Q:

How would you respond if someone came up to you and said this: "I don't need self-defense training. 

I have a gun and a baseball bat. Any martial artist would have to be really good to stop me."

A: 

There are a number of ways you can attempt to systematize your personal protection program.   Let’s look at a couple of ways I’ve attempted to put a system together in the past and see if it’s anything close to your system. 

The 3 ‘P’s 

I’ve said before that you can look at your program as three ‘P’s:  psychological, proximal and physical.   

The psychological is the knowledge about self-defense, the self-admission that it can happen to you, and the awareness of what is happening around you (including electronic awareness, i.e. monitoring and alarm systems).   

The proximal section would cover using barriers (locks, doors, a bar stool) and distance to aid in your protection.  This would also cover the “don’t be there when the fight starts” type of strategies. 

Finally, the physical section would cover all the things you would need to know to actually stave off a physical assault. This part is huge, containing empty-hand, physical conditioning, and all types of weapons – improvised, edged, impact and firearms.  

The Modern Pentathlon 

In the Olympics the Modern Pentathlon consists of shooting, running, swimming, fencing and horsemanship.  The five contests are supposed to represent a scenario of a military courier attempting to deliver a message on the battlefield.  He first rides the horse.  When it is shot out from under him, the courier then engages in a gunfight.  Running out of ammunition, he finishes off the enemy with his sword, then swims and runs across the rest of the route to successfully complete his task. 

The Samurai had something similar in their training mix.  Their training included horsemanship, archery, swordmanship (including short sword and tanto techniques), swimming while in armor and all sorts of empty-handed arts which included striking and throwing. 

I contend that for our discussion, you should be training in the new Urban Pentathlon.  You should train in driving, shooting, running, empty-hand fighting, and fighting with weapons. 

About 30% of all assaults are either in or around a car.   There is a really good chance that you will be a victim of road rage than someone trying to pick a fight with you on the corner.  I know, you already know how to drive.  But can you really drive well enough to deliver you and your family intact from a situation involving motor vehicles?  The section here would cover similar techniques used in counter-ambush, counter-terrorist, counter-carjacking, and police pursuit driving.  Having high-performance training and experience is invaluable here.  So is knowledge and practice in evasive techniques like Bootleg turns. 

LAPD statistics show that officers will lose most suspects if a foot pursuit lasts more than 200 yards.  The implication is that you, too, can lose most pursuers if you can run.  I mean really run.  I’ve seen Marc MacYoung propose something similar and he credits being able to dodge around cars and jump over fences as a skill that has saved his hide many times.  Plus, there might be times when running from a scene (like a collapsing high rise) could be a lifesaver.  I’m thinking sprints here versus being able to jog 10 miles.   

The empty-hand section covers your striking, grappling, joint locks, throws, etc. 

Fighting with weapons covers impact, edged and improvised weapons. 

Shooting is self-explanatory.  I group pistol, rifle and shotgun all under this category. 

The Target 

You can also look at personal protection training as a system that is like the rings on a target.  As you add the rings from the center on out, you add sophistication and depth to your total system.  The inner most rings are your most basic levels with the outer rings being the more advanced or “highest” levels. 

The bulls eye is in the center.  This should be your core personal protection system.  I contend that it should be your empty hand program. You should be able to carry your skills anywhere you go.  This should be your core fitness training (remember your sprints here), your kicking/striking training and your grappling/throwing training.   

The next ring out should be your proximal security.  This is the “hardware” part of the equation that most people think of when you think of security.  This is the part about locks, alarms, sensors, etc.  You can even add more advanced topics here like landscaping or architecture for security.  Psychological tactics like setting lights on timers, putting out a big dog house with a large bone in the yard, or leaving the TV on can be included here. 

The next ring out should be your impact weapon ring.  These weapons are not very sophisticated, however, their reach and ability to inflict damage give them a noble heritage in almost every society known to man.  Obviously, a baseball bat would fit into this category.  Other unsophisticated, but effective, examples are ashtrays, beer mugs, shovels, 2x4s, even a chair.  Most American males can swing a pretty mean baseball bat. 

Next up the level of sophistication and effectiveness tree is edged weapons.  This ring will most likely focus on your knife/counterknife training, but can include things like machetes, icepicks, and even swords or kamas if you are a traditionalist and think that you could carry those around without raising a few eyebrows. 

Finally, the last ring would be projectile weapons.  It could entail crossbows, longbows, ballistic knives or even blowguns, but most realistically it will center on firearms.  Pistol, shotgun and rifle  -- in that order. 

What about awareness training in the Target method?  I contend that your awareness training should pervade every single ring.  All of your physical training should have a mental component as well.  You should be learning realistic methods to prepare you for a realistic attack.  So as you are training using, for example, the FATS firearm training system, you will be faced with realistic video scenarios which you must respond to effectively to survive.  This role playing provides excellent mental conditioning and awareness training.  I believe you have to train in the skill/will departments at all times.   

He Has a Point

Here’s where I’m getting to regarding these systems.  No matter how you arrange them, you need to train in multiple areas.  However, some of these areas provide more “bang for your buck” so to speak.  I can get someone to a point where they can realistically expect to defend themselves with a firearm faster and easier than I can do the same with my core system of empty hand techniques.   

And, generally, the person armed with a weapon is more likely to win or survive combat with an unarmed person – even if that unarmed person is highly trained in empty-hand techniques!   

In the realm of personal combat, there is a bit of the old game of Paper, Rock, Scissors.  A stick beats empty hand.  A knife beats a stick.  And a firearm beats them all.   

So your guy has a point.  He is starting at the highest levels of the hierarchy of weapons with a gun.  And a well-wielded bat can take down the toughest empty-hand fighter.  I know of two cases where a baseball bat had a hugely significant effect on the recipient.  One was a high-ranking kempo instructor who was ambushed by several bat-wielding assailants and was never, ever the same mentally and physically again.  The second was a young tough, a scary kid who had a large gang of about 15 guys who ran like a juggernaut though one high school and several neighborhoods.  However, this tough guy must have either scared someone so badly or pissed off the wrong guy.  He was finally caught alone and received such a beating from a single attacker armed with a baseball bat that he was laid up in the neurological unit of one of the nation’s best hospital with serious head injuries.  He survived, but word is on the street that his swaggering tough-guy days are long gone. 

I don’t know how well-trained this guy is with his weapons, but it doesn’t take much training to pull a trigger.  If he had the will to use his weapons, the skill level to defend themselves effectively is not necessarily that difficult to achieve.   

So you have to begrudgingly give him his due on these points.  However, if he is only going to rely on his gun and his bat, does he carry them at all times?  I’m assuming he must carry his gun when he is out and keep his baseball bat in his house or his vehicle (it wouldn’t be a pickup truck with a gun rack in back would it?). 

The Samurai had a word for being caught without a sword.  They called it muto.  If you relied on weapon for your safety, what are you going to do when you don’t have it?  Or it malfunctions?  Or it does not seemingly have an effect on your opponent? 

Plus I would contend that -- even with a gun and a bat -- he still needs training.  First in how to effectively use his weapons.  Secondly, he needs training on when to use his weapons.  Both of his weapons are capable of deadly force.  As such, a responsible citizen needs to get training.

I wouldn’t worry about guys like this.  Just nod and agree with him.  Tell him, “looks like you’ve got it covered”.  Then continue on with your own training.

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