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The Brooks Brighton 10K 2011

November 20, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Brighton 10k 2011

My third consecutive appearance at the Brooks Brighton 10k and once again it would be following a period of reduced training caused by minor strains. My yearly schedule seems to peak in late spring and summer and then gradually decreases until I finish my race diary in Brighton. This year I had organised a challenge for current and former work  colleagues who have either taken part in this race before or are themselves runners. To keep things interesting we based our mini-race on a first past the post system rather than looking to see who recorded the fastest chip time.

The early morning rise and drive down to Brighton did not go well for me as I made the rookie mistake of not checking that the car had enough petrol for the journey. I was due down by the start line early to check all our our team in and organise everyone into a group in the start area so we all started in a couple of lines. Instead I was busy motoring around the countryside as my satnav directed me to the nearest petrol garage while I kept my fingers crossed that I had enough fuel to make it. This added a good 30 minutes to my journey so ended up parking a lot further from the start than planned and I only just made it to the meeting point in time to herd everyone ready for the start.

We were soon off and I had to grin and watch my fellow competitors slowly moving ahead of me as I knew that I was well off in terms of fitness and race preparation. The Brighton 10k still retains the 3k out and back to the start / finish area so it gets quite cramped for space but I was prepared for this and just went with the flow of people until the path widened as we ran past the pier. Thankfully the organisers have improved the km markers over the years and there is plenty of help on the way to gauge distance. This year even saw bright sunshine and I was chuffed that I had gone for my summer running outfit and my sunglasses because I was soon very hot.

My lack of recent training contributed to not enjoying the run that much as I struggled with the pace and it’s always difficult when you know that there is no chance of matching you normal times (let along best times!). We all met up at the finish in time to hold our little award ceremony with a small trophy given to the winner. Unfortunately I know that I cannot run the 2012 Brooks Brighton 10k so won’t be there to try and take the title.

  • Category: Senior Men
  • Category Position: 515/ 656
  • Gender Position: 1125 / 1478
  • Gun Time: 57m08s
  • Chip Time: 54m37s
  • Chip Position: 1536 / 2680

 

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Moor Park 10K & Junior Fun Run

September 25, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Moor Park 10k & Junior Fun Run

The 2011 Moor Park 10k and Junior Fun Run was a late addition to my race calendar following the recommendation of a family friend and also had the dubious honour of being my first race following a lapse in my normal training. I always seem to have a period of minor injuries around August where my training suffers and this year was no exception. However, I was fit enough to enter and use the event as a normal training run while MiniMe was more than willing to take part in the Junior Fun Run. We arrived at the venue reasonably early and took some time to look around the small amount of stalls and also watch the start of the Under 12  2.6km race so MiniMe could then see the route that he would then have to run. He seemed a little shocked at first as he thought that his race would be 2.6km but he was much happier after we explained that his race was only one lap and 1.3km in distance.

After stressing to MiniMe that he needed to pace himself and not try to sprint the entire race, like he tried previously at the Crouch End Junior Fun Run, he was soon lined up on the start line. There was plenty of gentle pushing and shoving from the kids as they jostled for the front spaces and the line of kids kept moving forwards while the race marshals had to keep asking them to move back so that they were back on the actual start line. Finally the boys were off and running and we watched them circle around the playing field and eventually the front runners were crossing the finish line. MiniMe looked exhausted as he ran the final bend but he did manage a final sprint across the line to make sure that no-one overtook him and then managed to collapse onto the floor clutching his bottle of water after his medal had been draped around his neck. Thankfully his tiredness was soon solved by a quick visit to the cup cake stall and MiniMe was soon eyeing the big bouncy castle style slide.

Cup Cake Win

There was quite a gap until the start of the 10k so we amused ourselves by watching some of the morris dancing in-between MiniMe snacking on some more cupcakes and a hot dog. I believe that in previous years the 10k would be run in the morning followed by the junior races in the afternoon but this had been swapped, possibly to encourage more to watch and cheer the junior races. However, it did mean that we were hanging around until the start of the 10k so it was a little boring for MiniMe and Mrs danyul. If the weather had been warmer then we would have probably taken a picnic but it was a bit cloudy and overcast so we did not really have that option. If I did consider running this even again in 2012 then I would probably just enter the 10k and then arrive in the afternoon by myself rather than asking my family to wait around for several hours with little to do.

Finally the runners were bunching up near the start line but again there was a delay as the start time was put back by 10 minutes to allow for all the people still trying to drive into the parking area. There was plenty of parking space on a large field and it was well marshalled but it seemed like a lot of people all tried to arrive near to the start time and the weight of cars started to block up the entrance.

The 10k was soon under-way with the same lap of the playing field that MiniMe completed earlier for his race and as we circled back past the start line there were still latecomers sprinting to the start to begin their race. The course then headed out to the private estate at the far side of the school and it was interesting to run through such an affluent area and take a look at the large houses. The flat part of the race seemed to be over soon as we turned into the golf course and tackled two long and somewhat arduous climbs. I am not sure what all the golfers made of the runners stopping their play but was I was too focused on beating the first hill than to worry about interrupting their round. The first hill levelled out at the old manor house and I thought that would be the end of the hills but around the next bend there was another equally arduous climb that I was determined to make sure I ran up rather than resorting to walking. Thankfully the climb was soon over and there was a lovely downward section that allowed me to catch my breath again. The rest of the course continued through the private housing estate and then back to the school grounds for a final lap of the fields and then through the finish arch. One of the runners just behind me managed to lose the route through the final bend of cones and started to run through the spectator area until people started to shout and get him back to the finish line.

MiniMe Race Start

There was no chip timing for this event so my timing is based on my Garmin watch and the race timers.

u10 boys

MiniMe – 5 mins 49 seconds (23rd out of 105 finishers)

10k Results

danyul – 52 mins 8 seconds (235th out of 691 finishers)

Garmin time: 52 minutes 3 seconds

One of the regular runners was unable to race this year due to an injury so instead filmed this great video of the day:

 

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British 10K London Run

July 10, 2011 by Leave a Comment

British 10K London Run

The British 10K London Run is bit of a strange race in that it is a large scale, well advertised, and well attended event, but suffers from a poor approval rating from the community on the Runners World Forum. I was debating whether to enter this race, mainly because of the high entry fee, but equally I wanted to take part in a run through some of the major streets of London so decided to give this one a go. I paid for my entry although for the first time I did not go for an official timing chip since it was not included within the entry fee and I did not feel it was worth the extra charge given I could time myself with my watch.

