Close Quarter Battle Course

I've spent the last week training with Geoff 'Tank' Todd in his Phase 1 Close Quarter Battle system. This is a system of unarmed close combat derived from European military systems, such as those taught to Allied Service people in the Second World War. This system was pioneered by the likes of Fairbairn, Sykes, Applegate, Biddle, Nelson and others, and taught to the shadow warriors of the Special Operations Executive, OSS, Commando squads and other similar groups. More about this system can be found here.

Monday through Thursday was basic skills development, with Friday being spent on Test Preparation and the Phase Test.

The course initially covered basic options for Unarmed Offense and Counter-Offense, including long and short range options. In line with Tank's philosophy of 'take 'em out, don't take 'em on' this methods are designed to end a fight quickly and decisively. We followed on with contigency options, in case you fail to take out the opponent with your primary options. These included techniques for quickly ending a stalemate situation. Favoured techniques are those found in books such as 'Kill or be Killed', 'Do or Die', 'Get Tough', 'Defendu', 'The Red and Gray Manuals' & US Military Field Manuals on Combatives.

The system appears simple on the surface, but is designed to be reliable under extreme stress. Range is crucial, as is a correct mindset, use of vision, and control over breathing and heart rate.

Also covered were edged and blunt weapon disarming, both when the opponent presents the weapon and then swings or stabs, and when you find yourself held at knife point or pinned with a blunt weapon (ambush phase attacks).

Hold Prevention and Hold Escapes were covered. In hold prevention you don't let the opponent grab you. With hold escapes, you've stuffed up and been grabbed in a hold such as a full nelson, hammer lock, sleeper hold, headlock, bear hug, etc, and must now escape this hold. All responses are based on those learned in the Offensive and Counter Offensive phase. This is the great strength of the Todd System, it is cohesive and logical. It relies on dirty fighting, from a sound technical base.

The tone of the seminar is very military, with techniques being performed to command in a method reminiscient of my Army Basic Training. This method did seem to increase retention, even if you didn't feel you were retaining it at the time. But this training always feels that way to me.

Lastly we moved into Combat Milling (sort of sparring, but with no 'in-out' invloved. Geoff said sparring is too sport-oriented and against the ethos of CQB. For those familiar with Kapap, Combat Milling embraces the concept of Kadeema) and the free fighting aspects.

The Course started with about 28 participants, including Security professionals, Police from a number of States and Countries, Martial Art and Self Defense Instructors, and Civilians; but within the first couple of days, some had decided that CQB wasn't for them. By Friday afternoon, all but 8, having been warned of the intense nature of the Testing Phase and the high level of perfection required to pass, had elected not to test at this time. I think many were put off by the footage we were shown of previous tests.

The Eight Testees (not to be confused with 8 Testis which would be just plain weird) began testing late Friday afternoon, after a full day of intensive preparation.

The test phase started with a 'Combat Sickener', designed to rattle and fatigue the participants and test thier determination and 'intestinal fortitude', as Tank would say. Then all of the aforemention skills were tested and graded on a scale of 1 - 5, with anything less than a 4 being not good enough to pass. The Knife Disarms were done with a live (and very sharp) blade, with the course Doctor on standby (as he was for the entire course). The Knife used was Tank's Green Role Knife, which can be seen here.

By the end of the skills testing, Tank told us that only three of the eight of us had not already failed. When he read out my name, I was stoked, being sure I'd already failed. I had decided sometime earlier that I would keep going with the testing phase until told to stop. These participants were told they could still participate in the combat phase of the testing, but should take five minutes to weigh up whether the risk of serious injury was worth it, knowing they had already failed. Many participants had already been injured by this time.

All but one of them decided not to continue, which left only four of us (none of whom were the big guys and one of whomwas a lady). We then proceed to fight each other participant in continuous rounds. upon completion of these fights, we were told we had not yet sufficiently internalised the skills and mentality of CQB. The testing phase was now over, yielding a 100% failure rate. Some participants appeared sad or pissed off, I just felt elated that I had pushed my self to go on and had gotten that far. I asked for and received feedback as to what I could have done better, but also was told that I had looked calm, centered and wasn't breathing too hard, which I put down to the intensive nature of the Street Edge training I've done over the last couple of years.

All in all, I really enjoyed most of the course and am glad I had a go. Lots of people talk a good talk, but with this course it's 'put up or shut up', with nowhere to hide and no room for excuses and BS.

If this sounds like your cup of tea, then check out the website, www.toddgroup.com, now I'm off to rub some more liniment into my bruises...

To Tank, Shane-o, Doc, Rowdy, Gusto, Jonathon, Badass and the other instructors on the course, thanks for all your help and support during the course, and for pushing us when we needed it.

New Ninja Movie

Due out in late November 2009, Ninja Assassin looks to be a stylish bloodbath that updates the classic Ninja movie genre of the 1980's. Unlike the classics, starring Sho Kosugi, such as Enter the Ninja, Revenge of the Ninja, Pray for Death, Ninja 3: The domination and Nine Deaths of the Ninja, this flick doesn't have cheesy 80's tunes and low budget effects. It looks to be a dark Hollywood action flick that, hopefully, isn't too over the top in terms of wire work and fancy fighting. Don't expect any legit Ninjutsu in it, but it does look to have some cool acrobatics, nightingale floors and kusarigama style weapons. Oh yeah and shuriken (shaken) and ninjas getting run down by BMW's (at least I think it was a beemer). I'd seen a preview some months back, but thanks to Andrew for reminding me and inspiring this post. One to look forward to.

A hi-def preview can be found here.

Congratulations on Grading

To all my friends at Jissen dojos, a brief note to say good work to those who graded, you know who you are. To those that didn't grade, don't sweat it, redouble your efforts and it will be your turn soon. Many of you technically have what it takes, but you need to put in a little more in the theory department and dig deep inside yourselves, strengthen your intent and resolve. Many of you only just missed out. Even for those that did grade, now is the time to prove you are worth the grade, that the decision to promote you was the correct one. All of us should be working harder the higher we get, not slackening off.

Anyone who needs help, come and see me. If I can help, I will.

Jissen Dojos Grading Tips

For anyone doing last minute study for tomorrows grading, I recommend studying and practicing the following areas:

Practical - Sanshin and Kihon Happo. Know all the parts, their names in Japanese and the English Translations (eg. Chi no kata - Earth Form, Sui No Kata - Water Form, Ka No Kata - Fire Form, Fu No Kata - Wind Form and Ku No Kata - Void Form). For beginners the Sanshin is crucial, for the intermediate people, both Sanshin and Kihon Happo are needed to grade.

Theory - Names of the 33rd and 34th Soke (Head) of the Togakure Ryu, also Takamatsu's nickname (Mongolian Tiger), The 18 areas of Study in Togakure Ryu (eg Taijitsu, Seishin Tekki Kyoyo, Henso Jutsu, Kenjustu, So Jutsu, Ba Jutsu) and their english translation (eg. unarmed combat, Spiritual refinment, Disguise & Impersonation, Sword work, spear work, Horsemanship). If you can list even one or two at lower grades, then Sensei will probably stop asking you questions. Be confident and look like you know more than you do!

Also know the names of the Nine Schools in English and Japanese. If you can't rote learn these, then workout what the different parts of the names mean. For example Gyo is found in the names Gyokushin Ryu and Gyokko Ryu. It means Jewel. Ko is tiger, as in Koto Ryu and Gyokko Ryu. Shin and Shinden refer to the heart, as in Takagi Yoshin Ryu and Shinden Fudo Ryu.

Gakure refers to things that are hidden, as in Togakure and Kumogakure Ryu, which are the hidden door and hiding in the clouds schools respectively.

Some background on the schools is good, eg is it a koppojutsu, jutaijutsu, Koshijutsu or Daken Taijiutsu. Also what was the school known for, eg Takagi Yoshin Ryu is the Bodyguard School.

Also which schools are Ninja schools and which are Samurai schools.

Also know the three secrets of Togakure Ryu - Senban Shuriken (4 pointed stars), Shuko (Hand claws) and Shindake (Breathing Tube/ Blowpipe).

These are the things Sensei commonly asks about. Now it's up to you...

Three Classic Texts of Ninjutsu

For those lovers of Ninjutsu out there who may not know much of the historical roots of this art, there are three texts which survive from the age of the Ninja and which are considered deinfative text by Scholars of Ninjutsu. These three texts are the Bansenshukai, Ninpiden and the Shoninki.

