Sensei Erik managed to catch COVID-19 after Christmas, but he’s done with all the isolating and stuff, and is ready to back to work!
Our first kids’ training of the year will be next Monday, January 17, beginning at 7:00pm. We will be following the 7:00-7:30 and 7:30-8:15 class schedule for now, but we are looking at other times and opportunities for training.
It looks like Tomiki Aikido of the Americas will be holding another virtual tournament this year, in addition to their in-person tournament. The virtual tournament will probably be in the autumn. We’re not sure yet!
We are very excited to announce that we will be leading an adult training group at the Training Station (200 Elm St, Manchester, NH) on Wednesdays and Fridays, 6:00am-7:00am.
Terry and Christina Dow have graciously allowed us to use a space in their dojo for the times when we used to train at the Downtown YMCA as the Manchester Budo Club. There is a monthly cost for participating, 100% of which goes to the Training Station.
If you’re interested in joining us for Tomiki Aikido, fill out the contact form below.
April 1 marks the 10th anniversary of the passing of Ben Duggar, who brought Tomiki Aikido to New Hampshire in 2001. He tragically passed away in 2013 after a long fight with ALS.
In memory of Ben, the members of the Manchester Budo Club and Chūshin Aikido are holding a Kata workshop. The focus of the workshop will be competition-ready kata performance, with Ari Reinstein serving as lead instructor, assisted by Erik DiVietro.
Ari Reinstein (4th Dan, TAA/SAF)Erik DiVietro (3rd Dan, TAA/TSAA-USA)
Embu, or Kata demonstration, demands precision of movement and a deep understanding of intent. Since the demonstrations are partnered, it also involves teamwork between the participants.
Doors open at 9:00am on Saturday, April 1, 2023. After a short check-in period, we will begin with a traditional Shodokan warmup led by Reinstein Sensei. After that, we will spend the morning working on the Ju Nana Hon (17) randori no kata. Following lunch, we will devote the afternoon to Goshin no Kata, the empty-hand forms from the Koryu Dai San no Kata.
LOCATION: Bedford Road Baptist Church 67 Bedford Rd, Merrimack, NH
Complete the form to register. Donations will be collected at the door (cash, check, credit/debit). The suggested donation is $30, which will cover lunch and minimal travel expenses. Net proceeds after expenses and additional donations will be used to create a scholarship in honor of Ben Duggar Sensei. This scholarship to help one (1) member of Team USA to travel to the 3rd WSAF World Championships in Nara, Japan this July. We are grateful for your generosity in your contributions.
During the month of June, the adult class meeting at the Training Station (200 Elm St, Manchester) will be working on ZNKR Jodo. It has been a while since we did these, so we are providing resources for those wishing to train with us.
In December, we will be doing various stripe and belt testing for our juniors and youth. COVID continues to through a lot of people’s training schedules out of whack, and since there were basically no promotions for most of 2020, we are working to get everyone back on track.
There are also a number of junior yellow belts transferring to youth yellow belt. Unfortunately, we had to order new solid yellow belts because all the belts we have are adult sizes. Those should come in next week (12/20).
Monday, 12/20 will be the last class of 2021. We’ll have a couple weeks off and begin the 2022 training season on January 17. The first session remains 7:00-7:30pm. Since we moved the adult classes to Manchester (Wednesday and Friday, 6:00-7:00am @ the Training Station), the second session at 7:30pm is more open-ended and involves more advanced work. It often runs to 8:15pm or so.
Chūshin Aikido 