bushido_man96

Thanks for the kind words, tallgeese. I've felt the same about you being here. I've always enjoyed seeing the way you approach matters, and although our backgrounds are different, knowing the difference between how the styles I've studied approach things are and listening to the way you've approached things has always held my interest, and has challenged me to step outside of my traditional box and try new things. I also enjoy ps1's postings. His posts are always filled with good information, and his experiences from his different styles and the way he contrasts them in a no-nonsense way are always refreshing. Joesteph and sensei8 are two posters that I met in a different forum, but have always posed good information from the time I've met them. We are kind of like "the three amigos" from our time at the other forum, and I think its great that we are all able to post our stuff here at KF. I also enjoy Danielle's information because we study a similar style taught in pretty different ways, and I've learned a lot from her. tonydee also had great info on Korean styles from a different perspective that were always great reads. From years back, Sohan provided some good information, and Shotokan-kez was a great example of what the spirit of KF is. There are so many others I know I am leaving out, and please don't be offended or feel slighted because I have not mentioned you. I'm sure I'll end up adding to this list after I hit submit. The fact of the matter is, though, that there have been and are currently so many great contributors here that its impossible to list them all.

I'd like to know what the hardest part of the whole process was for you in the beginning, and what is now.

Agreed, MP, and very valid points. Gun disarms are a struggle, a tug-of-war in the worst sense. That's why I say striking should be a part of gun disarming. Hit them as hard as you can, as fast as you can, as many times as you can so they let got of that gun.

Looking forward to seeing that gun disarm video, GroinStrike. 5/26/2011 2.2 mile walk. Wife, 5 year old boy, and the dogs went with us. Beautiful night for a walk.

Congrats, Heidi! Your posts are always great, and your example as a sensei has been more than helpful to me.

I'd say you are on the right track. The important thing to look at when you practice is to have the shooter PULL THE TRIGGER and see where and if you get hit. If you keep getting hit, then something isn't working. Also, keep the techniques simple. Don't get elaborate and fancy; your dealing with life and death here. Also, think about where you will be directing the muzzle of the weapon, and who might get caught in the crossfire.

Cool, thanks tallgeese. Yeah, if you'd email that to me, I'd appreciate it. My DT partner and I could start playing with it, and maybe he can incorporate it into his training as well, if you wouldn't mind.

I've seen some other places kind of like this, too, but more of an undergrad thing, and Karate was included as well as Kung Fu, I think. They also appeared to have a more structured idea of how to provide for the degree they were geared for.

Cool. Its interesting to see the friendships that have spawned her at KF.

Get to it, man! You can do it!

I know some of the testing fees in our school get kind of high. Its also no secret that if one charges for testings, and has more testings than fewer, then you are likley making some money on the testings. No lie there. But, that is up to the organization/instructor. Would instructors just charge more for the fewer testings?

I've never been scared of anything. Now, if I were being asked to do flips and such, then I would be, because my athletic ability does not stretch that far. As for rolls and falls, though, I've taken some pretty hard ones. The more you do it, the more you get used to it, and that fear will leave you. You just need to practice rolling and falling more.

I'm that way at times, too. My problem is I get to reading too many books at a time, and loose track. But, its still great info. I'm better about keeping focused on the task at hand now than I was a long time ago, but that comes with time.

Although not a grappler, I'd say one does the same as other styles; line up the bad guys, create space, and try to get away. Barring that, if I was a grappler, and I had to latch on to someone, then I'd go into "snap it off" mode as opposed to "tap them out" mode. But that's just me.

I agree, tallgeese. If you can, let me know how you work that out. It would be great to see some kind of framework on it. Everything we did in academy was one-on-one, as well. I've heard several stories from incidents where one LEO is pulling or twisting on one limb an another is pulling or twisting on the other, and afterwards find out why what they were doing didn't work because they talk about what each was trying to do. We had an incident about a month back now, 3 trying to arrest one, and in the struggle, I got a taste of a Taser...and it was an interdepartment deal, too, so I think its a good idea to include all the law enforcement entities in the area in training like this, if they will be interacting in the same jurisdiction (city and county guys, even state patrol, etc).

I'd have to echo Montana here. It may not be a rip-off, but like he says, I'm not sure what you gain by doing it. Unless you get some classes in things like kineseology, anatomy, and some other physical education related stuff, which you can fill in as an undergrad at most colleges anyways. There does appear to be an abundance of TKD looking fellows in there, too. There could be some with experience in other styles, but I don't know. There wasn't a lot of info to find exactly what or how they do what they claim to do. It would be interesting to go sit down and interview them to find out what exactly they do there.

Thanks for all that early work you did, Tammy (and Pat, Doug, and Patrick), laying down the groundwork for what we do today. I'm sure its much easier for us now than it was then, with how everything is lined out from your past experiences.

I echo your sentiments, Jeffrey. It would be great to meet some of the members here some day. I can only imagine by the amount I've learned here reading, what I could learn in person. Great comments.

I was trying to find an MA chat room, and KF kept popping up in the searches. Once I checked it out, and began reading some posts, I had a moment like Danielle, and had to put my .02 cents in on the matter. I haven't stopped since.

Thanks for sharing this, Patrick. Its cool to see it all layed out like that. Thanks for the kind words, as well.

Hello, James. Thanks for sharing this with us. I enjoy reading about how it all got started.

This is often the exception rather than the rule. I've seen several fatality accidents where drivers or passengers have been ejected and killed because the vehicle rolled on top of them. Not pretty. Like JusticeZero says, they save far more lives than they are responsible for losing.

I'd say go with the airsoft guns. No, the weight won't be there most likely, but they will shoot those little projectiles, and that will give you the best feedback you can ask for in gun disarm training. I would also maybe find a good piece of headgear for your partner to wear for when you strike him. I say this because strikes should be a part of your disarm. My DT parnter and I used to do this with rubber band guns. Not even close to a real bullett, but if you are getting tagged by rubber bands, then you ain't dodging no bulletts any time soon.

Yep, all very true. Things just tend to change over time. It happens with just about everything.

We are often our own worse critic. But, its what drives us to work harder and get better.