Aikido club hosts first tournament

Joshua Ferguson Sports Editor

While the rest of the student body was busy enjoying the first Saturday of October break, on Oct. 16, 2004, members of the College’s aikido club were busy hosting their first competition. For nearly 12 hours, club members and aikido enthusiasts from around the country practiced their throws and techniques in Walker Bay One.

Aikido is a Japanese martial art developed in the early 20th century. Aikido techniques are designed to diffuse an aggressor’s attacks, not to cause physical harm to an opponent. Aikido club president Charles Hudson ’06 lovingly called aikido “the lazy person’s martial art.”

The day began at 8:30 a.m. with registration. Geoff Wertime ’06, secretary of the club, said he was shocked when he arrived and found “there were already about as many people there as I had expected to show up all together.” Competitors came from all over the country, with people driving in from as far away as Ohio and Maryland.

The day was broken into two parts. The participants first faced each other in a randori competion. Randori refers to a form of competitive sparring. Participants compete both in armed combat, using a knife called a tan to, and unarmed combat. Louise Loeb ’07 remembered her nervousness as the first randori round began.

“I was afraid of accidentally hurting my opponent, getting hurt, or making stupid mistakes,” said Loeb. “But I kept in mind what Sean Sensei once told me, ‘All [aikido] really is is an advanced version of tag. You tag them. They tag you. Nobody gets hurt. Everybody has fun. And crucially, everyone gets really good at tagging each other."

The randoris were followed by a seminar taught by Dave Nettles, a member of the Japan Aikido Association/USA who the club flew in from Denver, Colorado to judge the tournament. Nettles talked about the various changes the JAA/USA was making to its offical aikido curriculum. Nettles was followed by Earl Layumas, a local aikido enthusiast who described his style of aikido, nihongoshin.
By the time the tournament ended at 8 p.m., the competitors found themselves exhausted but happy. The participants parted on friendly terms, hoping to see each other again at other tournaments. “I got very kind farewells from dozens of people who I had met only just that morning, and some of who I had fought very recently,” Hudson recalled. “I was really impressed by how friendly everyone was.”

The club is already considering another competition for next year, though with a few changes.

“We were pressed for time all day, it really was too much to run a tournament and seminars on the same day,” said Hudson. “If we do the event again next year, I think we should definitely make it a two day affair.”