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Voice of the Fox
The Newsletter of the Martial Arts Training Service

Summer Camp Adventures
Part 1
by Peter Zalinski
Autumn 1997

This is the first part of Peter's diary from USAF Western Region Summer Camp, held July 11-17, 1997 at California State University, Hayward.

Friday: Band-Aid Please

Check-in at camp was a breeze, with Naomi Okuyama's familiar face on the other side of the table. After Aaron and I helped Browne Sensei settle in, met her roommate (Yasuko, a yudansha from Hombu Dojo in Tokyo), and made sure her refrigerator was turned on, we settled into our own digs in the next building. We met one of our suite-mates, Roger Wright from the Moving Center of Ventura, California, and changed into our gis for the first class.

The CSU campus is a sprawling complex of buildings and terraces overlooking Hayward and San Francisco Bay. The student housing is a complex of three-story buildings arranged around a central courtyard, with walkways at each level. The dojo was about 20 minutes walk away; the dining hall in the basement of the student union marked the halfway point.

About 150-200 students showed up for Kurita Sensei's first class, and he got us off to a fast start with 100% dynamic techniques. Watch closely -- three or four throws, and then hope you and your partner have it figured out.

I was pleased to work with Marianne Shibata Sensei, who "just happened" to let me know that she was on the testing committee for my nikyu test later in the week. Yipe!

The wrestling mats didn't seem that bad to work on, or so I thought at first. Aaron was one of the earliest victims to need first aid: minor suppurating hangnail on the fifth toe of his right foot. Not too serious.

Dinner was interesting: Good presentation of the pineapple chicken, but it lacked something in the execution of the recipe. The vegan tofu was very good, and it's hard to ruin carrot cake. Aaron seemd to feel that this food would be par for the course. "Grocery shopping after dinner?" we asked. "Yes," said Sensei.

So after dinner, the three of us and Sensei's roommate went to Kmart and a grocery store in Hayward, to stock up on Gatorade, bottled water, and other incidentals we forgot to pack. In my case, this included sunscreen, Mountain Dew, Pepsi, and an alarm clock, as well as a coffee pot. (Roger had brought coffee beans but no pot.) Sensei made sure to get some ice packs, which unfortunately saw quite a bit of use.

Aaron crashed when we got back to the room, after something like 36 hours without sleep, and I accompanied Sensei to the short general meeting. Aaron was dead to the world when I got back, and I only dimly remember my head hitting the pillow . . .

Saturday: Ice and Red Tape for Two

. . . And I woke up just before 6 a.m., for no apparent reason. My body must have still been on Central Daylight time.

First class was at 10:15 with Yokota Sensei, a young, energetic, enthusiastic, precise, efficient, and graceful teacher. The class involved a lot of dynamic movement. Unfortunately, Browne Sensei was sidelined after aggravating her weak left shoulder.

Shibata Sensei and Chiba Sensei held classes after lunch. The kenshusei who took ukemi for those two have my undying respect. The techniques were expressed with an intensity that was frightening. You had to watch closely, because the senseis might simply demonstrate a technique, or they might begin with a series of related techniques that illustrated some obscure (to me at least) point of application. Shibata Sensei appeared to be nonchalant, almost dismissive toward his ukes. If they made a poor attack, he would throw them hard and bid them attack again.

Aaron popped his ankle during this class and had to have it iced and taped so that he could attend the second class. Sensei was feeling somewhat better, so she was able to practice as well. I was knocking on wood; no red tape for me.

Chiba Sensei could best be described as ferocious. Most of his class was in suwari waza and hanmi-handachi, so my knees got quite a workout. One of the yudansha surprised me by taking off her prosthetic leg for suwari waza. The lack of it didn't slow her down in the least.

By the end of the class, I was feeling mighty worn out from serious caloric deficit. After dinner, Sensei went to an instructors' meeting about dojo safety. Aaron and I kicked back with some Gatorade, taxing our brains by playing Pente in the courtyard, and then we headed for bed.

Sunday: Extended View of the Ceiling

9:00 a.m.: Sensei decided to sit out the first classes and rest her shoulder, but Aaron and I were feeling fine. Kurita Sensei really got us moving, and the class was very enjoyable.

11:00 a.m.: I was taking back ukemi for a yudansha, and had been attacking with my usual fervor. Unfortunately, I came down in such a way that his kneecap paid a glancing visit to my spine. Result: sharp flash of pain, the feeling of a vertebra slipping out and then snicking back into place, and an extended view of the ceiling and a small crowd of concerned faces. Other than the initial flash of pain, nothing was hurt or even numb. Regardless, I was given a thorough examination and sat out the remainder of the class. Thankfully it was a minor incident that I was fortunate enough to walk away from.

After lunch, Aaron and I went back to our room and went over the testing requirements. At mealtime, we had been informed by Sensei that we would be the only two kyu ranks testing on Monday night. Just the two of us, representing Fox Valley Aikikai. Pressure? What pressure? My back didn't bother me a bit, but we had to stop practicing when we realized it was time for Chiba Sensei's weapons class.

2:00 p.m.: This was the scariest weapons class I have ever witnessed. Imagine at least 200 people crowded onto the mat, all swinging bokkens and not necessarily in unison. Since we never sat down for the demonstrations, only those who were in the front or had a clear line of sight knew what was going on. The rest of us followed along as best we could.

The next class went much better. Marianne Shibata Sensei took the kyu ranks outside to practice jo kata while the dan ranks stayed inside with Chiba Sensei and practiced more bokken techniques. Aaron and I partnered up to refine what we already knew. Shibata Sensei was amazing. She was able to reveal some aspects of Sancho that we had previously misunderstood.

After dinner, Sensei, Aaron and I went into town to a laundromat. After we put the gis in the dryer, Sensei called out techniques for us, and we reviewed our tests right there in the laundromat. We looked good. We felt good. The tests were going to be a breeze.

Next issue: Kyu Test Day

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