HIS Karate-Do

Every so often, I think about an aged martial artist I knew who passed away many years ago. He wasn’t a karateka – he was one of the very first kempo/kenpo instructors. I only knew him as a nice, quiet old man. Sensei Peter, Wayne, and I often talk about just how many more years we’ll be able to continue our journey with Shotokan Karate-Do. I would like to believe that I’ll spend my later days like this fine gentleman did. Our old-time members may remember that I wrote this note back in 2008 and resent it in 2015 – long before most of our active members joined us. So this makes the “third edition”. In any normal dojo, one always notices the sensei, the senpais, the color belts, and the white belts. It’s natural; they’re moving and kiai-ing the whole time. The folks one never really notices are those few who are sitting on the sidelines, just watching class. You know, the parents or older siblings who drove the kids to practice, or perhaps a student from another class, spouses, or friends, etc. Anyways, they’ll faithfully come and watch for so many classes and hours that they end up [...]

Yes, you can probably recognize one of the old trite old sayings that my father would sometimes tell me when he was in a philosophical mood. That means that you’re in for a “Deep Thoughts” note from me, haha. Recently I came across the obituary for an old friend of mine who passed away several months ago. His name was Chester Sasaki who I met in Vandenberg AFB when I was a young 2nd Lt and he was a senior captain. Chet was a missile man who later worked as a project manager at the NASA Jet Propulsion Lab and led the Genesis space program in the early 2000’s. He was also an excellent martial artist, having attained a Shodan in Shotokan Karate, a Sandan in Aikido, and a black belt in Kendo as well. He received his karate black belt from the legendary Hidetaka Nishiyama, no less. In fact, one of his fellow karateka in the lineup was the actor John Saxon who you may recall, was “Roper” in the classic “Enter the Dragon” movie made famous by Bruce Lee. Saxon passed away in 2020 at age 83. Chet and I used to work out together and exchange ideas [...]

Soon after starting one’s journey in Shotokan Karate-Do, the very first kick that white belts are introduced to is the Mae-geri or front snap kick. Karateka then spend the rest of their lives practicing and trying to improve this first kick along with the many other techniques they learn along the way. While the front snap kick may be the first and most basic kick that we learn, in order to be done well requires that one develop the same basic skills that all kicks need to be effective: good balance on the supporting leg, a supple ankle and knee, a flexible hip, speed, kime, controlled snapback, accuracy, and the proper placement and alignment of the striking foot upon impact. While a well-coordinated person can render what appears to be a nice Mae-geri shortly after learning it; iit may take many years of practice to in order to achieve what he/she is truly capable of with this kick. I’ve often said that when you first learn karate, instructors teach rules of movement and positioning in very black and white terms: “70-30% weight distribution on the front/back legs in zenkutsu-dachi”, “back foot at 45%”, “back leg straight”, “Han-mi (side) position for [...]