Posted by: Victor Smith
Yesterday in Chiocopee - 10/29/06 06:16 AM
Yesterday I had the chance to meet John Kerker presenting a seminar on the Isshinryu system in Chicopee Mass.
John is the senior student of the late Sherman Harrill, who shared so much about the use of Isshinryu kata with me years ago. I had never met John and wanted to do so to honnor his teacher, but having done so would wish to study with him further becaus of his own abilites and knowledge.
Unreal doesn't begin to describe it. I don't know for sure, but he may have been striking harder than his teacher did. I spent the day watching arms and bodies drop like rocks from his way of using Isshinryu kata. Nothing but the kata technique.
With so many unbelieving kata's value, it's most pleasant to see someone who personifies what karate really is.
He just used the basics to enter any sort of attack, used kata technique to strike everywhere and showed the results, showed how locks work from those entries, and showed how Isshinryu breaks up the same locks when you're on the receiving end.
And he was striking as if you were hitting a tree with a sledgehammer. An abity he forged on the makiwara and Sanchin.
BTW, I had offered a general invitation to any on this list so inclined, to experience this themselves.
I had a great time, I met a new friend and saw him walking in his instructors footsteps.
Posted by: oldman
Re: Yesterday in Chiocopee - 10/29/06 01:02 PM
Victor,
That sounds like a remarkable day. I would have loved to attend. I love to see people do what they do well.
p.s.
As it turns out he may be only a few hours from me. It could make for a nice side trip one day.
Posted by: Shonuff
Re: Yesterday in Chiocopee - 10/29/06 08:59 PM
Victor, could you tell us how your friends use of the kata differs to your own?
Posted by: Victor Smith
Re: Yesterday in Chiocopee - 10/29/06 10:20 PM
Sho,
The simplest answer is where I've primarily taught youth and face it older folks, he's worked extensively with his instructor, the late Sherman Harrill, for 17 years, in an extremely heavy impact environment. His instructor, btw, did not teach everyone at that level, he taught people at the level they wished to trainn, but in Mr. Kerker's place, with heavy makiwara training for decades and unreal impact practice of technique, his ability to use a kata technique and nail someone is very interesting, especially watching the arms or bodies drop as a result.
We are what we train, and all levels of training even using the same material do not yield the same results.
BTW his focus is on striking a very specific point on the body, anyplace he can hit. With power and experience he presents an interesting lesson, even to hear it is painful to listen to.
But it would be incorrect to just suggest their training is power oriented, or even striking oriented. It works the full potential that kata presents.
Posted by: Ed_Morris
Re: Yesterday in Chiocopee - 10/29/06 10:30 PM
sorry I missed it Victor...as nature would have it, my day plans went rained out so I probably could have gone after all. driving was something else, eh? (hope you didn't come home to a flooded basement again).
good to hear you enjoyed the seminar.
Posted by: kgcobra320
Re: Yesterday in Chiocopee - 11/09/06 09:10 AM
Victor,
Is he from Chiocopee or was it just for a seminar?
KG
Posted by: Victor Smith
Re: Yesterday in Chiocopee - 11/09/06 09:25 AM
No he's from Carson City, Iowa. The seminar was held by Mr. Humphrey in Chicopee Mass.
Posted by: kgcobra320
Re: Yesterday in Chiocopee - 11/09/06 09:45 AM
Oh, I was hoping that he was local as I would love to be
able to attend future seminars.
I currently train Shotokan but I'm looking for opportunities
to do some cross training in a more traditional MA. Mostly
to help in my analysis of the katas that I've been training
on for 10 years. I'm trying to extract the practical self
defense techniques burried within....
Do you know anyone in the Mass/CT area that could help me
out??
Respectfully
KG
Posted by: TeK9
Re: Yesterday in Chiocopee - 11/09/06 12:23 PM
Victor was he actually applying the movements of kata into the application? Was it simplistic movement? How does the technique or approach differ from jujutsu?
I am not an advocate of kata mainly because of the lack of knowledge I see being presented out their in okinawan karate and taekwondo and because even those that claim to know the true value of kata really don't konw anymore than I do, and because of that reason I doubt their knowledge in the matter.
However, I would give anything if I could see real kata applications in action. I mean in a way that I can clearly see hey this approach would be much more beneficial than say blocking this way. I like many supplimented the self defense portion of my art with jujutsu and hapkido. I've recently well..just yesturday I got a new book called karate kata and application volume 3 by: Vince Morris and Aiden Trimble
This is the very first book which shows traditional okniawan katas and then breaks them down into applications. However, looking at the bunkai, it is not as impressive or as simplistic as say jujutsu techniques. Perhaps it is just my own bias though.
I've also recently gotten a hold f Jack Hogans seminar on Ryukyu kempo karate he uses the Dillman method of pressure poins along with the small circle concepts. This man claims that small circle jujutsu the art of Pressor Wally Jay already employs pressure points and strkes of bunkai and tuite which is found in ryukyu kempo karate.
Posted by: Victor Smith
Re: Yesterday in Chiocopee - 11/10/06 08:49 AM
TeK9,
Mr. Kerker was actually using the kata for his applications, but the kata sections can be defined in infinite ways, as pieces of what you think of techniques, to the standard way of looking at the techniques to groups of techniques.
Technique is of course technique, the system of study at some point is less relevant (except in the way they gather and discharge energy for the technique useage).
The biggest key is as the study progresses the power behind the attacks becomes more serious and the power of the counter attack likewise keeps stepping up. Not to the point your partner is truly injured, but to the point you're having to deal with a truly focused attack, and you have to respond and release serious energy into the attacker (as in striking or kicking or locking or projecting).
All of which could be accompanied with makiwara study, etc.
His capabilities came from the 40+ years of work his instructor did into Isshinryu's potential, and 15 years of hard contact training to impart his skills.
The problem with most books and clinics is they gloss over the real path, the long time requird to build skills. A clinic too often has too many individuals that require softer training and slower study, so only a glimpse of what potential exists can be shown. And even if the instructor has skilll, and demonstrates it against any attack, eveyone leaves the clinic with almost nothing, becasue the key ingredient is you have to spend years of hard training with that instructor to get it.
Of course you can do it on your own, just as Mr. Harrill did, spending year after year, working on your students (and equally giving them full chance to work on you) and work it out yourself.
Or you could move to Carson City, Iowa, approach Mr. Kerker and if he agrees to take you on as a student, you can get it quicker than 40 years, but it doesn't happen overnight either.
The methods you mention, from what I've seen, do nothing for me. And there isn't just one layer to this training, or one right answer for everyone.
Just choices based on working very hard at whatever level you pursue.