Sort of gun related as this class definitely changed my thoughts on the old addage "never bring a knife to a gun fight".
Went to the Felix Valencia Knife/Street Fighting class this weekend with a buddy and boy are we glad we took it. Felix and his teaching assistant Tim Llacuna (who owns and teaches at Modern Defense Institute in Concord, CA) were awesome. Both of these guys were down to earth and helped me and my buddy in getting our moves correct. Never once did I get the crap "my kungfu better than your kungfu" attitude I see from most other schools. They didn't have a chip on their shoulders and were there to teach and not humiliate you because you weren't a martial artist or a buff youngster (as I can tell you, me and my buddy are definitely out of shape old timers). They even modified their moves based on the individual height, build, ability.
Felix and Tim incorporate their fighting styles with anything (from other styles) that they see are good and that can potentially be used in an modern street fight. Because Felix extensively travels the US teaching to the law enforcement community knife and street fighting. He picks up stuff that the LEO's see on the streets and in the jails and figures out counters to moves such as the "Folsom knife techniques" etc. He teaches moves that are "instinctual" and can be done by the average layman and not a 20 year Martial Artist veteran.
We had two days of instructions 9-5 on Sat and Sun. This consisted of about a half of the time devoted to ground fighting. Because as anyone that has seen a UFC or a street fight, will know more than a three thirds of the time the fight will end up with two guys grappling on the floor. The moves taught were cool and easy to pick up and ended the fight in a brutal but quick manor.
We then spent the rest of the time with knife/gun retention, disarms, attacks. I'm a CCW holder and always relied on my G27 as my primary weapon of choice. I never believed a knife could win in a gun fight. Felix definitely changed my mind on that. He had my put on my holster and a gun (unloaded glock airsoft) and a mask. He then had me stand 7-8 feet away and had my let me try to draw from my holster first. If you read FBI statistics, most shootings happen in less than 10 feet. Before I could even clear the gun from my holster, he closed that distance and stabbed me between the eyes (thank God I had a helmet on). Quite an eye opener.
We then spent some time with sparring with knives and sticks and each other. Both my buddy and I are sore all over. We found out Felix and Tim are putting on another one of these 2 day classes next month and we are definitely going to sign up for it. If Tim and Modern Defense Institute weren't so far away from where I live, I would definitely sign up to be a student in a heartbeat.
I'm not affiliated with Felix or Tim or Modern Defense Institute and until last week never even heard of them. So this is pure unbiased opinion and thought you guys would like to know.
Went to the Felix Valencia Knife/Street Fighting class this weekend with a buddy and boy are we glad we took it. Felix and his teaching assistant Tim Llacuna (who owns and teaches at Modern Defense Institute in Concord, CA) were awesome. Both of these guys were down to earth and helped me and my buddy in getting our moves correct. Never once did I get the crap "my kungfu better than your kungfu" attitude I see from most other schools. They didn't have a chip on their shoulders and were there to teach and not humiliate you because you weren't a martial artist or a buff youngster (as I can tell you, me and my buddy are definitely out of shape old timers). They even modified their moves based on the individual height, build, ability.
Felix and Tim incorporate their fighting styles with anything (from other styles) that they see are good and that can potentially be used in an modern street fight. Because Felix extensively travels the US teaching to the law enforcement community knife and street fighting. He picks up stuff that the LEO's see on the streets and in the jails and figures out counters to moves such as the "Folsom knife techniques" etc. He teaches moves that are "instinctual" and can be done by the average layman and not a 20 year Martial Artist veteran.
We had two days of instructions 9-5 on Sat and Sun. This consisted of about a half of the time devoted to ground fighting. Because as anyone that has seen a UFC or a street fight, will know more than a three thirds of the time the fight will end up with two guys grappling on the floor. The moves taught were cool and easy to pick up and ended the fight in a brutal but quick manor.
We then spent the rest of the time with knife/gun retention, disarms, attacks. I'm a CCW holder and always relied on my G27 as my primary weapon of choice. I never believed a knife could win in a gun fight. Felix definitely changed my mind on that. He had my put on my holster and a gun (unloaded glock airsoft) and a mask. He then had me stand 7-8 feet away and had my let me try to draw from my holster first. If you read FBI statistics, most shootings happen in less than 10 feet. Before I could even clear the gun from my holster, he closed that distance and stabbed me between the eyes (thank God I had a helmet on). Quite an eye opener.
We then spent some time with sparring with knives and sticks and each other. Both my buddy and I are sore all over. We found out Felix and Tim are putting on another one of these 2 day classes next month and we are definitely going to sign up for it. If Tim and Modern Defense Institute weren't so far away from where I live, I would definitely sign up to be a student in a heartbeat.
I'm not affiliated with Felix or Tim or Modern Defense Institute and until last week never even heard of them. So this is pure unbiased opinion and thought you guys would like to know.
