Visit to Hedge Dojo by Master Ryuji Hayashi

We were honoured to welcome and host Master Ryuji Hayashi and Hiroki Tokaida on Monday 29th October 2007. I met them shortly after lunch and took them to the New Forest to show them around. The places we visited included Beaulieu and Rhinefield House. They particularly liked the way the ponies, cattle etc were free to roam within the forest and they loved the very old buildings/villages that are thankfully preserved within the New Forest. Needless to say they also loved Rhinefield House and its gardens which were stunning as the trees were vibrant with their autumn colours and afternoon sun. Both men were a pleasure to host and thoroughly enjoyed their time in the forest.

The evenings training session was excellent. Whilst it was not what I had envisaged, I had expected Master Hayashi to take the session just like any other session he would teach in Okinawa, which didn't happen, but I actually thought it was even more useful than I had hoped. When talking to him afterwards it became apparent that he thought that we were going to run the session and he would guide and advise as we went along. In the end it worked out a bit of the both.

After the training had finished I took both men to a very quaint old pub for a drink and a chat. This proved to be extremely useful as it allowed time for him to elaborate on what he had said during the training and to discuss other points that he wanted to pass on to us.

Master Hayashi wanted to pass on the following important points:

Uechi-Ryu is a style that is characterised by strong, effective, yet simple techniques rather than the flashy techniques that are so often seen, especially in competition karate. Instead of trying to learn other techniques, Master Hayashi stressed the need to practice the Uechi-Ryu techniques, both blocking and attacking, until you are fast, strong, and very effective with them.

When practicing Hojundo it is important to ensure that the techniques are practiced fast, strong, and with as much realism as possible. Do not treat Hojundo as an endurance exercise, it is all about developing good, effective techniques.

At all times ensure your feet, legs and hips are strong through a good Sanchin stance; it is not enough to have good upper body strength. Your lower body is your fighting platform so make sure it is strong and secure.

Develop your Sanchin stare/glare. When performing Kata do not let your eyes wander about the dojo, keep totally focussed and think only about performing the Kata correctly. When practicing with a partner practice your stare/glare on each other at all times. If practicing alone always imagine you are fighting an opponent and stare/glare into the opponents eyes.

Keep the height of kicks down, and keep them fast and strong. High kicks are easier to block so kicks should be kept to no higher than stomach height.

Different Okinawan Masters place different emphasis on speed, power, etc so there will inevitably be differences in the way some dojos perform Kata, even on Okinawa. This does not mean that one Master is right or another is wrong, it is simply the Master's way of performing a technique. Techniques should however be correct.

Whenever possible block on the outside of the opponent. It is very important to practice moving out of the way of an attack, thus putting yourself in a favourable position to block/counter-attack - taisabaki.

Master Hayashi said that the UK variation of Kanshiwa Bunkai that is practised by the non Hedge End dojos, was not the same as they practiced on Okinawa. However, he added that the exercise was still a good addition to training.

When body conditioning the stomach muscles with Sokuto geris it is very important to practice it facing each other square on and with good control. It is dangerous to kick Sokuto geri to this area of your body, especially from any other angle, and serious injuries may occur.

Master Hayashi commended everyone attending for the real effort that they were making to learn such a hard style of karate. He recognised that in these days of commercial clubs promising quick results and easy grading success it is too easy to give up serious training and take the easy option. He added that even in Okinawa serious karate clubs were finding it difficult to attract and retain students. He wanted to remind everyone that a Uechi-Ryu student (all of us regardless of grade) should be proud of his/her achievement because it is a real achievement and something to be rightly proud of.

Left Pic - Sensei Derek Charlton (Bromley), and Right Pic Sensei Kuda Adams (London) with Master Hayashi and Hiroki Tokaida

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All Styles Open Training Session, Paris, November 2006

Nigel Coole went to Paris to take part in a 3 hour training session held by Master Takayasu. The seminar was open to students of all styles and martial arts. Attendees included Uechi-Ryu, Goju-Ryu, Shotokan, and two different styles of Kung Fu. As with every session run by Master Takayasu, it was fast moving, realistic, and relevant to real life situations. The photograph below was taken after the session.

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As per the last four years the Uechi-Ryu Kenyukai Europe Summer camp, led by Master Takemi Takayasu 8th Dan, was held at Temple-sur-Lot in France. Please click on the image below to view a selection of photographs from this years camp.

Click on the image above to view photographs from the Uechi-Ryu Kenyukai Europe Summer Camp 2006