Knife fighting vs being attacked

[mercop]

Just got back from teaching Spontaneous Attack Survival for Edged Weapons at the Southwest Alabama Police Academy. Had officers from AL, FL, and MS. They all varied in shape, size, age, background, and time on the job. The class is how we teach open hand combatives against all attacks because if you train against the knife you will fair much better against open hand and impact weapons as well. You do not get to write the script for your altercation, your attacker and Murphy's Law have that job.

A few key points we started off with that were backed up by the hundreds of years of investigative experience in the class. Seldom does the victim ever see the knife, many people report thinking they were being punched. Here is the biggest failure of "knife fighting" ideas that are not pressure tested. It is usually a visible weapon would provoke you to draw a weapon. Since you don't see a weapon then you are likely to not have your own weapon out. Second, it takes the average person 3/4 of a second to process a specific visual stimulus. This means that if your training is based on seeing the weapon you will be cut or stabbed long before you could deploy your own deadly force option.

The key is to first use Constant Tactical Positioning which is the ongoing principle of putting yourself in the best position to limit your attackers physical ability to attack you by exploiting distance, movement, and physical barriers. Translates to them not having a shot on you, and if they want to make one it takes lots of preparatory movement on their part, which allows you more time to defend.

The second step is to be decisive and get away if you can, if you cannot then you need to press the attack and attack their central nervous system and structural system (collar bones, elbow, and knees) with explosive violence until they cannot hold a tool in their hand or stand up. This means no locks, no pressure points. You fight them to the ground, until they are no longer a threat. It is not a contest, you fight like a cat to get away, not like a dog to win. Because the trophy is your life, not a belt, plaque, or slap on the back from your instructor.

You have to consider at what point would you have your own knife or gun out. What would provoke that. The myth of the dual that persists in the "knife fighting" community only serves to impede reality based training.

Respond to preparatory/ furtive movements
Suppress/redirect the attack
Move to the outside
Control the weapon arm above and blow the elbow
Attack the head, collar bones, knees, and elbows
Leave the area when it is safe to do

- George

[SpringFieldTactical]

i enjoyed this post, and the thought of reaction timing is one that many people dont think about when carrying/thinking of defending themselves or others. i believe there was a study done, about the "average" person with concealed weapons. five people were put into a college classroom setting wtih paintpistols, tucked in various points on their bodies. then an attacker went into the classroom, "shot" the teacher, and told everyone to get down, four of the five were shot before they had time to get to the gun, and the fifth barely got it out before taken down,

the brain is only as fast as the senses usedto relay the information, its strange that people dont see the object till they feel the pain. were those subjects that "didnt see anything, and thought they were just being punched", daytime, or nighttime offenses?

[LittleRedToyota]

george, imho, you have set a high standard for yourself with previous posts.

and even by that high standard, this post was excellent.

It is not a contest, you fight like a cat to get away, not like a dog to win. Because the trophy is your life, not a belt, plaque, or slap on the back from your instructor.

perhaps one of the best sentences on the topic ever written. that sums up the essence of self-defense purrfectly.

seriously, though, it does.

[jahwarrior72]

as someone who's been stabbed, i agree; i thought i got punched at first, until i felt that my leg was soaked for no reason. when i looked down, and saw all the blood, and the guy who took off with my radio holding a knife in the other hand, i realized what just happened.

too many schools emphasize dueling with knives, or defending against an attacker who's visibly, and slowly, approaching you armed. i've only ever had one instructor who trained me to defend against a sneak attack, or a prison yard-styled attack. he did it by constantly kicking my ass until i could anticipate the ass kicking. he wouldn't even let me practice with a trainer until i could defend against him. once i could, and i'd become prficient in hand to hand techniques, we moved on to weapons.

footwork, adjusting the center of gravity, footwork, handwork, footwork, falling, footwork, groundfighting, footwork, footwork, strikes, grabs, pulls, tearing, footwork, footwork, footwork. it's kept me alive thus far.

[SpringFieldTactical]

footwork, adjusting the center of gravity, footwork, handwork, footwork, falling, footwork, groundfighting, footwork, footwork, strikes, grabs, pulls, tearing, footwork, footwork, footwork. it's kept me alive thus far.

i was going to write about that in my post but completely slipped my mind. with his "tactical postioning" quote. ample footwork, and keeping alert to the motions of the attacker, but keeping the LEAST amount of your body in direct alignment with the attacker and /or his weapon. to clairfy, sideways instead of head on.

[mercop]

We limit footwork to not crossing your feet. This is quite the problem for some people