Having done some major hansei after my idiocy over the new year, and gotten back into keiko and work (fucking work!) I polished off January with a small competition last sunday, the Jousai Goku (roughly translated as 5 wards west of the castle).
Involving (as the name suggests) 5 wards, Nakano, Shinjuku, Suginami, Setagaya and Shibuya, with the hosting area allowed 2 teams. Sounds small? Think again, because it is 17 people per team, and each match lasts for closing in on an hour.
So how did it go? Well, another mixed bag. It helped cement the conclusion that much of my shiai issue is mental, and that with that sorted I can do well. I had a very average first shiai, where nerves made me stiff and unwilling to attack, then the polar opposite in the second shiai where I scored men from something that felt like slightly outside of to-ma and ended up on the other side of the shiaijo when I was done. Basically, without the nerves I can keep the variety, focus and concentration of my normal keiko right at the front.
I was happy with how my kendo was technically (following on from the improvements I’ve been trying to make for a while now) so this is for me the last big hurdle before the Euros. If I am in the state of mind and condition that I was in the second shiai, and can maintain it.
Time to start researching this stuff again I guess….meh. Anyone got any ideas?