I was wary of being stuck in a large crowd at the start and the prevailing advice on various running forums was to arrive early and endure some standing still waiting time to try and get as close to the front as possible. This event is well known for attracting a large number of first time runners or non-runners participating on behalf of various charities, which is an admirable thing, but with no staggered starts or starts based on predicated finish times it does mean that frustrated runners are trying to weave around frustrated walkers who are unhappy about being jostled. So I was on an early train from West Acton into London and I joined other keen runners heading to the same run as I noticed a lot of British 10K timing chips attached to laces and race numbers stuck to bags.

I quickly found my baggage drop area and went for a gentle jog around the nearby streets along with a toilet break. Again, the entrant magazine highlighted the high numbers of runners and the ratio of toilets provided so I wanted to get ready before any large queues formed. With a steady stream of people heading towards the start area I decided to carry on with my warm-up by jogging up to the start line. The waiting runners were initially being held at the top of St Jame’s Street where it meets Piccadilly so it was a case of trying to keep warm while being stuck in a crowd for a good 45 minutes before the marshals led the runners along Piccadilly to the start line at the top of the slope by the Piccadilly Arcade loop. I did notice that there was a fair number of runners warming up in Green Park who then slipped out into the moving start line to ensure that they were nearer the front (so if you did reach this blog entry to try and seek some advice on running this race then you could take the tip to avoid the crowded wait area and just perform your warm-up in Green Park alongside the road and then slide onto into the walking crowd as they are led towards the start line… although debating the ethics of this I shall leave to you).

Unfortunately we were kept waiting again following the move to the start line and eventually a marching band made its way along the opposite side where they then proceeded to play the national anthem before the race was allowed to start. I probably would have felt this was a nice touch for a race billed as the ‘British 10k’ but I would have much rather started the race on time than have to wait even further. Finally the elite runners were under-way and I snaked around and was running under the start arch and then along to Piccadilly Circus. At this point I appreciated just how many people were taking part in the race as thousands were still waiting to shuffle up until the start. It was still a little crowded as the route turned into Trafalgar Square but it was nice to have lots of cheering people on the paths encouraging all the runners. With the road widening as we turned into Embankment I was finally able to hit my stride and it was nice to see a water station because it was a hot day and I needed something to cool down a little. However, I did start to wonder whether the water station had enough helpers to hand out the bottles as I pictures the thousands of runners and walkers who I knew would be making their way down over the next 20-30 minutes.

British 10K London Run

The elite runners were soon passing us on the opposite side as we descended through the Blackfriars Underpass, where a lot of runners made use of the tunnel acoustics to shout out and make echoes, before we looped up and around back onto the Embankment but now on the opposite side. Thousands were now streaming along the route we have already passed through and my fears about the early water station were correct as runners were having to stop and force a way to grab their own water bottle through a crowd. I generally do not need to take on any liquids for a 10k but this was a hot day and there were a lot of non-runners who probably needed water to keep them going and, although there was plenty of water bottles, there just wasn’t enough people staffing the first station to keep up with the demand to hand them out and keep people running.

I made sure to enjoy the view as I passed opposite the London Eye and then lopped across Westminster Bridge and through to Parliament Square where I was able to give a quick wave to the protesters manning the centre section of the square. A final burst saw the finish line in site just past Downing Street and I was able to sprint through for a reasonable time given the heat and the amount of runners lining the course.

I enjoyed my run through a sunny central London and it was nice to run past so many famous landmarks but it’s not an event that I will enter again. The entry fee was staggeringly high and the organisers have raised this cost even further for 2012 in some a very tenuous attempt to associate the event with the Olympics just because they are going to be in the same city in the same year. The event literature has to be very careful to not impinge on the Olympic trademark but with ’2012′ plastered all over the t-shirts and adverts, the organisers are certainly trying their best to skirt the legal association. I would also avoid the race because it clearly needs to implement some sort of mechanism to either implement wave starts or at a minimum attempt to get starters into blocks based on their projected finish times. I read through the forums after the race and found plenty of runners unhappy about having to force their way through blockades of charity walkers stretched across the width of the road and equally complaints from charity walkers / runners upset about people jostling and barging past them.

Due to the high cost of entry I did not pay extra for a timing chip so can only provide my time based on my own Garmin watch, which is only going to be a few seconds out anyway.

  •  Garmin time: 49 minutes 31 seconds

 

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Crouch End 10K and Children’s Fun Run 2011

May 22, 2011 by 1 Comment

2011 Crouch End 10K

We were sent details of this event and race by a friend and his family so I signed up for the 10k, MiniMe for his age group 1 mile run, and Mrs danyul to look after MiniMe while I was running and also to generally walk around the festival. MiniMe was looking forward to his race in the weeks leading up to the event and he came with me to the park several times to train with me.

We arrived nice and early to make sure that we secured a parking space near the park since we knew that there was no on-site parking. There were plenty of runners making their way into the park so, after getting changed into my kit, we followed the crowds through the park onto the staging area where most of the stalls were setting up and getting ready for the day. After finding our friends it was soon time for the aerobic warm-up that was let by a very energetic lady standing on the stage area and MiniMe joined in with me near the front with great enthusiasm.

I didn’t throw myself into the warm-up too much but I enjoyed it and made sure that I was ready for the race. All the 10K runners were called over to te start area, where I found myself quite far back once again, and the race was soon underway. The start wound through the park and was quite narrow so I had to slow myself down as there was little chance to pass through the crowds but as the route left the park onto the open roads there was plenty of room to hit my preferred pace due to the roads being closed off to traffic.

With runners now streaming down roads, along some footpaths, and on some pavements where traffic was still allowed to run, the field soon spread out and I was on my just below 5 mins per kilometre pace. The route included a second loop of part of the course and on the first pass I skipped taking a drink and unfortunately on the second pass of the drink station the person holding out the sponge I was aiming for moved slightly am I missed out. The lady was very apologetic as I passed but thankfully it was not a hot day and I did not really need a drink. The final stretch led downhill back to the park and I picked up for a near sprint through the park and onto the finish line where MiniMe and Mrs danyul were ready to cheer me through with a preliminary gun time on the overhead counter of 50 minutes 6 seconds.

