Lack of Weapon Control

During today's class we did a bit of extra work on weapons. During the class I remembered an incident that occured at a tournament about 4 or 5 years ago. As usual I was acting as a judge in one of the rings but the next ring was open so some students were using it to warm up and get a bit of last minute practice in. As my ring wrapped up I told the other judges to take a quick break before the next division started. As I was walking to the organizer's table, one of the students in the next ring stabbed his spear right at my face. I reacted and grabbed the spear head just before it stuck me in the face. The student stopped practicing but probably did not realize that a slower reaction would have ended up with him stabbing a person in the face. I have a few thoughts on this incident.

• First, the student was not taught proper respect for martial arts as it was clear that he was using the open ring as a chance to show off his techniques.
  
• Next, the student was not properly taught by his instructor. This was not a junior student and he should have known to be aware of his surroundings, especially when performing weapons forms.
• The student showed little respect for other competitors as he flung his weapon around without regard for the other students that were stretching and warming up.
• No student is good enough to utilize stabbing techniques without looking - there has to be something wrong with either the way he was taught or the way he learned.

I would like to stress that those performing weapons must be aware of their surroundings as well as understanding the distance required to perform techniques without placing anyone in danger. The person practicing the weapon form is responsible for control of their weapon.

The Best Time to Block

As students start to practice fighting techniques and possibly free sparring, they will be in situations where they will need to block strikes. As students become more comfortable, it becomes easier and easier to see strikes coming from the opponent. This is where I see errors starting to occur with many students in all Martial Arts. I often see blocks executed way before the strike will connect.

The best time to block a strike is not early in the strike but as late as possible in the strike. By waiting until the last moment to execute the block you will have the best opportunity for counter strike. If you block early in the strike, the opponent has an opportunity to pull back to a defensive position or react to the block and throw another technique. By waiting until later in the strike, you lead the opponent to believe that the strike is successful and will cause them to continue the follow through which in turn will open them up to counter attack. Waiting until the last moment will allow you to put an opponent off balance if you can execute a pull with your block.

Although waiting takes some courage, the benefits are undeniable. I encourage students to try this during the controlled sparring of a class and find their comfort level on how long to wait.

Remembering Forms

I have mentioned in class that there is no shortcut to remembering your forms. The only way to train your body to perform the techniques correctly and memorize the forms is through constant repetition. This is the reason that I recommend practicing your forms even after you have learned them and moved on to your next form. It takes about 200 repetitions to remember the form and about 500 before you are completely fluent with it. The end result is that you will be able to perform it without constant practice. Being able to perform a form that you have not practiced in a few months should be possible with the right amount of practice up front during your training. This practice is not exciting as you are just repeating something over and over but it will make you much better over time.