News
for January to April, 2001
4/28/01 -- It has been a number of months since adding
an entry to this journal, and having just completed rank advancement
testing for several of my students, I though it an appropriate opportunity
to bring you current on happenings since the beginning of this
year.
April, 2001: At the
gracious invitation of Tom Posz and his teacher, Renshi (5th Dan) Mike
McGowan, I was able to attend a training session given by Hanshi (10th Dan)
Nobuo Ichikawa, the present head of Doshinkan Karate Do. Attending
with me was my student, Nathan Dunn. I was extremely impressed by
the very apparent knowledge demonstrated by Ichikawa hanshi, and also by
the great respect and effort given to him by everyone in attendance.
Doshinkan is a relatively lesser known style of Japanese martial art that
emphasizes health of mind, body and spirit. This was the second opportunity
I have taken to witness some aspects of their training, and to get a
better understanding of this excellent teacher and his equally excellent
students. I am far from having an adequate level of understanding of
their studies but I can attest to the benefits derived from their
training, as Hanshi himself so aptly showed by his amazing recovery from
recent major surgery. Congratulations to Tom and his son, Matt for
their rank advancement during this series of training session with
Hanshi. You can find more information regarding Doshinkan at
their Web site:
http://www.doshinkan.com/
As previously mentioned, several students successfully advanced in rank
today (4/28/01) in a rigorous test given by Julia and me.
Advancing in rank were:
Chesaray
Banda, 4th kyu
Gianna
Banda, 4th kyu
Nicholas
Whitson, 5th kyu
Thomas
Whitson, 5th kyu
Congratulations
to each of them for their fine efforts and commitment.
March, 2001: I was able to attend a seminar given by
Iha
Seikichi sensei that was held by Tim Evans sensei in Elk Grove,
California. In addition to a fine lesson in Shorin-Ryu karate I was
able to meet and train with Bill Lucas sensei of Florida. Bill and I
have communicated via e-mail over the course of several years, and it was a
great pleasure to finally know him. Bill was also able to train with
us at Silvan sensei's studio, and shared some of his kobudo knowledge with
me.
Also during this month I was fortunate to have attended a
seminar on Uechi-Ryu karate given by Gushi Shinyu sensei at the Antioch,
California dojo of Alan Dollar sensei. Gushi sensei is a role model
for the benefits of consistent training. His recent video on body
conditioning for Okinawan karate is a must have for any serious
student. I truly appreciate Sensei Dollar's kind invitation to join
his students for this special event, and look forward to another opportunity
to train with them again.
February, 2001: The first Japanese/Okinawan
Karate Juku event of the year was held in Jim Silvan sensei's
studio. It was well attended by teachers and students of several
martial arts disciplines, including Japanese and Okinawan karate, Jujitsu,
and Kenpo. The objectives of these reoccurring seminars is to
share what we are able to with interested and talented martial
artists. Instructors in this event were Joey Cruz, John Lofton, Tim
Evans, Carl
Caudill, Chris Peterson, Jim Silvan and myself. As always it was a
pleasure spending time with all of the people who participated, and I truly believe
all of us left with a better appreciation of the many arts represented
there. All proceeds were donated to Cruz sensei and his fiancé, Nyree
Tupasi, as a wedding gift. Our next event is planned for the June timeframe
in Sacramento.
January, 2001: As promised, I reinstated
classes at the dojo and formally added Julia as a RyuBuKan Dojo
instructor. The experience she gathered in teaching classes last year
was a blessing for everyone, especially for her, and I can clearly see a heighten
level of confidence and ability that was not there before. With
few exceptions all of our previous students returned, and it provided my
family and I a deepen sense of appreciation for their love and
support. I was also able to resume my own studies with Jim Silvan and
his excellent students. Jim is a true friend and one of the very best
teachers I have ever had.
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