Copyright Peter Morton Academy of Judo Jujitsu Karate
Kaleen junior seminar 2007
10 March 2007
The ACT 2007 junior seminar was hosted by the Kaleen branch and held at St Michael's Primary School, Kaleen, ACT.
The seminar kicked off at 9:15 with an introduction and a bow in, then the 50-plus students were formed into coloured teams.
Next up Sensei Phil Townsend limbered up bodies with a series of exercises so that Shihan Ed Scharrer could get students into a training frame of mind. This was achieved by getting each student to introduce themselves to other students around them by stating their name and the branch that they were representing followed by a short chat. Shihan Scharrer then got students moving in a kata-style tsuki and keri drill.
Normally our martial art, being a defensive style, does not involve the use of any type of weapon, however as an attraction for this seminar Renshi Peter Wilson and Sensei Cameron Owers, with Shihan Edward Scharrer as judge, demonstrated a combative sport, known as San Ryu Do, using weaponry.
The sport uses swords made of soft rubber and, combined with a full-face helmet and thickly padded gloves, the blows inflicted leave very little impact physically on a body.
Points in a bout are scored for strikes to various parts of the opponent’s body. The first combatant to score five points, or the combatant with the highest score when the time limit runs out, wins the bout.
This demonstration, which by the way was to show students how to play the game, started out sedately and within the rules but somehow, to the delight of the watching students, deteriorated into to a no holds barred slugging match. The judge lost control of the combatants and with men being boys the two combatants forgot to be master of themselves.
No permanent harm was done and the judge, with the help of a wooden stick, finally managed to gain control. The following applause and laughter from the audience, and the two out-of-control combatants, were a fair indicator of just how much students were going to enjoy their bouts.
Finally it was time for rounds of combat for students and, judging by the high decibel sounds of emanating enjoyment, it was a great hit with students, even with those that did not win a bout. Just having the experience was sheer pleasure alone.
A demonstration of Japanese sword and Kokusai Jujutsu by John Bear and his team was full of tradition and the oooh! ahhh! techniques that would make a stuntman wince in admiration.
After the demonstration had finished John asked if students had any questions. Most interest was in the swords that John and his team had brought along for the demonstration but one young fan was more interested in the gruesome side of the art. His question was: "Have you cut anyone's arm off?" To this John replied, "I'll take the 5th on that." He then went on to explain his answer (American-speak for remaining silent in case an answer incriminates one’s self) and that he had cut himself a few times but never anyone else.
One keen student just had to have one of John's swords and made a serious offer of $50 that he had at home, to his thinking, as a fair means of exchange. Taken in good humour John explained simply that it was not possible for someone of such tender years to purchase or own a sword.
The thinking child has a totally different way of looking at the world around them. This was demonstrated when the question of: "Do your partners ever talk?" was posed to John. John's tongue in cheek reply was that, looking in the direction of his female student, Patricia was dumb. The trigger behind the question arose from the fact that both of John’s students had hardly uttered a sound during their demonstration.
This answer must have played on the child's mind as later on he confronted David, the other member of the team, and asked very seriously, "Do you talk, really?" David's response was "no", to which the child just stared at him as if he was waiting for David to elaborate on the answer.
When Shihans Rowley and Scharrer entered the arena for a bout of combat neither was out to lose face. This shaped up to be a serious few rounds of fun. As the bouts moved on the attacks increased in force and somehow at one stage the judge, Renshi Wilson, was struck with a hard blow that knocked him out of the fighting area. He was not hurt and came back to exact revenge on both by attacking with a spare sword that he had on hand.
As with seminars last year, and to ensure that all are aware and have not missed out on an important issue, this seminar covered safety in training. This session, with Shihans Rowley and Scharrer, covered the safe and correct way to hit the ground from a throw with minimum impact on the body. A breakfall drill was demonstrated using various techniques from the Syllabus and students followed up with some supervised practice.
Competition results
Two-man Attack: Queanbeyan, NSW, won by Rebecca Leck
Basic Steps Kata: Queanbeyan, NSW
Combat Sports
- Junior competition
- Winner: Lewin Hodgman, Radcliffe, NSW
- Runner up: Thomas Ellwood, Kaleen, ACT
- Midgets competition
- Winner: Billy Briggs, Kaleen, ACT
- Runner up: Jordan Crooke, Batemans Bay, NSW
It was good to see that there was a student representing a new branch of the Academy: Durras, NSW. This proud student stood up and competed by herself in the Basic Steps Kata competition to the cheers of those watching. This is the type of spirit that the Academy hopes it is instilling in people through its teachings. Well done to all.