My son's Weapons and Kata

[Midnight-shadow]

Kinda late to the party here but regarding the staff form, I find it curious seeing the differences between the Japanese and Chinese styles of staff. When I do staff I hold the staff closer to one end to increase the range. Then when I swing I slide my hands along to again increase the range of movement. I notice in the video you keep your hand static on the staff except to do spins.

As for the form itself, I personally would like to see it done slower but that's a personal preference. Also, when doing it slower you can focus on the accuracy of the thrusts. I notice that as you thrust the staff forwards it raises and lowers slightly. If I had a criticism on the technique it would be that, as it shows a lack of control and in my opinion reduces the effectiveness of the strike. As you pull back and thrust forwards the staff should stay parallel to the ground without either tilting or lifting up or down.

Overall though I liked the form and it's fun seeing a different style of staff use to my own.

 

[CB Jones]

Kinda late to the party here but regarding the staff form, I find it curious seeing the differences between the Japanese and Chinese styles of staff. When I do staff I hold the staff closer to one end to increase the range. Then when I swing I slide my hands along to again increase the range of movement. I notice in the video you keep your hand static on the staff except to do spins.

As for the form itself, I personally would like to see it done slower but that's a personal preference. Also, when doing it slower you can focus on the accuracy of the thrusts. I notice that as you thrust the staff forwards it raises and lowers slightly. If I had a criticism on the technique it would be that, as it shows a lack of control and in my opinion reduces the effectiveness of the strike. As you pull back and thrust forwards the staff should stay parallel to the ground without either tilting or lifting up or down.

Overall though I liked the form and it's fun seeing a different style of staff use to my own.

Thanks.

I agree about the thrusts and that's something we will look at correcting.

 

[senseiblackbelt]

11 years old

[/QUOTE

that's what i call a champion.

 

[Chris Parker]

Kinda late to the party here but regarding the staff form, I find it curious seeing the differences between the Japanese and Chinese styles of staff. When I do staff I hold the staff closer to one end to increase the range. Then when I swing I slide my hands along to again increase the range of movement. I notice in the video you keep your hand static on the staff except to do spins.

As for the form itself, I personally would like to see it done slower but that's a personal preference. Also, when doing it slower you can focus on the accuracy of the thrusts. I notice that as you thrust the staff forwards it raises and lowers slightly. If I had a criticism on the technique it would be that, as it shows a lack of control and in my opinion reduces the effectiveness of the strike. As you pull back and thrust forwards the staff should stay parallel to the ground without either tilting or lifting up or down.

Overall though I liked the form and it's fun seeing a different style of staff use to my own.

Not disagreeing with your observations, with one exception... that's not Japanese bo methods... it's Ryukyu (Okinawan)... Japanese is different again... so you know.

 

[Midnight-shadow]

Not disagreeing with your observations, with one exception... that's not Japanese bo methods... it's Ryukyu (Okinawan)... Japanese is different again... so you know.

Ah, my mistake. I always get confused by Okinawan and Japanese.

 

[Chris Parker]

Not uncommon... for the record, most Japanese systems are performed paired, not solo (commonly against a sword, sometimes another bo), there is typically frequent sliding of the hands, and the staff is often held in thirds. Okinawan systems tend to hold the staff in the middle, without sliding the hands (keeping the grip the same all the way through), and perform solo exercises/kata. Chinese systems often hold at the end, use a lighter, whippier staff, and again have their forms done solo.

 

[JR 137]

Not uncommon... for the record, most Japanese systems are performed paired, not solo (commonly against a sword, sometimes another bo), there is typically frequent sliding of the hands, and the staff is often held in thirds. Okinawan systems tend to hold the staff in the middle, without sliding the hands (keeping the grip the same all the way through), and perform solo exercises/kata. Chinese systems often hold at the end, use a lighter, whippier staff, and again have their forms done solo.

I've seen most Japanese practitioners hold the bo under the armpit after overhead strikes and thrusts, and Okinawan practitioners have it outside their bicep.

