Ron Tisdale

Hi Ernesto, good to see you posting here.

I don't think I have a good answer for you, but some brief thoughts...

One thing I look for is someone who is clearly stronger physically than I am. Someone who can push me around a bit, block my thows and movement using strength, and sometimes who is significantly larger than I am. Kokyu-ho dosa is definately one of the best places to try this. But even in other dosa I find the opportunity to test myself. One hand grasp, 180 or 95 degree pivot is one place that is also used in many waza. Can I control when and how I pivot? Can I re-direct enough of my partner's power so that *I* chose the timing, rather than having it forced on me? If someone is vastly stronger and is holding rather than pushing, can I still capture their center, break their balance, and have them move with me on the pivot, rather than leaving them behind?

This movement is used in many waza, and by working on these things in the dosa, it is then simply (Ha!) a matter of doing in increasingly "live" situations while applying kata/waza.

I'll think some about something like say ikkajo, and reply more later.

Best,
Ron (excellent question)