2015 Reports | Winter Camp
Winter Camp
20-22 March, 2015
The annual IKOK-C Winter Camp was once again held at the beautiful Silver Lake Forestry Center near Peachland, BC on the weekend of March 20th to 22nd. The camp is always a highlight in the organization’s yearly schedule, and for myself and 9 other Dan candidates acts as the first step in our testing process. This year I was very fortunate to have my wife Leeann and friend Isabelle, both students from the Calgary dojo accompany me to both support my efforts and learn as much as possible over the 3 days of camp. We thankfully had a very easy trip to camp, arriving around 4pm local time to check-in and grab a cabin spot before first training at 6pm. As is a tradition at most every camp I’ve been to, the first training always sets the tone for the camp with an intense and high spirited workout. And this year was no different, with our warm-up consisting of several hundred kicks and squats during kihon! “Osu no seichin” was running through my head during this, and it would continue to throughout the weekend. Everyone came prepared to sweat and learn, and we definitely started the camp on a great note. Shortly after the warm-up we broke into groups and began to delve into the underlying theme of the weekend, by getting back to proper basics with some brain teasing ido geko. Shihan Stuart emphasized on several occasions throughout the weekend that having solid basic techniques are crucial to us being able to both teach and progress in of karate practice, and this first class set the groundwork for doing just that over the course of our 6 training sessions.
You can’t have a winter camp however without the famous meals that are served, so once of first session was done we gathered as a collective to tear down all the mats in the hall and set-up for dinner. It was inspiring to see the level of cooperation displayed as everyone pitched in to get the hall ready, and once we were done we all got to sit down and enjoy a delicious spaghetti meal while reflecting on what we had just done and pondering about what was to come. Then it was tear down time, with everyone eager to clean up and settle in for some sleep before the 6am training session the next morning.
Before we knew it, the first alarm was ringing in the cabin. A 5am wake-up isn’t the most pleasant way to start a Saturday, but the training we were about to do over the next 3 session would more than make up for that. We started as we traditionally do with an outdoor warm-up, but unlike past years we were unable to do this on the lake thanks to the incredibly mild winter the Okanagan region has had this year. Thankfully there were still patches of snow in the trees, and Shihan was able to find a great location for us to train. After warm-up we headed back to the hall to continue focusing on refining our movements, and were then introduced to our first look at kihon kumite. Many of the members who have been in the organization for a lengthy period had seen kihon kumite before, but for the majority of us this was new and exciting! We were exposed to 5 of the 8 sets throughout the weekend, and I personally did all I could to soak in as much of it as possible. After training, it was breakfast time, followed by a short break and another training session. We were then introduced to the new self-defence portion of the grading syllabus for 8th kyu, which I found very helpful as both a refresher on techniques I’ve learned and also eye opening as a way of showing us all how much better these techniques could be executed. We then proceeded with lunch, a short break, and then the highlight of the weekend for me personally. Tameshiwari! As a Dan candidate, one of the requirements during testing is to do board breaking, with a set number of boards to break and techniques allowed given to each individual based on a pre-determined criteria. I was given 7 boards with 4 techniques that I could use to accomplish this task. It’s a fantastic feeling to draw on the spirit in the room during this part of the testing, with those in attendance sending out positive energy and cheering loudly after every attempt! And thanks to the support of those watching I was able to successfully complete this challenge, and helped cheer on my fellow candidates in their attempts with shouts of encouragement and exuberant applause. And although most of us were successful, there was no doubt in any of our minds that those who ran into a slight snag will be triumphant come summer camp!!
Once the excitement of the board breaking was done, we took group photos and then finished the day with another informative training. We followed that by dinner and certificate presentations to 3 individuals who had in previous years had successfully graded for their own Black Belts. Then it was time to get my mind ready, as myself and my fellow candidates needed to prepare for our upcoming interviews and written exams. One by one we interviewed, then as a collective we gathered in the basement for our written tests. And then, off to bed, as 6am comes early!!