Is this just coincidental, or is it the norm (of course there are exceptions)?

 

[CB Jones]

His style is Korean Karate.

His styles weapon forms have both Okinawaan and Japanese influence.

So y'all are both probably right.

 

[Midnight-shadow]

His style is Korean Karate.

His styles weapon forms have both Okinawaan and Japanese influence.

So y'all are both probably right.

"Korean Karate"? That's a new one on me.

 

[Gerry Seymour]

I've seen most Japanese practitioners hold the bo under the armpit after overhead strikes and thrusts, and Okinawan practitioners have it outside their bicep.

Is this just coincidental, or is it the norm (of course there are exceptions)?

I'm interested in this, too. I've been working with some different approaches to staff, to see what seems to fit best with my core movements. Sometimes I seem to prefer under the arm, sometimes outside. I'm interested in hearing what the reasoning is behind each.

 

[Midnight-shadow]

I'm interested in this, too. I've been working with some different approaches to staff, to see what seems to fit best with my core movements. Sometimes I seem to prefer under the arm, sometimes outside. I'm interested in hearing what the reasoning is behind each.

When I'm doing my staff thrusts I position the staff under the arm, due to the specific movement I do. When I thrust forwards I'm taught to twist the staff like a corkscrew to increase the power and focus of the strike. You couldn't really do this if you had the staff outside the arm without the staff tilting. The other thing we are taught is a breaking move, which happens after the straight thrust. Once you thrust you twist the forward wrist to jerk the end of the staff up and then down. This movement is used to push up into the opponent's sternum or to disentangle your staff if it gets caught. Again, this movement would be very awkward to do if the staff was on the outside of the arm.

Really, the only benefit I can see of having the staff on the outside of the arm is to protect your arm from a counter-strike, but if you position properly this shouldn't ever be an issue in my opinion, and I'd prefer to have the increased control of having the staff tucked under the arm.

 

[CB Jones]

"Korean Karate"? That's a new one on me.

Style come from Atlee Chittim who studied "karate" in Korea during the Korean War. After the Korean War he returned to Texas and began teaching.

He would sponsor Jhoon Rhee to come to America and taught under the style name of Korean Karate.

Jhoon Rhee would later switch to using the name TKD.

Our style is more traditional as we emphasize more punching and less big kicks than TKD so we use the style name of Korean Karate.

 

[JR 137]

I'm interested in this, too. I've been working with some different approaches to staff, to see what seems to fit best with my core movements. Sometimes I seem to prefer under the arm, sometimes outside. I'm interested in hearing what the reasoning is behind each.

Under the arm makes it harder to knock the weapon out of your hands; you're practically hugging it.

Outside the arm is faster.

I guess there's trade offs. I haven't used a bo in quite some time. I first learned under the arm. After my then-sensei left the organization, he revamped the weapons syllabus (incorporating Nishiuchi's system). The first change was the bo went on the outside. It took a class or two to adjust, but once I did, holding it inside my arm felt very restrictive.

My current system does under the arm. I haven't gotten to the bo yet in our syllabus. I miss using the bo.

 

[JR 137]

"Korean Karate"? That's a new one on me.

I've heard Tang Soo Do referred to as Korean Karate many times.

 

[Midnight-shadow]

Under the arm makes it harder to knock the weapon out of your hands; you're practically hugging it.

Outside the arm is faster.

I guess there's trade offs. I haven't used a bo in quite some time. I first learned under the arm. After my then-sensei left the organization, he revamped the weapons syllabus (incorporating Nishiuchi's system). The first change was the bo went on the outside. It took a class or two to adjust, but once I did, holding it inside my arm felt very restrictive.

My current system does under the arm. I haven't gotten to the bo yet in our syllabus. I miss using the bo.

You know it's amazing how many different ways there are to doing a simple thrust with the staff. A quick search on youtube and I found 4 different ways, each with a different grip and thrusting technique:

We could probably spend a year debating the effectiveness of each different style.