Okay, it's late and I'm cranked on coffee and beer and sick of Farsi, so here goes...
STEVE TARANI:
I really didn't know much about Steve Tarani going into his section, just read a couple of articles by him. Let me tell you, this guy moves like water. Over six feet tall, he went from a standing fight to seated to standing again quicker than you could say "silat". It was a real treat to see him in action with a karambit. It flicked in and out in his hands quicker than a cobra's tongue. Duane can tell you all about it...
We then paired off and worked on methods of getting one's knife hand unjammed if the opponent has grabbed on. I had the pleasure of throwing down with our own Joe Estrada. We ended up kicking each other's ass the rest of the day.
MARC "CRAFTY DOG" DENNY:
After seeing the vids, it was really sweet to see Crafty in action. He demonstrated some footwork techniques, and methods of closing with and jamming up your opponent. He also covered ranges of combat as the Dog Brothers practice it, outlining seven ranges in lieu of the more conventional largo, medio and corto. He covered prison "shanking" cases, and gave us some insight into one of the vital templates of Sayoc Kali. We then went at each other with a vengeance, one armed with a knife, the other empty hands. Technique went right out the window, and aggressiveness and will to survive became the order of the day. Both Joe and myself came out looking pretty ragged after Crafty's set.
MIKE AJAX:
This was our bonus. We were priveleged to be the first class Mike has taught outside of a strictly military environment. Mike opened up with his thoughts on the meaning of being a warrior, underscored with stories of his past experience.
By this time, it was almost full dark. The portable lighting really only illuminated Mike's area that he was standing in. Under his direction, we picked up our chairs and moved to the semidark area of the building. He then told us to throw them. Our chairs landed all over the place. The reason for this, he told us, is that combat will never take place on an ideal surface. He then demonstrated a combat fighting stance (very low, as you're getting shot at in a combat zone), and demonstrated a couple of different attacks. I have never in my life seen that level of speed, aggression and outright malevolence in an attack before. We then practiced advancing and attacking, some of us stumbling over the chairs strewn all over the floor. The level of adrenaline and intensity was simply incredible. Mike's training taps into the primal, animal part of the brain and lets the beast come rampaging loose.
For all this, in speaking with Mike off the mat, his demeanor is just the opposite. He is quiet, usually smiling, and when you talk to him, all of his attention is focused on what you're saying. Intense and professional yet friendly and approachable (well, with us anyway,
) he is in my opinion the living embodiment of a warrior. It might sound corny to some, but only to those who haven't met him.
And who knows? We might be famous; Ichiro Nagata and Tomo Hasegawa were there getting it all on film (even got some pics of me cheesing it up
)
It was altogether a rewarding experience, and those who weren't there really missed out on something special.
Okay, back to the beer, talk amongst yourselves...
SGT Ryan Fitts
