Report – Breton 2024.

Annual training at Mumei Jyuku Dojo with Sugasawa Sensei and Steve Chamberlain Sensei.

It was the August Bank Holiday, so Shikukai members from four countries made their way by road, rail and sea to converge on a little town in the heart of Brittany countryside for what has become a highlight of the Shikukai calendar.

As the first training session got underway, it was clear from the outset that Sensei wanted to focus on fundamentals, explaining that these elements are an integral part of all that we do, irrespective of whether that is Kihon, Kata or Kumite.

Taking the core imperative of Tsuki-No-Sanyo-Sa, Sensei broke this down into several critical components including; controlled breathing, establishing a strong foundation through the correct distribution of weight and creating an effective koshi wo kiru (hip cutting) action, activated internally using neru (a muscular action similar to kneading). Neglecting the precise positioning of feet, knees, hips, elbows and head each had its own detrimental impact on the technique. We were deep into crucial details here.   

The challenge all of us face was to apply these principles in tandem and to full effect in everything we practise during the weekend, and indeed in our ongoing training. Now, the 4¾ hours of Day 1 may seem like a lot of time to spend on just five Kihon techniques, but actually it was not even close to being enough!

Day 2 included a brief review of individual performances of Pinan Yondan to see how well we were applying the lessons of the first day, before moving on to Kumite Kata. These are all familiar practices, but it was remarkable how much attention was necessary to correctly utilise the fundamentals. Nevertheless, most of us could now and then, perceive a tangible improvement in technique when several of the elements clicked together…and that is what we were there for.

A distinguishing character of any Shikukai course is always the camaraderie. With most of us sharing an apartment in the main town close to the training venue, we had the privilege of hosting a dinner on both evenings, making good use of the fresh fish and produce available locally. After dinner, we revisited a perilous dice-rolling game taught to us last year by the boys from Prague, where the unlucky contestant faces a shot from a chilled and frosty bottle of some mystery alcoholic beverage dubbed ‘the prisoner’.

All too quickly, we were saying our goodbyes and looking forward to the next opportunity to meet up.

A final word of thanks must go to Steve Sensei for inviting us to his dojo and for hosting yet another memorable course, and to Sugasawa Sensei for sharing his unique insight and guiding us in this fine art.

Richard Barham.
Sue Dodd.