Sunday began very much like Saturday had, with a spirited outdoor warm-up followed by review in the hall. We covered off the kihon kumite we had done up to this point, and threw in some yoga and kata into the mix. We then had our last breakfast of the camp, and then began the process of cleaning up before one last high-energy training session to finish off camp as strongly as we started. It’s thanks to camps like this that we as a community and as individual karate-ka grow and develop. And it’s especially thanks to the efforts of Shihan Stuart and all the Senseis who help teach at these camps that we get these opportunities. So I’d like to thank Shihan Stuart and all of the camp instructors for an amazing weekend of learning and growing. A nod also needs to be made towards the staff of Silver Lake for providing incredible meals to help keep us all going over the 3 days. Special thanks needs to go to my wife Leeann and my friend Isabelle for joining me on this stage of the journey, and also to all those who participated with me in this camp and who cheered me from home. Your support makes it happen. And finally to my fellow candidates: we made it through the first part and we’re stronger for it. Good luck to you all on your technical portion and I look forward to finishing this journey with you all at summer camp. “Osu no seichin”.
OSU!!!
Richard Barkman
What I learned at winter camp!
It was about 4:00 PM when we arrived Friday afternoon for camp. We had a couple of hours to do our check-in and mingle before we started our training. In the main hall was where we did our check-in, got our cabin assignments and also got to see the schedule of the weekend. Beside the schedule was a poster that Silver Lake had advertising it’s YMCA camps. The poster had an image of a bright eyed girl paddling a canoe ,with the words “this was what I learned at camp” accompanying it. Not realising at the time, this poster was about to influence how I would reflect on this winter camp in a huge way.
Sempai Isabelle and I made our way to the women’s cabin and instantly we were greeted with handshakes and a few familiar faces from previous camps and tournaments. At 6:30 we headed back for our first training session, where we went through ido geko and Kihon, accompanied by a lot of squats. This was a great way to start our weekend! After this spirited warm-up we were split into two groups. Brown and Black belts stayed upstairs and all the colour belts went downstairs and continued to practice more moving basics. To me, kihon can be very challenging but Sensei Steve and Sensei Jeremy were super supportive and helped me break it down. After training, all the camp participants were expected to tear the mats down and set up tables, chairs and place settings for dinner. This was very cool to be a part of! We had everything taken down and set up in matter of minutes. It was neat to see this community working together like this. We then had dinner, washed the dishes, took everything down and went to bed, as we knew our next training was an early one.
6AM training came rather soon! We gathered again at the main hall and then made our way up the drive way for a half hour of outdoor training, doing yoga and kihon in the snow. Then training was followed by a one hour session were we went over kihon kumate. I was definitely getting a little discouraged at this point. I was feeling like I wasn’t catching on to anything that was being taught at the camp so far. Once again, the Senseis were there to help me learn these movements and they were incredibly encouraging. After the training we stopped for breakfast and once again, everyone was there to help out and get seating , tables and utensils ready. Shortly after we finished breakfast we were back at it with more training. Feeling a little discouraged by the camp so far, I decided to take a step back and not be so hard on myself. Once I took this approach, I was able to have fun with the kihon kumate. Again after training it was tear down time and lunch, which at this point the group had choreographed to a fine art. In the afternoon was the board breaking for the Dan candidates. This was an incredibly special moment for me because I was there to support my husband who is going for his Nidan this year. So to show our support Sempai Isabelle and I got a front row seat to cheer him on. This was a proud moment as a wife and student to see my husband get through his boards with confidence and finesse.
Once the candidates were done and group pictures were taken we settled in for more yoga and review of the kihon kumate up to this point. We were then split up into our groups for kata practice. Dinner was right after and that was pretty much the end of day 2, with the exception of the Dan candidates who had to go for their interviews and written exams. Day 3 was similar to day 2 and began with early morning training. We hiked to a small patch of snow and did yoga and kihon. My favourite part of this morning training was being under the stars and hearing complete silence when we went into mokuso. Afterwards, we all went back to the dojo and reviewed the kihon kumate we had done so far. Then it was our routine take down, set up, take down, set up for breakfast, followed by our final training. Since we had a high spirited class on Friday, it was tradition to end the weekend with a high spirited class, which meant lots of kihon, lots of squats and some yoga to stretch it all out! And with this my weekend had quickly come to an end. We all worked together to tear everything down, clean up camp, hug all of friends and said our final goodbyes for a while.
