Shihan Craig Finch was once again invited back to take us on a very interesting course.
We gathered again at Hastingsbury dojo on the 13th November to sample some of Shihan Finch's own association (Matsuri school of Karate) style of training. Shihan Finch has previously trained in several styles of very traditional karate with origins deeply rooted in Okinawa. It was very interesting to see how our two styles of karate and dojo training differed.
Shihan Finch took use through some of his type of dojo training he used with his own students, that were series of techniques with very little step movement using the shika-dachi stance.
We were also shown the body conditioning techniques they used to enhance their strength and resilience to physical attacks. Some of these were contained in set routines that we practiced in pairs. These routines used techniques that centred around the subtle shifting of body positions and tensing of muscles - if you got them wrong with your partner you soon new about it!
As well as physically demanding and mentally challenging combinations we also sampled some of Shihan Finch's kata - very similar to Tekki-Shodan.
The course was very informative to see how karate that once started on a small Japanese island had spread through many instructors and subtly changed in some ways. It was also interesting to note training differences and the different focuses of our respective karate styles.
Thanks to Shihan Finch for instruction and Sensei Kidby for organising another thought-provoking course.