Chapter Eight – First Trip on Aldie

As Gary had explained, ‘You can’t crew if you can’t cook.’ But first Matt would complete his training drills. He’d been doing them every morning and every night and did not want to miss a single session, just in case Gary asked. Once finished, he wiped himself down with a flannel and put on some clean clothes. He could not use the bathroom in the house without waking Bill and Jane, which definitely would not be a good idea early on a Saturday morning. Matt walked purposefully across town and along the river bank. He loved the feeling of walking after doing his drills. He enjoyed the spring in his step and the feeling of being ready for anything. As Matt approached Eldie he could see Gary reclining on a seat, looking across the harbour.

“Morning,” called Matt quietly.

“Good morning to you too,” replied Gary as he turned around. “Climb aboard and have a seat.”

Matt felt the boat move gently as he stepped aboard.

“The only thing I’ve done is get these squabs out,” said Gary, while tapping the bench seat he was sitting on. “They live under here. So what’s the most important thing with boating?” asked Gary with a smile.

“Catch a fish?” asked Matt hopefully.

“Excellent guess, but not quite what I was looking for. I’ll give you a hint. It’s the same thing for when driving a car, using a chainsaw, having sex or meeting your prospective father in law for the first time.”

Matt looked around as if hoping to see a clue. “No idea.”

Gary smiled back. “Safety,” he said, “it’s safety. I haven’t done one thing to prep the boat. You’re going to do it. The best way to learn is by doing. Just like karate or playing the piano, you don’t learn much until you give it a go.” Gary reached into his pocket and held out his hand. “Here are the keys. Unlock the door and let’s get started by getting the little things right. Always latch the door so it doesn’t bang around. Never throw keys or anything else, always pass them carefully so they don’t go overboard. If you take a look at the shelf on your right you’ll find some laminated sheets. Let’s take a look at those.”

Matt pulled out the sheets, the first one was headed ‘Every Time’, the next one ‘Every Now and Then’.

“Okay, let’s start with the Every Time list. You read them out and I will show you how to do the checks.” Gary and Matt spent the next thirty minutes going carefully through the list with Gary explaining why each check was important and how to do it.

“Reckon you could do them on your own next time?” asked Gary.

Matt looked down at the list. “I think so,” he said.

“Do you think you could do them without a list?”

Matt looked down at the list, it was quite long. “Nope, not a chance.”

“Excellent answer. For everything that matters, make a list, use the list. Checklists are gold, Matt, never forget this. Let’s do one thing on your other list, pick one.”

Matt looked down the list for something interesting. “Verify bilge pump operation,” he suggested.

“Good choice. The bilge pump should be working all the time, just in case of a leak. Do you remember where it is?”

“Yep,” said Matt pointing to the floor.

“Great, lift off the cover and come and get a bucket of water.”

Matt carefully lifted the bilge covers and put them to one side before heading to the back of the boat where Gary was waiting. Gary passed him a bucket on a rope. Matt dipped the bucket in the water and pulled it along to fill it up. He carried the bucket inside and under Gary’s guidance tipped the water into the bilge alongside the pump. The pump burst into action and the water was gone in a few seconds. Gary clapped his hands. “Looks good to me, mop up the drips and we’ll make a plan.” Matt dried out the bilge with a towel from a locker called ‘Old stinky towels’, replaced the floorboards and sat by Gary.

“I was thinking,” said Gary, “that we should have breakfast at sea. That way you can learn how to drive the boat.” Gary carefully explained the departure process and asked Matt to explain it back to him. Once Gary was confident that Matt understood he directed him to the bow of the boat to cast off. The boat eased out of the berth very slowly and as planned, which Gary had explained it should, given there was no wind. Wind, he assured Matt, changed everything. As they slowly chugged out of the marina Gary explained the reason for making a radio call outlining their intentions. Matt was not surprised to find there were laminated checklists for this too. Once clear of the marina Gary bumped up the throttle slightly and called to Matt, “All yours.”

Matt cautiously steered the boat down the harbour and out to sea, sticking to the right-hand side of the channel as instructed. Once at sea the boat began to gently rise and fall with the swell.

“When we’re clear of the entrance, turn her to starboard,” said Gary, pointing to his right. “We’ll head a couple of kms up the coast to get clear of other boats.” Gary sat down and made himself comfortable in the sun. After about fifteen minutes Gary walked back to Matt. “Okay, this should do it. Pull the throttle back, pop her into neutral. Great, now you can flick the engine off. Breakfast time!” exclaimed Gary as he rubbed his hands together. “It’s very quiet, so no need to anchor. Let’s go.”