When examining these texts one will notice the Chinese origins of much of the materials on strategy, tactics and the use of spies and fire (kajutsu or kyakujutsu). These texts base this material on the Sunzi Bingfa or Sun Tzu's Art of War, the deifinitaive Chinese military classic. Sun Tzu is known as Sonshi in Japanese.

Here's a link to a copy of the Bansenshukai, however please note that this is all in (old) Japanese. The good news is that it has some pictures of Ninja equipment, climatic conditions (Tenmon) and other bits and pieces.

It is interesting that Hensojutsu, or the art of diguise and impersonation, is called yojutsu or yonin, and that Shinobi Iri, or arts of stealth and covert entry, are refered to as injutsu or innin.
As such disguise is a yang or yo art, whereas stealth is a yin or in art.

Partial translations of the Bansenshukai, Ninpiden and the Shoninki. can be found here.

The 1 Litre of Blood Test

Continuing on our knife defense theme, last night in our Street Edge class, our teacher Paul told us to go home and conduct an experiment. In order to prepare us for the realities of a knife attack we need to know that we will get cut and will bleed. Now bearing in mind that the average adult has about 6 lt of blood, he asked us to make up 1lt of fake blood and pour it out somewhere to get an idea of what this much blood would look like. Well the above photo is the required amount, the coin in the middle is an Aussie 20c piece, just to give a sense of scale. I found it to be a compelling reason to avoid knife attacks at all cost. As a mate of mine once said "I intent to win all my fights by 500 metres."

Hock Hochheim's New Knife/ Counter Knife Combat Book

Hock has released his new Knife / Counter Knife Combat Book to coincide with my recent posts on Knife Fighting...Nah! Just kidding. Hock has released the new book of his own accord as we've been psychically willing him to, using our Special CIA Jedi mind powers.

This tome may well become the new textbook for knife enthusiasts, with it's 1750+ photos and 291 pages of information.

As Hock says on his website:-

“As a police officer, both Military and in Texas, people have died in my hands, arms and before my eyes. As victims of the knife, I have had to investigate their woundings, maimings and deaths. I have arrested these attackers in the act or hunted them down afterward. I have been to dozens of intense police, Assault and Violent Death Schools conducted by leading forensics specialists from around the world.

Since 1996, each year, I've taught combatives in 40 cities in 13 allied countries and examined the performances of thousands of soldiers, police and citizens. I have been a paid consultant for The US Army, the Navy, the Air Force and the Marines.

Plus, I am an avid, lifelong, obsessed student of crime, violence and military history. Through the years, all this has given me a certain unique perspective about edged-weapon combat, human learning and individual, athletic performance.

Knife/Counter-Knife combatives is extremely situational. It's chaotic, wet and ugly in a way few people, even most knife instructors, can ever imagine. It is often trained haphazardly and ignorantly with over-simplistic, dueling practice or endless, arsty, looping drills, or worse, totally ignored. Then, vital parts of it, such as knife ground fighting are often omitted, or treated like sporty, high school wrestling matches.

Military, police, martial arts and the aware citizenry - I am all of these things, yet none of these things. While each group knows things about fighting, survival, crime, war and violence, no one group captures the essence of knife combat in this mixed-weapon world, or matches it with fast-breaking, training psychologies, physical methodologies and cutting edge tactics and strategies. I bridge this gap. I assimilate and organize. We evolve to face the cunning criminal and the enemy soldier. Inside a continuum of weapons, we use the knife to save our life and our way of life."

To purchase this book, go to Hock's webpage on the book, here.

Pictures and text are all from Hock's website and copyright to Hock Hochheim, and are used under the fair use provisions for academic purposes only.

First Fight Day Bookclub

Last nights training session included a few rounds of knife fighting with chalk knives, however instead of chalking them we used stage blood for added realism. First two fights, one on one, yielded what would have amounted to four fatalities in all likelihood. Witness my shirt above, looks like a punctured lung and a few stabs to the chest plate. Everyone else who participated would be in similar or worse shape. Bear in mind that you can't see the numerous defensive wounds to the arms in the picture either.

Now some people may say "well you didn't do very well, my master has shown me a technique for disarming a knife that works all the time". My answer to this is simple - your master is either a fool or full of sh*t, unless he/ she is bringing a gun to the knife fight!

Now you may think I'm being harsh, but harsh is giving students false hope in a technique that gets them killed. But hey you may disagree, and that's fine. But don't take my word for it, test the technique. Have a friend with a chalk knife attack you with multiple stabs and slashes, at real fight pace. Then try your technique. How did it go?

This brings me onto the topic of the post, the First Fight Day Book Club. My book of the week is a golden oldie from 1988. Written by Don Pentecost and published by Paladin Press, "Put 'em down, Take 'em out! Knife fighting Techniques from Folsom Prison" is a look at the tactics and techniques used by maximum security prisoners to kill each other. Wait a sec, why the hell am I reviewing a book on how to murder people? Simple, because this book represents the REALITY of Knife Attacks! This is the stuff you may face on the street. Let me make one thing perfectly clear - I am not advocating the use of any material contained in this book. If you go out and use this material to kill people, well I hope you enjoy your time on death row. I am suggesting that you use this book for research purposes to learn how to defend against knife attacks.

This book is short (54 little pages), to the point and contains only one exercise at the end. In short it is everything that most martial arts books are not. And that is what makes it so useful. Reading this book and practicing the exercise contained in the last chapter opened my eyes. I have never looked at knife defense the same way since.

Here's some choice quotes from Put 'em down, Take 'em out!

"Contrary to the teachings of "noted" knife fighting experts, certain accepted techniques are ridiculous and will get you killed in a real-life situation. Unarmed joint-lock takedowns against an armed opponent and kicking a knife out of an attacker's hand are just two of the more common examples. Such "sanitary" approaches make knife fighting acceptable to the general public - they do not burst the viewer's television fantasy bubble.
The traditional martial arts are, in fact, busy perpetuating the most useless shit imaginable! These "noted experts" are writers, not fighters! The battles they engage in take place on paper...Use of these techniques would result in death of the technique user!"

"Martial arts publications are fond of showing how the attacker makes a thrust and then leaves the knife hand extended and stationary, letting the defender immediately gain control. The attacker then watches in an apparent trance while the defender applies technique after technique on him. Does this sound even remotely possible the you?"

Here's some video inspiration for you - here, here and here. As always these videos contain disturbing material.

Good luck with your knife defense and keep on training.

Ninja and Samurai Movies you must see!

As a huge fan of Chanbara /Jidai Geki, or Samurai era films, I thought I'd do a quick list of some of my favourite "Ballets of Blood". This list is not extensive, so feel free to comment on this post adding your own favourites. My criteria for a good film is simple - Lots of action, some story line (but not enough to get in the way of the action), 'Rivers of Blood', staunch main character (with or without humourous witicisms), wicked sword work. Desirable but not essential are Ninja or Yakuza, exotic weapons and psychotic bad guys.

Akira Kurosawa's movies are good, great acting, high brow sort of stuff. Seven Samurai has a great sword duel, imparting some important lessons about Budo. RAN has some bloody battle scenes.

Toshiro Mifune in anything usually makes for a good film. His role in the Miyamoto Musashi trilogy is good, but as always I preferred the book (by Eiji Yoshikawa). Having said that, their is plenty of sword work, the intial battle scene is cool and the duel with Shishido Baiken, the Kusarigama master, fulfills my need for exotic weapons. See an excerpt from this series here, notice also the use of Hasso No Kamae and Yoko Aruki. Musashi also keeps his back to the rising sun and fights with Bokken vs Live Blade.

I've watched quite a few others in the genre, but that real stand outs for me are two series, the Lone Wolf and Cub series and the Zatoichi series. Now whilst I liked the Takeshi Kitano (aka Beat Takeshi) version of Zatoichi, I LOVE the 1960's & 70's series starring Shintaro Katsu.

The wicked backhand sword style of Yakuza/Blind Massuer Ichi, is so inspirational that Bruce Lee wanted to do a version of Zatoichi as part of a series of period dramas. I used to have a VHS video tape (you remember these right?) which had a picture of Lee dressed up as Zatoichi. Watch some great backhand sword carnage here and here, also here, here and here! Zatoichi has a keen sense of humour and justice (for a criminal) and is not a man to gamble with...