I made my way through the finish area to grab a bottle of water but steering clear of the free donut stall and had a look around the festival area while waiting for the kids races to start. Eventually it was time for the kids races to start so we stood near the start line to watch the start and finish of the younger kids so that MiniMe could see how things worked. We were quickly surprised to see just how competitive some of these races were and as the age groups got higher, the start area became more and more crowded with quite a few kids falling due to clipped heels as the mass of runners increased.

MiniMe was due up next for his category and given some of the mayhem and tears from a few kids accidentally tripping in previous races, we urged him to get as close to the start as possible just to make sure he didn’t suffer a fall. This turned out to be a good idea as there were close to two hundred kits and they all sprinted off at the start and we did see a couple of kids trip and fall due to some accidental heel clipping. We stayed near the start / finish line and waited for MiniMe to come sprinting around the final bend so that we could cheer him on. MiniMe was soon sprinting down the home straight and we made sure to give him as much encouragement as possible. All the finishers were presented with a medal, which MiniMe was very proud of, and all had the option to take a free donut as provided by a local bakery (see above picture for MiniMe enjoying his finishing food).

We all had a great day out and wish to pass on our thanks to all involved in the organisation of the Crouch End 10k and Children’s Fun Run 2011. We will definitely be back in 2012, good health permitting, and will be recommending the event to our friends.

 
MiniMe results:

  • Gun position: 64th out of 177
  • Gun time: 6 minutes 49 seconds
  • Class: Under 10 boys
  • Class position: 64th out of 177
  • Chip time: 6 minutes 49 seconds
  • Chip position: 64th out of 177

danyul results:

  • Gun position: 277th out of 1018
  • Gun time: 50 minutes 6 seconds
  • Class: male
  • Class position: 107th out of 216
  • Chip time: 49 minutes 28 seconds
  • Chip position: 268th out of 1018
  • Garmin time: 49 minutes 26 seconds

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Easter Break 2011

April 25, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Paddleboarding at East Wittering

With the Easter break fast approaching and a forecast of hot weather, we decided to make sure of the time and take a short break somewhere in the UK that would be at a suitable location should I be required for work purposes. We also wanted to keep within a low budget so we would still go away during the summer so we plumped for a last minute caravan based stay at the Haven Church Farm Caravan Holiday Park. The Park is based near Chichester, which provides for a reasonably short drive to Brighton if I were to be called into a work office, and being on the coast meant we had easy access to the beaches at West Wittering and East Wittering.

We arrived at the Park in some trepidation since Mrs danyul had never stayed in a caravan before and things didn’t start well when we found that the lock was broken on our caravan so were not even able to get in. However, the on-site staff were fantastic and they quickly replaced the broken parts so we could unload the car and take a look round. My last caravan park stay was at least fifteen years back and the size and quality of holiday caravans had changed during that time. The caravan itself was large enough to include a living room with kitchen, two bedrooms (one with en-suite bathroom), and a separate shower / toilet room. My memories of staying in a caravan with my grandparents was of a tiny living room area that became my bedroom at night, a small kitchenette with cramped dining table, and a small bedroom at the end. Back in the day there was certainly no bath or shower, let alone a toilet, and all amenities were provided through a shared block.

The site itself included a small supermarket, some sports facilities (bowls, archery, and small football pitch), an indoor swimming pool, an outside swimming pool (sadly closed for our visit for an unspecified health and safety reason), and a bar / cafe / entertainment complex. During the check-in process we were advised to visit the sports booking area because a lot of the organised activities had limited places available so it was recommended to go book places straight away. Good advice but it turned out that nearly all the pool based activities were already booked and we were only able to get a single place on organised pool session (aquajets), which turned out to be the last available place.

With glorious sunshine waiting us as we woke on the Saturday morning, we grabbed our bags and set off for West Wittering  in the car. However, it seemed that all the surrounding area had the same idea as well as hundreds of people from not quite so near so we were soon stuck in a snarling traffic jam that queued miles from the actual beach. Fed up with inching our way to the beach we instead turned off and followed signs to the less popular East Wittering. Less popular than its neighbour since it has stone covered beaches rather than miles of soft sand but we soon realised that we’d discovered a gem of a town. Mrs danyul was soon off checking out the local shops (i.e. looking at estate agents to see how much houses were worth and if it might be possible to invest) while I took MiniMe around the town and along the beach. We discovered an equipment hire shack next to the beach and, although they had run out of our preferred twin canoes, we rented out a paddle board for a couple of hours. MiniMe took to it like the proverbial duck to water and I walked or swam beside him as he paddle around the calm water. With the evening creeping slowly into focus we boarded the car and headed over to West Wittering for a walk along the sands just as the majority of people were heading home for the day, which just showed the advantage of staying locally as we could stay out late and still get back to make dinner.

We had enjoyed going to East Wittering so much that we decided to forgo going to the beach at West Wittering during the day and decided to head back to East Wittering and rent a twin canoe for several hours. MiniMe took his seat at the front and with me sitting at the back we paddled our way out to the boats anchored out at sea, which formed the furthest boundary as stated at the hire shack, and then paddled back to shore. MiniMe wasn’t so sure about being so out to sea so we then spent the rest of our time paddling as fast as we could onto the waves hitting the shore and quickly picking up speed before turning to the side before we hit the beach. Again, we headed to the sand at West Wittering in the evening as the crowds were again leaving and we went for a stroll along the beach as the sun set.

West Wittering Beach

MiniMe enjoyed the activities back at the Park and each morning I would take him to the sports hire / booking facility just as it was opening, allowing Mrs danyul an opportunity to get some extra sleep, and we’d hire out a peddle kart for an hour and then ride around the Park. Our first foray out on the kart was on a shared vehicle with both of us peddling (or actually just me for most of the time) but on the second day we hired a small kart each and toured the Park again. MiniMe particularly enjoyed the road section near the car park as it had a speed warning system to warn drivers they were going above the Park speed limit by flashing up their speed. MiniMe took that as a challenge for us to measure how fast we were going and to then see which one of us could record the fastest speed.

