Are Trinis too weak for Kendo?

OK the title may be harsh, but it's a valid question, considering my classes are pretty soft compared to average US/Canada or Japan/Korea classes, yet guys are dropping out left and right, even after showing a genuine interest. Kendo attrition is famously high, and the average dropping out rate is more or less the same internationally, but beyond common reasons for stopping it seems that they find it physically too demanding. I have no proof that's the case, it's just an impression so far. But like mentioned, considering I go easy on them, it's a bit surprising to see them gasping for air all the time. Considering they all look quite in shape and have been or still are active in other sports, that most don't drink or smoke... It could be a bunch of things, like the fact the average age is higher than usual, the hot climate or that the classes are harder than I think they are.

Although I do see many drop Kendo because of the realization that it's too demanding mentally or simply not what it was expected to be, most seem to drop because of the physical aspect. They have that look and attitude that I can't quite explain but it screams "man, this is hard and I haven't been hit yet".

A colleague suggested a more intriguing reason for the high attrition. He thought that it could be that they don't expect Kendo to be so strict and that it required to follow clear guidelines. Something not necessarily the case in other budos that exist here. I attended a few different karate dojos and it's true that the most popular ones have quite a relaxed atmosphere while the strict one I saw was not so populated.

Discipline, order, respect, decorum, etiquette... Foreign concepts in Trinidad ? More to come on that aspect...

Try kendo "as a new thing"

Lots of people here do martial arts. Well that's what they call taekwando, kung fu, tai chi, jujitsu, and all the karate variations. It's surprising in a way... There seems to be very few "legitimate" senseis and few people have the chance to visit and practice in Japan and China. But on the other hand, martial arts are somewhat cheaper than any other sport. It also appeals to the animalistic nature that Trini locals seem to have plenty of.

Beyond the fact that everybody here seems to have practiced some form of martial art at one point or another, is that very few have persevered and stuck with one discipline for more than a few years. A lot of the people in my class have already been through 3 or 4 different disciplines, and often, their approach to Kendo is "I want to check it out". So it seems to me that horizontal mobility is the norm. I wonder if it's the same situation in other sports (football, cricket,...)
So far the ones with the least budo experience (K for example) are the most serious about Kendo, and the ones with most experience are long gone.

Disillusioned samurai wannabes

I find that in this country, where nobody's ever taught japanese swordfighting, there's an unusually high number of people of older age (say, above 30) wanting to learn. They've "always dreamed of one day learning more about samurai spirit + technique". I've been told that more than a few times. In past experiences it used to be kids reading manga or watching anime... Now it's grownup men and women telling me they want to learn more about the samurai and japanese culture. I guess it's also quite common in western countries, but here it's all the more remarkable, maybe because there are much less kids asking for the same.
Somehow I find it sad when they approach me with that in mind. Maybe because I know they'll drop out after a month, or maybe it's because the image of a grown up man in bad physical condition wanting to pursue the "way of the samurai" makes me sad. Eventually, they do drop out with the most fantastic excuses. That's sad too...

On a similar note, it's surprising to see the interest people have for martial arts and japanese "culture". Historically, there's relatively no connection with Japan, so all the info they get comes from TV, movies,... Yet, there's a deep curiosity for all things Japanese. I have to dig deeper to find out more.

Gotta go teach my Monday "bratty-snotty- filthy-rich-kids" class.

Yet another new class

Well not quite true, it replaces the Wednesday class. The karate guys asked me if I could give them a class on Saturdays. Sure, I said, as long as I know that there'll be people there... So seeing my Wed. attendance was dropping I thought it'd be a good way to kill two birds with one stone. Have the few interested join the karate bunch and we'll have a nice group. That's what happened today. A bonus is that it will be free since the guy who asked for the class owns the place. That's unless too many of my guys show up, which I don't see happening any time soon...

Change to Wednesday class

Please note that as of this week, the Wednesday class in St-Augustine will be canceled. Instead, starting tomorrow, there will be a class every Saturday at 12pm at the same dojo (St-Augustine). For directions, see attached file,

Eddy

More and more Uchikomi

Men ni/san kyodo (bokken)
Ashi sabaki
Ashi + men + tai sabaki
Suriashi men lenghts
Suriashi men x 2
Uchikiomi
Kirikaeshi

Few people today. Surprising for a Friday. The ones showing up were the serious ones fortunately. 20 minutes after start I lost one guy to a vomit emergency. I doubt it was the intensity, I think it was rather a bad dinner. It was nonetheless my first casualty in a long while.

