Review Karate & Kobudo Seminar Erlangen 2008

Review by David Fisher

As a long-time Uechi-Ryu practitioner with very little experience with weapons, I had my concerns about spending a weekend at a training camp that would be 2/3 Kobudo and just 1/3 Karate. Especially given the fact that the Kobudo training would include a number of weapons with which I'd had no experience with what so ever. Another doubt was my concern that most Kobudo training is of limited practicality; after all, how often does one find themselves carrying around a nearly two-meter long stick? And thus, over the years, I've tended to shy away from weapons training and just stick to my Uechi-Ryu. But as it turned out, the training camp was an eye opener for me and I ended up really enjoying the Kobudo training.

We spent time training and learning katas using the Bo, Sai and Tekko. As noted, I'm the first to admit that these weapons are not something you would carry around with you on a daily basis, but that's not the point. After a few hours spent slowly working through the Kobudo katas, under the excellent guidance of Swiss-American Dell Hamby, I began to enjoy the katas more for their artistry and rich history than as self-defense exercises. When done well, a Bo or Sai kata is as beautiful a thing to watch and do as any performing art. So I am thankful to the training camp for opening my eyes to these new art forms.

But the training camp was more than just Kobudo training. We spent time working on the Uechi basics, the katas and the pre-arranged drills. I always enjoy these gatherings for the sharing of ideas and interpretations of techniques. Different instructors teach differing applications for techniques, some interpret a blocking technique as a defense against a very specific attack, while others might view that same block as a defense against a completely different attack. The same goes for how different instructors interpret the execution of attacks. Most of the time there is no "right or wrong" with these differing interpretations - everyone can usually make a credible argument as to why they execute a technique in a certain way. And that is exactly how it should be. In fact, it is part of what makes these training camps interesting - the exchange of views among experts sharing their considered insights.

But perhaps most important of all, our training camp brought together a group of like-minded individuals, with varying levels of experience, but who all shared a desire to improve their martial arts skills. The participants included Germans, Swiss and Americans who train at half a dozen Dojos stretching from Berlin down to Basel. We slept on the Dojo mats together, we dined together, and we trained together. And by the end of 3 days of joint training we came away exhausted, but satisfied that we had improved our martial arts knowledge and exposed ourselves to new ideas. Most important of all, through our time together we developed new friendships and once our muscles recover and our bruises heal, we are looking forward to the next time we can come together again for training and sharing.