Sunday 16 June 2013

Uke

The Japanese word is uke. It is pronounced eww-kay. There is no English equivalent.

An uke is the person that acts as a practise dummy for somebody doing Judo or Jiu-Jitsu techniques. They perform the way the bad guy is supposed to for a particular reaction by the person practising. Typically, they end up getting thrown over and over and over.

Normally at open-mat time, I work away alone on my own material in an empty dojo.

Last time it was quite different. We have a young woman named Elizabeth who is on the verge of starting her Blue Belt exam. She wants to do extra practice to help her get ready. I acted as her uke. We went through all four technique sections of the exam.

There were also two beginners present working on the few things they have learned. They called me over for a few pointers, and I was happy to help.

About then, our instructor got changed and called me over to help him as he works through his own level. As with Elizabeth, he needed an uke.

By the time he was done, open mat time was ending. The Hapkido students were spread all about chatting, and waiting for their class to begin.

I'd say that was the busiest open mat time I've ever attended.


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