street fighter

This is the truth as I know it! If you have time to think, plan or whatever about what you are going to do in a fight then you probably had time to walk or run away. If you, whom ever you are do not wish to use weapons then that is your choice. I will always be willing and able to up grade my chances in a fight, especially if there is any doubt that my life may be at risk. I think that entering into a fight with thoughts of lawyers and jail is a good ticket to a but kicking or an expencive box. I will teach my clients to use their own judgement but I teach them to fight for survival. I teach basic common weapons, knife fighting or edeged weapons, blunt force weapons and how to take that knowledge and to use improvised weapons. I teach how to bite, eye gouge, I tell them to tear the ears off of someone if needed. I also explain the difference in pride/ego and confidence. They will also understand that the jails and grave yards are full of prideful people, but when attacked you fight back with all you have. I will say this as well if you announce that you are going to do me harm or "kill" me with your bare hands and I have a sidearm, you will be shot and i will shoot to kill. I will deal with the lawyers later and I will enjoy them trying to get testimony from a corpes.

As in all MA trining it is about how it is taught. Let answer one question first, yes the cross training is great. Back to HapKiDo, I studied HKD and TKD together for about 4 years. The HKD was supposed to be the street fighting material. I thought it was cool and fun to learn the different locks and the few low kicks we did. What I did not know is that 95% of the material was not applicible inthe streets. I am not saying HKD is not effective, but it must be taught by someone who knows what is going on. In joint manipulation you either have to have a stactic opponent or have good seizing or trapping skills. You must also be ale to flow from a submission to a striking platform. The way I was trained was the person always grabs or places their hands on me then I do the technique. Great for begginers but not for the streets unless you get lucky. In Chin Na I trained to apply a lock on full speed targets but understood that if I missed the grab or lock immediatly go into striking and be prepared for strikes coming back. You must also be prepared when grabbing someone not to be pulled off balance, you are better off at times to let go and strike of retreat. In this world of PC some do not like to bust skulls but if you are not a Policeman then you do not have obligation to submit an opponent. You do have the responsibility to not dish out more than they deserve. Cross train but look for realism in your training. If it smells funny it may be.

Hey they pay money and the belt come flowing like water. It is the americanization or whoreing of MA. These so called instructors are producing future victims. Bruce Lee wanna be's. Hey I feel sorry for the poor souls who think they are safer when in fact they are now more than likley just willing to be more stupid because they think they know something.

I will wade to deep into this but some said earlier that attacking the limbs was stupid. They have never had their limbs attacked by someone who new how and traps and the low kicks of Wing TSun are very effective in creating opportunity for strikes and the unbalacing of an opponent. The straight blast is not the end all attack but most fighters have a hard time with hard and fast centerline attacks. I have watched and trained with MT and weatern boxers who when charges move straight back under strikes. But for me to say which of the styles are better it would be hard. I train in concept of all three and find them to all have strong points and they each can compliment each other.

I do not wish to open to big of a can of worms but here I go. When do you consider a street fight to be a life or death senerio. What makes it a beat down as opposed to a muder attempt? I realise the school yard may, I said may not be as dangerous as some other places but I say if you try and cannot avoid an attacker then give him all you have and desculate as you deem necessary. Never underestimate an opponent and never fight with less than the plan of total dominace.

Buy them a beer. There is no one way that is best unless you list escape. Leaving is not always the end, they may follow. So escape is the only one true way to end a fight quickly. .45 between the eyes, knife inserted into the throat, a fast moving brick to the temple are a few others that may have high outcome of success. This is an uninformed question but that is ok after reading some of the answers. Some folks really have a naive veiw of street fighting.

WOW deadcell you hit the nail on the head, good shot. Military Combative classes are a freaking joke and should be outlawed. I sorta understand the primise that you cannot spend 3 months training hand-to-hand but when sending an American into a combat zone he should be as well rounded as possible. And I do believe it is possible to do better, much better than the crap they are feeding our young soldiers, Marines, airmen and seamen. I have trained with many soldiers, Rangers and other members of the SOCOM community and have been less than impressed with thier abilities. I do not blame the fighting men, I blame the system. Makes them even larger heros knowing they are fighting with some inferior tools in their arsenal.

Chokes and breaks are only hard if you make them hard. Yes some may take proper technique but some of the basic are well, basic. If you wish to incapacitate a good frontal grab, squeeze and pull will generally be effective. I prefer strikes to the neck when the option is there. Breaks, well if done correct and fast I dont care how strong someone is, bones will disengage and so will muscles. Tendon tears are effective as well. I will agree with some of the above find someone who is experianced to show you what to and not to do. Whip or torque someones head wrong and you may have a straw sucking friend for life.

What a crock of bull poo poo. Oh I hope poo poo is not to strong for this site.

Be careful of those guys who know the government secret killing arts that have be outlawed from the public ever knowing but this one guy have broken the silence and is willing to sell it to you and you to will become a secret government killer. Watch out for those guys.

Hey thaiboxer, it depends as always the situation, it sounds good but if the guy is a true knife fighter he may have more than one blade, so in that case bad idea, if you grab the arm in a non controling area he will just crave away. If you grab a guys arm that has a knife in its hand try and get as close to the hand as possible or trap his arm to his body above the elbow one will require two hands the latter can be done with one hand and the other should grab his shoulder so you can employ knees and destroy the guy if you have his hand kick and destroy as if your life depends on it because it does. To be honest the safest thing to do even for trained knife fighters is to run.

