More and more fun with swords

Today 2 hour class maybe for the first time ever; we usually start late and finish way late. We did 1 hour of kata and 1 hour of mawari keiko (uchikomi). Kata was ok, but I realised that much work still needs to be done for success in Aruba. Still some guys messing up basic things like proper bowing and hand placement. More work on the horizon. I also realized that not everyone going there will be satisfied with the tournament and will want their money's worth in seminar/exam. So although I was planning on focusing very hard on shiai stuff, I might tone it down a bit to make place for more kihon. Anyway, kata was good for the young ones, still improving quick as they go and as I give them grief, but shaky for the older guy(s).

After kata, we did a good hour of uchikomi (lots of kirikaeshi). Then for the first time in bogu I introduced them to the sweet world of Oji and Shikake waza. We didn't have time to do much, but I gave them a good taste of what's to come. We did manage to fit a good session of debana (men debana men) and nuki (kote nuki men). Pretty good results I should say. Saw too many small men instead of the still required big men but I can't blame them for trying; that, to me, is a good sign that they're ready and want to learn the nuances of sashi-men... I was concerned their form would be questionable but they were pretty clean if a bit off center. Noticing that they weren't so straight in their attacks we did a bunch of hai-gakari. That got them tired, centered and focused. End of class. As I said, a tasting of what's to come ;-)