Hayai Nuki!!!!
So this weekend was quite tiring to say the least. To save the Federation money on the cost of mats that we're going to use for Tai Kai, I flew down taught at the dojo in St Pete, and then drove back up with the mats....in a one day period... ; (
However the highlight really was getting to train the St. Pete dojo!
Usually when I go to teach a dojo, it's very much all about the dojo. Of course it is, that's part of my job, however this time I got to try some new things and it was fun. Mike Femal sensei created a new machine. I call it the hayai nuki machine. Hayai Nuki just means quick draw.
This is a video of the machine in action!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CHR3jzbFH3M
Basically what the machine is a little machine that you hook up to your cutting stand. Basically both stands has a light, and you have to knock off a foam piece from the draw when the light comes on. You can see the time it took for you to draw and knock off the foam piece. This was done with iaito but can be done with bokken as well.
A few notes -
1) I experimented the technical points of drawing. Such as pulling on the tsuka (bad) and pushing the tsuka (should be how it's done) when you draw. I was testing to see how much of a different it made, and it was about .4 seconds different. Good thing what I teach was correct *phew*
2) When you draw from a distance that might be a bit further, your kissaki comes into play a little slower cause you're trying to reach too much first to try to hit the target. So range plays a part in how much faster you should squeeze your grip. That was tough. Definitely faster one step in from the original starting position just because I felt more comfortable knowing I was in range.
Afterwards, they set up another machine. This time, we actually cut a mat when the light comes on. So not only do you have to cut fast, but you have to make the cut. This time obviously we are using shinken, but I'm used to that so that wasn't a problem.
A few notes -
1) Almost all the times went up almost .1 to .5 seconds. So if I was averaging like .85 to 0.9 seconds when I was doing it with iaito, with shinken it was like .9 to .95. Femal sensei was telling me that almost everyone was taking more than a second to draw and cut with shinken. This was probably due to hesitancy cause well....it's shinken haha. I think it helped that I'm used to drawing quick draw etc with shinken (I don't use iaito).
2) Gotta stay loose. Otherwise you gain like .05 to .1 seconds.
The exercise was so much fun. We do quick draw practice at the dojo, but to have a timer and making it a competition in a way was a great idea. When this machine goes on sale, I'll try to buy one and have it at our dojo too! Thank you Femal sensei and the Konjaku Kioi dojo for letting me try. Looks like we got a new event at our Tai Kai hahaha.
However the highlight really was getting to train the St. Pete dojo!
Usually when I go to teach a dojo, it's very much all about the dojo. Of course it is, that's part of my job, however this time I got to try some new things and it was fun. Mike Femal sensei created a new machine. I call it the hayai nuki machine. Hayai Nuki just means quick draw.
This is a video of the machine in action!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CHR3jzbFH3M
Basically what the machine is a little machine that you hook up to your cutting stand. Basically both stands has a light, and you have to knock off a foam piece from the draw when the light comes on. You can see the time it took for you to draw and knock off the foam piece. This was done with iaito but can be done with bokken as well.
A few notes -
1) I experimented the technical points of drawing. Such as pulling on the tsuka (bad) and pushing the tsuka (should be how it's done) when you draw. I was testing to see how much of a different it made, and it was about .4 seconds different. Good thing what I teach was correct *phew*
2) When you draw from a distance that might be a bit further, your kissaki comes into play a little slower cause you're trying to reach too much first to try to hit the target. So range plays a part in how much faster you should squeeze your grip. That was tough. Definitely faster one step in from the original starting position just because I felt more comfortable knowing I was in range.
Afterwards, they set up another machine. This time, we actually cut a mat when the light comes on. So not only do you have to cut fast, but you have to make the cut. This time obviously we are using shinken, but I'm used to that so that wasn't a problem.
A few notes -
1) Almost all the times went up almost .1 to .5 seconds. So if I was averaging like .85 to 0.9 seconds when I was doing it with iaito, with shinken it was like .9 to .95. Femal sensei was telling me that almost everyone was taking more than a second to draw and cut with shinken. This was probably due to hesitancy cause well....it's shinken haha. I think it helped that I'm used to drawing quick draw etc with shinken (I don't use iaito).
2) Gotta stay loose. Otherwise you gain like .05 to .1 seconds.
The exercise was so much fun. We do quick draw practice at the dojo, but to have a timer and making it a competition in a way was a great idea. When this machine goes on sale, I'll try to buy one and have it at our dojo too! Thank you Femal sensei and the Konjaku Kioi dojo for letting me try. Looks like we got a new event at our Tai Kai hahaha.
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