Lone Wolf and Cub is also awesome. The actor who plays Lone Wolf, Tomisaburo Wakayama, is the brother of the dude who plays Zatoichi, Shintaro Katsu. I don't know what their mum fed them but I wish I could get some, then maybe my swordwork would improve! Or maybe I should just practice more ;)

Lone wolf is the Shogun's executioner. but the Shogun fears his power and tries to have him killed. Bad move. Lone wolf is out, so his wife is killed instead. This forces Lone Wolf (Ito Ogami) to 'walk the path of demons' as a sword for hire, leaving behind 'rivers of blood'. He takes his infant son, Daigoro, with him in the pram from hell and spends his time killing Ninjas, Samurai and Yakuza. He has no sense of humour, never sleeps and goes on with gritty determination despite various wounds. Again the sword work is wicked. Check out his Seagull style Kenjutsu here. Oh yeah, he's also an equl opportunity killer, as shown here.

These two series are my favourite, both are available for purchase online. Having said that, these two brothers made a whole lot of other films, you should check 'em out.

ps. I just found some footage of Tomisaburo Wakayama playing a ninja, rather than killing them. It is from a film called "The Black Hood", which I hope to see soon. Check it out here. Even has a bo shuriken being thrown in it.

Australia - ISR Matrix Seminars August -PER, BRIS, SYD, MEL

ISR Matrix are running Australian courses in August this year. What is it with August, lots happening in this month. The following is a post that appears here.

For immediate dissemination - please forward to all who may be interested.

Limited positions remaining. Book today, don’t delay.

Following the overwhelming demand created following the outstanding success of ISR Matrix seminars in Australia in September 2008 and March 2009, there will be a number of 2- 3 day courses offered this August.

Early bird rates apply for payments prior 03 July.

• Perth 1,2,3 August 2009 (Malaga – hosted by Tactical Conflict Solutions)
o Early bird rate: Days 1&2 - $249; Days 1-3- $349
o Standard rate: Days 1&2 $299; Days 1-3 - $399

• Melbourne 8,9,10 August 2009 (Blackburn – hosted by Blackburn Shukokai Karate)
o Early bird rate: Days 1&2 - $249; Days 1-3 $349
o Standard rate: Days 1&2 $299; Days 1-3 $399

• Sydney 15-16 August 2009 (Central Sydney – hosted by Athletic Entertainment Group)
o Early bird rate: $249
o Standard rate: $299

• Brisbane 29-31 August 2009 (Mt Gravatt, subsidised by Defensive Measures International)
o Early bird rate: Days 1&2 - $199; Days 1-3- $299
o Standard rate: Days 1&2 $249; Days 1-3 $349

The courses will cover the essential and fundamental elements of subject control and personal protection as taught within ISR Matrix and as necessary to successfully intercept, stabilize and resolve a confrontation. Techniques will include the helmet, dive, arm drag, underhook and pike, harness, wrist weave, s-position and back mount. This course addresses the pre-requisite skills required for intermediate and advanced courses within the ISR Matrix such as Team Tactics, Combatives and Ground Skills and also serves as the first step in joining the ISR Matrix Instructor Development Program. Testimonials are available from www.isrmatrixaustralia.com/testimonials.html

ISR Matrix (Intercept, Stabilise, Resolve) was founded by Luis Guiterrez, Vice President of the Straight Blast Gym, in conjunction with a panel of specialist law enforcement and corrections defensive tactics trainers. Luis, an experienced crowd controller, is a former Grappling Association Coach of the Year and a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Black Belt. The ISR Matrix draws on a select few techniques from Greco Roman Wrestling, Free Style Wrestling, Judo, Western Boxing, Muay Thai Kick Boxing, and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu to form a truly integrated systems approach, where an operator can escalate, de-escalate, engage or disengage as is required throughout the confrontation and within any given agencies use of force guidelines. Dealing with common counters, escaping common holds, weapons retention and fouling the subjects attempts to draw a weapon are build into the system and incorporated into training drills. As agency’s have recognised the incredible functionality and training methodology of the ISR, it has spread rapidly throughout North America, the UK and over the last year in Australia.

Promotional clips, mostly of students in the early stages of training can be viewed at www.isrmatrixaustralia.com/services.html

The course instructor is the Australian Representative for ISR Matrix and one of very few ISR Matrix Field Instructors worldwide, with an extensive background in subject control and defensive tactics within Australian Policing, Corrections, Security, Military and health services, including overseas postings, force protection, training, emergency response team and management roles. The course instructor is a qualified Police Operational Safety Trainer and Public Order Management Instructor. A qualified PPCT, Monadnock, KAPAP, Jim Wagners RBPP, Keysi Fighting Methods and Redman Dynamic Simulation Instructor, the instructor has also completed end-user courses with SPEAR, RMCAT, Tank Todd CQC, Floro Fighting Systems and Geoff Thompson’s British Combat Association. The course instructor is well versed in various modern subject control methodologies and has been studying ISR Matrix for three years. Although he continues to refine his training methodology and delivery by studying other systems and training overseas, he is yet to find anything that can produce such functional results in a short time frame as ISR Matrix.

Most course positions are already spoken for and the class size is restricted to ensure good instructor/student ratios, so it's best to get in NOW to guarantee a position.

Course overviews, testimonials, risk management considerations and other supporting documentation is available upon request.

These courses will be open to enrolment by the general public in 24 hours. 50% Deposit secures your position.

Contact info@isrmatrixaustralia.com for further information.

60 Minutes Knife Violence Story

At Saturday's Ninjutsu class, my teacher Paul mentioned a 60 Minutes story on Knife Culture and Violence in Australia. For anyone concerned with reality based self defense, the need to understand exactly what the 'reality' means is paramount; this type of information gives a vital and terrifying clue.

To watch the story, click here. Be warned, this footage contains footage of actual attacks, as well as scenes of the aftermath.

Close Quarter Combat Course - Brisbane 2009

Last weekend my mate Jimbo let me know that Geoff "Tank" Todd is coming to Brisbane, Australia, in August to run some Military Unarmed Combat courses. Having done some training with this school back in the early 2000's, I can vouch for the fact that it is no-nonsense reality-based fighting (my words, not Geoff's). Geoff is highly regarded as a 'master instructor' by many of the world's leading military combat specialists. He has inherited material from Charles Nelson, Blue Curran, Larry Jordan, Rex Applegate, John Whipp, Harry Baldock, Ben Mangles and others. Do not confuse this material with martial arts or law enforcement defensive tactics. It is what it says: European Military Close Quarter Combat. I believe it will culminate with phase testing, which is brutal, gruelling and from the footage I've seen of previous tests, carries a real chance of injury. This is not for the faint hearted!

The courses are running during late August, contact Geoff at this email for more details:

coms@toddgroup.com

'The Hardest Man in Britain'

I'm currently reading 'The Guv'nor', an autobiography of Cockney Bareknuckle Boxing Champion, Lenny McLean. Readers may know Lenny from his appearances in UK TV drama "The Knock", about the Her Majesty's Customs and Excise Service; or from UK Gangster Flick "Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels" (Bazza). It would be an understatement to say Lenny is typecast in these roles as a "Hard Man", if 'The Guv'nor' is anything to go by. The blurb on the front cover of the paperback edition says it all 'I look what I am, a hard bastard!'



Lenny's tale starts with him a happy well adjusted you East London boy, until his father dies young, leaving his mother to fend for herself and the four kids. She remarries as a way of ensuring the family's survival, then everything changes for Lenny. His step father beats and verbally abuses the family, tormenting Lenny. Lenny becomes a troubled child and becomes involved in petty crime. This leads to juvenile detention and violence, continuing the process of hardening Lenny against any punishment the world can throw at him.

Lenny grows up and gradually shifts into the 'minder' industry, doing bodyguarding and enforcement work. As Lenny's reputation as a fearless fighter grows he becomes involved in the world of bareknuckle boxing, which can be done as a 'straightener' a fight where only punches are allowed, or as an 'all in', where anything goes. The 'all in' includes all manner of ungentlemanly tactics, including headbutts, groin strikes, holding and punching. In otherwords, ALL THE GOOD STUFF...

The book chronicles Lenny's numerous fights against 'Pretty Boy' Roy Shaw, 'Mad Gypsy' Bradshaw and mafia enforcers, it talks about his various altercations as a 'fixer' and 'minder'. He discusses his murder trial, being shot and stabbed, his associations with the villains of London's Underworld, his meetings with Superman Christopher Reeve, Gene Hackman and others. But before you think he's all cold, tough bastard, Lenny also talks candidly about his life and relationships, the importance of being 'straight up' and being prepared to do anything or fight anyone in protection of family, friends and against those he considered bullies or slags.

