My first tournament is coming up. What to expect?

**still learning** · 18th August 2012, 04:17 AM

Originally Posted by FastKendo

what to expect? have fun! and never give up a match.. no matter how strong your opponent is.

.......... and remember to save some energy for the evening.
If you perform well, perhaps win a gong and/or pass your grade...... groupies will chase you to your room to deliver 'extra rewards'. ENJOY!

**IronWarrior** · 18th August 2012, 05:03 AM

I had my first Taikai in 6 months from starting training against other new people, I was lucky enough to win all three of my personal matches and had many wins and loses since then.

My advice is the following.

Attack a lot, don't stop, but don't be a headless chicken. To sum it up, if you can attack and do more Men cuts then they can, soon or later, one of them is going to score Ippon.

Make sure you Kiai a lot and show Zenshin after the cut.

If the person you are fighting falls over, don't just stop and stare, hit him over his head and shout Men and do some type of Zenshin.

If they are close to the edge of the court, cut his Men and push him out the court, but don't let that happen to you. :P

**coronzon** · 18th August 2012, 08:32 AM

Originally Posted by still learning

.......... and remember to save some energy for the evening.
If you perform well, perhaps win a gong and/or pass your grade...... groupies will chase you to your room to deliver 'extra rewards'. ENJOY!

I am glad I wasn't drinking anything when I read this.

**MiddleEarthNet** · 20th August 2012, 08:57 PM

Best piece of advice I can give: enjoy it.

Everything else will come in time.

**coronzon** · 21st August 2012, 03:15 AM

Originally Posted by MiddleEarthNet

Best piece of advice I can give: enjoy it.

Everything else will come in time.

I am certain I will have a great time.

**dillon** · 22nd August 2012, 10:35 AM

Don't forget beer money and beer-buying-etiquette.

**coronzon** · 22nd August 2012, 10:41 PM

Originally Posted by dillon

Don't forget beer money and beer-buying-etiquette.

I always have beer money. What is the "Beer-buying-etiquette"?

**dillon** · 22nd August 2012, 10:45 PM

nothing special really: share beer!

**coronzon** · 22nd August 2012, 11:03 PM

Originally Posted by dillon

nothing special really: share beer!

Always!

**new2kendo** · 23rd August 2012, 03:25 AM

Originally Posted by Lloromannic

Don't stop out of the court! (You will seriously see this a lot).

Lots of kiai and running through (but see above) will help you, at this stage the shinpan are looking for that more than perfect technique.

Maybe the number one chance to whack someone a good one is going to be as they finish running through, a ton of people will turn and leave their men exposed.

WOW - does that sound familiar
Truer words never spoken

Thanks
Bob

**new2kendo** · 23rd August 2012, 03:37 AM

Originally Posted by coronzon

I probably wouldn't have thought of this. Luckily, I have 2 months to prepare. I'm hoping we do a few practice matches.

One of the most difficult paradigms in Kendo, I believe. It looks very simple on paper. Though, in practice, I'm assuming the four sicknesses will take quite some time to control/alleviate.

Oh heck, if you can move during your first tournament, you are ahead of the game.
My first match went "Hajime - Ippon - Yame", "Hajime - Ippon - Yame", "Hajime - Ippon - Yame", bye bye - about 45 seconds - surprised I lasted that long.
Relax [easier said than done] but try. Enjoy the moment.

Good Luck
Bob

**dillon** · 23rd August 2012, 08:49 AM

Actually, come to think of it, in Japan there are a few extra etiquette points with regards to beer (or drinks in general):

Seniors buy juniors drinks. In corporate culture the seniors are expected to guide and take care of the juniors. The juniors are in turn expected to do the same when they take over in the future. I know how it's polite to buy drinks for the sensei and all that but it doesn't always work so well like this in Japan as this culture carries over into the dojo. In the West, visiting Japanese sensei allow drinks to be bought for them because they are the guest. Also if the sensei is active police they may not feel comfortable with having things bought for them as it's somewhat a no-no for police officers. Still it doesn't hurt to try to offer to buy your sensei a drink and sometimes they will let you. Just make sure you ask first before making the order and be clear that it's ok. If the establishment collects payment with each round then it could be that it's agreed to make the order and when the beer arrives with the bill, the fight for the bill commences.

Not counting beer served in individual mugs (as in the case of nama-biru or draft beer), beer often comes to the table in large bottles (bin-biru). In this case the beer is served into small glasses. You should offer to serve beer to others starting with women, then sensei and then seniors (sometimes gender is disregarded). Keep an eye out for empty or near empty glasses. Let others serve you and say "sumimasen" when the offer comes and hold your glass up slightly to facilitate the server. Hold the beer bottle with the label up when serving (this point is a bit obscure actually and I can't remember the explanation for why this is).

**Neil Gendzwill** · 23rd August 2012, 11:37 AM

Word to the wise: when others are pouring beer for you, and the custom is to keep the glass full, it is really easy to lose track of how much beer you are drinking. Just saying...

**MikeW** · 23rd August 2012, 10:45 PM

Originally Posted by Neil Gendzwill

Word to the wise: when others are pouring beer for you, and the custom is to keep the glass full, it is really easy to lose track of how much beer you are drinking. Just saying...

This is true. It is customary to take a sip of the beer (sake, whatever) after it has been poured but you don't need to gulp it down each time.