Counter strikes.
The second example was use of a strike rub to counter a strike.
Attacker RFF Right Punch to your face -
Defense LFF Left punch to their face (either inside or outside of their strike).
When executing the counter, to avoid being hit, always rotate the left strike to 11 o’clock.
This rotation uses your striking arm as a rub across their incoming forearm, and in turn that becomes a deflection.
When your striking on the inside, your rotation (done towards the end of the strike, when your forearms cross theirs) their arm is deflected counter-clockwise away from you.
When your striking is on the outside, that rotation will move their arm to the right deflecting it away from your center as you strike into their face.
From this opening an entire range of counter strikes exist.
Third example comes from kata Wansu. Another example of a punch rub.
Attacker LFF Left Punch to your face.
You step forward with your left foot, punch over their left arm to their face using the 11 o’clock turn of the fist to deflect their strike to the left. As they do so your left open hand comes up to trap their punch against your chest.
Next your right front kick, strikes into the inner thigh of their right leg, and when it chambers, is set down behind their left foot.
As the right foot sets down, your left arm slides down under the attackers left arm, and then executes a rising block to lift their arm. At the same time you shift into a horse stance as your right forearm strikes into their spleen.
Then open your right hand and as your right foot slides back to cat stance, the right open back hand slices into the same area just struck as the hand is moving back to chamber.
Finally step out into horse stance, and as the foot sets down, use the ‘big throw’ movement as you turn left to down the attacker. This involves the left hand rolling over their forearm as the rising right hand rubs behind their triceps insertion/triceps. This rotates their arm counter-clockwise and easliy moves them down big time.
Principle - Harrill Sensei really utilized the same rub over the triceps insertion/triceps many times.
Mr. Kerker made reference that Harrill Sensei didn’t favor striking a specific point during defense. He did make great use of points during training and technique analysis. Instead he favored striking the circle.
Striking the circle refers to a big circle (oval) from the face to groin and the sides of the body. In Seiunchin the circle can also extend to the side ovals as the rising open hand blocks become low blocks.
Mr. Kerker demonstrated examples of use of these circles for Seiunchin, but too many techniques and not enough mind. Still they’re only right there in plain sight.
So the point is if using a partner called Joe, strike the point called Joe.
Principle - a variation on this was Mr. Kerker referenced using the eyes as the start of two descending lines, and those lines provide great opportunities to strike.
Principle - the closer a strike is to the torso on any limb, the more pain involved to the attacker.
Princple - all of the forearms and lower legs are the same length. It is the upper arm, or upper leg which varies in length. So when you use your technique use that against your attacker. Don’t fight their size, just execute your technique against their lower extremity.
The next technique used the uppercut rub as defense for strikes.
Attacker RFF Right Punch
LFF Left Uppercut, using the rolling forearm to rub across their incoming strike. This deflects the strike
.
Again - do this without power, not as a strike, just as a rub
Follow with normal targets of opportunity.
Reference was made to the use of a strike with the following elbow.
Taking a strike and following it with an elbow strike was a favorite technique of Shimabuku Sensei. It can be done on a horizontal plane, such as striking the solar plexus and following with a collapsing forearm strike, or it can be done on a vertical plane, striking up into a shoulder, and then following with a rising forearm strike into the same area. Alternately it can be done with a rising punch followed with a descending elbow strike, as to the collar bone or chest.
This can be layered into many technique sequences.
Use of the rising strike rub in Seiunchin kata.
Attacker RFF Right Punch
Step outside their strike, the right open hand parrying their strike and flowing over their forearm, the left rising strike as a rub to turn them over clockwise.
Follow with a quick left backfist into their face.
Then drop your weight with a descending backfist into their triceps, they drop straight down big time into a deep horse stance.
Follow with a quick left backfist into their face.
Then a left low strike into their lower side abdomen.
The left arm then rolls under, up and over their arm, the motion rotating them clockwise.
