The knife defense seminar was outstanding. It brought to light how dangerous… and fatal… it can be when you defend against an edged weapon, particularly a knife.
The seminar began with our lead instructor making a comparison between theatrical knife defenses and real world knife defenses. Knife defenses will not look like a scene in a Steven Seagal movie!
Afterwards, we were asked to gather around a desktop computer so that we could view a PowerPoint slideshow. The slideshow was comprised of graphic photographs showing various knife wounds.
About three-quarters through the seminar, we were asked to gather around the computer again. This time we were asked to view a security camera video clip of a person being stabbed to death in a barroom confrontation. The victim never saw his attacker pull the knife out of his pants pocket. The attacker slashed the victim’s throat first and then began to repeatedly stab the victim in the midsection. The victim bled out in ninety seconds.
The seminar covered the following attacks:
- Overhead (ice pick)
- Straight stab
- Slashing
- Knife threats to the throat
During one drill, we were asked to break up into groups of five. One person would defend and the others were to (one-at-a-time) be attackers. The defender had to defend against the rapidly oncoming knife attacks for three minutes.
Another drill had us wander around amongst ourselves (a nightclub scenario), half with knives and half without. The knife wielders were to confront and then attack those students without knives. The defenders were to take a deescalating posture and try to defuse the situation. If they were attacked, they were to make the appropriate defense. Once an attack was defended against, the knife was handed to the defender and the roles were reversed. I should point out that at this juncture, our knives were marked with lipstick. The lipstick acted as an indicator for knife wounds.Everyone's personal space is different. How close you normally stand to someone else when you are talking to them will depend on who it is you are talking to, and under what circumstances. Maintain your personal space when confronted so that you will have full view of your confronter. Having full view will allow you to see the attack coming and make a defense.
The bottom line is that you should use every available option at your disposal to avoid having to defend against a knife with your hands. Hand defenses for knife attacks are a last resort.
Once again, a seminar well worth attending. Kudos to the instructors.
