National Coach Seminar

On Saturday 26th March 2005, St Andrews Kendo Club members joined kendoka from the other east-coast-Scotland dojos in Dundee to attend a three-hour seminar with Sotaro Honda sensei, the British squad coach and an outstanding teacher. We were very fortunate that Sensei has the valuable skill to organise a large group of people on all levels from absolute beginner to fifth dan in a way that allows everybody to learn according to their needs while maintaining group cohesion.

This event was part of an extended weekend visit by Honda sensei to Edinburgh Kendo Club, organised by Steve Bishop sensei and Dave Spacey. With a total attendance of around 40 people, StAKC was extremely well represented by 13 members.

This was the first time we had used the gymnasium at Dundee International Sports Complex for a kendo event, but it turned out (much to Stewart Hutton’s relief - he booked it!) to be a well kept and well lit venue with a smooth, faultless, albeit slightly hard wooden floor. Attendance was unexpectedly high which meant that all participants had to be very considerate and circumspect.

Honda sensei’s teaching concentrated on basics and we were encouraged to slow down our actions in order to achieve the perfect posture, distance and position of the arms. Special attention was given to footwork and we looked closely at the position of the right foot in various cuts.

While a straight men cut requires an absolutely straight motion towards your training partner, both kote and do cuts can benefit from slightly modified footwork. For kote cuts you can try to move your right foot slightly left making it point at your training partner’s right foot. This opens a better angle for the cut.

In a departure from the straight do cuts we are usually taught, Honda sensei showed us how to place the advancing right foot at an angle right (for standard do) and left (for yaki do) from the centre line. This angulation combined with a twist of the whole body (not unlike a baseball batsman) will allow you to cut from a good distance and move out swiftly.

This lesson taught us that elements of shiai kendo can be made useful for your general kendo without compromising posture or spirit.

The session ended in a long mawari geiko (successive sparring with changing opponents) in which you could see everybody making use of Honda sensei’s advice.

Post-seminar, almost everyone joined us for home-made soup, sandwiches, a drink and a chat in the nearby Centenary Bar (highly recommended!). Everybody agreed that Honda sensei’s visit to EKC and its affiliated clubs in general and especially the Dundee seminar were a resounding success.

Michael Gratzke, StAKC dojo leader

Stewart Hutton, StAKC membership secretary