Welcome to South Austin Aikido

On Sunday, May 3rd we had two kyu tests with Matt Czosnek testing for Yonkyu and Brian Canham testing for Nikyu.

Matt Czosnek went first and did a great job executing all required techniques and most of the surprise techniques with ease. Matt has really improved in terms of his connection and focused movement. His randori showed a great use of the mat space as he kept everyone spaced out during the randori. Way to Go Matt on a great test!!

Brian Canham went next and even though he was worried about his conditioning, he finished the test looking for more. Brian did an awesome job moving very well through the test with great control. His kumi tachi showed tremendous improvement, allowing his body to actually cause the movement of the bokken instead of relying on his arms. It was the best he has ever looked with a weapon in his hands. Way to go Brian!!

Both kyu tests exceeded my expectations for each of the test candidates, which shows that consistent practice and persistence are all part of the equation for learning. Congratulations to both Matt and Brian on a job well done.

Following the kyu tests we all went to Freebirds for a celebration dinner. The food was good and the company even better. Thanks to everyone for supporting these kyu tests and contributing to a special testing day

Pictures coming soon..

Two weeks ago Todd and Tommy Kammerer, Darrell White, Charles Pummill and I travelled to Fremont California to attend a seminar with Tres Hofmeister Sensei at Aiki-Zenshin Dojo. The seminar was well attended and was a great weekend of Aikido training.

Tres Sensei always has a unique style of teaching that reaches all levels of practitioners at the same time. This weekend proved to be no different. The entire weekend focused on two principles. First was the need for uke to provide extended energy to maintain the connection to nage. Then secondly for nage to absorb the energy by reorganizing his/her body structure to maintain balance. This was accomplished by various exercised that were a lot of fun to play with while at the same time teaching our bodies to move properly. The ukemi focused on uke being able to push off of nage at appropriate times. We moved into the practice of ikkyo from various attacks utilizing these principles and discovered some interesting things about how our bodies move and react to uke’s energy.

On Saturday we attended a pot luck with many of the Aikidoka from the seminar. The food was great and the time visiting with our friends from California made for an enjoyable evening.

Thanks to Sunny Skys Sensei for putting on such an awesome event. It was a great learning experience with Tres Sensei and we are all really glad we made the trip.

We will have open mat for kyu test preparation and kyu testing this weekend (see schedule below).

Saturday, May 2nd:  Open Mat 10:00AM to 11:30AM: We will have open mat time available for reviewing the upcoming kyu tests as well as general open mat time. All are welcome to participate in this 90 minute training session.

Please note that we share the parking lot with several businesses that operate on Saturday morning so our members/guests will need to park in the Broken Spoke's parking lot (next door to our dojo) for the Saturday morning class.

Sunday, May 3rd:  Kyu Testing 2:15PM to 3:15PM: We will have kyu testing during the second class. We plan on going out for dinner immediately following and all are welcome to join.

On Sunday Stephen Hughes rolled 90 times to celebrate his 18th birthday.  Stephen did a wonderful job rolling for the many energetic aikidoka who helped with the special birthday rolls.  Great Job and Happy Birthday Stephen!

We had three kyu tests on Sunday including Peter Feighner, David Huffaker and Gilbert Hughes.  All of the test were well done.

Peter got to go first and being as it was his first test (Rokyu) he may have been a little nervous, but it didn’t show and he did just fine.  Peter handled all of the required techniques and showed he has gained a good understanding of the techniques and names in just a few short months.  His randori showed a lot of good mat usage and he moved very well.  Way to go Peter!!

David tested next for Yonkyu.  Right away you could see he has made a quantum leap as he was well connected to uke from his center.  He moved in a very controlled and unrushed manner that was a joy to watch.  David easily handled all of the required techniques and plenty of extra ones that he just moved through like he has known them all of his life.  David’s randori was also quite nice in that he did not get hurried or rushed, while maintaining the same level control for the entire exercise.  Way to go David! All of the consistent practice is showing!!

Finally, Gilbert tested for Sankyu.  Gilbert did an outstanding job, allowing his center to lead each movement.  He moved quickly, but with purpose on each technique.  He performed one nikyo ura movement, that was simply spectacular.  It must have caught him by surprise as well because he got a little lost following thinking “WOW that was awesome”.  Well, it was awesome as was the entire test.  Way to go Gilbert on a job well done!!

Congratulations to all of the kyu test candidates on three really great tests.  Thanks to everyone for supporting the testing and the ukemi.  Thanks to all of our senior students as well for helping the candidates prepare for their kyu tests.

Following the tests we all went to Freebirds for some pretty large burritos.  It was good food and great fun.  It is rumored that Stephen Hughes ate a whole super huge burrito by himself.  I think the burrito itself weighed about 8 pounds.  Both of his legs were full following that meal.  I got full just thinking about all of that burrito for one person.

Pictures coming soon…

The dojo will be open on Easter Sunday for all who are in town and wish to train this holiday weekend.

Whether you are traveling to spend time with family or staying in town for various activities, we at South Austin Aikido wish you and your family a safe and joyful Easter weekend!