To-Shin Do Instructor's Taijutsu or Tairyoku ni Oojite Okonau

ToShinDoKa

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Hey everybody!
*cricket...cricket...cricket*

I thought I'd start a section on the GOOD qualities of some of the To-Shin Do Instructors I've met when it comes to their 'taijutsu' and 'hei-ho'. What I love about the ones I've met so far, is that they make real the classical Japanese Warrior Principle of Tairyoku ni Oojite Okonau: "Different People have Different Strengths." (This is one translation I've seen).

Mr. Ontoshi: The first time I officially met Mr. Ontoshi was not too long ago at the Mountain Quest Seminar. We covered some amazingly practical and yet challenging material, most covering the taijutsu aspects of using (what Black Belt Magazine has described to be) the most DANGEROUS personal weapon today...the knife. Mr. Ontoshi is a modern warrior, like many of us in the MA world, but even more so being of the U.S. Armed Forces.
When training w/ him, I couldn't help but feel the warrior ferocity contained within this kind & thoughtful instructor. When he was conducting our lessons, 'all' their most likely felt the 'brutal reality' of his taijutsu applications, and how these could and would be effective and unexpected...deadly so. :) When I see his experience and presence it makes me 'joyfully' realize I have a 'long' way to go, to get there. His teachings also helped me realize 'deep' and 'internally' how martial arts were originally meant for self defense, and when are applied correctly can be 'devastating' and very humbling.

Mr. Tokutoshi: Truly an 'amazingly' talented and spirited individual. I'm a long distance student and so not 'officially' enrolled at his dojo, but when I'm up there, myself and my training partners are always treated as if we were always there. He also keeps track of the things I'm working on, even though I'm not there regularly.

On a taijutsu note, from the demonstrations I've seen, he pervades: 'martial arts genius' when seeing him perform. His seemingly laid back and nonchalant attitude against the uke's aggression is so 'very' deceptive. His techniques are crisp and his 'henka' seem endless. From foot alignment, to hip movement, he assures his students' technique (as his own) are correct for 'maximum' effectiveness. If you encountered him on the street, his demeanor makes seems to make him very approachable, and possibly to potential victims (that is the violent assaulter of people, who would encounter the prowess of his self defense techniques), a sign of weakness.

As I've heard him say about the unexpected ferocity of one of his 'own' student's skill: "What a mistake!" He's a talented, inspiring, and fearsome warrior instructor...one that anyone looking to progress, would do well to study under.

Oh there are like 3 or 4 more I've met and seen in action, but don't have the time to put down now.
 

bydand

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Nice thread. The ones that I have trained with and stand out in my mind (I'll keep it short.) John Poliquin: I started this MA journey under John and feel very lucky for that. He is soft spoken, yet carries an astonishing amount of knowledge in his words. He is very willing and even eager to pass on what he knows. If you want to learn what to do on the ground, John is the guy to go to, never seen better in this art, or any other I've tried. His whole demeaner is what we should all strive toward in the art.

Brett Varnum: Brett is a BIG guy and while he used it to his advantage way back 2nd and 3rd BB, he has mellowed a bit and it doesn't hurt quite so often training with him now, but does hurt worse. :) He has always been a good practitioner and the strides he has made in the last 8 or 10 years or so is amazing. His level of skill with just about any type weapon he lays his hands on is fantastic. And Brett can make a rope a very powerful weapon.

Hanha Patterson: Hanha is another quiet individual who is highly skilled, and he tends to lean toward the connection between the mind/spirit and body. He has sense went back to the Bujinkan, and it is a big loss to the art, but he had to follow his roots and I don't begrudge him that choice.

I have had a few classes with Remiko Hayes way back in 96/97 and she moves like a ghost. Her movement is just beautiful to watch and you could spend a lifetime trying to imitate, and not get right.

Which leads to Tori Eldridge out in California. She is as close to Remiko's smoothness as I have seen. I only had the pleasure of 1 seminar with her, but she moved great. SKB is lucky to have her as an Instructor.

Eric Behlke: Also out in California is someone who has a fierce warrior spirit, but can break down a technique into little bits that are easier to understand, and is a very good instructor. I don't know what happened to Eric after he made the move out to California, but haven't heard a thing about him in years.

Christopher Dyer: He has the joints of gumby. He is a great person to train with because he can move through a range of motion that 99.9% of people cannot. He can stay on his feet and help correct a problem with your body mechanics that most others would miss because they are either falling already, or too twisted up to see where you are located.

