Swords and Guns? Really?
Iaijutsu and firearms training are not two things that you would necessarily think would have a lot in common. I wouldn’t have done before lockdown. Not being able to teach during lockdown has given me the time to do the other thing I love to do, learn stuff.
I was introduced to Brett who runs Viking Combatives and GROM UK. It is GROM that teaches firearms, and teaches it like a martial art.
And in that I found some many similarities to Iaijutsu. I have been training with pistol and rifle for this last year off and on and each time we cover something new, I immediately see parallels with our MJER practice. Brett and I frequently discuss this as I now teach their Iaijutsu study group over ZOOM. The students there see it too.
So once we are out of lockdown proper, we will be introducing GROM into the training curriculum properly for over 18 students, who wish to come and learn firearms. Be warned, the craft that Brett teaches will ruin most cop dramas and war films for you. In the UK we use Airsoft equipment. We use imitation replica firearms based on actual weaponry also we can easily transfer skills to live weapons if you decide to come on firing trips.
Interestingly, in the US, they have had a recent Ammo shortage, and lots of instructors there have switched people to dry firing or airsoft to keep skills from perishing. So we know we are onto the right thing.
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