Ninjamom
2nd Black Belt
Just thought I'd offer some notes on a training method/idea we were able to use in our class: Has anyone else practiced throwing a ball of Play-Doh up in the air and slicing it with a steel iaito or kagum?
I had read about several schools using this exercise, so I finally tried it myself. I was able to practice downward cuts (in the direction of motion of the falling dough-ball), upward cuts, and horizontal cuts, with both one and two-hand grips. Good cuts minimized the trajectory of the dough ball (i.e., it was cleanly and clearly cut, rather than just 'hit' with the sword), and resulted in no visibly damage to the practice blade.
After convincing myself that the exercise had benefit and could be practiced safely in a controlled classroom setting, I allowed some junior students to try under supervision. I roped off a 'safe zone' (marked with twine and Wavemasters), with only one student at a time allowed in it, cutting with blade and ball trajectories facing away from the rest of the class. We used a through-hardened steel kagum (Korean practice sword; not an aluminum or hollow rolled steel blade). As expected, the students who participated enjoyed getting to 'actually cut something (!)' while applying and practicing the techniques they had been taught in kata/forms and basic drills.
The exercise seemed to work well for practice in and demonstration of control, timing, speed, and proper blade allignment. It added one more tool to the classroom arsenal of techniques and methods for reinforcing the same basic set of skills, and it was a lot of fun for those who succeeded.
(Note: poorer cuts result in little pieces of dough going all over the floor, so be prepared for some clean-up if you try this in class
)
I had read about several schools using this exercise, so I finally tried it myself. I was able to practice downward cuts (in the direction of motion of the falling dough-ball), upward cuts, and horizontal cuts, with both one and two-hand grips. Good cuts minimized the trajectory of the dough ball (i.e., it was cleanly and clearly cut, rather than just 'hit' with the sword), and resulted in no visibly damage to the practice blade.
After convincing myself that the exercise had benefit and could be practiced safely in a controlled classroom setting, I allowed some junior students to try under supervision. I roped off a 'safe zone' (marked with twine and Wavemasters), with only one student at a time allowed in it, cutting with blade and ball trajectories facing away from the rest of the class. We used a through-hardened steel kagum (Korean practice sword; not an aluminum or hollow rolled steel blade). As expected, the students who participated enjoyed getting to 'actually cut something (!)' while applying and practicing the techniques they had been taught in kata/forms and basic drills.
The exercise seemed to work well for practice in and demonstration of control, timing, speed, and proper blade allignment. It added one more tool to the classroom arsenal of techniques and methods for reinforcing the same basic set of skills, and it was a lot of fun for those who succeeded.
(Note: poorer cuts result in little pieces of dough going all over the floor, so be prepared for some clean-up if you try this in class
)