Upon reflecting on the weekend, I came to realize that my winter camp experience started and ended with that poster that I had seen on the first night. So to summarize, this is what I learned at camp: -To always remember that I am fortunate to be part of this incredibly special community -Knowing that even when I get discouraged and overwhelmed to still carry on and push myself. -To be open to discovering new things about myself through experiences and through people. I was also reminded that I am incredibly blessed to have a husband who loves me and supports me through my karate journey, and that I have a friend like Sempai Isabelle who continues to inspire and motivate me. I was incredibly proud to be with these Sempais this weekend and to be there to represent Calgary. I would like to thank Shihan Stuart Corrigal for organizing the camp. I would also like to thank the countless number of Senseis, Sempais and otagai who made this first winter camp experience very special.
Osu!
Leeann Barkman
You can’t have a winter camp however without the famous meals that are served, so once of first session was done we gathered as a collective to tear down all the mats in the hall and set-up for dinner. It was inspiring to see the level of cooperation displayed as everyone pitched in to get the hall ready, and once we were done we all got to sit down and enjoy a delicious spaghetti meal while reflecting on what we had just done and pondering about what was to come. Then it was tear down time, with everyone eager to clean up and settle in for some sleep before the 6am training session the next morning.
Before we knew it, the first alarm was ringing in the cabin. A 5am wake-up isn’t the most pleasant way to start a Saturday, but the training we were about to do over the next 3 session would more than make up for that. We started as we traditionally do with an outdoor warm-up, but unlike past years we were unable to do this on the lake thanks to the incredibly mild winter the Okanagan region has had this year. Thankfully there were still patches of snow in the trees, and Shihan was able to find a great location for us to train. After warm-up we headed back to the hall to continue focusing on refining our movements, and were then introduced to our first look at kihon kumite. Many of the members who have been in the organization for a lengthy period had seen kihon kumite before, but for the majority of us this was new and exciting! We were exposed to 5 of the 8 sets throughout the weekend, and I personally did all I could to soak in as much of it as possible. After training, it was breakfast time, followed by a short break and another training session. We were then introduced to the new self-defence portion of the grading syllabus for 8th kyu, which I found very helpful as both a refresher on techniques I’ve learned and also eye opening as a way of showing us all how much better these techniques could be executed. We then proceeded with lunch, a short break, and then the highlight of the weekend for me personally. Tameshiwari! As a Dan candidate, one of the requirements during testing is to do board breaking, with a set number of boards to break and techniques allowed given to each individual based on a pre-determined criteria. I was given 7 boards with 4 techniques that I could use to accomplish this task. It’s a fantastic feeling to draw on the spirit in the room during this part of the testing, with those in attendance sending out positive energy and cheering loudly after every attempt! And thanks to the support of those watching I was able to successfully complete this challenge, and helped cheer on my fellow candidates in their attempts with shouts of encouragement and exuberant applause. And although most of us were successful, there was no doubt in any of our minds that those who ran into a slight snag will be triumphant come summer camp!!
Once the excitement of the board breaking was done, we took group photos and then finished the day with another informative training. We followed that by dinner and certificate presentations to 3 individuals who had in previous years had successfully graded for their own Black Belts. Then it was time to get my mind ready, as myself and my fellow candidates needed to prepare for our upcoming interviews and written exams. One by one we interviewed, then as a collective we gathered in the basement for our written tests. And then, off to bed, as 6am comes early!!
Sunday began very much like Saturday had, with a spirited outdoor warm-up followed by review in the hall. We covered off the kihon kumite we had done up to this point, and threw in some yoga and kata into the mix. We then had our last breakfast of the camp, and then began the process of cleaning up before one last high-energy training session to finish off camp as strongly as we started. It’s thanks to camps like this that we as a community and as individual karate-ka grow and develop. And it’s especially thanks to the efforts of Shihan Stuart and all the Senseis who help teach at these camps that we get these opportunities. So I’d like to thank Shihan Stuart and all of the camp instructors for an amazing weekend of learning and growing. A nod also needs to be made towards the staff of Silver Lake for providing incredible meals to help keep us all going over the 3 days. Special thanks needs to go to my wife Leeann and my friend Isabelle for joining me on this stage of the journey, and also to all those who participated with me in this camp and who cheered me from home. Your support makes it happen. And finally to my fellow candidates: we made it through the first part and we’re stronger for it. Good luck to you all on your technical portion and I look forward to finishing this journey with you all at summer camp. “Osu no seichin”.
