: Kjartan read the above post and commented: "BTW, Hal is generating that immense power by not using any power when he throws. He just moves in a way that's natural for both him and you. Soft techniques can feel incredibly hard and powerful if done right."
Though I agree completely with the above statement (in fact, those were the words I was looking for), I still say he's very powerful. The natural moving stuff is more in the opening, I think, where Hal is a master.
We are told always to blend with the attack and to redirect an opponent's ki, etc. But how often do we try to force the issue, if only accidentally or unconsciously? Well, Hal's the master at blending. However, after that, when it comes to the actually throw, there's a ton of power. Like grabbing a moving train. I felt that, anyway.
OK, I know I've been neglecting this blog lately. Very bad penguin.
Things have been going well in the dojo, I just had gotten out of the habit of blogging it.
I've been trying to become more fit lately. I just got tired of getting tired during class...
To that end, I joined a gym near the dojo so I could work out before or after class. I know what you are thinking: "Another guy joins a gym who will never use it..." Surprisingly, it hasn't been like that. I've been going diligently before class, almost every day. I have even surprised myself.
I've also been eating leaner and healthier, drinking lots of water and taking good supplements. I'm a couple of weeks into this program and I have to say, it's working.
My main motivation for starting all this was to increase my stamina at the dojo. I've noticed I don't get as tired as much or as quickly as I used to. I've still got a ways to go, but at least I can notice an improvement!
I'm also ridding my bicycle more. I'm planning to even try to commute to the dojo/gym on it! It's only 5 miles (not including the trip on the Staten Island Ferry), but I happen to live on one of the tallest points on the Eastern seaboard of the United States: Grimes Hill. I'm a bit nerve wracked at the idea of going down that 11 percent grade on the very busy Staten Island road. But I'm sure I'll give it a shot soon.
I managed to make the 4:15 p.m. class with Donovan Waite. It's been a while since I attended one of his classes. I really enjoyed it.
I felt much more comfortable in his class than I have in the past. Usually, I'm just confused, but I found I could pretty much follow the techniques this time around.
Donovan likes to combine waza and otherwise introduce new ways to do old things. He doesn't do it in a gratuitous way, like some, but still I had a hard time in his classes in the past.
I hope this means I'm actually getting a clue, but who knows? Maybe that class was innovation-lite for a reason and next time I'll be just as lost as ever, we'll see!
Anyway, his movements still amaze me. Very strong and very graceful. His aikido is an amazing thing to behold.
Sensei taught on Saturday morning. I am liking his classes more and more as time goes by.
He seems to have a way of teaching that no one else has. He seems to survey the entire mat at once. When he wants to say something to a student, he gets in quick at the exact moment, says a few words and moves on before anyone has a chance to say thank you. Forget about bowing, he's long gone. Like a bolt of lightning. Sometimes he stops and demonstrates, of course, but not as often as you might think.
He's been at this teaching aikido thing for 45 years. It shows.
Alberto, Alberto, Alberto. The man just doesn't let up. Push-ups and sit-ups in the beginning and end of class. Pushing exercises. Lots of vigorous techniques and partner changes. Forcing, not just committed attacks, but hard, fast and vigorous ones. Groups of three only...
After all that, I was a pink pulp lying on the mat.
According to the new schedule, Yamada-sensei taught the 6:45 p.m. class. I was a little late, but he seemed to start the class very early. It ended early, too.
A normal 6:45 class usually has 20 or 25 people, but whenever sensei teaches, it really fills up. At least 50, I'd say.
My sempai and friend Chris was also late, so we entered and partnered together. He's a great partner. Very helpful, without saying much -- the best kind.
We came in on shomenuchi kotegaeshi. Strangely, it has been a long time since I've done that one. It took me a few sets to get in stride, but I finally got it to a reasonable state.
I say "reasonable" but I felt kind of dull and tight all class. I just couldn't relax.Some days are just like that, I guess.
We switched to groups and did a "reverse kotegaeshi." I don't think I ever did this one exactly like this. It starts off just like ikkyo omote, then instead of putting uke down, nage reverses and throws sort of like a kotegaeshi movement, though not exactly. Not much wrist in it, just the arm shape. We did a few more, but I can't recall. Told ya I was a bit dull.
Ernie was in our group. The guy is strong. At one point, when I attacked, he stopped and backed up with his hands in the air. "What?" I said, "Did I use the wrong hand or something?"
"You were anticipating. I'm not going to throw you into the ground!"
"Well, you throw pretty hard, man," I said. I was trying to make light of it, but he seemed a bit annoyed. Just doin' the best I can, bro.
Actually, Ernie's a good guy and a very good teacher. His style is not to let any sort of poor attack by uke or poor technique by nage go by. In fact, I appreciate that.
Yep, that's right. The dojo was open on Easter Sunday. Yamada-sensei seemed to change his mind at the last minute and made an announcement Saturday afternoon. I almost got lazy and stayed in bed, but I figured, if the dojo can be open, I can show up. There were about eight students in the first class, six in the second and I think four for the final weapons class. I attended the middle class and contemplated staying for the weapons (both taught by Keith), but I didn't.