These are the ones that stick out right now, but there are many, many more I've met over the years and they are great Instructors as well. There are many I didn't mention that are every bit as skilled as these (excluding John and Brett), but the post would be too long. :)

Loren Gordon, Hardee Merritt, Marc Jobin, Richard Stack, Michael Stinson... As many Instructors as there are in the art, there are as many "specilities" that they bring into a training situation.
 

WarGod

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ToShinDoKa - thank you for the immensely kind words. I am always glad to be part of the To-Shin Do family and to train with such good people as yourself.

I would like to add a couple of my instructors and friends to the list, if I might:

First off, An-Shu Hayes. Training with Mr. Hayes is an eye-opener, no matter how skilled or how accomplished you are. He perceives instantly just exactly what you need to grow and unhesitatingly helps you to find it.

A short story about An-Shu: About 10 years ago, I was fortunate enough to be Mr. Hayes' uke for a demonstration at an International Festival in Dayton. We were going to put on a fairly complex demo, on a stage in front of about 2500 people. Unfortunately, when it was time to start I COMPLETELY forgot what I was supposed to do. I couldn't even remember the attack I was supposed to start with! So here we are, on a big, elevated stage in front of 2500 people and I'm about to make us all look like idiots. What would you do? Well, I figured the heck with it - it is Mr. Hayes, after all. So I attacked. Like I wanted to kill him. I tried to hit him with everything I had. Punches, kicks, chokes, throws - you name it. And what did he do? As you might expect, he stomped the royal snot out of me. Slammed, bashed and broken - that was me. It finally came to an end when he decided it was time and locked me up so I just couldn't fight anymore. There was a moment of silence from the crowd - I think they sensed there was more going on than they knew - and then deafening applause.

Later, when one of the black belts asked me what the heck I was doing out there (since they knew what the demo was supposed to have been), An-Shu interjected and said, "William did exactly what I wanted him to do." Which, when you think about the different possible interpretations, may be just a little scary.

Later I'll post a story about my good friend and teacher Dr. Richard Shuntoshi Stack, an altogether impressive and humble warrior in his own right.

This is a great thread! I hope we hear some more about great To-Shin Do Instructors across the country, and the world!

William Ontoshi Johnson
 

bydand

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This is a great thread! I hope we hear some more about great To-Shin Do Instructors across the country, and the world!

William Ontoshi Johnson

I wholeheartedly agree!

-Scott


I'll third this idea.

And not just the big names either I would think. There are some AMAZING Instructors in our art who have a great amount of skill and knowledge to pass along who are 1st, 2nd, 3rd (any level actually) BB right now. Maybe even just a different way of looking at something will make it "click" for another person, even higher ranking. That is why I really like going to Discovery Seminar at Portland, ME. John knows this and always gives some of the lesser known Instructors who he knows, a chance to take the floor for 15 or 20 minutes and teach what they have been working on in their schools, just so everybody there can get a feel for what kind of diversity there is out there and what kind of skill level these people have, and we have at our disposal just for showing up and taking part in their classes.
 

WarGod

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bydand, you should come to MountainQuest next year. I think you would like it. I've heard MQ and Mr. Poliquin's Discovery Seminar compared favorably.

Hmmm... its hard to decide which Dr. Stack story to tell, so I'll leave that one for a while. Instead, I'd like to point out two of my favorite instructors, Kevin and Mary Casey. I've known Kevin and Mary for several years and I've come to respect them as fearless explorers, unfailingly willing to step up and challenge themselves in all areas of life. I strongly recommend anyone who is in the Boulder, CO area stop by and train with them.
 

bydand

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bydand, you should come to MountainQuest next year. I think you would like it. I've heard MQ and Mr. Poliquin's Discovery Seminar compared favorably.

I would love to. I heard the same. I think my brother stopped down your way a few months ago while he was on vacation visiting family. I know he was going to, so he could touch base with Hardee again, but am not sure if he had the time, (He proposed while down there, so training might have gotten a bit sidetracked.)
 

MrFunnieman

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I have to second the comment that Mrs. Hayes moves like a ghost. I have always admired her. John Poliquin was in Dayton for a ground fighting seminar probably five years or so ago and I was privileged enough to be selected by Mrs. Hayes to be her training partner. She could have trained with anyone in the room, fifty or so folks, and we were partners the whole time. It was awesome! Mr. Hayes could pull some surprising moves off too, but I have also seen him trip on the tatami mats. I guess it's hard to always be on your A game.

I haven't been in Dayton for about five years, but I was impressed with Tom Maienza and Gary Bolton too. John Poliquin was another favorite of mine to watch/ train with- when the opportunity arose.
 
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