The only pool activity MiniMe could book a place for was aquajets and he loved every minute of it. The inside pool was closed except for the small group of kids and each was given a face mask, a snorkel, and a motorised aqua jet (like the one pictured here). They were all soon zooming around the pool and taking part in games to race the length of the pool, to dive underwater to pass through hoops, or to retrieve items thrown to the bottom of the pool. It was a shame that each and every pool activity had been fully booked because MiniMe would have loved to have taken part in another session on another day. I did take MiniMe to the open sessions at the pool each day and he had a great time with me swimming around and using the water slides although at times it did get very busy in the water due to the amount of people.

It was soon time to pack our things and drive home but we had a great mini-break where we really enjoyed ourselves. We didn’t make use of the entertainment complex on the site, primarily because the immediate entrance took you through all the slot machines and arcade machine and we had no interest in those. We knew that MiniMe would be enticed by all the noise and flashing lights but we have no interest in exposing him to the gambling machines on offer. The surrounding area offered lots of places to visit so we did also take several drives around the scenic water side towns and villages as well.

In terms of the Haven experience? We enjoyed ourselves but decided that we probably wouldn’t go back again. The staff were really nice and helpful, the caravan was large and had everything we needed, and the site had lots of activities of offer if required. However, we found that the entertainment complex had lots on offer at night (disco, show etc) that meant lots of people were wandering back to their caravan late at night while making noise. There’s nothing wrong with that in the grand scheme of things but it’s not something we’re interested in and we found the noise of the revellers woke us up, especially the young kids who were being allowed to stay up late and were still running around the site still.

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SKCE First Anniversary Course

February 6, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Namiki Sensei (8th dan, JSKF)

On the 5th and 6th of February 2010 Sensei Toshiaki Namiki (8th Dan), Chief Instructor of the Japan Karate Shotokan Karate-Do Federation led a special course at the invitation of SKCE to celebrate their 1st anniversary. The Saturday session took place at Hillingdon Sports Centre and was open to all brown and black belts. The Sunday session was open to all grades and took place at East Barnet School.

MiniMe had his normal Japanese Saturday school to attend for the brown and black belt Saturday course so, armed with a special weekend release pass from Mrs danyul (assigned with conditions… more on that later), I attended the Saturday course by myself. I still had to drive MiniMe to school but with an early start it meant I arrived at Hillingdon early and was one of the first to register for the day. I took the available time to go through some light stretches and wait for some of my usual training partners to arrive. A steady stream of people began to arrive and it wasn’t long before we were called into line and introduced to Namiki Sensei.

The lesson began during the line as Sensei demonstrated the “correct” way to kneel and explained how a Samurai would kneel so that he could draw his sword and defend himself even from a resting position. I have to admit that I am always fairly sceptical about this kind of message, that there is a “correct” way to do something that’s the only way, and this was a theme for me throughout the day. I know that some people like the traditional aspect of karate and the mysticism that seems to attach itself when a Western person participates in an Eastern martial art but it’s not really my thing. I also remember my first ever trip to Japan and spending New Years Day with my extended family for a large family meal. They didn’t speak English and I didn’t speak Japanese but through the power of more and more sake we managed to hit it off. One of their favourite topics was understanding how I felt about sitting and kneeling on the floor for dinner and a very drunk uncle began to demonstrate to me how a Samurai would kneel and then leap into action if he were attacked. This led to a group of drunk Japanese elder statesmen demonstrating how a Samurai would leap to his feet and draw his sword to defend himself but then howling with laughter as each and every one of them fell rolling across the floor. The laughter reached new heights as the drunken Westerner tried the same but also ended up falling onto the floor and the whole process would be repeated again following yet another cup of sake. Our merriment only stopped due to some stern words from the various wives present but I am always struck by this memory when we form the line at a karate lesson and I was very much struck by this again as Namiki Sensei showed us how to kneel. Thankfully  Namiki Sensei was not looking in my direction because I was probably grinning to myself as I pictured a group of Japanese men being scolded by the better halves for trying to act like a Samurai.

The course moved onto various principals of kumite: establishing space and distance, of breaking the rhythm of your movements and of your opponent, and of the principals of ‘go no sen’,  ‘sen no sen’, and ‘ sen sen no sen’. I found these principals fascinating and even though I had seen the terminology discussed on various karate forums, I had never participated in a class where they were discussed and used within kumite drills. I did later try to make some notes on these subjects during a break but my mind was starting to turn to mush thanks to all the physical exertion and looking back at the notes now they do not quite make sense. However, this section of the course was my favourite from both days and introduced concepts that I had never actively used in the dojo.

Following a break for food and water we moved onto the application of components of various kata and from the highs of non-stop kumite we moved onto, in what what were my eyes, the low point of the two day course. The cerebral nature of this section was very interesting but after so much activity for the morning my body started to lock-up  by the ever extending lack of movement as Namiki Sensei used volunteers to demonstrate the “correct” movements with his chosen components of the kata while we sat around in a circle. The eagle eyed reader will have noticed my deliberate use of quotation marks again because I felt uncomfortable watching Namiki Sensei correcting the senior SKCE instructors during a section of Heian Sundan. My personal view is that all parts of all kata are open to interpretation when it comes to application, especially if they were to be used in a street fight where whatever works to end the confrontation as quickly as possible without any injury to me would be the best application at that moment in time. My greatest disappointment from this day surfaced in the next few weeks as SKCE made changes to various kata based specifically on the teaching of Namiki Sensei and that didn’t sit well with me as I always look to question what I am taught and whether it really is the one and only answer.

The day finished abruptly as the sports centre staff began to invade the hall and bring out various bits of equipment for the next booking. It seemed the Namiki Sensei wasn’t clear about the finish time and this probably contributed to what I felt was a very inactive second half of the session. Namiki Sensei had shown himself to be a warm and friendly instructor with a twinkle in his eye as he put us all through ever increasing kumite drills wrapped around a more cerebral based guide to kumite strategy.

Sunday saw MiniMe join me at East Barnet School where we joined a large selection of SKCE all grades  and Namiki Sensei for the day and final day of the 1st anniversary course. Following the stretch we began with a series of basics with Sensei urging us to move faster as new intricate drills were added into the mix and we were soon moving forwards and backwards either attacking to defending ourselves from an imaginary adversary. There’s only so much you can do without someone speeding towards you with attack after attack so we were paired up, MiniMe next to me with his partner, and the series of attacks and defences were practiced with your opponent. All the while Namiki Sensei had his warm and friendly face barking orders at us to improve our form or show more intent or to really make your partner defend him or herself. With the sweat now flowing we finished the session with free sparring and a series of partner changes to make sure that we did not become complacent and to ensure that we faced opponents of various size and ability.

