This year’s SOTR provided excellent coaching from Bob Jones, Ken Broome, Shaun Hoddy, and Paul Bonnet.
The venue, the Saga Centre in Folkestone, really did match the quality of the coaching. Shaun provided excellent instruction on the Koryu Dai Ni and Ken with the Koryu Dai Ichi. Paul Bonnet dazzled the participants with aspects of the Goshin Ho.
One of the coaching highlights was Bob’s jigsaw aikido session. This neatly involved everybody, both the children and adults, at the
same time. As well as helping to understand the components of all aikido techniques.
The jigsaw pieces were cards containing the Japanese names of different attacks, responses, directions, and styles of movement. For example, a set or cards, selected at random, could contain a right handed, one handed sleeve grasp, matching stances, rotation throw, turning away, and cartoon. A group put the jigsaw together into a technique which they then performed – and the all other groups had to guess what the technique was (migi katate dori aigamae tenkai kaiten nage !??). Surprisingly perhaps, the performers and the audience got them all right!
Pete Coia