All Wado Karate Forum

We will have to wait then as this weekend is scorchio BBQ weather!

blackcat wrote:

He also wrote an article in Wado World magazine about his time in England.

Ben

I had forgotten that article and you're right Ben. It was the 1961 collegiate championship when he won the individuals. He also talks of the concrete low ceiling in the15 foot square Nichi Dai dojo being a good place to develop fighting spirit. Phil also trained in that dojo for about 18 months when he lived in Japan, he came back a changed man also.
I used to have a Super 8 film of training in that same dojo which a student of mine took. She was a music teacher who trained there one summer - helluva fighter too.

oneya.

Here's a couple of (not very clear) pictures of the old Nichi Dai dojo. Taken when Phil was there about 1969, I think.

I went there once too but only for a cup of tea before going out to dinner with the Tanabe brothers. The low ceiling made it very oppresive, it was a scary place.

Thank you for putting those photos on.

They really bring out the sense of an industrial and pressurised environment down there.

Nice warm dojo though Rob ... Fujii sensei practiced in this dojo for four hours everyday -that's 2pm until 6pm - from 1959 until 1965 when he went to Holland..Another reason his spirit and jiyu kumite was exceptional..

oneya

Hi,
I spoke with Shiomitsu Sensei whilst in Tokyo a couple of years ago, during a break whilst training at Meikai University. We had trained the previous day at the Nichi Dai University and it had been in a large modern sports hall.
I asked him if that was the same hall that he had trained in during the early 1960's and he said no and laughed.
He recalled the dojo being downstairs, or below ground level, baking hot and distinctly smelling of blood and sweat.
He said it was known as the "pit of hell"
Corin
http://www.surreykarate.co.uk

That's great, thanks for all the responses, i look forward to reading the articles.

So going off on a tangent from this intial thread (sorry wadoka). Does that mean we need harsh environment to be become (in my case) karateka. I know times have changed but from my research the difference between a 1960's Dojo and a 2011 Dojo in the UK is chalk and cheese..


PS: My spelling is very poor (I'm better at maths) can't we add a "Spell Check" to the menu!!!

I told you, add a grammer tab to the menu too!!..... I missesd out the better!!

That's great, thanks for all the responses, i look forward to reading the articles.

So going off on a tangent from this intial thread (sorry wadoka). Does that mean we need harsh environment to be become (in my case) BETTER karateka. I know times have changed but from my research the difference between a 1960's Dojo and a 2011 Dojo in the UK is chalk and cheese..


PS: My spelling is very poor (I'm better at maths) can't we add a "Spell Check" to the menu!!!

jacob wrote:I told you, add a grammer tab to the menu too!!..... I missesd out the better!!

That's great, thanks for all the responses, i look forward to reading the articles.

So going off on a tangent from this intial thread (sorry wadoka). Does that mean we need harsh environment to be become (in my case) BETTER karateka. I know times have changed but from my research the difference between a 1960's Dojo and a 2011 Dojo in the UK is chalk and cheese..


PS: My spelling is very poor (I'm better at maths) can't we add a "Spell Check" to the menu!!!

I think it ultimately comes down to the sensei. I guess qualities of the oldschool instruction is the overcoming of fear, perseverance etc etc. Perhaps nowadays different methods are used, but it is not impossible to become a strong person. Dojo that including more talk and fun then keiko and renshu are to avoid I guess ?

AJ

WadoAJ wrote:


I think it ultimately comes down to the sensei. I guess qualities of the olds chool instruction is the overcoming of fear, perseverance etc etc. Perhaps nowadays different methods are used, but it is not impossible to become a strong person. Dojo that including more talk and fun then keiko and renshu are to avoid I guess ?

AJ

No I don’t believe so AJ. There is no doubt in my mind that a good instructor is a vital part of the equation but it is down to the individual’s spirit, motive and tenacity. The invincible black belted hero has largely been a piece of confection manufactured by today’s media and today’s society, mostly without having a clue about the discipline and tenacity and durability required to get to the starting point of a kuro obi. These are the qualities necessary for the individual to have for his journey. If he/she hasn’t got these qualities in abundance then the sensei has nothing to work with.

oneya