Unfortunately I had to end our attendance before the course ended as my special weekend pass from Mrs danyul was about to expire and she needed me back for my chauffeur services. The timing was good as MiniMe was exhausted by the mornings activities and I noticed that I had a small cut just above my eye that was dripping a small amount of blood onto my top. I would like to thank SKC England for a fantastic course and also to Namiki Sensei for passing on his considerable karate knowledge. SKC England wrote a course description on their site along with details on a grading held after the first day for the senior SKCE instructors while the beaming Namiki Sensei published a lot of pictures taken from the course.

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Japan 2010/11 (part two)

January 6, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Kuru Kuru Sushi at Shimonoseki Fish Market

Our annual visit to Shimonoseki was soon over and we drove home more than satisfied by the food and stocked up with gifts for the family back in the UK and a good selection of books for Mrs danyul to read. We spent several days at ‘home’  preparing for the arrival of Mrs danyul’s brother and his family. MiniMe looks forward to this as it means his slightly elder cousin and slightly younger cousin arrive to play with him. Each come armed with their Nintendo DS and Nintendo Wii games. The 3 of them become inseparable for the next few days and are busy running around the house, eating together, and playing all sorts of games. It’s always a shame to say goodbye to them each visit and MiniMe is always especially sad to see his play friends leave.

danyul and MiniMe Visiting a Shrine

A visit to Japan has to include a stop at a shrine or three and this trip proved no exception. It is traditional visit a shrine on new years day and this has come to be one of our customary trips. However, our first shrine visit was slightly further away as we spent a day at a fantastic onsen (hot spring baths) relaxing. I remember my first visit to Japan when I was not exactly very comfortable at the onsen since it involves full nudity (men separated from women of course) but these days I don’t think anything of it. It’s also a lot easier now that MiniMe is old / big enough to keep his head above water in all the baths so I am having to continually chase him as he throws himself around like the baths are a private swimming pool just for him.

MiniMe Carefully Counting 8 Dropping Beads

The nearby shrine is very picturesque and draws many visitors from the surrounding area. I cannot profess to know much or understand much of the religion followed but the shrine is a very welcoming place and we always make sure to stop at the small shrine within the building that is devoted to children. We are always thankful to have a healthy young MiniMe but realise that there are lots of people who are not as lucky so we will all say a little prayer and make a donation at the children section.

Each year MiniMe will carefully make sure to drop and count 8 large beads strung out in front of another section of the shrine. I have no idea of the significance of why 8 beads and why this would bring good luck and Mrs danyul is unable to provide much guidance as she was never big on Japanese religion.

After having several very warm days we then had a rain storm hit the area on New Years Day so we were not able to go kite flying as usual. There was still plenty to do and MiniMe made sure to spend his New Years money well at the local shopping mall. This year he wanted to buy himself a new game for the Wii and was determined to get Wii Sports Resort after his cousins brought along their copy and the trio then spent several days playing against each other. However, it seemed that Wii Sports Resort was a very popular choice for all the kids now rich with gifts of money from their family. Thankfully the very last electronics shop we visited had a single copy left and was offering a 20% discount on all Wii games so MiniMe even had some cash leftover. Being the Japanese version of the game it meant that MiniMe couldn’t take it home to the UK but he was quite happy to have it for the rest of the stay and to leave it behind ready for the 2011/12 trip.

Japanese Shrine

I have to admit that one of my favourite reasons to visit to Japan is to sample the wide range of divine food. Not only is the choice of food fantastic, it is nearly always reasonably priced compared the same food type that you would find in the UK. You can guarantee that we will visit the ANA Hotel Ube several times just to eat from their lunchtime Viking (buffet) lunch. The price is cheap compared to anything comparable back home and the selection is extremely wide and tasty.

For a little extra you can include all you can eat desert as part of the buffet but we tend to just stick to the main meal and then move ourselves into the cafe area if we want any desert. There is a whole selection of different cakes at the cafe and you can sit in relative peace and quiet although you do have to watch out for the smokers since Japan has not yet banned smoking in public places and you can guarantee that there will still be smoking only tables in most places.

During this visit we went to a new canteen style restaurant that I had never seen before and was absolutely amazed at. The layout is very simple in that it resembles a school canteen and you simply walk along with your tray and help yourself so the small dishes before someone rings up the total at the end. The food on offer was a very high standard and I was very cheap and I was stunned to find out that this is considered a ‘working persons’ restaurant where most of the local office workers will get their food. We visited twice and I can understand why my mother-in-law rates this as her favourite local place to eat. On both occasions we stood out, primarily because I was the only non-Japanese guest, because everyone else was either dressed for office work or was some sort of construction worker taking their lunch break.

Canteen Style Restaurant

Our 2010/11 visit to Japan was once again approaching its end and we would soon be making our way home. I did manage to fit in some runs while we were there so I didn’t lose all my fitness by being away. MiniMe had a great time with his Japanese family and improved his language skills while I caught up with a lot of reading and just relaxing by being away from work. Mrs danyul was glad to see her family and seemed to stock up on the contents of each and every Japanese book store we passed while still finding room in suitcase to get as much Japanese food product as possible stuffed inside.

Japanese Canteen Style Lunch

Unfortunately our return journey home did not go as smoothly as anticipated. The plane ticket prices to Japan were extremely high in 2010 so we left booking until the last possible moment in the hope of being able to get a slightly cheaper price. Sadly the prices didn’t fall at all and the flights we originally wanted were all full by the time we went to book our flights. This meant that we had to leave a day earlier than planned, which meant we just escaped a huge snowfall that would have kept us stuck in the UK for several days, and also that we could not book a direct flight home. We flew from Ube to Tokyo as normal but then had to take an ANA flight to Frankfurt. This leg of our return journey was heavenly as the flight was mostly empty, which meant we could spread out to take a row of 4 seats each. However, the change at Frankfurt did not go well as it took an age to clear German immigration, who especially did not seem to like my Kindle so proceeded to escort me to a separate room so that it could be fully scanned. We eventually made it onto our Lufthansa flight to London but sadly the majority of our luggage didn’t. It seems that everyone who transferred onto this flight at Germany also had their luggage left behind so we wasted a good hour queuing at Heathrow to register our lost luggage. Bizarrely my suitcase did make in onto the plane so a very tired danyul family found their taxi driver and arrived home. I had to then work from home for the next few days to make sure someone was home to accept delivery of the lost luggage once it made it back to London.