Lenny's story is seeped in the atmoshpere of Old School East London, colourful and vulgar Cockney rhyming slang, Pikeys and quite a few pictures that are worth thousands of words.

I found this novel both interesting and amusing and hope that I never meet the spirit of Lenny McLean in a dark alley!

See Lenny in Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels here.
See Lenny get revenge on Mad Gypsy Bradshaw for headbutting him in an unlicensed boxing match here. Warning: It's real and it aint pretty!

Changes to the blog

I had a comment from a reader about the check boxes on the blog and so reviewed these and decided to make changes to this. Blog readers are now able to rate the content of the posts according to the level of pain that the content is likely to cause. Blogger would only let me fit two in sadly, so you can rate posts as "bitchslap", mildly annoying but not really damaging, or as "kick in the nuts", painful, sickening and debilitating. For example the post on Paul Vunak's biting techniques is a "kick in the nuts" from me for what he does to the steak at the end of the video. Verbal Judo on the other hand is more of a "bitchslap" in my books.

The Tao of Biting

At tonight's Street Edge class we were talking about biting as part of a headlock escape and I promised the class I'd post Paul Vunak's video on 'combat biting'. So for those of you who are interested you can see the video here.

He discusses the use of biting in grappling, as in Kina Mutai. He also goes into great detail about how to bite for maximum effect, ie technical development of the teeth as a weapon. He lastly does this great demo with raw steak, which has to be seen to be believed...

The quality is a little dodgy which adds a comic element until you imagine it's your anatomy he is biting.

Hock Hochheim Seminar Photos

Hock Hochheim Seminar

Just spent a great weekend training with Hock Hochheim. We covered so much stuff my head is still spinning - unarmed, knife and stick work, as well as touching on aspects of firearms work. Hock is a funny guy, with a great collection of war stories and recollection from his days with the military and civilian police forces. Check out his website if you don't know who Hock is.

Day one started with Hock's dodge/evasion drill (no it's not jumping out of the way of a classic American car) against knife and stick. Then we went through his military knife fighting, which is brutal and to the point. No fluff here! We then work some stick fighting combos from Kali and Escrima, including some great chokes and takedowns with the stick. Then we learned stick disarms.

Day two included Hock's Spartan series of drills, more stick work, lots more knife including disarms and knife grappling!

We worked through Hock's Stop 6 theory and much more, so much it was going in one ear and pushing day one's material out of the other ear.

Hock is a CQC legend and a character, if you get a chance to train with him, do so (it's well worth it).

Legal Denfense and Verbal Judo

I've just been reading an article about Queensland Ambulance Officers being taught self defense and "verbal judo", or the art of verbal de-escalation (what we used to call 'talking your way out of it'). After spending the other weekend learning the principles and praxis of verbal de-escalation from Richard Dimitri, it is re-assuring to see the Emergency Services also see this as a desirable skill (the article mentions that the Qld Police also receive this training).

According to the article:

There were 56 assaults on Queensland paramedics in the financial year ending June 2008, including 11 in the southeastern region alone.

But the figures do not include incidents like the one on the Gold Coast, where ambulance officers were threatened, but not physically assaulted.

LHMU state organiser Jason Dutton estimated the trend was continuing with about 20 attacks in Queensland within the last six months, including one paramedic who suffered a fractured jaw after being struck by a drug-affected patient on the Sunshine Coast.

"At one stage it was just the culture, you expected to be targeted, but paramedics just want to do their job, be safe and go home at the end of the day and that shouldn't be an unreal expectation,'' he said.

"People have left their jobs because they were assaulted, which is a terrible thing."

Recently at a 'Street Edge' class at Defensive Measures International, our teacher Paul Johnstone, read out advice on the legalities of self defense from the QPS (Qld Police Service) website on your rights of self defense if violently attacked or threatened. I've tracked down the page to share here as it is specific to Queensland where I live. I highly recommend that you check the legalities of self defense in your jurisdiction rather than taking the advice of some self defense or martial art authority who lives in a different area, which may have different laws.

The QPS website says:

Physical Self Defence

In Queensland you have the right to physically defend yourself with reasonable force, provided that this force is authorised, justified or excused by law. It is not necessary to attend self defence classes or undertake martial arts training to be able to effectively defend oneself. Each person has a survival instinct that acts to preserve their safety if threatened. The determining factor as to whether a person can successfully defend themselves is their commitment to their own personal safety.

It also gives the go ahead for the use of improvised weapons in a situation, but firmly rules out premeditated carrying of weapons for the purpose of self defense:

Weapons

Depending on the situation, weapons may be used in self-defence. Items such as a pen, keys, hairbrush, (in fact, nearly any nearby object) can be used as an effective weapon. Remember to emphasise however, that the force used must be authorised, justified or excused by law.

As a rule, the law generally does not allow the carrying of anything that can be described as a weapon. This includes mace, spray dyes, most personal alarms, or any other items which have been specifically adapted, such as sharpened combs, knives carried for the purpose of self defence etc.

I recommend reading the whole article if you are Queenslander wanting to know your rights in relation to self defense.

For further information relating to assault and the legal defenses of 'self defense' and 'provocation' I would refer the (Qld-based) reader to the Criminal Code which can be found here.

Knowing the law and your rights is one less impediment to action should you be confronted. You do have the right to defend yourself physically if neccessary, but must do so in accordance with the rule of law.

Hopefully you never need this information...But ignorance is no Bliss!

Warriors at War Update

Chris "Nemesis" Jones has just informed me he has been challenged to a rematch by his recently defeated opponent. Apparently the fight is happening in May. No doubt the other guy is training hard and trying to learn from his mistakes. And I know Chris will be re-doubling his training efforts too. The other guy will probably try to use his reach advantage this time and I know Chris will be working to crash through the opponents guard into close quarter range in order to neutralise this reach difference. I look forward to Chris' next victory in May.

Warriors at War

This entry is a congratulations to Chris "Nemesis"Jones for his victory in his first ever Kick Boxing bout in last night's main event, Warriors at War at the Broncos Leagues Club. Chris has been training like a man possessed and it has paid off for him in his victory over a much younger and much taller opponent.

Round one saw Chris taken to the ground a couple of times by his opponent catching his kicks. It wasn't looking good by the end of this round, which went to his opponent. In Round Two Chris finally realised that this was a fight not a sparring match and got stuck in. Their were some great punches and knees throw by both contenders, but due to his level of controlled aggression Chris took this round.

At the beginning of Round Three, I turned to Dan, a mate of Chris and myself, and said to him that Chris really needed to take the other guy out, because if it went to points it could be a close thing.

Well Chris didn't disappoint, he came out hard and fast. He landed some hard hits, which took his opponent to a seven count early in the round. Then a little later a series of knees to his opponents torso took most of the fight out of the other guy. Then seconds later another knee to the body and one to the head ended the fight, with the Ref calling a TKO.

Good stuff Chris. Everyone keep an eye out for Chris in the future and an ear out for his theme tune, the sound of Gyuto monks chanting exploding into the Disturbed's "Down with the Sickness".

In talking to Chris after the fight he says he realised he had a lot more training to do. And knowing Chris, he will set to training with renewed vigor and a determination that will see him go far.

When has the fight really begun?

I spent yesterday attending Richard Dimitri's first ever presentation of his Walk the Talk seminar at Defensive Measures International's training facility in Brisbane, where I train a few times a week.

This seminar dealt with pre-fight cues and in building perceptual speed, rather than physical speed. Perceptual speed is the ability to rapidly see the physiological changes that occur in an opponent's body prior to him attacking you. Instead of looking at the opponent's chest for the first sign of a strike, you are holistically viewing the opponent looking for the 'tells' (as they call these signs in poker) that he is about to preemptively strike you. Then you can seize the initiative and strike the first blow instead. These 'tells' are subtle, like a wrinkling of the forehead or a tightening of the lips, changes to skin colour and many more. You then look for signs of 'winding up' and weight placement to indicate what strike the opponent will likely attack you with. What is his closest weapon and what is your closest target? How does your current posture pre-dispose the opponent to attack in certain ways rather than others. This teaches you to use a de-escalation stance as a form of 'target denial'.

Rich then gets you to experience who you react when you are on the verge of attacking someone, so you can see it through the attacks eyes and also to teach you about self control (so you don't snap and become a homocidal maniac), using a unique drill called the 'emotional invocation drill' which is very confronting but also very rewarding.

