I have dreams. Fantasies that become particularly insistent after training in high temperatures, as it happens now in Kyoto. Kyoto summer is renown for being fierce - and justly so.
I go for asa-geiko on my bike to the Prefecture Police at 7 o`clock, before work. It is already hot then, try to imagine after one hour of non-stop keiko.
Then is the time for me to dream: shape memory hakama - you take them off, you throw them in the air and the moment they touch the floor they are already perfectly folded. No more struggling with stubborn erratic creases, on floors on which some ugly guy has been dripping sweat like a stranded jellyfish: operation instantly completed in a neat and orderly fashion.
I dream of spray bogu. All in one bottle: you get into your (shape memory) hakama and kendogi and then you spray it onto yourself. It solidifies in a second - I still have to fantasise on how to remove it without too much hassle. Maybe it could melt in the shower?
Till I figure how to solve this little issue, I could be happy with mag-lev bogu bags, that follow you wherever you go.
None of this is going to happen soon, alas.
So we keep taking care of our hakama, folding them neatly, while spotting the cleanest section of the floor (I wear usually white or kinari). We remember the virtues of each fold and carry on. Far di necessita` virtu`, we say in Italy: make a virtue out of necessity - very appropriately, we make seven, in fact.
Trolley bags have brought already a notable improvement in bogu-carrying - a bit late maybe for my right shoulder that has strangely retained the mark of all the bogu bags of my life - shape memory shoulder?
Nevertheless, it is right to think of innovation in Kendo equipment. Maybe without going to the extremes (it would not be tolerated anyway, both by the governing bodies of Kendo and by kenshi themselves - who are, let me say, a pretty conservative bunch, as far as tradition and Japanness are concerned (I am in that bunch myself) - a degree of innovation though is necessary and welcome, also to make equipment safer and more accessible.
I can surely mention the Tornado-stitch® Kote, which are the new thing of the moment: I love the sturdiness of the futon and I like the spiralling of the stitching.
Still, although really new, they are still made of cotton, with a recognisable traditional look. Then how far can we go with innovation, in Kendo equipment, with Kote, to start with? We asked a number of inspired and willing kenshi to put their experience and their creativity together and see what would emerge.
We loved the results:
Top focus on maximum protection and perfect fit: (Jeroen has very big hands, Nathalie very petite ones):
Well, here we are treading on a completely new ground. That was the task of the Gone Wild Team, in fact.
Gone is the stitching.
Gone are the himo.
Gone is the traditional padding.
The purpose of this aggressive Kote is to be as unobtrusive as possible for hand movements, while being protective through completely innovative methods.
However, a longer futon seems to be a priority also in the 22nd century, where these Kote belong to.
The look is projected in the future, for authentic Bad Ass Kenshi - this is what your grandchildren will wear, put yourself at peace.
Wow, I cannot wait to see these beauties being made - the future has to start somewhere, and here we are.
I go for asa-geiko on my bike to the Prefecture Police at 7 o`clock, before work. It is already hot then, try to imagine after one hour of non-stop keiko.
Then is the time for me to dream: shape memory hakama - you take them off, you throw them in the air and the moment they touch the floor they are already perfectly folded. No more struggling with stubborn erratic creases, on floors on which some ugly guy has been dripping sweat like a stranded jellyfish: operation instantly completed in a neat and orderly fashion.
I dream of spray bogu. All in one bottle: you get into your (shape memory) hakama and kendogi and then you spray it onto yourself. It solidifies in a second - I still have to fantasise on how to remove it without too much hassle. Maybe it could melt in the shower?
Till I figure how to solve this little issue, I could be happy with mag-lev bogu bags, that follow you wherever you go.
None of this is going to happen soon, alas.
So we keep taking care of our hakama, folding them neatly, while spotting the cleanest section of the floor (I wear usually white or kinari). We remember the virtues of each fold and carry on. Far di necessita` virtu`, we say in Italy: make a virtue out of necessity - very appropriately, we make seven, in fact.
Trolley bags have brought already a notable improvement in bogu-carrying - a bit late maybe for my right shoulder that has strangely retained the mark of all the bogu bags of my life - shape memory shoulder?
Nevertheless, it is right to think of innovation in Kendo equipment. Maybe without going to the extremes (it would not be tolerated anyway, both by the governing bodies of Kendo and by kenshi themselves - who are, let me say, a pretty conservative bunch, as far as tradition and Japanness are concerned (I am in that bunch myself) - a degree of innovation though is necessary and welcome, also to make equipment safer and more accessible.
I can surely mention the Tornado-stitch® Kote, which are the new thing of the moment: I love the sturdiness of the futon and I like the spiralling of the stitching.
Still, although really new, they are still made of cotton, with a recognisable traditional look. Then how far can we go with innovation, in Kendo equipment, with Kote, to start with? We asked a number of inspired and willing kenshi to put their experience and their creativity together and see what would emerge.
We loved the results:
THE TURTLE KOTE, by Nathalie, Jeroen and Oliver
- removable padding (in purpose built pockets)
- titanium thread hexagonal pattern stitches (hence, the Turtle)
- Sorbothane padding in specific areas of the atama (Sorbothane is the brand name of a synthetic viscoelastic urethane polymer used as a shock absorber and vibration damper. It is manufactured by Sorbothane, Inc., based in Kent, Ohio.) See Wikipedia for further details
KOTETSU, by Xiaoxu, Ghaïs, Yiwen
Innovation comes in a bit more timidly in this Kote: very high quality, but traditional materials (from 10000 thread cotton, to deer hair for padding)
- anti bacterial treatment (Bioclean)
- diagonal stitching pattern
- striking contrast between indigo (in two tones) and yellow
- improved shape of the futon for extra comfort and ease of movement
- enhanced flexibility of the wrist joint
- reinforcement in the palm leather, in the traditionally hole-prone spots
WILD SPIRIT KOTE, by Maria, Giorgio, Jose and Tetsuro
Well, here we are treading on a completely new ground. That was the task of the Gone Wild Team, in fact.
Gone is the stitching.
Gone are the himo.
Gone is the traditional padding.
The purpose of this aggressive Kote is to be as unobtrusive as possible for hand movements, while being protective through completely innovative methods.
However, a longer futon seems to be a priority also in the 22nd century, where these Kote belong to.
The look is projected in the future, for authentic Bad Ass Kenshi - this is what your grandchildren will wear, put yourself at peace.
Wow, I cannot wait to see these beauties being made - the future has to start somewhere, and here we are.
Lovely writing for a dreaming and visionary piéce. But dreams & visions born to become reality, don't they?
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