2022 was supposed to be the year we got out, and about a little more, visiting friends in Ireland, Amsterdam and Spain, but not all our plans came together.
Sword
I progressed with my Ilustrisimo sword training over the year but still struggled to get it right 100% of the time; I dropped my stick training over the year to concentrate and retain the bladed element and mindset. Very much still a work in progress, but I am at least learning new tricks and theories. Probably need some event to train for.
Sera Silat Class
This year I took a back seat on the Silat teaching front and attended our group sessions to train and help out. This worked well, and it was great not to teach so much. The training sessions have been a success because we really dialled down on the fundamentals and the crucial subject of how and when to teach them. The result is the group’s skill level and technical knowledge has grown considerably, and people are all moving better.
A few of us took advantage of weekly zoom classes with our teacher, I would generally visit the Netherlands once a year for face-to-face classes, and we would typically host in the UK once or twice a year. We managed to host a last-minute surprise Sera workshop with our teacher in the Summer, which showed, among other things, the links between Sera and grappling and the correct use of footwork. It was great to get things back on after the disruption due to the pandemic.
KORA
The regular class proceeded, with me teaching a mixture of Savate stand-up and clinch; we continued to look at the knife and separately some knife sparring. I probably taught boot kicks and clinch the most this year. Separately I ran the first monthly Instructor training program with two students who can now pass on the knowledge and skills.
I managed to get a research trip to Spain in May and catch up with some old Flamenco friends.
Summary
In my personal training and the two separate group classes, we tend to spiral around the same subjects each year, growing in experiences each time. This is especially true of our teaching skills.
For 2023, we hope to visit more, complete in some full contact events and share a little more. I will pick up stick and knife sparring again and run the KORA Instructor training once a month. If all comes together, I will visit the Netherlands, Ireland, Portugal and Spain for a nice mixture of training, research and chill-out time.
Training opportunities
I plan to teach more workshops for friends’ schools in the coming year. I will post details here on our website as the dates get firmed up. I already have had a few group training enquiries for the coming year; numbers are limited by space. If you are interested in training semi-privately in our small group in either Sera Silat or the disciplines we study in KORA, such as Savate, grappling and bare-knuckle boxing, please get in touch with me via this email: korahit@gmail.com.
Killick Off Road Arts 