Step away with the left foot, dragging them forward, hopefully making their back leg to step across to counter, as you step back begin your low block by rising up and striking the tip of their shoulder, then compete a descending 1) elbow strike to their arm 2) low strike to their kidney, 3) low strike to their neck.
The use of the lower body
Mr. Kerker did show how some de-settling strikes could be done with lower leg strikes in the striking series. He doesn’t do this during the clinic as its too painful to work in that circumstance. He did a lot of hand strikes into the legs (inner and outer) during his technique follow-ups.
The use of the open hand parry rub opening Naifanchi kata.
Attacker RFF Right Punch
Step LFF and use the open hand Naifanchi opening as an exterior line rub to deflect their arm.
Roll the left arm clockwise across their arm and complete it to lock their arm between your body to roll them over clockwise.
Now use the following elbow strike in various ways, among them.
Rising strike into their shoulder followed with arising forearm strike to the same spot.
Strike into their shoulder followed by a collapse forearm strike to the same point.
Complete with the right foot stepping out to the side, and the left arm pulling them over as you finish with a right descending strike into target opportunity.
The use of the side block rub and straight punch.
Attacker RFF Right Punch
The use of the crossing hands before the block
Step LFF and use the left crossing hand as a rub to deflect their strike to the right, as you right hand strikes into their lower abdomen.
The use of the side block and finishing options
The left arm rolls under, up and over their arm rotating them clockwise.
The left arm then chambers, but uses a slicing little knuckle strike to the kidneys as it chambers. Simultaneously the right hand strikes their lower ribs, etc…. and all targets of opportunity.
The use of the side block and straight punch against the opposite attack
Attacker LFF Left Punch
Left strike into their biceps
Attacker Right Punch
Left strike into their forearm
Right strike into target of opportunity
Attacker LFF Left Punch
Left strike into their solar plexus, followed by the left strike into their biceps
Attacker Right Punch
Left strike into their forearm
Right strike into target of opportunity
Attacker LFF Left Punch
Left strike into their solar plexus, followed by the left strike into their biceps
Attacker Right Punch
Left strike into their lower right abdomen
That strike buckles them precluding their punch going anywhere.
12. The use of Wansu Kata step and double punch
Mr. Kerker explained how Shimabuku Sensei was always experimenting with the kata. At one time the step out double punch was done with three hook punches (which give great application results). He wasn’t taught to do the kata this way, but understands it was a variation once upon a time.
He showed how stepping out while the opponent strikes makes them miss and doesn’t require a counter. [Which is one of the ‘ghost techniques’ I teach during the annual Halloween time Ghost Technique class with my students. From Ernest Rothrock’s Ghost Techniques, evasion techniques, using the turn as a weapon, in part.]
Use of the Stack (various)
Hammer fist strike to limbs coming from the stack
Punch to the leg coming from the stack
Use of the Low block rub
Attacker RFF Right Punch
LFF using the rising left chamber as a rub across the attackers arm
Continue with the left low block to roll their arm out
Finish with a right strike to the target of opportunity.
Mr. Kerker showed various locks and how Mr. Harrill would roll the opponent through them with layers of techniques, such as the bent arm wrist lock, and how he could shift his hands into various points and fingers all with different responses.
After showing several of the locks and their layers of usage, he addressed how Harrill Sensei would counter them. For the opening example he would palm strike into the back of his bent wrist, making an elbow strike into the attacker to break the lock. Other locks he would use various strikes (empty and closed hand) to break them up
This is an interesting answer for a quick response. We normally focus on other counters by using our alignment theory to defeat the lock. Our examples work, but leave one open for ready counter, Harrill Sensei’s answers break the lock and counter at the same time. Interesting differences.
IMO, the use of the rub to counter attacks, uses a non-obtrusive opening so the attacker doesn’t feel automatically threatened by the rub, thus they don’t shift to automatic defensive technique. By just performing the rub technique (basic) from normal practice time, the attacker controls how much they are deflected by how quickly they attack. The faster the attack, the greater the deflection, the more they are exposed and open for counter attack.