The aim of this seminar is to teach you the real dynamics and evolution of a real street fight. This is not really a 'martial arts' seminar as such, at least not in my view. This is for those who want to understand 'real violence' and as such I would highly recommend it to those whose jobs bring them face to face with violence on a regular basis, as well as those who realise that traditional martial arts training methodologies do not equip you for real world fighting (But hey don't take my word for it, check this article by kung fu master ZHAO DAOXIN). There is a vast gulf between a consentual 'match fight' scenario (like a muay thai fight or UFC) and getting mugged at 3am in a dark alley when you are tired, alone and likely to end up dead or in hospital if you make the wrong choices. As Rich says always assume the other guy has friends with him and is armed. If you are wrong, then this is good news!

You've just been Shredded

Yesterday I had the pleasure of training with Richard 'The Shredder' Dimitri, doing his 'On the Cutting Edge' seminar. It was fantastic!!! Richard is not only extremely knowledgeable about self defense techniques and psychology, he is also a really humble, nice, down-to-earth guy who kept us laughing and learning all day.

A lot of reality based self defense instructors are stern and serious characters who portray a tough guy image like it's their personal armour, not so Richard, who is completely approachable and open to new ways of doing things if they are better than the existing methods. Not many people are so egoless that they can do this.

The 'On the cutting edge' seminar itself started with the verbal confrontation stage of a street fight with us attempting to AVOID the fight by verbal deescalation. If we could successfully do this or run away, this was encouraged. I was taught for the first time exact strategies, what to say and what not to say, to prevent the conflict going physical. Many martial arts and self defense programs pay lip service to escape and avoidance, but far fewer actually train it. They teach you to fight, and seeing as how you react like you train in real situations, this means that if you are verbally confronted there is a huge chance that you'll consciously or unconsciously escalate the confrontation to a situation of physical violence. You may naturally slide into an aggressive stance, cuing your assailant that you intend to get physical, which in turn turns on their adrenaline and makes them predisposed to a pre-emptive attack (see my earlier post on sucker punches).

Richard made a great point when he said you need to avoid contradicting or commanding the other person if you want to deescalate. For example if he says "you were looking at my girl friend" and you say "no I wasn't", you have contradicted him and given him an indication that this conversation isn't going to be resolved verbally. What happens next, he says "yes you did" BAM!! He's smashing you in the face with the sucker punch...

Or you command him, probably unintentionally, by saying "It's ok mate, just calm down" and BAM!!! Fist to your face...

So we practiced verbal deescalation drills. Then we practiced working out, on the fly, if the opponent could be verbally deescalated or if he was determined to attack us. So if he was, as Richard says, "a nice guy having a bad day or an arsehole". If we gave him a face saving way out and he didn't take it, he's an arsehole, so then knowing a fight was inevitable, we started transitioning into preemptive strikes. Richard employs timing and non-telegraphic movement to palm strike to the face as an entry method to move into Shredding. Even when he told us that he was going to hit us, we still couldn't see it coming or avoid the strike.

Just a note, this isn't designed for match fighting, it is a specialised tool for preemptive striking in a street style encounter only. It is as much about understanding the dynamics and psychology of this type of encouter, it is more than just 'a move' or 'secret technique'.

After getting this down, we moved into how to 'Shred' and having had Richard do this to me (to show me what I was doing wrong when attempting it), I can tell you it is frighteningly effective and just plain frightening. It is more akin to being mauled by a pit-bull than fighting a human being and this is what makes it so effective. You do not have a program for dealing with this. The close range ripping, tearing, gounging and striking is not what most people (even or especially trained fighters) expect. People expect kick, puch, trap or grapple, not a rabid lunatic, Hannibal the cannibal motherf*cker growling and biting your cheek off while gouging out you eye and tearing out your throat!!! This stuff is wild and feral and scary.

I didn't see a single person out of a room of training fighters who could stop the preemptive hit and no-one could manage any kind of defense against it. No Brazilian Jujutsu moves, striking or even reaching for a weapon occurred, just people falling into the fetal position and hoping this guy would stop soon.

After learning Shredding, we then applied this concept to static knife defense situations. We started with working out which way to move the knife through analysis of the knife's most dangerous angle of attack and then blocking that line and moving the knife in the opposite direction. Then we learned to anchor the knife and shred the opponent using the knife hand as our anchor.

Throughout the seminar Richard constantly emphasised the futility of violence and the possibility of it destroying your life even if you win. Covered were topics such as legal ramifications, revenge attacks and post-traumatic stress disorder.

This seminar was all about one thing, surviving real world violence. I would highly recommend this seminar to anyone serious about this topic.

Thanks to Richard Dimitri, Dom (for lending his body for research purposes) and Paul Johnstone of Defensive Measures International for making this seminar happen. And now I'm off to attend another day with Richard, who is offering his 'Walk the Talk' seminar for the first time ever. Should be interesting...

Sucker Punches

Following on from my KO post, I want to post some links which feature sucker punching. Escalation from verbal confrontation to physical violence is a common tactic employed in conjunction with deceptive language to lower the opponents defenses (see Geoff Thompson's 3 Second Fighter or Pavement Arena books and videos for more on this). The first video I found has all this and more, check it out here. Warning these videos have strong language, racial slurs and strong violence, which is because they are real, not some Hollywood BS.

Here's some more "lessons from the streets":

Stomped
Bartender
Let sleeping dudes lie
Ground and pound

Notice the ambush tactics employed and the fact that where there is verbal preamble, none of the folks have there hands up in a 'deescalation posture' or (as Geoff Thompson calls it) a 'fence'. The bartender does have his hands up, but doesn't use them to control the space between him and the other guy.

He's some more:

Police Woman
Boxing

Lastly look at the shifty behaviour and body language of the offender in this video.

Sometimes Sucker Puncher's don't punch, sometimes they glass you or stab you. Rewatch the knife attack and look for the clues he's going to attack.

Art of the KO

I was watching a youtube clip from Richard (from Street Fighting Secrets) the other day talking about the best way to knock out an opponent. In the video Richard tells us not to believe what he has to say but to search youtube under "knock outs" and see the type of strikes that successfully knock people out. Doing this is very enlightening, as a matter of fact you should go and do this now. Watch boxing knockouts, MMA knockouts and street fighting knockouts and as Richard recommends look at the tool that was used (punch, kick, knee, chop, etc.). Also look at the target being struck and the angle of energy transfer and also the intensity.

Here's some links to get you started:

right punch to jaw
left hook
flying knee
knock out kiss
knife hand (shuto)
knee
headbutt
elbows (lots of elbows)

Clubbed - A Geoff Thompson Movie

I just finished watching ex-Coventry Doorman Geoff Thompson's latest movie release "Clubbed", which is based on his time on the door. It is an thoughtful and yet action packed film, but don't expect big budget Hollywood glitz. It's pure British Grit!

Watch a preview here.

The movie does contain profanity, drugs and violence, in keeping with the subject material. So if you are easily offended, then harden up! Seriously though, it is a good if confronting 95 minutes.

Now that the review's out of the way, I'd like to share a thought I had whilst watching. In one scene our (anti-) hero, Danny goes into confront a sociopathic Ganster type wearing a balaclava. It is the type with just two small eyeholes. I thought to myself, 'well it protects your identity, but it really limits your vision'. My thought then took an extra-step on me and conceived a defense against the balaclava wearing thug... Reach out grab the balaclava then spin it so the eyeholes face the wrong way. Then do what you need to to end the confrontation.

It is so riculously obvious, I'm amazed the thought hadn't occured to me before, kind of like the Spetznas defense against the plastic bag over the head carjacking routine.

It's not ESP but it's close!

One of the powers attributed to martial arts masters, Ninja and Oriental Mystics is the power to sense the intentions of an opponent, thereby avoiding this danger. Such powers are the stuff of legends, but is it possible for the everyday person to develop such abilities. I think such powers are real but misunderstood. I don't think you have to have psychic powers to do this either.

What you do need is to develop your perception, look for warning signs and have an understanding of the psycho-physical aspects of humanity.

If you read my previous post referring to 'micro-expressions' then you already know it is possible to sense someone's deep emotions, even if they are attempting to conceal these from you. But you must be looking for these signs. I will vouch for the fact that you can have this knowledge and be looking, but failing to see the signs presented to you. After-all being eternally vigilant is initially hard work. From childhood many of us get into the habit of switching off the sensory impulses of events in the world which disturb us. For example, you are a small child and mum and dad are having a heated argument... So you may well stick your fingers in your ears or pull your pillow over your head to block out this unpleasant sensory input.

