To get power in your techniques, whether it’s punching, striking, blocking, kicking or throwing, you need certain common components. But remember, all these different facets of applying power must come together in a fraction of a second, so you have to train yourself thoroughly in how to make these things work separately and as a…
Years ago, at a drinking party in Japan, I finally worked up enough nerve to pose a question that I was afraid would sound stupid. But it was something that had bugged me for a long time. Why do we have the separate basic exercises Kihon Dosa 1 and Kihon Dosa 2? These are the…
I believe the greatest martial arts movie ever made is Groundhog Day (1993), starring Bill Murray and Andie MacDowell. In it, full-of-himself Pittsburgh TV weatherman Phil Connors (Murray) is sent with a producer Rita (MacDowell) and cameraman Larry to Punxsutawney, Penn., to cover its Groundhog Day festivities, on February 2. Phil talks the talk, but doesn’t walk…
In Japan, Shihohai (worship in four directions) is the first ceremony conducted in the Imperial Court at the beginning of each New Year. It is said to have its origins in yin and yang (two primal opposing but complementary principles) but there is no documentation available that clearly indicates this path. However as yin and…
Last December, Roland Figgs-Renshi, the head of Ryusei Karate-Do U.S.A., and his student, Dusty Stalcup, travelled to Japan to participate in the 18th Ryusei-Hai Tournament and Instructors Clinic in Katsukabe, Saitama in Japan. At the tournament, Figgs-Renshi provided his able officiating expertise, honed by his years as a successful competitor. For his part, Dusty was…
Modern karate, I believe, has strayed from the correct path, with many instructors separating the practice of kata and kumite. They think the two are not the same thing. I disagree with this point of view. When I started karate, in 1981, I enjoyed both kata and kumite, but we trained in them separately. It…
In order to improve your overall technique, you need to introduce the concept of “sinking” into your training. You must feel as if you are dropping into the ground, as well as adopting a dead-weight feeling in your striking limbs and a dropping/sinking feeling while throwing. With the combination of these concepts added to your…
Ryusei Karate-Do Canada would like to welcome two new members. Rick Going (left) and Kambiz Miranbigi (right) are long-time Chito-Ryu members who have now establshed the Ottawa Ryusei Karate dojo. Rick GoingRick is a third-degree black belt and has been a member of the Ottawa Chito Kai dojo, under Harvey Brown-Sensei, for 28 years. A former…
Most of us cast ourselves as heroes in our life stories. To achieve this exalted status usually requires us to ignore some inconvenient truths and put a spin on others. I usually present my decision to test for my 6th degree black belt in Japan like this: Sakamoto-Sensei had just finished an embukai (demonstration) where…
Here is a copy of an essay I wrote on the technical theory of Ryusei karate. I haven’t marked this up for the Web, since I have included parts of it in other Ryushu articles (such as Hard to be Soft). Click here to see a PDF of The Chinese Connection. —Peter GiffenBarrie Ryusei Karate
In June, 2006, I traveled to Kasukabe and Tsukuba City, in Japan, to join the Ryusei Embukai, attend a clinic by Sakamoto-Sensei and train with Okashita-Sensei afterwards. I was accompanied by two of my senior students, Warren Tresidder and David Waterman. On June 24, we were invited to witness a demonstration of technique by Sakamoto-Sensei,…
We would like to greet and wish all the best for 2007 to Ryusei karateka in Japan, the United States and Australia. In Canada, over the next year, we intend to pursue our course of technical development that includes a series of special clinics and production of a technical manual. We hold three official clinics…