Weapons Practice
By Dan Blackmore
07 April 2014
I have been training with weapons since 2009. Training began with the bo: learning the basic stances and blocking and striking techniques. Next came learning the movements of kata. There is no free sparring in the system, but a set of prearranged attacks and defences is drilled; like a kata performed with two people. This process is repeated with the sai, tonfa, nunchaku, kama, and tekko. I’ve noticed how as one rises in rank, the weapons get shorter and so the distance to the opponent reduces. This follows the history of the evolution of martial arts into karate. The use of weapons became illegal in occupied territories, so people started using concealable weapons. To compensate for using weapons with decreased mass, the practitioner had to exert more internal energy to incorporate power into the technique. The skilled weapons practitioner soon discovered that he could defend against an armed opponent without a weapon of his own.
Generally, the weapons practitioner has three choices when it comes to defence: escape outside of the attacker’s weapon range, shift or step to the side to evade the attack, or rush towards the opponent to interrupt the attack. The tactic chosen depends on the situation – against a group, hesitation could mean your life and so you must close distance and strike out with lethal force. On the other hand, perhaps subduing a lone attacker does not require lethal force – targeting a wrist, knee, foot, collarbone, or groin may be more appropriate in lieu of attacking the head or heart. In any case, those who plant themselves and block are taking a risk.
When matched head-to-head, the heavier weapon always delivers more force. The lesson in this is that one must not take the brunt of the heavy weapon head-on. Blocking can be effective, but it should only be used when out of other options. Let me put it like this: imagine your opponent has a sword that can cut through your own weapon. No matter how skilled you are, or how quick your reaction time, if you plant yourself and expect your weapon to keep you safe, all it takes is to be wrong once, and you’re dead. It is naïve to think that you can withstand a strike of a weapon or sacrifice dealing with an attack to deliver your own. With weapons, think of a tie as both parties killing each other. To survive the encounter, the primary concern must be to get out of the offending weapon’s path of attack. Footwork, distancing, and body positioning are crucial in out-manoeuvring an opponent wielding the heavier weapon. The defender must know the strengths and weaknesses of his weapon as well as those of his opponent’s weapon.
The big take-away from weapons training is that above all, one must learn how to get out of the way while maintaining an advantageous position. A martial artist would do well to add weapons to his training regimen to gain the perspective that strong attacking and blocking techniques alone do not guarantee success in a bout or real-life encounter. The use of proper footwork and distancing and being able to quickly switch from offensive and defensive positions must also be incorporated for success/survival.
