Its that time of the year...time to get all the gifts needed for family, friends and others. I have decided to get pocket knives for my male cousins and pink katana letteropeners for my female cousins. Inexpensive and obviously from me. Happy Holidays. Rook
Consistent targets are invaluable for cutting. It is difficult to anticipate the reaction of your target if it has lumps, and dry spots. After several months of trial and error the Rook was able to find the perfect soak times for the striped tatami. First off, for a single roll split the mats (the mats come in a double roll size). Next, roll the mats using a dowel or broom stick. This will not only leave a hole for the peg but also smooth out the roll. ...
What is your live blade of choice to train with? I think everyone has a go to sword that he/she gravitates to. For me, I have become spoiled on the Munetoshi Korean Yuki style. I don't use the Yuki when cutting cartons or bottles. I only train on tatami with it. I generally use one of my Raptors or the widely used Musashi Bamboo Warrior for carton/bottle work. Also, why is your sword of choice your sword of choice? What makes it so? I like the Yuki because ...
I have to admit it has been difficult to find all the time I want for training recently. I get 9 - 12 hours in a week but that is split between strength&fitness, the Tae Kwon Do training / teaching and what I do with swords. Lately, with work, more 9's than 12's I try to get one day during the week where the sword practice takes precedence but this is not always possible as I am working on the higher patterns, ( and other things ) with the another instructor for our next grading.. Other than ...
Practicing today has been decent, but as always, I found the importance of hasuji during kata. Whenever you cut, or even swing your blade for that matter, the hasuji must always be dead on. I want to be able to get to the point where my hasuji is dead on for all of my cuts. training with a katana that has a bo-hi is very helpful in telling if my hasuji is on or off. I may also start to do the 1000 cut training that Glen and Greg is working on. Until my next training session.