The annual NASKA Summer Camps keep getting better and better. Congratulation to Dave Morgan for orchestrating this year's very successful event, and also to everyone that contributed and attended. A special thanks goes, of course, to our Chief Instructor Sakurai Sensei, who never fails to motivate us to find that last ounce of effort for one more good technique.

This year's location, Camp Elphinstone, provided unbeatable training facilities kina spectacular environment. Both the outdoor and indoor areas overlooked the ocean with the mountains as a backdrop. And the weather co-operated! (How did you manage that, Dave?). To top it off, the food was great, and the dining venue and accommodations were super. The general consensus was that this is the site of choice for next year's camp.

As usual, the training was first rate. There were classes for every taste, some with the accent on Kumite and others with more focus on Kata. A treat in Kumite class came in the form of demonstrations of various combinations put on by some of Black Belt members. Perhaps the most inspiring, in terms of blazing speed and execution, were performed by Sharp Sensei and Deschatelets Sensei from Quebec. Both are members of the Canadian JKA Team.

Two general favourites were the B&B and a special class featuring self-defense. The B&B was devoted to the Sentei Katas, which provided a great opportunity for Brown Belt members to polish their tokui Kata under the watchful eyes of Sakurai Sensei and the Technical Committee. The self-defense session was really special in that family and friends were invited to join the class. To close the class, Sensei arranged for police officer James Flewelling to talk to us about the legal aspects of the use of force in defending oneself. It is not a simple issue and James did a great job of getting that point across.

Summer Camp provides a unique opportunity to socialize with other NASKA members and to generally have fun. This year there were events ranging from a bonfire by the beach to having your head shaved by Gene the Barber. Bene only had one taker despite the fact that the result looked pretty good. Incidentally, no one was late for class after the announcement that the penalty for tardiness would be a visit to Gene's shaving chair. The ladies of NASKA, not wanting to be upstaged in the hair fashion department, showed up for training in pigtails.

On Sunday, Sakurai Sensei formally announced the appointment of Sensei Lloyd Hooper to the NASKA Technical Committee. Congratulations Sensei Hooper.

If you didn't make the camp this year, you missed a very good time and some wonderful training. I urge you to plan for it next year. If you did attend then you know what I’m talking about and I know I'll see you at NASKA Camp 2OOO.

By Peter Veness
Champlain Heights

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