MiniMe Ringing Shrine Bell on New Years Day

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Japan 2010/11 (part one)

January 2, 2011 by Leave a Comment

MiniMe Cooking Lunch

Our annual Japan trip took place once more in December 2010 although we were extremely lucky to make it this year due to the snow storms that covered the UK and blanketed Heathrow for several days. We were especially lucky because we delayed booking the flights so much, due to us hoping the prices might drop (they didn’t), and we could not get seats on our preferred date. We ended up having to book flights a day earlier and so the first snow started to fall at Heathrow just as we were waiting to board our flight at the boarding date. We were delayed for 30 minutes as de-icer was sprayed across the aircraft but that was nothing compared to the mayhem that followed in the following hours as the runways were closed and no flights arrived or departed. Our original flight of choice was cancelled and so were all the subsequent flights for the next week so we would probably not have made it to Japan in 2010/11 if we had booked our flights early. As I said; we were very lucky this time.

Our outbound flight from Heathrow to Heathrow to Narita International went very smoothly and MiniMe was kept well entertained by the movies and TV shows on offer. This time around we were arriving earlier in December so we avoided the scrum that is everyone in Japan trying to reach their family for the New Year celebrations. Our journey from Tokyo to Ube involves a bus service from Narita International to Haneda Airport and then a flight from Haneda down to Ube. This becomes quite a tortuous journey in the New Year period due to entire Japanese population seemingly trying to move themselves from one part of Japan to another.

As usual the parents-in-law were there to meet us at Ube airport and were there usual excellent hosts throughout our stay. Of course they were delighted to see MiniMe again and he was just as happy to be visiting his grandparents once more. One of our first excursions was for lunch at a local restaurant where a cousin of MiniMe was the head chef. The restaurant was of a Korean style where various meat and vegetables were provided for self cooking on a stove built into the table. The meal also included some Japanese style raw fish dishes and MiniMe loved acting as our chef and cooked all the food for us. MiniMe would continue to pursue his new found love for cooking dinner for everyone and so we had a whole series of meals cooking by MiniMe throughout the stay.

MiniMe at Tokiwa Park

A visit to Ube would not be complete for MiniMe without a trip to the rides at Tokiwa Park. Unfortunately our first attempt was accompanied by a big bag of fail because we arrived in the morning to find all the rides were closed until the afternoon, when we already had commitments. MiniMe was just a little grumpy but he did get to visit again a few days later when everything was actually open. However, it was sad to see that a number of rides had been retired, removed, and not replaced since we visited in 2009/10. Most notably the log flume ride was completely gone and MiniMe was a little disappointed since this was one of his favourite rides and was also a ride I had to accompany him on each year due to age / height restrictions. His grandmother did go on the ride with him once but then vowed to never repeat the experience following the terrifying drop down into the water.

MiniMe Cooking Dinner

Being away for the Christmas meant that Santa san had to be told of our whereabouts and extra care given to make sure that an appropriate bag was left out for Santa to leave presents. Also, we had to make a special trip to the local shops so that MiniMe could select the perfect carrots to leave out for the reindeer and some suitable cookies for Santa himself. MiniMe is still erring on the side of caution by making sure to write a nice letter to Santa but equally he has become quite persistent in asking us about whether Santa exists. We suspect that next year we move into non-believer territory but we’ve had a fun time over the years. This year Santa san brought nearly all the items requested by MiniMe but his favourite gift was a remote control car that he then spent hours with outside. An elaborate track was made at the front of the house using  various gardening items and MiniMe would send the car racing around.

Proud Owner of Remote Control Car from Santa san

Japan hasn’t quite dived into a full Christmas loving nation, with New Year being the prime holiday period of the year, and it doesn’t really fully fit since the normal Western Christmas holiday means time off work while the 25th December is a normal working day in Japan. However, I have noticed more and more Christmas related items sneaking into Japanese culture each year and this time around I really noticed the use of Christmas Carols and related songs in the local shopping malls. Christmas cards are available and so are Christmas themed cakes so it is becoming more common for gifts to be exchanged and some activities to take place.

Christmas Cakes

We again travelled to the nearby Shimonoseki for an overnight stay to use the onsen (hot spring baths) and to go shopping at the large shopping mall. For the first time our visit coincided with the Shimonoseki fish market so we made sure to visit and to eat lunch at the karu karu sushi (conveyor belt sushi) situated overlooking the fish market. The market itself is full of people inspecting the freshly caught fish or buying fresh sashimi and sushi from the brightly lit stalls while the stall holders call out for visitors to inspect their fish and to draw everyone in. The sushi looked fantastic although we didn’t buy any, quite a few would buy their lunch from the various stalls and go find somewhere to sit down, and we added our names to the lengthy waiting list for the sushi restaurant. We killed an hour or so walking around the market admiring the weird and wonderful types of fish although I did notice that quite a few stalls were selling whale meat, which I stayed away from based on my Western sensibilities. Finally our names were called for the restaurant although this was only the ‘outside queue’ and we now had to queue again as part of the ‘inside queue’ until a suitable table became available. Following another shortish wait there was a table available (seats had some and gone on the sushi bar but we preferred a table) and we settled down for one of the best sushi meals that I have had the pleasure of eating in Japan.

Shimonoseki Fish Market

We left MineMe with his grandparents and took a walk around the surrounding area. The area is known for its Fugu (puffer fish) catch and during popular seasons there will be a rush of Japanese visitors specifically to buy or eat Fugu. We found a nearby statue (pictured below) that shows how the market traders and fishermen used to trade their catch through various hand movements enclosed by a large glove like object so no-one could see how much each respective catch was being sold for.

Fugu Trading at Shimonoseki

Given the amount of times that we have visited Shimonoseki it is quite surprising that we had never visited the island of Ganryujima that sits between Honshū and Kyūshū via a short ferry ride from Shimonoseki Harbour. The small island is well known in the surrounding area for the duel between Miyamoto Musashi and Sasaki Kojirō and has been setup as a tourist focal point to celebrate the fight. Japan has a rich history and the feudal period of swordsmanship is visited upon across popular media and is celebrated by the Japanese as well as the image visitors have from other parts of the globe.