Again Gary took his time to carefully explain how to fire up the stovetop and cook breakfast. But he did nothing. Matt did his best to follow the instructions, he found some things a bit tricky though. The eggs in particular looked a bit messed up.

“Marvellous,” declared Gary as they sat down to eat. “Nothing tastes better than a cooked breakfast, on a boat, on a summer’s morning.” While eating Gary explained how the boat had been a project that had begun with Liam. It turned out that Liam had created the checklists and put the interesting names on the cupboards.

“Do you think you’re up to starting her up and heading back?” asked Gary.

“Yep.”

“Okay, finish this up and we will head back,” said Gary as he emptied the rest of the food onto Matt’s plate. “Training hard is only part of the puzzle, eating your way there is important too. You can’t build muscle with air and water, or fizz and fat.”

Matt had never eaten so much in his life, but he liked it. Gary instructed Matt to go and sit in the sun while he tidied up. “Cooks never clean,” he declared. When the clattering in the kitchen came to an end Gary called out, “She’s all yours again, take us back, skipper.”

Matt started the motor, put it into gear and gently pushed the throttle forward and off they went. Gary took control as they entered the marina and slowed the boat to a walking pace. “If you go slow enough, accidents can be quite fun,” he joked to Matt as they approached the berth.

Matt attached the ropes as instructed and sure enough, they berthed without incident. Gary gave Matt a thumbs up signal. “What a great landing, you’ll be doing this on your own soon.”

Matt went through the shutdown checklist while Gary looked on. “Awesome, Matt. All good for training at ten tomorrow morning?”

“Yep.”

Gary patted Matt on the back and headed to his ute.

Matt walked briskly to Jed’s house. He couldn’t wait to tell him about training, the boat trip and importantly, to fill him in about the girls at the lake. Matt had told Jed a little about the lake trip over the phone and surprised himself about how calm he’d been. Jed had been hysterical. He kept screaming ‘Whaaaaat?’ and wanted all the details. Jed’s excitement reminded Matt just how eventful the last week had been.

The next morning Matt set about preparing for training according to Dylan’s instructions. Eat plenty, but at least two hours before leaving and drink plenty, but only water. He had not asked Gary why training was in the morning this time, but now he wondered. To date, all the training sessions had been at four in the afternoon which suited Matt perfectly. He could pedal home, have a shower, eat and go to bed, as invariably he would be dead tired. The rides to Gary’s farm were getting easier. Matt was not getting much quicker it seemed, but he was arriving in better shape, in that he could still walk. He had, encouraged by Dylan, started to ride his bike at every opportunity. Matt had even started to choose longer ways to get around town and traversing a hill whenever possible, all in the pursuit of getting stronger and fitter. When Matt arrived at the farm he noticed another bike in the shed. Then the unmistakable sounds of talking in the dojo. He would not be alone today it seemed. Matt saw a glimpse of Gary as he walked to the shower, but didn’t see who else was with him. He pondered this while showering. What was going to happen today? Once in his clean clothes, he entered the dojo and waited at the side of the training mats. The boy training with Gary was a bit older than Matt. He had a green belt on and to Matt’s eye looked pretty sharp. He also looked fit and strong. He had long neat hair and Matt could tell immediately that he would be one of the cool boys at his school. They paused, Gary turned to Matt and waved him over.

“Matt, meet Ricky.”

Ricky bowed and Matt bowed back. Gary indicated they should all kneel. “It’s time to start training with someone closer to your own size, Matt. It’s also time to have a target in mind that is realistic in the medium term. If, as a thirteen-year-old, you wish to be an All Black, the first step is to be a good fourteen and under player, then sixteen and under, then nineteen and under. You cannot just join the All Blacks. Ricky is two years ahead of you at school and karate. He goes to the school you’ll be starting next year. So this is a chance to start next year with a friendship in the bank. I would like you to look closely at Ricky and to set your sights on getting to where he is now, as fast as you can. So we’ll run through some drills, kata and bag work. Please watch Ricky closely.”

Gary looked at Ricky, leaned forward and squinted. “Now, Ricky, don’t get stage fright and make this too easy for Matt, or make me look like a bad instructor.”

“Hai, sensei,” replied Ricky with a smile. He turned to Matt and raised his eyebrows in a welcoming way.

“Matt. Ricky knows the rules of partner training and you’ve heard them once, but let’s be sure. The goal of training together is that BOTH participants learn. The goal is not to dominate and crush our partners. We push each other along and make it real. If we want to have effective blocks, we need to practice with real punches. But if a block fails we don’t push through and smash some ribs. Understand?”

“Hai,” replied Matt.

They stood up and started going through the usual drills. At the end of each drill, Gary instructed Ricky to do another set for Matt to observe. It was very clear to Matt that he had a lot of improving to do before he caught up with Ricky.

