Hutt Kendo Club

Hutt Kendo Club has instructors Liz Dutton and Sue Lytollis (5th dan) with a friendly group of people dedicated to studying ‘the way of the sword’ and the fine aspects of Japanese cultural tradition that embodies Kendo.  We are supported by many great charities and have in the last three years received support from the Hutt Minoh Friendship Trust; Pub Charity, Hutt Mana Charitable Trust, Pelorus Trust and the NZ Community Trust.

We practice between 7 – 8.30 each Monday for all students (except Public Holidays) and 7 – 9pm (for senior students) each Wednesday.  We hold beginners courses throughout the year but can discuss your desire to learn Kendo at any time of the year.  We also welcome visiting Kendoka from other Dojo throughout New Zealand and the world.

If you are wanting to know more about classes, whether you’re a seasoned Kendo-ka or a Beginner; or would just like further information, please contact:

Liz and Sue on (+64) 21 800 735 or (+64) 4 971 5080
or Amy on (+64) 21 138 4710

Alternatively flick an email to huttkendo@hotmail.com

We plan to hold our next beginners class from the 10th Oct 7pm – 9pm. Costs are $70 per person and for students/kids $40 for 8 weeks. We really look forward to seeing you there at our dojo which is in the gym at the back of Naenae College. Please view our website for directions.

Hope to see you on the 10th Oct, and if you have any friends who could be interested please encourage them to come along as well.

Sam Hauwaho, Steve Drysdale both gained shodan and Amy Orr gained nidan. Amy is the second nidan the club has grown. This is a huge achievement for us and shows the growing momentum in strength we have had over the last few years. Liz and Sue are extremely proud of the demonstration of correct kendo with great spirit shown by these Hutt Kendo Club members at the grading held at Auckland Dojo this past weekend. It is a humble reminder of the importance of correct training, with diligence, spirit and pushing yourself to always try to do your best under any circumstance. This is a reflection of how we strive to do this in our everyday lives and how kendo reflects the type of person that we are. Thank you Amy, Sam and Stevo for making Sue and I proud.

IPC have had Kendoka training at their wonderful gym ever since it opened many years ago, but finally they have developed an infrastructure to hold regular trainings and begin the important process of joining the New Zealand Kendo Federation.  Zoe Taylor (currently 1 kyu) alongside some other club members has taken a lead by approaching NZKF for support.  At the Auckland AGM in
August a proposal will be presented around Hutt Kendo Club assisting IPC as a satellite club.  To mark the relationship a day long seminar was held on Sunday July 17th.  A total of nine Hutt members made the two hour trip to Palmy and seven IPC players joined us for a rousing day of Kendo in their fabulous tailor made dojo.  Points covered included reigi, kihon, a mock grading and a pretty good shiai.  Good spirits abounded and Sam Hauwaho took out the title in a close fought match with Tapauru Brightwell.  It was notable in that two women, Amy and Aibi were in the top four to slug it out in this goodwill match.

Zoe summed it up in an email to us after the event.  “What a fantastic day we had today & I’m sure everyone thoroughly enjoyed it, I know I did! and we are really looking forward to inviting the Hutt Kendo Club back again a.s.a.p to train together or indeed, we’ll come down to Hutt one day.

Thank you very very much to Liz and Sue who made it all the way up here to help us, we really appreciate all of your help, advice, comments instructing and I’m hoping we’ll see alot more of it in the not too distant future. Let’s hope that we can join you for the August camp in Auckland. To everyone in the Hutt Kendo Club, if you’re ever in Palmerston North, please come and see us and you’re always welcome in our Dojo, I know everyone is now rather fond of the mirrors and Taiko haha.”

Click below to check out the photo gallery!

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Members of the Hutt Kendo Club took about 3000 pictures of their fabulous trip to Japan in April and May 2011.  Here is a medley of the best of the best, along with a trip report.

On May 2nd, Five members of the Hutt Kendo Club recently visited Japan to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the founding of the club by Liz Dutton and Sue Lytollis on May 4th 2001, or as Sue likes to remember it ‘May the 4th be with you.’ In early 2010 it was decided to mark the Hutt Kendo Clubs 10th anniversary with a trip to Japan. Various Japanese contacts known to Sue and Liz as well as officials from sister city Minoh helped create a very busy itinerary. The five members who elected to go were Sue, Liz, Amy Orr, Taps Brightwell and beginner Peter Van Rooyen.

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To celebrate the 10th anniversary of the formation of the Hutt Kendo Club five members will be visiting Japan this month.  They are Instructors Liz Dutton and Sue Lytollis and members Amy Orr, Taps Brightwell and Peter Van Rooyen.  “Sadly we were going to spend a week in Tokyo visiting our good friends at Shinjuku dojo, but due to the quake and power cuts in Tokyo much of the Kendo is on hold especially in April,” says Liz.

Rather than be put off travelling to Japan the club was determined to go and rescheduled to meet up with friends in Osaka, Kansai and Fukuoka and to attend the famous Golden Week Kendo Taikai in Kyoto.  During this famous event where Sensei from 6th dan fight each other and where you often see Naginata Sensei fighting with Kendo sensei, the club  will celebrate it’s 10th anniversary on Wednesday May 4th at Hashiba Restaurant in Kyoto.

“We have a full schedule, Japanese style,” says Liz.  Some of the non Kendo activities the club will experience are attending a Kabuki theatre show; experiencing a tea ceremony lesson; visiting Kawatsuru Brewery on Shikoku Island and the worlds largest Aquarium in Osaka.  “We are having an official visit to Minoh, our sister city with Hutt and having a homestay with Minoh people,” says Liz.  The team hopes to encourage Minoh people to come and visit Hutt City and the Wellington region.  The will also experience a Kendo exchange with Amagasaki city and visit Nara, Hiroshima and spend time in Fukuoka City as a guest of the famous 8th dan Sumi Sensei.