If this coping strategy becomes habitual then you get in the habit of 'playing ostrich' when reality presents it's ugly face, rather than the pleasant one we all prefer. This means we not only don't look for signs of trouble before it occurs, but will actively blot out these signs out of fear and habit.

So first we must get back in the habit of' looking' and 'seeing'. From here we must learn what to look for (eg the wrinkling of the forehead that indicates fear, the splaying of the arms/ hands that suggests imminent attack). Lastly we must understand that the human mind and body are functionally indivisible, so any thought has an effect on the body.

A quick exercise before we move on - first feel inside yourself with your mind, paying attention to the quality and speed of your breathing, your posture and the tone of your muscles. This is your psycho-physical baseline. Now imagine a time when you thought you were going to die, relive this moment, make it real to yourself, relive it. How's your breathing and posture now. Now think about the last time you had really good sex, what does this do to your breathing and posture? These thoughts will do something to your body.

The reverse is also true. This is one of the reasons that you can feel so great after having a massage. As your body relaxes, so does your mind.

Now back to sensing your opponents intention...

Know that your opponents thoughts are written on their body, in the way they hold themselves, in the tension patterns of the muscles of the face, in their breathing (is it short, sharp and shallow?), in the clenching and unclenching of their fists and in the quality of their voice.

One of the methods used as a 'lie detector' is the voice stress analyser. This looks for spikes in vocal tension to tell when someone is anxious about something they are saying. What creates this vocal tension? The answer is muscular tension, in this case the tension of the diaphragm, other muscles of respiration and the muscles of the throat (including vocal chords, which are also muscles).

So go now and talk to some people and notice their posture, breathing and vocal quality. Talk about a variety of subjects to elicit different emotions in that person. Find an animal rights activist and ask them their opinion on fox hunts or slaughter houses, ask the right wing fanatic about communism, etc.

As Miyamoto Musashi says in his classic on swordsmanship, Book of the Five Rings - "Study this deeply".

It's all in your head...

Last night after coming home from training, I sat down in front of the TV to eat dinner. My wife and housemate were watching the show "Lie to me". In this particular episode the main character (the human lie detector guy) was viewing a picture of a person which would then change briefly to a different emotional expression, before returning to the original facial expression. A new character, a younger Hispanic lady is introduced as wanting to join his team. He turns to her, indicated the video screen with the faces he has been studying and asks her "what do you see?". Well at this stage I pipe up "fear" narrowly beating the TV character's dialogue. The next photo flashes, I pipe up in unison with the character "anger", right again. Lastly I pre-empt the character with "sadness"...Three for three.

Now my wife is not surprised, but my housemate says something along the lines of "how did you know that, all I saw was a flash". The answer is that the software being used is a late model version of Ekman's Micro Expression Training Tool, used in law enforcement and 'hush-hush' governmental groups to help in training officers and operators to recognise what someone is feeling. Often this is done to gauge someones emotional response to a particular question or statement.

To the uninitiated this appears to be some sort of magical power, when in fact it is just very specific knowledge of which facial muscles are activated when someone feels a particular emotion. The difficulty is that these micro-expressions flash by in about a fifth of a second. However it is a skill which can be trained and developed to a high level.

The reason I was able to call the emotions featured on the TV show easily, is that I have used the METT tool over a number of years as a training exercise to enhance my awareness skills.

Bruce Lee once said that too much time is devoted in martial arts training to technical skill development at the expense of the overall physical conditioning of the participant. Well I believe that too much time is spent in learning responses to acts of violence at the expense of training the participants awareness and avoidance skills.

Ask yourself when you last spent time training your senses to perceive aggressive body language, micro-expressions or the deceptive language patterns attackers use to stop you noticing they are about to attack you. Well when was it?

If physical conditioning was the under-rated aspect in the 60's and 70's when Bruce Lee was around, then the mental aspects of combat are the neglected aspects of today's martial arts and self defense scene. After all a lot of folks go to the gym and work out, but how many of you spend time training in the brain gym????

Note: Some pioneers have addressed these areas, people such as Geoff Thompson, Paul (my current Ninjutsu and Street Edge instructor) and some of the other reality based self defense pioneers who have worked in security or law enforcement roles.

The difficulty lies in developing a mental training regime for self preservation. For this reason I have been developing a state of the art training system called "Code Black Protective Systems". This system applies the principles of Emergency Management to personal threat situations. The name 'Code Black' is a reference to the colour code used in Australian Standards relating to Emergency Response practices dealing with Personal Threat, Armed Robbery, Civil Disorder and Illegal Occupancy. Rather than creating another defensive tactics program, I have taken a holistic approach to the problem of personal threat situations.

Most defensive tactics and self defense programs pay lip service to training awareness but spend most of their time looking at responses to violence. In Emergency Management Systems Theory, response is only one of four essential areas. The Emergency Management Cycle consists of Prevention (Mitigation), Preparation, Response and Recovery. I have never seen anyone address ALL of these four areas when teaching or discussing defensive tactics.

Prevention is determined by one's ability to avoid situations that expose you to violence. As such areas that are covered here are awareness building skills, criminal modus operandi, ambush theory, crime statistics (including who, what, where, when, why and how attacks happen), body language, psycho-physical responses, gait analysis, counter surveillance and escape and evasion training. These areas are covered in some circles (intelligence operations, law enforcement and military) but have not been tuned to the needs of the citizen attempting to survive in an urban environment.

Preparation is the actual training of awareness and response. It is the development of a 'game plan', of strategy, of physical and mental skills.

Response is the implementation of the skills developed through the preparation phase of training. This will include paradigms which address ambush fighting, verbal confrontation leading to violence, multiple opponent and weapons attacks. This is the area of emergency management that most self defense and defensive tactics deal with. As such Code Black doesn't re-invent the wheel, rather it acts as a overlay on existing programs to enhance their effectiveness. Code Black provides a context into which the systems fit and addresses the time before violence occurs and the time afterward also.

This brings us to the Recovery phase of emergency management. Recovery, as the name suggests, is how we deal with the aftermath of violent confrontation. It includes First Aid measures, legal implications and processes related to the incident you have just survived, increased security demands should the assailant seek retribution or should you be required to testify against them. It also provides strategies for emotional and physical trauma recovery. Another essential point is ensuring your life can go on. If injured and unable to work, how will you provide for your family? What if the scumbag who attacks you, then tries to ruin your life by suing you, what will you do then? These are all crucial aspects of the recovery phase of the Code Black program.

Most of these areas are never covered by even the best of traditional programs, however this doesn't mean they are not essential, just neglected.

You may win the fight and lose the battle if you don't plan ahead. Self protection in the modern world means a lot more than devastating martial arts skills...

Street Fighters, Child Soldiers and the State of the (Martial) Arts

The other night after training, I was chatting with a training buddy and he made a statement that's been percolating in my brain ever since. He said "a good street fighter, they are the worst", by which he meant that in his experience the most dangerous opponent in a fight is a street fighter. Now this isn't exactly an uninformed opinion as he is a long term martial artist and an ex-bouncer. Nor is this the first time I've heard this sentiment expressed.

So what is a street fighter and what makes them so dangerous?

By the strict definition a street fighter is someone who fights in the streets. However, this definition leaves a little to be desired. For a start the label 'street fighter' is a nominalisation. It's a bit like the term 'martial artist', it is a generalisation that means everything and nothing. For example a UFC fighter might be a martial artist, but so might someone practicing the slow form of the martial art of Tai Chi to improve their health. Are they the same animal? Hell no! Are they both equally dangerous? Hell no! Can I get an Amen?

So what did my training buddy mean by his comment about street fighters? Well only he can answer that for sure, but I can hazard a guess. He may have meant someone whose experience of fighting comes from real fighting, as opposed to a martial artist who trains but doesn't fight.

Can a street fighter also be a martial artist? Of course they can.

He may also have meant a fighter who ignores the conventions of established martial arts systems, and instead finds their own combative truths through their own experience. Miyamoto Musashi could be a street fighter by this definition.

What makes this opponent so dangerous is that they are unpredictable when viewed through the eyes of the traditional martial artist. My martial arts training may not have prepared me to be attacked out of the blue, with no warning. My street fighting opponent will invariably either ambush me, or employ some deceptive tactic before ambushing me.

The street fighter probably isn't going to follow the eitiquette or ritual that I'm used to from my experiences in the Dojo. He might spit in my eye, or throw sand in my face, or hit me with a glass, or produce a knife at half time and cut me to ribbons.

So these are some definitions of a street fighter.

Another definition may be someone who has no compunction about bashing or killing me!