A wild swinging fighter, hmmmm, go up his middle and obtain a clinch and destroy him with knees and elbows,hmmmm, side step and attack his side with either or knees and kicks as well as hands and elbows, hmmmmm, deflect and move in for side control in a lock or take his back and chokem out or whatever may be called for, hmmmm, the list just goes on and on. Cross train and see what so many others can do.

Yeeee Haaaaa that is correct everyone can be beat by someone on any given day. There is no ultimate art just the one you are good at that will be your ulitmate.

Ok I have covered this again and again, the best art for street fighting is one you can actually do and an art that is being taught by someone who knows his head from a hole in the ground. Trust me and a few others when they say their are to many would be street warriors out there that have no clue what they are talking about. I am not saying that the teacher has to be a thug and get into fights every week what I am saying is that the teacher has to understand the difference in what is taught for a compitition or in a traditional form of martial arts practice and reality against stupid people who would kill you. There is no set plan in a street fight it just happens when it happens if it is set up by you then it is not defense its just you thugin. Back to your style or art, it is my and others belief that you should be well rounded, what I mean is understand how to use your limbs properly, understand weapon styles so that you can improvise with what is availible and understand the ground, you may not want to be there but you better know it. Never think that playing fair is the way in a street confrontation, play to win no matter what dirty trick it takes, never be affraid if you truely feel your life is in danger to deploy and use weapons. I know I know what some will say about weapons but it is your best bet to be alive to hear about it later than for your family to be at your grave side.

Gilbert, I do so like the philosophy in the arts but when talking about a street fight with someone who may really need your help, talk in a language they can understand. Also not everyone studys styles that are so deep in thought, do it more like deflect and strike, instead of take his fire and drown him with your water. Hey thats just me and im sure some of you dont like it.

Tree is San Soo the same as what I am calling Shan Shou, chinese kickboxing, or at the professional level it is called San Dan I believe, obviously I am not a pro huh.

Krav Maga, NA I like the F.I.G.H.T. program it does not take as long to learn the basics and is more modernized(if thats a word) than the martial art style of K.M.. Now understand I may be bias being I am a certified FIGHT instructor but also from a practical stance of time in training to being able to defend one self against the unaware (unaware being the key word in most defense systems). I think some people get lost in in the difference between defense and fighting, you may have to fight to defend but most systems of self defense are just that self defense against an attacker that is unaware that this persons has trained in a defensive system so it makes it very effective because of the "element of surprise", put that same defensive student in a ring or the streets with someone who is aware of their training and is a trained fighter the story will most likely not come to the same conclusion. This is where I would like to see more responsible instructors, ones who are willing to admit the short comings of the things they teach and focus on the strong points of their systems but always making sure the student is aware of what is reality and what is just cool to do, they are not always the same. In my experiance the simplier the better, the complicated looks good and is fun but generally not very practical. Some may say they can only teach what they have studied and I say it is their responsibility to learn more if they advertise to teach self-defense and are going to have people pay and trust in them, they in my opinion have a moral obligation. None of us have the one true answer but we all should try and find it.

Wow I like the ability to use improvised weapons but to think you can get to your car may be a bit ambitious but, that is just my opinion and I understand it may also have something to do with the social community in which you live. I am not married to my firearms but it is rare that I am without my .45 and a pocket knife, the firearm is not practical in all situations and locations but the knife seems to almost always find its way with me even if that knife is just hardened plastic, now my mentor would carry a razor in his mouth and talk and cut up like the rest of us but I am not that adventurerous.

Treebranch, I study and have studied concepts,(What we believe makes the different style effective not ness. the whole system) of the different Filipino styles of blade and stick fighting and some ground fighting from the islands, Kinu mutai, the base of my ground is ground Chin-Na, it is much like BJJ but we fancy ourselves as strikers first, a blend of Tai, San Shou, Western Boxing, Wing tsun,and JKD. We or I are looking for what works best for the individual and working on that for each student and by introducing so many things most can find something that seems to fit them, now that is for local students, for contract work we have put together programs that we feel are the most benificial for the group that we will be working with be that military, law enforcement, or security, we try and not to get lost in each organisations protocols we just teach what we know best, street level fighting and let them discern what they can and cannot employ. Well thats a little about me. Some have said that we are just jacks of the trade and masters of none, I do not look at it the same as those folks I like to think we are trying to be well rounded. Hey thats just me.

Im glad I do not have to fight most of the folks in here they are just to good for me.

How about a pocket knife, kubaton on my key ring and sometimes a stick about 5 inches in length we call a Bolo, looks like a kubaton, and also a .45 under arm. On a daily basis I do tote the .45, pocket knife, and the key ring kubaton, everyday, and what makes them effective is that I also try and train with them on a regular basis both use and deployment. Oh I almost forgot in the winter like now I also keep a 6" tactical flash light in my coat pocket, very bright and very hard with good cutting edges.

I like the paddle idea myself

Hey treebranch I do agree, if you have alot of time to think you probably had time to leave, if it is an attack then its just training and not alot of thought until its over, hookin and jabbing, poking and a stabbin, just let it flow

Give him paddles so he can keep me cool on a hot summers day

To each his own but thats what make the world go round, and I agree with at least one maybe more but the fact that you are comfortable with the ground is a good reason to use it, I on the other hand prefer my feet on the ground and let the knees, elbows and head do the talking because that is where I am comfortable. If everyone would try different things and go with whats works for them we would have alot more effective fighters walking the streets, I mean defenders not thugs, they would be more wary of who they jump.