Travelling on Friday 10th October to Eindhoven, I had to pinch myself; no queues at Stansted, no queue at the gate and on the plane, and settled in my seat 40 mins before take-off, which happened ahead of time. Ryanair, what is going on?
Add to that, I luckily ended up sat next to a most interesting chap with some very entertaining anecdotes; so, the wheels were touching down before I even blinked. What can possibly go wrong?…. Answer; nothing. The weekend ran like a dream, thanks in large parts to Martijn and Astrid De Vries Schelen, who pulled everything together perfectly.
Friday training.
Responding to requests from my hosts, the content of the training on the Friday evening consisted of core techniques and Wado principles, all leading to Ohyo Henka Dosa. I had introduced this training on a previous course and it was clear that the regulars wanted to dig into this further. This is training that leads into free-form movement by controllable increments, which are essential to establish the rules and prevents the practice degrading into a free-for-all.
Saturday training.
I wanted to hold over to the Saturday a few words I felt were necessary to be said to offer our heartfelt commiserations and sympathies for those affected by the recent passing of KBN Wado stalwart, Gertjan Martens. I had met him on many occasions and attest to the fact that Gertjan always set a solid example of a dedicated Budoka and had touched the lives of all who knew him. A very sad and profound loss.
Content.
Earlier, I had introduced the theme I wanted to explore across the weekend. I presented a physical example of the Sphere and the Cube. I used these to examine the dichotomy of the qualities of fluid movement and solid form. I kept coming back to this, particularly through the paired kata.
I also took this opportunity to share with the Dutch students the most recent updates from Sugasawa Sensei; not ‘changes’ but instead more granular explorations of aspects embedded in the kata.
We did some work on the concept that ‘attack and defence are not just interchangeable but one and the same’. This came through nagashizuki and then working it with a partner.
Social opportunities.
It was really good to have the chance to talk to people outside of the Dojo setting. This time we were booked into a rather excellent Greek style Mediterranean cuisine restaurant, where the staff just kept rolling out delicacy after delicacy (I must get round to giving them a glowing review on TripAdvisor). Great to catch up, and the conversations were not primarily about karate.
Sunday training.
For this day I had a few agenda items lined up, with specific focus on prospective Dan grading candidates (I had previously shared a bunch of notes I had put together, based upon the numerous Dan panels I had sat upon; intended to avoid the typical pitfalls). Part of this was an emphasis on the sometimes-troublesome Kihon Gumite Sanbonme. It’s all in the timing. To get this across I had to detour into physics. While not my strong point, I thought it was necessary to get the point across.
Missing from this time was solo kata training, but the plan is to factor that in for my next visit early in 2026.
As is usual on these courses, I am always running dangerously close to over-planning, but we did manage to get such a lot in, fortunately the logic was all held together by the Sphere and the Cube.
In conclusion; these courses always provide a superb opportunity for like-minded people to get together and reinforce the special bond in the Shikukai family. Add to that the openness that Martijn and Astrid show in inviting the wider Wado community in the Netherlands, who seem to enjoy the opportunity of working shoulder to shoulder with other Wadoka, regardless of their affiliations.
The Kenkokai team always appreciate the presence of other Wado students from further afield. Any Brits who fancy a trip across next time, contact Martijn or myself and we can make it happen.
At the time of writing this I am preparing a set of support notes to reinforce some of the ideas explored over the weekend (including the physics). This will be published on Substack; web address: www.budojourneyman.substack.com
Keep an eye on the Shikukai calendar for the next course in 2026.
Tim Shaw
Shikukai Karate-Do International 