Had them do uchikomi since they now know kote, men + do. I usually hold back on kote and do until they're very good at men but in the case of these newbies (the 2 brothers mostly) I decided show them right away. They're young, curious and very natural. So far I don't regret it. They're turning out to be quite solid.

Attendance in the east

Class attendance has been dropping in the eastern dojo (the original dojo). Not sure why but the fact is that the more conveniently located dojo in POS is attracting the crowd. I had a guy post some ads on billboards at his campus and 4-5 people called but nobody showed up yet. The only one showing up regularly is K. The karate landlord/sensei asked tonight what was going on... since he had changed his class time to accomodate us he wanted to know if it was possible to revert to original times since our Wednesday classes are either cancelled or pretty empty. He said that him and some of his guys wanted to practice on Saturdays so I figured I should cancel Wednesday and replace it with Sat. This way my guys can join, and it'll be free too!

Nothing beats 1 on 1 training

Excellent practice today with K. Noone else showed up so I could work with him all night.

Interestingly enough, I got a great training out of it, attacking with more and more intensity, I was able to check myself and make sure I kept good form. Repetition is good. I guess there's never too much of it. I wonder if I make the class too varied and they need more routine and repetitions...? I'll experiment next class.

Did a lot of oji/shikake waza. Actually focused a lot on debana and suriage, but did some kaeshi + hiki waza. He seems genuinly overwhelmed by all the new stuff I'm unloading on him, but I think from time to time, it's good to give out candy ;-) Could hardly find anyone more willing to learn than him, so it's all good!

Slacking

I've been slacking a lot from this blog recently, as my head was busy with work considerations. Thank god Kendo's there though, or I would've ended up mad by now. It's amazing how Kendo has given me a sense of purpose this past year... There's been a lot of ups and downs (mostly downs really) and routine and regularity hasn't been part of my life in a long time. Besides Kendo of course, I'm so thankful for that. It gave me so much to hang on to, that I'll give back forever. Now that I think of it, I used to live for Kendo when I started, at University, in 1989. For at least 4 years I practiced 3 to 4 times a week, sometimes more all around town. Although I didn't feel at the time I was doing it because I was looking for some structure, in retrospect, my life was pretty screwed up then so maybe I needed Kendo as much as I need it now.

South dojo ?

As if there wasn't enough places for me to spread the "good news" I
was offered a dance hall to teach into down south. The tapdancing lady
at ISPS (whose son is one of the best student I've ever had) suggested
I could use her facility. Another untapped market... Some of my
original guys come from time to time from Debe, a deep south village
and have been asking for a dojo down there. Maybe things could work
out...

Beuh...

Fuck, nobody showed up today in the eastern dojo... I'm getting really
tired of going there when nobody shows up. On one hand, it's cheap but
on the other hand, it's far for most people registered. I got some
ex-student to advertise in the area, hoping fresh blood would join but
only the hardcores travel that far to get there. K called at 7:30
(taxi trouble) saying he'd be there at 8. But since the dojo is
available only until 8:30 I told him to stay home, it wasn't worth it.
Wow what a kendo maniac... Otherwise, all the other bums are a bunch
of losers...

Other surprising practice today. Slow start but a big bunch eventually showed up. Beginners mostly. But it was good to review once more. A lot of basics this time. Sonkyo, rei-waza. Eventually had to give a speech about proper etiquette in dojo. I hate to do this but I felt I had to make a point...
In retrospect I think maybe the practice is too easy for them. They give me the feeling of "hanging out" when waiting in line. They should be exausted and savor every second of the pauses they have. Not chat with the boys on the sidelines. They should focus on the action, observe and learn... Man that bothers me like nothing else. I got so pissed when I saw some of them looking out the window at something while I was talking about something that I had to yell some crap at them like "if you're not interested, leave now". That cooled down the place... Explained later on after mokuso what was the point of my comment. 1- Follow the widely accepted rules and methods in place for centuries 2- Rules are also there for proper learning conditions and safety. Hopefully the message got through.

Carnival Holidays

Didn't have class last week on Tuesday + Wednesday as I was in Tobago with the little family. Had given K the ok to take care of Tuesday's class but the caretaker of the hall left the place locked and so they had no way to get in. Bummer since he was so much looking forward to take care of the class. This week since it's Carnival on Tuesday (tomorrow) no class, and Wednesday is "Ash Wednesday" an excuse of a holiday to recuperate from the partying today and tomorrow. Was told in no uncertain terms that nobody would show up, so I canceled.