05/19/2026
Over three-hundred years of traditional samurai sword tradition came to life on Saturday, May 16, 2026, at the Jewish Community Center in Utica, New York, when Headmaster Clifford C. Crandall, Jr. taught the second-annual Iaido-Batto-Kendo Workshop. Assisted by iaido Kyoshi Nathan Morris and kendo Kyoshi Nicholas Chuff, Headmaster Crandall presented five hours of topics related to aspects of sword training from the Takenouchi-Hangan-Ryu-Matsuno-Crandall iaido-batto-do and Americanized Eagle Kendo styles.
Thirteen students from across New York State, Virginia, and South Carolina participated in a variety of topics. Some of the areas presented included iaido and kendo moving stances, iaido and kendo moving postures (shikake and oji-waze), iaido muto dori (disarming a person with a sword), kome kata, three-point sparring with shinai, kumitachi, and a team cutting (batto) competition.
All participants were provided with a workshop informational booklet which allowed for note-taking during or after presentations. More pictures and details will be available at AMAI-EagleStyle.com later this week. Thank you to Vincent Siegfried for taking pictures of the event.