5 years ago I started Iaido which was a little late in my life but I have been practicing Shotokan karate for over 2 decades so I had a martial mindset already instilled in me when I first started.

My first dojo was the Ken-Zen dojo in Manhattan NYC with Pam Parker Sensei, I was living in New Jersey at the time. When I moved back to Canada I already knew many of the Canadian Team because when they competed in the East Coast Regional (which I always attended in my short Iaido experience) they always did very well in the taikai.

For the 2020 EC taikai, I am focusing on keeping my posture from slouching, my head up straight and keeping my cuts big and powerful. It will be, for me, an interesting experience to go back to the ECR as part of the Canadian Team. Although we are all part of the great Iaido family, competition between Canada and USA always brings out a rivalry between competitors.

Hopefully my US Iaido friends still stay friendly to me.