Indeed this opponent would be far more dangerous than most martial artists. Martial artists may have moral conditioning and notions of 'fair play' that a 'street fighter' has never learned. The 'street fighter' may not think of fighting as a skill but a tool to survive, where the end (surviving) justifies the means (no rules, use any method available to win).

A street fighter of this breed is a little like a 'child soldier'. The child soldier is in widespread use in many parts of the world, the Congo and Sierra Leone spring to mind. The child soldier is often traumatised and victimised early on, then forced to perpetrate horrendous acts on others (such as killing their own family) or be killed themselves. They then feel that they are irredeemable and no other option is left to them but to continue to 'walk the path of demons' (to borrow a phrase from the 'Lone Wolf' Chambara film series.)

Victims of abuse sometimes, but not always, go on to perpetrate abuse themselves. They may display developmental abnormalities not found in those who grow up in a loving household. These changes are physical, they can been seen in Cat Scans of their brains. The normal structures which inhibit violence towards other human beings may not be present. They may view killing us as on par with swatting a fly.

Of course by this definition a 'street fighter' is an opponent to be feared, in much the same way as a serial killer should be feared. Am I saying 'street fighters' are all serial killers? No way.

What I'm saying is that the term 'street fighter' needs to be clarified. If we claim to be teaching 'street fighting' or 'street defense' what does this mean? What are the implications?

The other point to make is that training in a martial art may actually may you a less effective fighter. It may indeed rob you of your natural survival instincts, depending on the way you train.

You should therefore have explicit goals in mind when you train. Am I training for fitness, to meet new people, to fight in tornaments, to become a Martial Arts Instructor yourself, to become a private security contractor in a war zone, to become an action movie star, to learn Oriental philosophy and language? What are you goals and does your training regime match up to these goals?

Many of the arguments you see on martial arts forums come about because of different understandings of the martial arts and the different reasons people practice them for. Someone will ask a (stupid, non-specific) question like "is Capoeira an effective martial art?" and then be bombarded by a multitute of opinions. Is it effective for what? If you want a movie role, yeah great go train that system, it looks awesome. If you are training to be a bouncer, probably not.

Before someone gets their knickers in a knot, I'm just using Capoeira as a hypothetical example and if you disagree with my assessment of Capoeira then good luck to you. I could have picked any other martial art to make my point but this one came to mind first.

So ask yourself "why am I training?" and "am I getting the results I'm after?" If you are training for "street defense" do some research. Look at the types of attacks that happen in your area, define the types of weapons used, the times these attacks happen and then TRAIN ACCORDINGLY. Know thyself and know thy enemy, and hopefully you won't have wash the bitter taste of defeat from your gob.

So Endeth the Sermon!

Glass Eaters, Body Piercers and Martial Mumbo-Jumbo

Well, Chinese New Year is here again, and with the dawning of the Year of the Ox comes numerous demonstrations of amazing kung fu power. If you go to your local Chinatown you are bound to see demonstrations of the Lion Dance and various forms (kata). What you will also witness many times are demonstrations of 'iron shirt' or 'golden bell cover', such as having a watermelon cut on the chest with a sword. Many people, however, are taken in by such marketing tricks. Many of these stunts are just 'magic tricks'. Yes, they require skill and practice but they are performed under rigidly controlled conditions. In a real edged-weapon fight these 'performers' would be in as much danger as anyone else.

So Buyer Beware...

Why do I care?

Well I know some unfortunate folks who have been taken in by scammers trying to pass this stuff off as real. These scammers have not only put their students safety at risk by giving them a false sense of security, but have charged them thousands of dollars in the process. God help the students if they actually try to use what they have learned in a real violent confrontation.

Have a look at this clip for some examples of common martial arts tricks. Leung Ting featured in the clip, copped a lot of flack particularly from the new age qigong/ kung fu community when he released his books, Skills of the Vagabonds & Behind the incredibles, which exposed these tricks.

And these tricks are not just performed by small time, no name operators. In the early 2000's I went to see the Shaolin Monks when they toured. What I observed confirmed what I had heard from martial arts friends in the know, that these so called Shaolin Monks were nothing more than professional athletes, like Beijing Opera performers, who are funded by the government to attract tourists. The show was a mix of choreographed fights, acrobatics and magic tricks. The real Shaolin died along with many of the monks during China's various social upheavals.

Now there are still some folks out there who do the real thing, such as Grandmaster Gao Yen Tao of Yangshuo, China; whose father was a shaolin monk in the good old days. He also preserves elements of old school Daoist martial arts as his Grand Daddy was a Wudang monk. To survive Mao's cultural revolution, he joined the Beijing Opera, which allowed him to continue practicing his skills in the guise of 'performance'. See him in action in this clip. While talking about applications within his gentle Taichi type form, Grandmaster Gao seized me in lightning like fashion by the throat and testicles and held me against a pillar in his school. It is VERY humbling to be owned by an 80 year old. Oh yeah, he also does sets of ten butterfly kicks each morning for breakfast. His sons are following in his footsteps.

I'd like to share a story with you. Let's call it a cautionary tale. Many years ago in a galaxy far, far away, I met a young guy who wanted to come and learn qigong and martial arts from me. This guy however, didn't want to put in the hard yards. He was sure he could find someone who could give him magic powers and turn him into an invincible fighting machine. I tried to tell him that it didn't work that way, but he refused to believe me and left.

A couple of years go past and out of the blue I get a phone call from him. He told me he'd been to Indonesia where he had paid $2000 or so to be 'implanted with a Genii'. He told me that now he was impervious to bladed weapons and had developed superpowers as a result of this implantation. He told me he wanted to demonstrate what he had learned to me as I was sure to be impressed. Magnanimously, he added that he could implant me with a Genii, so I too could become superhuman.

I was extremely dubious but decided to see what he had actually learned, so I gave him permission to come around and see me. When he arrived he was carrying a kitchen knife, a light bulb and some gift wrapping paper. We spent a little while talking about his experiences in Indonesia and the ritual he went through to get his Genii. He then handed me the knife and had me test the keenness of the blade, which was brand new and razor sharp. He said if I had a sharper knife he would be happy to use it instead for his demonstration. I tested a knife I had that had been recently sharpened by a butcher friend of mine, however the new knife was still sharper so we decided to go with it.

The guy then asked me how hard I thought I could strike myself with the knife. Now I knew the physics behind this trick from one of Ting's books (mentioned above). So I proceeded to strike myself quite forcefully with the knife a number of times on the forearm. The guy's eyes widened noticeably and he commented that I must have been training my iron shirt very hard (which I hadn't, I'd actually only been doing some light tai chi).

He then told me he could do this not only on soft fleshy area but also on bony area. He started to strike his radial area with the knife, however, instead of hitting down with the blade in perpendicular fashion, he hit and dragged the knife across his wrist. It was no surprise when the blood started dripping on the floor as he repeatedly cut himself. He stopped and made a comment that something must be wrong with his Genii, maybe he hadn't done the proper invocation before he started.

At this point, I offered him a band aid, which went down like a lead balloon. He refused and stated that he would use his ankle instead, so he pulled up his jeans and proceeded to chop chunks from it. Ouch!!!! When this failed to work he pulled up his sock and lowered his jean leg to try to control the bleeding and offered instead to show me something else.

With some trepidation, and much morbid curiosity, I accepted. This was like Jim Rose's Sideshow in my laundry (you didn't think I was going to let him bleed on the carpet did you?)

He then picked up the light bulb and wrapped it in the wrapping paper and stomped on it once. He then took an inch long sliver of glass, placed it in his mouth and began to chew. Now is probably a good time to mention that he was missing his two top front teeth (no rock star good looks here folks). He kept chewing for a few more minutes before telling me (between mouthfuls) that he had also learned some 'super secret' Qigong methods from the same teacher who had given him the Genii.

So we went down to the local park and he showed me what can only be described as a second rate version of some very basic Shaolin Qigong. Sort of like Tai Chi minus any flow or grace.

This continued for about 15 minutes, during the entire performance he was still chewing. The sound was something like a cross between biting into a crisp apple and someone eating sand.

By the end of this 'performance' I really felt sorry for the guy. I again offered to let him train with me, but again his Ego wouldn't allow him to see that he'd been duped. He headed off into the sunset and that was the last time I saw him.

The moral of the story is don't believe everything you are told. If someone says they are invincible, demand proof, ask them why they aren't a world champion fighter. If they claim to be psychic ask them why they haven't won the lotto. Or ask them what your mother's maiden name is. You'll know soon enough if they are the real deal.

