Consulting Swordsman
A few months ago I decided to take part in the Isle of Wight Challenge, a 106km walk done over the first weekend in May. This is totally unlike any other physical thing I have ever done, so I am approaching it with caution. (Props to Joanna Penn for suggesting it; I’ve joined her Creatives … Read more
Beginner you are not, hmmm? Beginners are the future of any martial art. And lucky too: the best learning environment is when you are the least knowledgeable person in the room. Anyone you train with can teach you something. It is more difficult to keep learning when you are surrounded by relative beginners, and this … Read more
The real thing is the only bullshit-free scenario in martial arts. If you’re an MMA fighter, that’s the ring on fight night. If you’re a soldier, that’s being in the presence of the enemy. And if you are a swordsman, that is someone trying to take your head off with a blade. But the real … Read more
I’m writing this blog post in Seattle, sitting at a table in my friend’s house, with a gorgeous view over Lake Washington. Tomorrow I’m teaching a two day seminar for Lonin, then staying on to work with the CLANG team for a couple of days. When I arrived yesterday there was a boxful of my … Read more
Plastic swords are for children. Disclaimer: this post should be read as a completely personal, utterly unscientific, non-practical, emotional, historical fundamentalist tirade against something I find offensive. On this matter I am unapologetically fanatical. You have been warned. About eight years ago, in 2004, I was appalled to find, at a WMA event in America, … Read more
Last Saturday I taught a singlestick seminar. Singlestick is an odd system for me because it’s the one area of swordsmanship where I am not tied hand and foot to a single source. Having been thoroughly pasted by Terry Brown and his students, I am under no illusions about my current competence with this weapon. … Read more
Entering the Fray with Vigour One of the benefits to running an intermediate level class first thing every Monday evening, is that I get to put the seniors under a bit of pressure, make them work outside their comfort zones, and see what cracks. If a classful of students have difficulty with the same thing, … Read more
Learning about safety in historical martial arts: the hard way. I have often remarked in class that I have broken bones in training so that my students don’t have to. In other words, the safety regulations we have were arrived at through my getting hurt and figuring out ways to avoid it happening again. One … Read more