Thursday night for the average college student involves an evening of bar hopping. A different group of UB students sport a suit of armor and a sword to fight for their honor.
Founded only three years ago, the UB Kendo Club was as new as its members. Now, the club has enough experience to compete against the clubs from Harvard and Yale, as well as in tournaments across the country, according to Sam Capiello, a fourth degree black belt and one of the club's original founders.
The club meets Thursdays from 6 to 7:30 p.m. in the triple gym in Alumni Arena, and Sundays from 6:30 to 8 p.m. in Alumni's dance room.
"Kendo is my time to forget about everything else going on at school and work and just work on improving my technique," said Billy Borowski, a freshman economics major. "Most importantly, it's how I de-stress on a Thursday night."
Kendo is Japanese fencing and literally means "the way of the sword." A member of the martial arts family, it is as popular in Japan as football is in America.
"Kendo is intense in spirit," said Hiroaki Kimura, another founder of the Buffalo Kendo Club and a fourth degree black belt. "It's less physical than Karate and Tae Kwon Do, but you must mentally stay sharp."
Staying mentally sharp enough to tackle homework assignments when there are millions of distractions is half the struggle with school, but Kendo can improve concentration. And unlike most martial arts, Kendo is more of a lifestyle and can help students with setting and achieving goals, Capiello said.
Kendo is a combination of breathing exercises, meditation, tradition and sparring. To signal the start of a match, students crouch and simultaneously draw their swords. Students exhale and shout as they lunge towards their opponent. What sounds like a lot of shouting is really students calling out the points they scored.
Returning back to the original position, the students acknowledge who scored, and prepare to spar again. When it comes time to rotate, partners face each other and bow.
"Kendo is a very traditional martial art, so showing respect to your partner or opponent is very important," said Kenji Kimura, an instructor with a third degree black belt and co-founder of the club.
The UB Kendo Club ranges between 20 and 40 members and they are always accepting new members.
"Try it, the worst thing that could happen is you don't like it," said Kenji Kimura. "Most people are nervous their first couple classes, but then they realize it is fun to yell and hit other people with the shinai."
Newcomers can practice with shinais, bamboo practice swords, which are provided by the club. If they decide to keep coming to the meetings, they are required to purchase their own shinai, either online or through an instructor.
"They don't pressure you to buy your own equipment or anything," said Borowski, who bought his own shinai after three months. "They are very accommodating to beginners."
Walking into a Kendo practice and seeing the more advanced members in full armor perfecting challenging moves may seem overwhelming, but Kendo is a fun, fulfilling way to spend a Thursday night.
"Kendo is lots of learning," said Tim Thomann, a sophomore business major, who was interested in Kendo because of its combination of sport and culture. "Students should be fine by the third class."
Chris Pokrandt, a freshman electrical engineering major said the advanced players are very helpful, not intimidating towards new members. They even provide constructive criticism, which is vital for improvement.
Kendo was developed to train samurai without getting hurt by swords, said Kenji Kimura. Historically, samurai were men, but the UB Kendo Club is open to men and women. There are no separate categories for men and women or for different age groups. A reason for this is because students need to spar all different levels of opponents in order to improve.
"The best part about Kendo is that anyone can play. Your body is covered in armor and there is a four foot long stick in between people," said Hiroaki Kimura.
Rich with tradition and discipline, Kendo improves the lives of members, but it is not so serious all the time.
"Kendo is awesome," said Borowski. "When else is it acceptable to smack people on the head with a sword?"
For more information on meeting dates and times, visit ubkendoclub.com.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