Physiology of Combat

Here's an interesting article from David Grossman, a leading expert on the effects of Combat on Human Beings. He's the author of 'On Killing: The psychological cost of learning to kill in war and society'. The article talks about the degradation of fine motor co-ordination during combat. Well worth a read for those who hope to be able to defend themselves in life or death situations.

Kapap

Whilst many folks have heard about Krav Maga, not so many are aware of Kapap, short for Krav Panim El Panim. Kapap is possibly the oldest of the Israeli Martial Arts and is taught to Police and Counter Terrorism squads.

I recently attended an introductory class on Kapap, where some key concepts were introduced. Amongst them was the concept of Kadeema, meaning forward. It was explained that Kadeema referred to keeping on pushing through any barriers you encounter. It is similar to what I was taught in the Army about reacting to an Ambush. In an Ambush, we were told, there is only one way to go and that is Forward. You have to get through the Ambush if you hope to survive. Retreat will get you killed. Stopping will keep you in the 'killing ground' with predictable results.

We were also introduced to Kapap's system of Combat Conditioning, which included exercises such as the Frankenstein, which challenged my cardiovascular fitness.

Here is some footage of Kapap, to give you the flavour of this system.

I found the training to be as realistic as anything else I've experienced and hope to have a chance to learn some more.

Martial Arts VS Self Preservation

In 2006, after spending a number of years studying Traditional Martial Arts (Tong Long, Karate, Jiujutsu, Ninjutsu, Baguazhang, Taijiquan), I was feeling a little jaded and so I took a year or two off to do some other things with my life. Then at the beginning of 2008 whilst working out at the gym I saw that the gym would be hosting a couple of martial arts/ self defense classes. Both classes were run by the same gentleman Paul. One was a Bujinkan class and the other was something called 'Street Edge'. Well I started attending both, and now 14 months later, am applying myself extra hard to learning both of these systems. One is a TMA (Traditional Martial Art) class, the other is an RBSD (Reality Based Self Defense). I find they really compliment each other. The Bujinkan stuff concentrates more on technical development and historical aspects, whereas the Street Edge is really rough and tumble, gross body movement, under pressure training.

The School has rapidly grown and has the best retention rate of any school I've been to.

I've learned a lot since joining this club, amongst which is the value of both approaches to training. I'm not a sport fighter, my interest lies in self protection and martial arts as a physical discipline for staying in shape.

One of the main lessons I've learned recently is not about fighting techniques, but about awareness. In most traditional martial arts that I've been involved in, you concentrate on building fighting skills and responses to particular attacks, but these responses usually start with "well the opponent does this technique, so you response with this move/ combination/ method".

However, the so-called Reality Based Self Defense methods place this type of response all most at the end of a long list of other responses and strategies. The books and videos of ex-Coventry Bouncer Geoff Thompson talk about avoidance, escape, de-escalation, loop-holing and posturing as methods to AVOID having to fight. This makes much more sense to me. If you train to respond only once a physical confrontation has begun, then you are behind the eight ball from the get-go. Where can you go from here...well you can go to the pavement in a heap, to be stomped, maimed or killed, or you can win the fight but then find yourself facing assault charges, going to jail or being sued.

I'm not talking hypothetically here either. I know someone who was a bouncer and accidentally killed a patron while attempting to restrain him. He went to court, spent some time in jail on remand and eventually was cleared of any criminal wrong-doing (it was self defense), but then the family of the deceased sued him and took everything he had worked his whole life for. His business, his car, the works. He had to declare bankruptcy and had his life destroyed by this incident. And he won the original fight...

So, one of the best things I've learned is to spot dangerous situations before they occur. What are the pre-fight rituals and cues that show you trouble may be brewing? Not enough time is spent teaching this. Students should look at the time of day when assaults occur, the types of locations they occur in, witness statements about how they happened. The development of "fighting skills" is only a small part of self preservation.

"The ultimate warrior wins without fighting" Sunzi said in the Bingfa (Art of War), and I agree!

Mixed Martial Arts

We hear a lot about Mixed Martial Arts these days, in fact, ever since the UFC started. What is interesting is that generally this mix is fairly standardised. Mix equal parts Muay Thai and Brazilian JiuJutsu, and flavour to taste with Wrestling (Greco-Roman or other), Boxing and/or Sambo. Whilst a lot of the early fights were won by the guy with the best ground game, strikers have started to come back into their own.

Just recently though I've noticed another small shift. Some of the arts that were knocked out (literally) in the early UFC have started to creep back in. The recipe for MMA is slowly evolving as 'lessons learned' are absorbed. I've heard of fighters who have backgrounds in Karate, Baguazhang, Silat and other arts entering MMA fights. I'd love to see more fights by fighters who have trained in systems other than those mentioned above, providing that these fighters have pressure tested their skills against non-compliant training partners.

A friend of mine, Chris, is due to have his first fight in Amateur Kick Boxing (not MMA) in February. His mix includes Muay Thai, but also some of the Chinese Internal Martial Arts. I'll be interested to see if he feels this gives him an edge...

In the beginning...

Fads come and go. And Martial Arts Fads are no exception. As a young kid growing up in the 70's and 80's, the first Martial Arts fad I remember was the Bruce Lee fad. Now even though Bruce died the year I was born, he himself was reborn with the advent of the VCR. Ahhh, those were the days... Months of School holidays each year with nothing to do but play 'Silly Buggers'. As an inner city vagabond child I wandered the neighborhood attempting to apply my (not so) lightning fast killer Kung Fu moves on my friends and the other neighbourhood kids.

The next major fad came with the release of Enter the Ninja. Suddenly the neighbourhood was filled with four foot tall, twenty kilo white killer ninjas, jumping out from bushes to accost each other with a variety of home made Shaken (although we all called them Shuriken at the time) and Ninja-To. Ninja magazine came out and became our text book for Suburban mayhem.

I got a job at the local video store, which I was paid for not in cash, but with borrowing rights.

I made my way through numerous martial arts movies with titles such a The power of Silence, Revenge of the Ninja, the Big Boss and They call me Bruce. Who could forget the martial arts spoofs..."A fist full of Yen". As kids we did all sorts of crazy stuff in homage to our righteous if somewhat homicidal role models - drank drinks composed solely of raw eggs, made flour bombs to imitate the amazing Ninja smoke bombs, bought Nunchuku from the local martial arts stores and then knock ourselves out trying to swing them.

Martial Arts fads come and go, but new ones never stop turning up. Remember when Jean Claude came out (his movies I mean), everyone loved Blood Sport, Jean Claude was a legend, back them. Everyone wanted to be a Dim Mak Black Dragon and break "the bottom one". Kick boxer ushered in Muay Thai and kids nation wide began beating banana trees into submission or doing the splits between chairs.

Back in the day the Local Police Youth Club was a bed of martial arts mania. We all enrolled in the only martial arts we could find - Judo, Karate, Jiu-jutsu.

Martial arts schools were rare, but business was booming. Each new book or video that came out was a treasure, even if in retrospect it was over-priced rubbish. No internet then, no MA movie downloads, no trolls whingeing about how crap everybody's martial arts were.

Then was the day of the Aikidoka, with people flocking to learn to Shihonage people through car windshields like Steven Seagal.

Oh yeah and I mustn't forget to mention the deadly internal arts - Tai Chi, Ba Gua Zhang and Xingyi. Effortless power to blow people across the room or kill with the brush of a hand.

Then came the UFC and things changed. Striking was out and BJJ was in. All the Boxers, Kick Boxers, Kung Fu Killers and Karateka who laughed at us rolling around on the floor doing our Jiu-Jutsu were laughing no more.

The UFC was a wake up call and reality check for martial artists and one that we are still feeling the effects of.

The UFC ushered in a new fad, the fad of 'reality based training'. This then led to a split into Sport based systems and Street systems, with people tirelessly arguing the merits of one over the other on Internet Chatrooms and Forums.

Now we have the Krav Maga craze and droves of people wanting to learn how to survive 'on the street'. Ex-bouncers writing manuals, SAS soldiers and Flat Footed Police sharing secret training methods, Ferals and Shredders tearing off faces.

Don't get me wrong, it's not all quite as linear as that. And the time-line may be wrong, I'm just speaking of my own recollections here. And also none of the arts mentioned have disappeared. With the advent of the internet we have access to so much more information than ever before.

But here I am, in this new dawn, writing down a catalog of my thoughts and experiences in martial arts. As I continue my thousand mile journey in martial arts I think to myself "I wonder what the next big craze will be..."