jmarsten
Yudansha

Thank you Sensei. I did hear the coaching, and it's good to know that's over the line.

Clapping during the match is fine, clapping at the end is fine. Cheer leading and the behavior of some of the kendo people in the stands was way over the line. Shouting encouragement like "come on Jake or go Jake" is also acceptable. Coaching from the side lines is totally unacceptable. I don't log in very often so it takes a while sometimes before I answer messages

Marsten Sensei,

We met at the Dallas Taikai, I was the bald guy with Steve Sasaki Sensei that drove you to dinner on Friday. I have a question for you from the Taikai. At the end you mentioned that the audience needs to learn about cheering. Could you elaborate on that. I'm assuming that the whooping and hollering from the stands is the major problem, but I'd like to be able to explain to friends and family what is or isn't ok. Is clapping at the end of a match allowed?

Also thank you for the seminar on Seme. I've been able to get my dojo mates to attack me for no reason, or back up with it. Now I just need to get better at taking advantage of it.

Thank you,
Daemon Donigan
Colorado Springs Kendo Kai