Bo Kata Course 26th January 2008 with Sensei Wittkopp

Dereham Traditional Shotokan Karate Ryu met on Saturday 26th January for a very special lesson.

Chief Instructor to TSKR Terry Wittkopp 4th Dan held a weapons course for students from Dereham & Stamford & Norwich.

The weapon of the day was The "Bo" or staff as it is commonly known. These ancient weaponry techniques have been handed down through many generations.

Its original use was for Farmers to carry buckets & tools, on the fields in Okinawa, Japan.

Later on, they used it in self defence against the warlords and Samarai, creating its on style Bo Jutsu, translated as Staff techniques.Nowadays it is used for training purposes only.

Students were introduced to the weapon slowly, giving a good understanding of its dangers and capabilities if not used properly. By the end of the session, students had learnt a pattern with the Bo covering 42 individual techniques. This ancient pattern has very rarely been taught in th UK.

Students throroughly enjoyed the course and have asked for this to be repeated next month.

Terry Wittkopp qoutes; "The Bo" is not the main part of Shotokan Karate Training, it is important and is used as training only as one of four weapons used within the traditional shotokan syllabus. TSKR will be teaching weapons on a regular basis.