OSU!!!
Richard Barkman
What I learned at winter camp!
It was about 4:00 PM when we arrived Friday afternoon for camp. We had a couple of hours to do our check-in and mingle before we started our training. In the main hall was where we did our check-in, got our cabin assignments and also got to see the schedule of the weekend. Beside the schedule was a poster that Silver Lake had advertising it’s YMCA camps. The poster had an image of a bright eyed girl paddling a canoe ,with the words “this was what I learned at camp” accompanying it. Not realising at the time, this poster was about to influence how I would reflect on this winter camp in a huge way.
Sempai Isabelle and I made our way to the women’s cabin and instantly we were greeted with handshakes and a few familiar faces from previous camps and tournaments. At 6:30 we headed back for our first training session, where we went through ido geko and Kihon, accompanied by a lot of squats. This was a great way to start our weekend! After this spirited warm-up we were split into two groups. Brown and Black belts stayed upstairs and all the colour belts went downstairs and continued to practice more moving basics. To me, kihon can be very challenging but Sensei Steve and Sensei Jeremy were super supportive and helped me break it down. After training, all the camp participants were expected to tear the mats down and set up tables, chairs and place settings for dinner. This was very cool to be a part of! We had everything taken down and set up in matter of minutes. It was neat to see this community working together like this. We then had dinner, washed the dishes, took everything down and went to bed, as we knew our next training was an early one.
6AM training came rather soon! We gathered again at the main hall and then made our way up the drive way for a half hour of outdoor training, doing yoga and kihon in the snow. Then training was followed by a one hour session were we went over kihon kumate. I was definitely getting a little discouraged at this point. I was feeling like I wasn’t catching on to anything that was being taught at the camp so far. Once again, the Senseis were there to help me learn these movements and they were incredibly encouraging. After the training we stopped for breakfast and once again, everyone was there to help out and get seating , tables and utensils ready. Shortly after we finished breakfast we were back at it with more training. Feeling a little discouraged by the camp so far, I decided to take a step back and not be so hard on myself. Once I took this approach, I was able to have fun with the kihon kumate. Again after training it was tear down time and lunch, which at this point the group had choreographed to a fine art. In the afternoon was the board breaking for the Dan candidates. This was an incredibly special moment for me because I was there to support my husband who is going for his Nidan this year. So to show our support Sempai Isabelle and I got a front row seat to cheer him on. This was a proud moment as a wife and student to see my husband get through his boards with confidence and finesse.
Once the candidates were done and group pictures were taken we settled in for more yoga and review of the kihon kumate up to this point. We were then split up into our groups for kata practice. Dinner was right after and that was pretty much the end of day 2, with the exception of the Dan candidates who had to go for their interviews and written exams. Day 3 was similar to day 2 and began with early morning training. We hiked to a small patch of snow and did yoga and kihon. My favourite part of this morning training was being under the stars and hearing complete silence when we went into mokuso. Afterwards, we all went back to the dojo and reviewed the kihon kumate we had done so far. Then it was our routine take down, set up, take down, set up for breakfast, followed by our final training. Since we had a high spirited class on Friday, it was tradition to end the weekend with a high spirited class, which meant lots of kihon, lots of squats and some yoga to stretch it all out! And with this my weekend had quickly come to an end. We all worked together to tear everything down, clean up camp, hug all of friends and said our final goodbyes for a while.
Upon reflecting on the weekend, I came to realize that my winter camp experience started and ended with that poster that I had seen on the first night. So to summarize, this is what I learned at camp: -To always remember that I am fortunate to be part of this incredibly special community -Knowing that even when I get discouraged and overwhelmed to still carry on and push myself. -To be open to discovering new things about myself through experiences and through people. I was also reminded that I am incredibly blessed to have a husband who loves me and supports me through my karate journey, and that I have a friend like Sempai Isabelle who continues to inspire and motivate me. I was incredibly proud to be with these Sempais this weekend and to be there to represent Calgary. I would like to thank Shihan Stuart Corrigal for organizing the camp. I would also like to thank the countless number of Senseis, Sempais and otagai who made this first winter camp experience very special.
Osu!
Leeann Barkman
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