San Rafael Aiki Summer Retreat with sensei Doran, Nadeau, Ikeda, and Feder
June 17 - 23, 2001

Contributed by Bruce Wonnacott*

The 26th annual Aiki Summer Retreat was held in San Rafael, California, the week of June 17th to 23rd. Approximately 160 students participated, visiting from locations as far as New Zealand, Switzerland, and Alaska. This year, Kayla Feder sensei joined as guest instructor, along with the regular presence of sensei Doran, Nadeau, and Ikeda. I should probably also mention the high quality of the five instructors who taught the morning classes, but this would force me to admit that I'm too weak to actually get up that early.

One particularly unique contribution was a pair of lectures given by Stanley Pranin, the editor of Aikido Journal, who talked about the life of O-Sensei. I was impressed by the quality of Mr. Praninšs work and his presentation; he was very careful to site his sources, both people and historical documents; and he identified any speculations as such.

It was interesting perspective on the life of the Founder. There is often a tendency to deify the man, which can lead to the self-defeating question: "Given the enormity of O-Sensei's accomplishments, how can the common practitioner expect to achieve anything meaningful?" Mr. Pranin helped to place him in the context of his time and surroundings by discussing his relationships with his family, his wealthy patrons, and his teachers. Here was a man who knew not only vision and achievement, but also failure and despair. Paradoxically, I find this very inspiring; it makes the example of this man's life seem less alien.

I was mildly disappointed by the lecturer's inability to either confirm or refute a story I have heard about O-Sensei carrying a heavy porcelain toilet on his shoulders from the Iwama train station to his house. However, this detracted only slightly from the educational experience.

Feder sensei made some interesting comments about her own history of training. She recalled the first time she had attended the San Rafael camp, when she was twelve years old. She said that it had been a dream of hers to return as an instructor one day, and how happy she was that the day had finally arrived. Seeing her alongside the other instructors was a very good example of how we can all achieve something meaningful through daily practice. All of her instruction was highly energetic, and she taught some particularly fun classes in tachi-dori and jo-dori.

Doran sensei talked quite a bit about three elements which should be present in any technique: blending with the attack, breaking uke's balance, and maintaining correct posture. I believe the idea is that when a technique is not working, you can usually find one of these three that is missing, and this can become a focus for your training.

Ikeda Sensei worked on similar themes of timing and catching balance, with emphasis on instant connection with your partner. As always, I was impressed by the subtlety and power of his technique on the mat (and by his ability to drink substantial quantities of coffee off the mat.)

Nadeau Sensei provided his unique perspective as well. He talked about allowing the body's structure to express its natural power; the phrase I remember him using is "allow the framework". He also talked about the blending of conflicting forces during training, reconciling the yin and yang. Fire and water come together to make steam (which can then be used to make cappuccino).

Every year on Friday night, a variety show of skits and musical acts is put on, followed by dancing. The purely amateur quality of the performances is typically broken by one or two ringers who have actual talent, and this year was no exception. A good time was had by all.

All in all, the energy on the mat was very open and positive. There was opportunity for very intense training, but always with a friendly tone. I always look forward to this seminar as one of my favorite annual events, and I was not disappointed this time around.

*Bruce, a professional software engineer, has been training in aikido for over ten years, first with Central Illinois Aikikai in Urbana, and most recently at Aikido West with Doran sensei.