“Good,” said Gary when they finished the drills. “Face each other, rei.”

Matt and Ricky bowed to each other.

“Now each of you put your left hand on the other’s right shoulder. Now put your right hand on the other’s left arm from the outside, just above the elbow. That looks good. Matt, try and push Ricky around a little bit, make sure you have a firm grip.”

Matt rather gingerly tried to push Ricky backwards, but he did not budge.

“Ricky, give Matt a nudge.”

Ricky immediately pushed Matt backwards off balance and just as Matt put his foot back to steady himself, Ricky pulled him forward. He would have hit the floor if Ricky had not held him up.

“That’s what we are after, give it another go, Matt,” urged Gary.

This time Matt gave a sudden push as hard as he could and just managed to push Ricky back, but Ricky very quickly regained his balance and Matt could not move him again. “Good effort, Matt, but Ricky is taller, heavier and stronger. If it comes down to brute strength he will always win. Let’s look at other options.” Gary stepped in front of Matt. “Stand in a short strong stance like this.” Gary placed his hands on Matt’s shoulders. “Be as strong as you can, do not let me move you.” Gary pushed Matt forward and backwards. Not too hard, but hard enough that Matt had to strain to hold his ground. “Okay, so forward and backward is strong. What about rotation?” Gary twisted Matt’s shoulders, again he held firm. “Hmmm. That seems pretty strong too. So I won’t try that in a fight. Let’s try this.” Then with the lightest of touches, Matt fell forward. Gary let him get his balance, immediately Matt fell backwards. “Ahhh, something seems to be working. Let’s see what’s happening. Let me show you using Ricky.”

Gary put his hands on Ricky’s shoulders. “Make yourself strong.” Ricky dropped his hips low into his stance, with his left foot forward. “Now if I push forward, backward, twist, he’s just too strong for me.” Gary looked at Matt to get his attention and pointed to the floor. “But look at his feet. What if I push in a direction perpendicular to the line between his feet.”

Ricky stumbled. “This is like pushing a bicycle from the side, it just falls over. Now Ricky, same again, but this time resist.”

“Hai, sensei,” replied Ricky in a strong, determined voice. This time as Gary pulled Ricky off balance he immediately stepped and made his stance strong.

“Okay,” said Gary, “it seems we need to do better. It is just too easy for Ricky to counter this approach by stepping.” Gary grabbed Ricky’s shoulders again and Ricky dropped his hips and stiffened his body. But no matter what he did he fell forward, backwards and sideways.

“This is better,” said Gary, “we seemed to have stumbled onto something. Let’s take a closer look.” Gary grabbed Matt’s shoulders again. “Now feel your feet. If I simply push you perpendicular to the line between your feet can you step?”

“Hai,” Matt replied as Gary gently pushed him from side to side. Matt found he could easily step to regain his balance as Gary pushed him back and forth.

“What’s different now?” asked Gary as Matt fell forward. “Or now?” as Matt fell backwards.

Matt looked down at his feet which had just failed him, he had no idea.

“I will show you,” said Gary. “Put your left foot forward, now make yourself strong. This time I will hold your left shoulder still, but pull your right shoulder around, using your left shoulder as a hinge. Feel that?”

“Hai.”

“Let’s try that again. This time try stepping to keep your balance. Ready?”

“Hai.”

Gary pulled Matt off balance and Matt easily stepped with his back foot to keep balance. “Okay, let’s do that five times,” suggested Gary. “Awesome, you have this sorted. Now just one more time.”

This time though Matt fell forward. “Hey, what happened?” said Gary. ‘Let’s try a few more times.” Now Matt fell forward each time, he could not get his balance no matter how much he tried.

“What’s gone wrong here?” asked Gary. “Any ideas.’

Matt shook his head.

“Well, let’s take a closer look”. Gary indicated to Ricky to step forward and he put his hands on Ricky’s shoulders. “Now watch closely. Put your left foot forward and set,” instructed Gary. “Now I hold the left shoulder steady and turn the right shoulder forward in an arc and look, Ricky can step around. Let’s do that again. This time as I turn the right shoulder around, I slightly tip Ricky to his left and what happens? Look at his right foot! It’s in the air and he can’t step with it. He needs it for balance. With his right foot in the air, he cannot step with his left foot. He’s doomed.” Gary looked at Matt. “Do you understand?”

“Hai.”

“If fighting was only about strength you could stop karate right now and go to the gym instead. Strength is important, but technique and strategy are more important. Take turns moving each other around, practice what you have been shown. Ricky, you can give advice as you see fit. You have five minutes.”

“Hai, sensei,” said Ricky loudly and strongly.

