Utah Judo Class March 18th: Working the Osoto Gari
Judo class was really great last night. Unfortunately I was only able to make it for one of the two hours, but still it was very worthwhile. We worked a bunch on the Osoto Gari , a common Judo move. The problem with the Osoto Gari is that it is common enough that people tend to expect it, and defend well against it. So what we worked on was not only the finesse of the move itself, but also how to set up for the move, and what to do when you miss. I am finding these aspects of Judo are at least as important as the move itself. I hate to tie up with a person… I prefer to keep pushing their hands off of me so I can come in with an attack that I prefer in the way I want. But when that fails as well, it’s good to know what to try as your “next” move rather than just standing their thinking, “crap… that didn’t work at all.”
We worked a bit on going into a head-throw type of move (slightly different than the head throw, but essentially the same) once you miss the Osoto Gari. This worked fine in practice, but having missed the Osoto a few times in Randori (sparring), I tend to prefer a Makikomi move as a next step… guess it comes down to what works for you.
I remember in wrestling back in high school, I had one or two favorite moves from each position… moves that just felt right, and worked for me. Judo is much the same.
I also sparred a bit wit Sheldon. Sheldon does Judo and JiuJitsu. His ground game is really nasty. I think my biggest weakness on the ground is still that I think for a moment before acting. Sheldon definitely did not, and arm barred me really nice. It’s really neat to work with the different people to different sizes, where each has different strengths to learn to deal with.
I also sparred with Mike (our instructor) a bit. Mike’s a big guy… much taller, heavier, and stronger than me (not to mention aout a hundred zillion times better at Judo.) had a really tough time doing much of anything. Anyone got suggestions for moves that seem to work well against a much bigger, much stronger opponent? On the streets I would probably opt for the tried and true “kick him in the crotch and run like hell” maneuver, but I don’t think it would have gone over well in class.
I would go for chinese blinding dust in the eyes.
Sean,
I think what you are thinking of is perhaps the “ninja smoke ball”. I used to carry several of these for just such an occasion, but it’s a bugger when you forget they’re in your pocket and they end up going through the wash. I was thinking another possible technique might be to fall down and play dead… then when he bends down to check, at least you can pull guard.