Guild Seminar in Tilburg 2005
Tilburg Seminar:
From the dense fog of dark ancient times they rose to march to the vast plains of......well this would be a good start for a novel. However it turned out to be a foggy Friday morning in Tilburg at the day that Jonathan and Kristina Waller would arrive at the Eindhoven airport (30 minutes drive from Tilburg). A staff fighting seminar was to be hosted and a lot of work needed to be done, check the number of staffs, reservations for training venue, a pick up from the airport, check for food and drinks for lunch etc. etc.
Friday night
As per usual we met in a bar to socialize and have a laugh and say which is a good Guild tradition.This bar is basically occupied by members of the Tilburg Chapter at Friday night, that's why we chose this one. The inhabitants of the Guild madhouse were present. Everybody talked about different things and of course the seminar. And the hotel resembling the infamous Fawlty Towers (John Cleese; for deatils ask Jonathan), or worse.
It was an international mix of people attending the seminar. We had a Danish delegation, Germans, English, Dutch and from Belgium. If it wasn't for the French half of Europe was represented there.
Saturday
A chaptermasters day starts early at seminars, Pick up the staffs, training gear, administration case and buy lunch for the whole bunch.
The first day Jonathan and Kristina started slowly gradually putting up the speed. We started out with basic staff maneuvers and concepts. and later worked into details. A lot of stress was placed on footwork and outmaneuvering. The lunchbrake was welcome. After lunch there was more practice and partner drills, and still stress placed on footwork. Later disarms and throws came in. Off course a few staffs broke in half so they could do service as escrima sticks ;-)
At the end of the day everybody is lady and gentleman, so dressed up for dinner in town and a good bottle of wine too.
And yes the ladies present were dressed in the latest fashion, not to forget the sharp dressed gentlemen.
Sunday
This day started earlier for the poor chaptermaster, especially due to the drinks the night before and the obligation to take care of the guests. Driving to Belgium on a Sunday morning to buy good lunch for Guild people is a task nicely done but difficult at Sundaymorning. Mission accomplished and off to the training venue.
There we continued training, we repeated a bit, and started working on the angles of attack and maintaining the pressure and thereby creating gaps in enemy's defenses., and strike!
The weather was good and it was decided to train outside in the sun, there we went into different excercises and later did a sensitivity excercise. This with Stephan and Mikkel feeling each other out to the bone, none was given and none was taken, true warrior spirit.
And all good things come to an end, we had to let Jonathan and Kristina go back to London again. Even an attempt to bribe them into staying failed. But if we behaved they might return. Well.....our new Liquorice master might, just might, attempt a new bribe....
They had to leave for London.
Alltogether I would say that this first seminar went well. Though there was room for improvement, Murphy's Law struck at least twice, the greater part went as planned. This was the testcase, I would say up to the next seminar and better than the first.
And Above All Honour,
Bert Bruijnen
Chaptermaster Tilburg, Netherlands