Ganryujima Island - Musashi Miyamoto Fighting Sasaki Kojirō

Shimonoseki is also known for Buzenda, which is known as the most famous shopping area in Yamaguchi Prefecture. We always make a trip to the shopping mall for Mrs danyul to stock up on books from the very large book store while I wander around picking out some gifts to take back for family in the UK. I used to also look around for clothes for me, since the New Year period is a time where all the retailers hold significant sales, but I always suffer from my larger Western build and I’ve found that most of the clothes for Japanese men are a little on the small size for me. I am not significantly large by UK standards so I always wonder how the larger Japanese built gentlemen get on when they go shopping for clothes.

Our yearly Shimonoseki visit to was coming to a close and all that was left now was the relaxing use of the onsen back at the hotel. If I were able to export some products or services back to the UK then the proliferation of hot spring baths would certainly be in the top 3. I am pretty sure that reasonably priced good quality sushi would also make my top 3 as well, something that Shimonoseki has in abundance.

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Shodan

October 31, 2010 by 1 Comment

MiniMe & danyul

Sunday 31st October 2010 was a prominent date in our karate diary as SKCE held their second Black and Brown belt course of the year at Ashmole School Sports Hall, which included grading for those attempting shodan and above. We were both attending and both attempting to pass for shodan and it should come as no surprise (the pictures give it away) that we were both successful and are now both proud wearers of a black belt.

Regular readers of my blog may have deduced by now that I hate being late and I always aim to arrive at a course nice and early so with grading nerves starting to form, I made sure that we both left extra early for this particular event. With a near empty entrance hall we sailed through the registration process and headed into the changing rooms to get changed. We found Sensei Peter busy mopping up a small flood in the toilet area and it was good to see that attention to detail as I am sure that it would have been easier to leave the mess and just generally moan about the state of the facilities and the lack of action from the facilities management.

The course was soon underway and following a series of stretches we were split into two groups; the brown belts with Sensei Peter and the black belts with Sensei Eric plus various other senior instructors assisting. Our first session saw Sensei Peter taking us through the basic syllabus required for those attempting shodan with particular emphasis on the areas that come under scrutiny during the grading process. I know the instructors seem to repeat these statements ad nauseum but hopefully it should be fairly obvious to everyone that if you’re told that that a specific technique is commonly demonstrated incorrectly during a grading then it should be noted that the technique is going to come under scrutiny from that instructor when they are undertaking their responsibility as a grading instructor later on.

A quick change saw Sensei Eric then take the brown belt group through further grading syllabus techniques, with emphasis on kata and kumite. As usual the training quickly came to an end and enjoyable as it was, I generally do not enjoy training when I know that a grading is about to take place. I had kept an eye on MiniMe during the training and he seemed to be doing well and certainly wasn’t making any large obvious mistakes from my view. However, I knew he was nervous, which only makes me more nervous, so he was busy concentrating on the kumite syllabus because he had a particular worry about announcing the techniques in the wrong order. Before heading out for a lunch break there was a brief presentation on behalf of the SKCE squad who had recently returned from the Gichin Funakoshi World Shotokan Championships at Lons Le Saunier in France. It was nice to see such genuine thanks from the squad to all those involved in preparing and taking the squad to France for the competition.

danyul shodan grading

The lunch break was soon over and we were called back into the hall with examiner desks setup for basics, kata, and kumite where 3 examiners were stationed at each desk. The first batch of dan candidates were called up and it was clear that the children were being called up first and it was not long before MiniMe was called up for basics alongside 5 other children. At this stage the nerves got the better of me and I was unable to watch MiniMe and I only took very brief glimpses as MiniMe progressed through each area. I generally do not mind the grading process, I accept it’s a necessary evil, so do not worry how I get on but I do worry about MiniMe as I want him to do well. There seemed to be a long wait before it was time for my name to be called and by that time MiniMe had progressed through basics, kata, and kumite and had already come back to sit next to me. He wasn’t in a great mood because he had forgotten the correct order for the kumite sequence but thankfully his partner worked with him and helped him out. I suspect MiniMe just threw a blank because he was worrying so much about kumite and this worry led him to them make the mistakes he was most worried about making.

I was finally called up to alongside five others also attempting to reach shodan and we were quickly progressing through the basic section of the grading process. At this point I wish I could describe just how wonderful the grading went and how focused I was but everything went by in a blur and I remember very little. I remember my foot slipping on the floor during the first movement of Bassai-dai and the subsequent momentary flash of fear that I was going to land unceremoniously on my back. Kumite for adults consists of jiyu ippon kumite and free style sparring for those aged 12 or over so my grading process took longer than MiniMe but I was soon back sitting down. MiniMe did take some unexpected pictures during my grading, which I was quite grateful for, so I tried to relax by flipping through the images just to see how things looked.

This wasn’t the end of the grading for us though as those who were successful through basics. kata, and kumite were then called back up in groups to perform a grading examiner nominated Heian kata or Tekkei Shodan. We were asked to performed Heian Nidan, which came as no surprise since it was a kata analysed during the earlier training, although once again I was too nervous to actually watch MiniMe. I did notice that there was some confusion, and tears, because the order or candidates being called up was changed so some assumed that they had already failed simply because their earlier kumite partner was called up while they were not. Thankfully it was just a case of a change in order but I did feel sorry for those that thought they had failed and were obviously upset but who then had to step up and perform another kata.

So that was our grading over and it was just a case of waiting to hear the final results, which would be announced after those attempting to pass higher dan grades. For posterity here is the grading syllabus we followed:

  • Basics: Chudan Jun-zuki->Sambon Renzuki<-Jodan Age-uke+Gyaku-tsuki->Chudan Soto-uke+Yoko Empi + Urakan + Chudan Gyakuzuki (Zenkutsu-dachi) [Zenkutsu-dachi to Kiba-dachi]<-Chudan Uchi-uke +Jodan Kizami-zuki + Gyaku-tsuki->Shuto-uke+Nukite [Kokutsu-dachi to Zenkutsu-dachi]->Mae-geri->Rengeri [Chudan/Jodan]->Mawashi-geri->Yoko Ke-age [Kibadachi] left/right->Yoko Ke-Komi [Zenkutsu-dachi] left/right->Yoko Ke-komi [Zenkutsu-dachi] <- Ushiro Geri
  • Kata: Bassai-dai or Jion or Empi (choice is yours but 99.9% will stick with Bassai-dai)
  • Kumite: Jiyu Ippon Kumite – Jodan/Chudan/Maegeri/Yoko Ke-komi/Mawashi-geri/Ushiro Geri one side
  • Kumite: free style sparring for those aged 12 or over (note: this is not tournament style so it’s not a case of scoring a point and a judge stopping)
  • Kata: choice of the examiners from Heian kata (Nidan through to Godan) or Tekkei Shodan

SKCE have since made changes to the entire grading syllabus so I would not use the above for anything other than a historical point of reference. In fact, the syllabus changed slightly during the training so it always pays to listen carefully during the training segment. Yoko Ke-age [Kibadachi] left/right->Yoko Ke-Komi [Zenkutsu-dachi] left/right was removed from the grading syllabus, which was explained as part of the training.

