What Happens When a Special Forces Soldier Uses Tiga Tactics Combatives Against Other Soldiers

GUEST COLUMNIST:
EVAN PERPERIS — A U.S. ARMY SPECIAL FORCES MAJOR (RETIRED) & A CHAMPION OBSTACLE COURSE RACER

“LIVE” KNIFE DEFENSE APPLICATION

It should surprise no one that, as a certified Tiga Tactics instructor, I like and believe in the techniques and content that Tiga Tactics has created.  However, I don’t put them all on equal levels. 

The one I had the least confidence with, Knife Defense, I actually had the opportunity to pressure test.  Here’s that story and why I have greater confidence in this program than ever before.

Methodology in Training: 

As part of the military, we like to increase the stress on soldiers through training.  This is done in an incremental fashion, much in the way Tiga Tactics teaches by starting off “slow,” then going to “smooth,” than gradually speeding things up to “fast.”

This is a common practice you will see in all of Tiga Tactic’s online courses; the military calls this approach “crawl, walk, run”.

Situation:

As part of training, we did a “live” (AKA competitive) drill where one person was armed with a Shocknife and the other person had no weapons at all. 

The Shocknife delivers a jolt of electricity — up to 7,500 volts — like a stun gun if you touch the “blade edge.” Clearly, this is the “run” or “fast” phase of training. 

The goal of the unarmed person was to disarm the person with the Shocknife.  The soldiers were taught several self-defense techniques.  One of the options partially overlapped with what Tiga Tactics teaches in their Knife Defense course but with some (what I would call significant) differences.

Each soldier was then required to disarm his opponent in a round robin fashion by grappling over the Shocknife.  For the drill you ended up doing three disarms against three different attackers.

Plan of Execution:

Rather than use the military-taught technique, I decided to use this as an opportunity to pressure test Tiga’s techniques, since I would get to watch other people use the different military techniques around a couple of dozen times.  I was excited to test it out because unlike a martial arts class where everyone is learning the same technique, the other soldiers wouldn’t know my plans and thus would respond more instinctively and naturally.

Furthermore, the group was legitimately trying to shock each other, as is the case when you take competitive soldiers and put them in an environment where people are watching and judging. 

Results: 

So how did the techniques taught by Tiga Tactics in Knife Defense play out? 

Well out of the three disarm drills, I only got shocked once during disarm attempt number two to my forearm/hand area. 

That was three successful disarms using Tiga Tactics techniques against stakes that are about as high as you can get while still operating in a safe training environment. 

Possible Critique: 

I know what you are thinking, were the soldiers actually going hard in this training environment or just going through the motions? 

If you have worked with Type A personalities like soldiers you probably already know the answer.   The more one person gets shocked often the harder they’ll go the next round, creating an increasing level of resistance that just occurs naturally.  If you still have doubts as to how hard we were training, as further evidence I’ll cite that one of the 12 soldiers broke his hand in the scuffle that was part of the disarm. 

Yes…we were going hard. 

Conclusion:

Not surprisingly, Tiga Tactic’s techniques work when pressure tested.  This is what you get when you take real world video, come up with solutions, pressure test it and refine it to the best product.  If you aren’t training at home, now is the time and with how easy it is to conceal a knife, you may want to start with  Knife Defense.

Wilderness Warrior Weekend Camp

THE WHAT

We’re teaming up with survival expert and New York Times bestselling author Tim MacWelch to host Wilderness Warrior Weekend Camp!
 
This will be two days packed with combatives, survivalism, and (most importantly) fun camaraderie! We’ll teach you self-preservation skills using three tools: your hands, your knife, and your axe.
 
You’ll learn how to procure water, make fire, build a shelter, and defend yourself.
 
This is going to be epic — like “The Walking Dead” epic … but without the brain-eating zombies, of course. 

THE WHEN

DATES:
September 17-18, 2022
 
TIMES:
Exact itinerary will be announced shortly

THE WHERE

We’ll be training in the great outdoors on private property in Fredericksburg, Virginia.
 
It is roughly 1 hour south of Washington, D.C., and 1 hour north of Richmond, Virginia.

ENROLL NOW

If you sign up now, you’ll save a massive 60% off the regular price. But don’t delay because this Save-the-Date Special won’t last long.

He’s Lucky to Be Alive

The dude really should count his lucky stars today.
 
The man I’m talking about in the headline is a 29-year-old New York subway rider who was smashed in the head with a hammer last week.
 
His assailant was Christian Jeffers, a career criminal who has at least 47 (yes, forty-seven!) prior arrests before being arraigned last Friday for the unprovoked and vicious attack.
 
Jeffers bumped into the victim on the train platform then screamed, “Why you hit me?”
 
Then he suddenly pulled out a hammer from a bag and swung!
 
The victim got one arm up as he stepped back, but it wasn’t enough — nor was it the right defensive move — and the hammer landed with a sickening thunk sound.
 
From confrontational question to cranium contact, the scary assault took just 3 seconds.
 
“I didn’t see the hammer,” the victim told the New York Post. “It happened, like, too quick for me to react.”
 
The 29-year-old fell to the concrete, his forehead bleeding from the hammer blow. He was hospitalized, but fortunately not for too long.
 
There’s a lot to unpack with this case, but here are our top 3 takeaways:
 

  • Avoid the “poisoned hand:” The shoulder bump that preceded the hammer attacker reminded me of what my Kung Fu master called the “poisoned hand.” No, it’s not an ancient death touch technique; it’s the concept of avoiding damage by not being where a kick or punch would land. This means getting in and out of range quickly.

    Jeffers understood range when he intentionally bumped into his victim. So, when possible in public, get out of the way. Give people as wide a berth as possible and recognize when someone is within striking range — both yours and theirs.

  • Steel your mind: It’s pretty clear by what the victim told reporters that he didn’t expect to be in a fight that day — especially against a career criminal armed with a hammer! If you can’t even imagine an event happening, it’s pretty difficult to prepare for it when it does happen.

    That’s why, as part of my defensive mindset ritual, I either perform one draw of my chosen self-defense tool or say to myself, “This could be the day I might have to fight for my life or the life of a loved one.” This prepares me mentally right out of the gate.

  • Don’t rely on your reaction time: Jeffer’s 29-year-old victim said that things happened too quickly for him to react. But that’s the problem with most unsuspecting prey; they always assume they’ll see an assault coming and have the time and distance to react.

    News flash: Evil does not strike slowly. Two-legged predators attack in the concrete jungle just like their four-legged brethren do in the wild — unexpectedly, quickly, and violently.

 
That’s why you need consistent and realistic training, because (as the saying goes) you do not rise to the occasion but rather fall to the level of your training.
 
Conrad and I have spent years pressure-testing techniques against resistant partners armed with training weapons (from knives and guns to sticks and baseball bats).
 
We know what it takes to survive an urban ambush involving a hammer or any other blunt weapon.
 
And it’s not necessarily what’s taught on the range or in the dojo.
 
Fortunately, you don’t have to spend decades studying martial arts, combat sports, and combatives like we did.
 
That’s because we’ve distilled the best tips, tactics, and training drills in “Club Proof 1.0.”
 
And in honor of my namesake holiday today, you can get this home study course for half price during St. Patrick’s Day week.
 
Just use the 50% off promo code stpaddy2022 at checkout.

Enroll in “Club Proof” today so you don’t have to rely on luck to survive a blunt weapon attack.

But don’t wait — our St. Patrick’s Day sale ends at 11:59 p.m. Pacific Time this Saturday.