Keith started out with katatetori. Nage brings his arm around and up and can then either uchi, go under and tenkan or, soto, go around the outside and tenkan (uchi or soto mawari) We did several techniques with this, including kaitenage, and then did the same techniques with the jo, which was cool. Then we switched to yokomenuchi shihonage to show that the uchi movment is the same as the omote movement in the shiho.
With only six people, everyone partnered with everyone, and it was a fun, fast moving class.
Yesterday was a special day at the dojo. My son, Sam, returned to practice after a long hiatus.
Sam's 15. He started aikido with me in 2006 and was a very quick study. Toshi, a former deshi, took him under his wing and he blossomed quickly. All was going well until about a year ago, when, as will happen, Sam discovered girls. The time he was taking off turned from days to weeks to months. I didn't want to make too big a deal about it. I knew he would come back.
We partnered in Yamada-sensei's class. It started off with sensei's trademark technique. I have no idea what to call it. A kind of kokyu, I guess. From katatetori, nage leads uke's arm so that the hand winds up behind uke's head, arching uke backward. This time, sensei did something different, however, and the throw ended with nage putting his head down, like a bow. Honestly, I didn't really get that part, but leading up to the throw was pretty standard.
We did lots of techniques from katatetori, including koshinage. We did the version I can actually do to some degree, moving in perpendicular. It was particularly easy to do this with a smaller partner, so I was pretty set. Sam did OK for someone who's been out for a year.
We also did yonkyo, which is not one of my strong points, but it is slowly getting better. A few times I had it, as I could tell from the funny noises Sam was making. At one point, sensei walked by and laughed at them, too. Sam got me good a few times.
At the end of class, sensei joked with us about yonkyo. "If it hurts, you are normal. If it doesn't, then something's wrong."
Sensei also said that, contrary to prior postings, the dojo will be open on Easter Sunday. I was happy to hear that and I think I can make class. :) I had posted before about my pet peeve of so many dojo closings, but I never imagined Easter would be one to change. Do you think sensei is reading this blog?
Sometimes, I enjoy playing the straight man, especially for Douglas Firestone's routine. I think he knows I do it, at least on some level, and seeks to capitalize on it -- with interesting results.
We were doing yokomenuchi kokyunage and Doug stopped the pair next to me to demonstrate. During his demonstration to some new guys, he stressed that they should put their feet behind uke at the throw. If he would have just showed that, or said it was an option, I wouldn't have thought much of it, but he made it sound like the correct thing to do every time.
Though many instructors and sempai do this on a regular basis, I never got the impression it was "standard practice," but just a slightly more advanced and perhaps more martial option. Usually, I don't do it, but I fool around with it sometimes when I have an experienced uke.
So, I questioned him on it. "Should I put my leg behind uke all the time?"
"Yes," he said, "otherwise it's just a punch in the face." I could see his point. I said OK, thank you, bowed, and turned back to my partner.
What's the aikido equivalent to a sucker punch? A sucker throw? Maybe a sucker slam. Yeah, I like that.
As I turned my attention to my uke, Doug moved in, put his leg behind both my feet and threw me hard! Of course, this fast action, combined with me being completely unprepared for it, resulted in quite a SLAM. These days, I've gotten better at taking that ukemi over the leg. But I guess not yet with surprise and at speed. I literally didn't know what hit me! "See," he said, "just like that." Still stunned, I managed to get out a single "hai."
As I was getting up, I saw a replay of the event in my mind's eye. During the throw, I really had no thought at all. Not even any time for an "oh, shit." But after it was over, I saw the look I had on my face when he moved in. It was one of complete shock. Too bad there is no photo or video. It would have been a good one.
Don't think I'm complaining. I should have known better. That is 100 percent Doug. Serves me right for letting him break the maiai. I believe he spent a lot of time with Chiba-sensei and this sort of thing is very Chiba-esque. Chiba-sensei is notorious for exploiting openings and lack of attention by his students. Certainly after a few of those, one is likely to learn his lesson.
I happened to be partnered with a visiting yudansha. I don't know where he is from. The look on his face was priceless. It was like, "Is that what you people do around here?" Haha.
A while later, we were doing kotagaeshi and Doug noticed I was futsing with uke's arm during the pin. "Don't do that," he said. "Just one motion." He demonstrated cleanly on my uke.
Never one to know when to keep his mouth shut, I persisted, "but what if uke doesn't cooperate? Don't I have to get his arm in the proper shape before the pin?"
"No. Watch." He proceeded to put me in the pin. "Don't cooperate," he said. I tried not to let him get my arm, particularly my wrist angle, in the proper shape. Of course, he was able to get me in the proper pin in a millisecond.
"Did that work?" he asked.
Playing the straight man again, I made it appear I was distressed and confused. "Yeah, that was pretty good." I cracked up everyone around us. In truth, I was careful to tap out in time and I was fine. ;)
Actually, this is something that still needs work. How he can get the arm into position so simply and quickly is still beyond me. But at least now I'm aware of it.
Here's a short example of Chiba-sensei showing his uke he came in at a poor angle:
Well, it was a nice weekend. Doing what? Aikido, of course!
