Unusual places you've trained at

[Aikidaniel]

On Monday my sensei took us all to the beach where we did a bit of bokken and jo work. It was a lil bit embarrassing at first (a small crowd gathered while we were practicing our Jo kata) but eventually they started to fade into the background and after about 15 minutes it felt like they weren’t there. I’m telling you guys, this was definitely a positive experience for me … all that fresh air and beach sand made for some interesting moments (like getting a mouthful of beach sand after being kaiten nage’d).

Have you guys ever trained at any interesting places other than your/a dojo?

Cheers Daniel

[Mekugi]

Informal-after-official-keiko-drunken-lemmeshowyouwhatImean-training at the Rock in Santa Cruz....
All I can say is :
"Don't fight about talk club"

-R

[StanLee]

When my sensei was training with Chiba sensei (or was it Kanetsuka sensei), he did some practice in the swimming pool!

[bruceb]

Part of training is not to be self conscious, but to have awareness where ever you are.

If being in open spaces where people can watch you and you can watch people watch you makes you self conscious, maybe the thinking should change to awareness of who is around you and what is around you.

I don't think it should be unusual to train in any open space, but to get your body and mind to work together, out side of the dojo, it might take a few different places to realize that focus is not just about concentrating on what you are doing, but relaxed enough to be comfortable and aware of your surroundings or potential dangers from those surroundings also.

I still think th hardest thing to do is to perform for a crowd while narrowing the mind to block them out, but if one relaxes .... then the crowd or the surroundings are as natural as being in the dojo or a room by yourself while maintaining awareness of the surroundings.

Sometimes it is good to change places of practice so the mindset of the surroundings don't deterimine your practice or your abilities.....

[Ron Tisdale]

At the beach, in the mountains (even on a ski slope). In someone's Huge back yard.

RT

[elder999]

On a barge in the Hudson, with rats as big as cocker spaniels!

[Aikidaniel]

Originally posted by bruceb
Sometimes it is good to change places of practice so the mindset of the surroundings don't deterimine your practice or your abilities.....

Oh yeah for sure Bruce ... you really have to take all the finer points of your training environment into consideration. Would you guys consider your dojo to be the perfect/a near perfect environment to train in?

Now I know that safety is of utmost importance in a dojo, but think about it - smooth, soft mats; plenty of room to perform a technique or to take a breakfall; friendly atmosphere. If I had to compare this to the beach environment I was training in - course, uneven surface that makes you really concentrate on your footwork; sand that can be as tough as cement when taking a breakfall; people staring at you like you making a sequel to a Highlander movie ... ARRGHHH - it's like complete opposites. As a newby, all these little points are definitely something to think about.

But of course most of you guys having been training for yonks so you probably can adapt a technique to fit the environment you in whether it be up a slope or in a fishing barge

[Larry Feldman]

Weapons work in the woods. A clearing in a National Forest.

[bruceb]

I practically grew up on the beach.

I don't understand what the problem is?

It certainly is better than trying to train in a parking lot with bits of stone here and there, or train in a muddy field where the mud just keeps sticking to your shoes as it gets thicker and thicker, or even trying to train in a gravel pit with bits of sharp rocks of various sizes and shapes about ....

The beach?

What type of beach?

Ever try the sugar sand that is so soft is can bog down any four wheel drive, except maybe a bigfoot? You can not become entrenched with the idea of ideal training conditions or conditions less than ideal.

The conditions are what they are .... deal with it .... adapt and change as needed to deal with it. It is all part of training ....

[pcnorton]

They are the problem. I don't like to grandstand in my hakama and gi for the public. Demonstrations are one thing. Class another. You can try and focus but inevitably you here the hai---Yahhhh!! and other karate sounds from the crowds.

My dojo used to have a space in the mall and had to deal with the interuptions nightly.

I dont mind practice outside. USAF summer camp and a few seminars we did a weapons outside. It was fun, but it was also private.

Paul

[Mekugi]

Mizu no kokoro.

Originally posted by pcnorton
They are the problem. I don't like to grandstand in my hakama and gi for the public. Demonstrations are one thing. Class another. You can try and focus but inevitably you here the hai---Yahhhh!! and other karate sounds from the crowds.

My dojo used to have a space in the mall and had to deal with the interuptions nightly.

I dont mind practice outside. USAF summer camp and a few seminars we did a weapons outside. It was fun, but it was also private.

Paul

[pcnorton]

and water ripples when breath is blown upon it. You can try to remain still and calm but you are still effected.

Paul

[elder999]

It said "unusual places."

I've always thought, and been taught ever since I was a little kid(officially a long time ago, now)that we're supposed to train outside-in the forest(I live in the forest, so that's not unusual pr me, and never has been) on the beach(had classes on the beach) and in the park(ditto classes in the park). So, I have to kind of...(sigh) agree with Bruce.....

Now, that barge qualified for as unusual for a variety of reasons, the rats not being the least of them.It was uneven, moving with the waves, and while it was fairly solid, its deck was not completely trustworthy.....

Ron mentioned a ski slope-extremely uneven terrain makes for having to make some interesting adjustments, and an interesting exercise.We had a small padded mockup of stairs-sort of four up ands four down with a 4'X4' landing back in New York-this also made for an interesting exercise, but it was in the dojo, so it didn't really qualify as an unusual place.

[Ron Tisdale]

Hi Aarron,

The interesting thing was we were doing kumitachi with bokken, as we were going up and down the slope. Quite a kick, really...

Ron

[Jake McKee]

Training in different locales is an aspect of training that I feel not enough aikidoka get to enjoy. My favorite is beach training. The uneven terrain makes movement much more challenging. Training in the sand is much different than sliding on nice smooth tatami or judo mats. Also beach training allows for good ukemi practice - just remember to keep your mouth and eyes shut when you take a fall!

Jake McKee
www.budovideos.com