Ricky faced Matt and bowed, Matt bowed back and they started the drill. Back and forth they went with Ricky easily and relentlessly throwing Matt around. Matt tried to push Ricky off balance, but could only manage it when Ricky coached him and cooperated. Matt could feel himself being totally outmuscled and outmanoeuvred. He could also feel his arms and back tiring quickly. Five minutes had never seemed so long. Matt was relieved when Gary called for them to bow and take a break. He indicated they should kneel and again they knelt facing each other.

Gary looked directly and intently at Matt. “Why do you want to do karate, Matt?”

Matt had thought a lot about this since Gary first raised it. He knew he would be asked again. “So I can look after myself and those around me. So people can feel safe around me.”

Gary nodded and looked at Matt in silence for a few moments. “That’s a very good reason to do karate, Matt. But it comes with some very hard decisions. You’ll need to make these decisions in a fraction of a second. Understand?”
“Hai,” replied Matt, though he was not that sure.

Gary nodded. “Tell me what to do, Matt. I’m walking through town, it’s midnight on a Friday. It’s summer, there has been a lot of drinking going on. I hear a man yelling and a woman screaming. When I get closer I can see a man holding a woman by the hair. They are both drunk. The man is slapping the woman hard, very hard. There are drunk guys standing around and they don’t seem to care. I walk over, ‘Hey, leave her alone.’ I get told to leave, impolitely. A couple of guys step in to block me. I bump them out the way. ‘Let her go,’ I say. There is much anger, yelling and swearing. I am now in the face of the man. I see the woman up close, she has a badly bruised face. He throws a punch at me. I take him to the ground.”

Gary grabbed Ricky and very roughly threw him onto the mat, standing over him. “I’m holding his arm like this.” Gary’s voice was now much louder, his face intense. “He’s screaming and fighting. He says he’s going to kill me. He looks like he means it. The others are circling.” Gary was now dragging Ricky aggressively around on the ground, with one arm poised in a punch above Ricky’s head. Ricky looked scared. “They’re about to attack.” Gary was yelling now. He looked fierce. The hair on Matt’s neck and head stood up, his chest was tight. Matt was scared, what was happening?

“What do I do, Matt? What do I do? QUICKLY, THEY ARE ATTACKING.” Gary was screaming and glaring at Matt.

“HIT HIM,” Matt yelled, “HIT HIM”.

Matt’s eyes were welling up, his breathing was rapid and shallow. Why was Gary being so frightening? Gary nodded. He sat Ricky up and gave him a pat on the back. Matt could see Ricky was shaken too. They were again all kneeling together. Ricky looked down at his knees with a slightly shocked look on his face.

“It’s okay, Matt. It’s okay,” said Gary slowly and calmly. “I did hit him. I hit him very hard and it was the biggest mistake of my life. He died.”

There was silence.

Gary continued. “For me, it was manslaughter, not murder. For the victim, it was a life sentence. For his whanau, it was a life sentence.”

Gary sat quietly looking at Matt. “It changed my life. No more karate in town. No more rugby. I left town, worked overseas for a few years and bought this little farm when I came back. There have been no winners, Matt. Only pain and regret.”

Gary moved closer to Matt and put his hand on his shoulder. “I wanted to be the protector, Matt. Just like you do. But I messed up. Whatever else you learn from me, first learn from this mistake.”

Gary stood up. “Thirty, twenty, ten. Let’s go.” And with that they were off. As hard as Matt tried, there was no way he could keep up with Ricky and Ricky could not keep up with Gary. When the training session was complete. Gary indicated for Matt to stay behind for a few moments.

“Matt, two things. First I want to give Ricky a head start so you don’t feel bad about being left behind. He’s very fast and he has the flashest bike I’ve ever seen a kid with. Secondly, I was wondering if you would like to earn some pocket money and help me out on the farm?”

“Hai,” said Matt immediately, he felt very excited about working on the farm.

“I’ll need to clear this with your father first and by the way, the hai stops the second training stops.”

“Yep,” Matt replied.

Gary stepped forward and put his hands on Matt’s shoulders. “Sorry to give you a fright today. However, this is a very important lesson.” Gary dropped his head a little and looked into Matt’s eyes. “You’re a good kid, Matt. We’re looking out for you.”

Matt nodded. Gary pulled him close and hugged him. “Good, now go try and catch Ricky.”

Matt knew he had no hope of catching Ricky, but he also now knew he could be seen for a while. With this in mind, he pushed hard on the long straight section of road leading away from the farm. There was one thought occupying his mind though. Who was looking out for him, who was the ‘we’ Gary had referred to?

“Been waiting for ya.” Matt looked up, it was Ricky.

“Thought we could ride back together,” he said.

“Cool,” replied Matt, “thanks.”