It was finally time to announce the results for all those grading and thankfully we had both passed and were both presented with our certificate and new belts. I was very tired by this point but I was pleased to see how proud a number of parents were and just how happy those who had successfully passed were. Those that were unfortunate enough not to pass were called up separately and were given some private feedback on the areas they need to work on etc. It’s never nice to fail at anything but I do hope that they were able to take onboard the comments made and to come back with a stronger performance next time.

My thoughts on the day?

  • The friendly welcome and smiles from everyone on the registration desks, the snack desk, and selling the various SKCE goods. Some people I knew by name and some I had never met before but everyone I spoke to went out of their way to help.
  • The training from Sensei Peter and Sensei Eric for the brown belts (thanks for the grading tips).
  • The genuine affection shown by the squad members to everyone involved in helping them prepare and compete in France.
  • The efficiency of everyone involved in setting up the grading and making sure it progressed smoothly.
  • Having the opportunity to watch those going through the Nidan & Sundan grading (especially the kata performances from those grading for Sundan and the kumite across all the grades. I won’t name individuals but I am sure there are a few people with some bruises this week).
  • The amount of senior students and instructors who stayed after the training (or in some cases appeared after the training, no doubt due to other commitments) to provide help to anyone who asked and to also add their support to everyone who was grading. We might not have fully acknowledged all those nods of encouragement or brief messages of “good luck” and “well done” at the time but when you’re going through the grading those small things all help. This also extended to the cheers and claps as candidates were called up to receive their certificates and new grades.
  • The feedback given to those who were not successful with their grading. It looked like each person was given individual feedback rather than message of FAIL and hopefully it spurs them on to pass their grading at the next opportunity.
  • The speed and efficiency of the licence books being updated, everything being stamped, and the certificates being prepared. I am sure that there are some factory production lines somewhere that could learn a lesson from the team involved.
  • The quality of the certificates. I think a certain World Shotokan Championship committee could take note given some of the certificates I saw our successful squad return with from France.
  • Watching the parents beaming faces as their children proudly collected their certificate and (for those passing Shodan) collecting their new belt. Every 3-6 months I see the parents and also the adults grading who train at other locations to me so over the years we’ve gone through nodding acquaintances to chatting and catching up on how things are going. It was great to see all these people finally pass a milestone in their karate progress. Personally, I don’t know how all the parents handle all the nerves they hold for their kids because I had to stop watching MiniMe every time he grades because I get so nervous for him.

Congratulations if you made it through to the end of this post! The final part of this post is going to skirt around the subject of my thoughts on what a black belt means and whether it is actually necessary. The karate and martial arts forums / blogs are littered with commentary on the history of karate, on when, how, and why the different belt system came into existence plus a hell of a lot of arguments on why the belt classification is flawed. However, I earlier stated that the grading system is a ‘necessary evil’, which is not strictly true because I am sure that I could have found a martial art somewhere that doesn’t have a formal grading system, but it’s a necessary evil based on the choices we made.

We chose to train in karate, we chose to train at Kilburn SKC, we chose to train with a club affiliated to JKAE, we chose to continue training with Kilburn as they changed affiliation to SKCE, and we chose to do all of this in the full knowledge that there was a formal grading system based on different coloured belts. So passing shodan does mean something to both of us, certainly to me anyway; MiniMe has no intention of telling his friends since he does not view it as “cool” (something someone of my age apparently cannot understand, isn’t youth fantastic?). We started karate training simply because it was an activity that we could do together and I felt that keeping us both active could only be a good thing(tm).  Passing shodan and earning a black belt just became a target along that path. Now we’ve passed? It’s time to get back to enjoying the training, spending time together, and keeping us both active.

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Japan Matsuri 2010

September 18, 2010 by 1 Comment

Japan Matsuri 2010

We joined an estimated 30,000+ people at the 2009 Japan Matsuri last year where we had a great day so were looking forward to the 2010 event, which was to also take part at Spitalfields Market in central London. Last year the event was packed solid with people and we found it difficult to get near any of the food stalls and also to generally move around most of the stalls and various displays. Thankfully the organisers of Japan Matsuri 2010 took the opportunity to utilise all the market areas so there was a significant increase in food stall options and the main stage was able to relocate to allow plenty of space to watch the some of the scheduled events.

After collecting MiniMe from school we headed into London via the Central Line and then made the short walk from Liverpool Street to Spitalfields Market. Just like last year there were plenty of people dressed in traditional Japanese attire making the same journey and the surrounding area seemed to be dominated with people either making their way to or just leaving the summer festival. Our plan was to take a look around first to check out the food stalls but MiniMe was complaining that he was dieing of hunger (ha!) so we went straight to a stall selling Japanese curry then sat down to eat on a nearby pavement. With MiniMe suitably fed we took a tour of the 2010 site and found that there were a lot of food stalls along the edge so we split up so we could pick something for lunch and then reconvened on some nearby wall edging to sit and eat.

MiniMe Enjoying Lunch at Japan Matsuri 2010

With everyone suitably fed we took some time to check out the non-food related stalls, although there was nothing we wanted to buy, and to also check out the main stage where there was a singing contest taking place and a little later a display of Japanese drumming. With the Japan Matsuri being such a prominent event for the Japanese community it also meant that we bumped into a lot of friends so were able to catchup on how people were and what was new in their life.

The Japan Matsuri is going from strength to strength and we hope that the organising team are able to run the same event in 2011. It’s a great advert for Japanese culture and a fantastic opportunity for people to have an enjoyable day out in London whether they have an interest in anything Japanese related or not.

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