A note on striking the limbs and body
Mr. Kerker explained how he was trained by Mr. Harrill. He made a clear point that Harrill Sensei trained people to the level they wanted to pursue. Such as he would expose them to the makiwara and how to use it, but if they choose not to work it did not make it a point in their studies.
Essentially he was struck over and over and over, and in turn struck Mr. Harrill back with as much force as he could muster. There were sessions that he could not use his arms at the conclusion.
I would suggest the combination of makiwara, sanchin and training sessions including contact (extreme) over his 17 years with Mr. Harrill, combine to develop the abilities Mr. Kerker demonstrates.
This is consistent with all of the great instructors I have trained with. Their senior students and successors all have underwent similarly grueling studies for years and years. Only this way can they experience the full study of technique and its effect. Working with such a student they can instantly tell you when your technique won’t work (or is working) because they’ve experienced it so intimately.
This training never works for every student, but I see it as the only right of passage for full transmission, not of what the senior knows, but of making the junior understand the process that formed the senior.
IMO, the study of karate is not more or less valuable from such training. There are many layers in the end.
On the other hand only such training will develop the individual to stand tallest in the seniors footsteps.
Alas, this is all my notes and memory recorded for the few hours I was able to spend with Kerker Sensei.
My Further Reflection on the clinic
Reviewing these notes I am seeing further context for what Mr. Kerker presented, when I compare it with some of my other studies.
In Aikido an attack is broken down first by how you enter the opening presented by an attack, and then the following technique of choice.
What I see from today’s presentation is just that, the most important part was how to enter an attack, using the ‘rubbing motion’ instead of a harder counter-attack.
After the attack is entered, almost any response is available. Mr. Kerker made point first, from the Kamae entry any technique from any kata will work.
Then the 2nd half of the technique studies were just looking at how techniques work once the opening is engaged. The effect of various, layers of strikes. The use of fractals of a technique for multiple striking, and so forth, perhaps such as how the locks shown could flow from the rubbing entries.
In this context, today’s presentation, the portion I experienced, is among the most intriguing studies of Isshinryu. Principle - It doesn’t matter what the opponent’s doing, you are just executing your opening and they are falling into the set up.
Boy this cross references many things and really helps place so much of what Harrill Sensei himself, shared.
I expect I’ll be busy for a while understanding this more fully
Note on taking notes:
When I attend a clinic, and am not video’ing it, to help focus my memory of the clinic and to move what happens from short term memory to long term memory, I use a number of different devices.
Creating clinic notes (or class notes) is a very important part of the study. It’s how you can remember what occurred and pull it back years later.
What I do is:
I try and find someone to work with who I can help instruct what is being studied. This helps me translate the experience into my own words.
If this person is successful, and I can place the ongoing techniques in similar context, it increases my understanding in the process.
Specifically today I had the fun to work with a young green belt. He was initially afraid of me because of my size, age, rank, etc. But once I was able to break that down, he became very successful neutralizing my attacks, and the harder I struck the more efficient he became. It both reinforces the values of the studies, and helps me place everything in context when I help him understand some of the why, and more importantly helped focus on the most important part, the basics of rubbing, not the multitude of striking.
I also take cryptic, almost unreadable notes, not as complete technique studies, but as mnemonic devices to highlight a few details that in turn make it much easier to recall what we did.
These devices work very well. They are similar to how I am able to learn a form (or at least a reasonable shell of a form) at a single clinic or study experience.
I always start learning how to step. If you get your feet in the right place the hands tend to follow more easily.
I find someone having a problem and help step them through it as I learn it. Engaging our learning at several layers, and learning how to verbalize what is being shown is very important.
Of course the last part of practice it a lot, and then try and get further study, encouragement and correction. Then in a decade or so you might have a piece of it <GRIN>.
A clinic with John Kerker
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