San Kawa Interdojo and annual balloon war
10 September was San Kawa's turn to host the local interdojo. As an added bonus, the annual SAKF balloon war was also held on this day.
It was a team based competition, with 3 man teams entered from each dojo. A team had to have a minimum of one kyuu level kendoka and could have up to two dan level members.
Team competitions are unique in that you as an individual can't just go out and do what you want, how you want it. Your effort and risk taking during the shiai is highly dependent on when you fight in your team order as well as how your teammates have performed in their individual matches as well as the performance of the other teams in your pool.
"Winning" is decided by the number of fights won but also the number of points scored. You can only score a maximum of 2 points in each match. Which means for incase; your are the 3rd member to fight in your team, both of your teammates won their fights but only with one point, thus your team has 2 points, but if you decide to take unnecessary risks and cost your team your fight by loosing with 2 points, the two teams have drawn equal with points.
So you see, it is a much more demanding and challenging way to compete. You need to weigh your risks and guaranteed points and tactics up against each other to ensure the progression of your team and not just yourself.
On this day, San Kawa won the team matches and Ken Yu Kai came second.
The last event for the day was the balloon war. Where each participating member got two balloons. One for the men and one attatched to the kote. The participants were devided into 2 teams and all hell broke loose. The only rule, you are not allowed to hit a person if they can't see you. The last person standing with any balloons left, wins the "war". This year's champion was Caitlyn Collender from Ken Yu Kai.
