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In response to Combat Application Techniques critics.

Alright, so here goes! I know I am about to really tick some people off with this one, but I'm gonna do it anyway. First off I can say that I've been involved with the martial arts for quite some time (over 27 years). I have trained with or worked with some of the greats, Late Master Hart, Surichai Sirisute, and Dan Severn to name a few; and since I hold 2 blackbelts in the traditional martial arts of Kempo Karate and Moo Duk Kwan Taekwando as well as hold an honorary brown belt in Kano Jujitsu, I think I have some knowledge when it comes to unarmed techniques. I think that my experience competing as a professional mixed martial artist, an amateur kickboxer and a former National Karate Champion counts toward some experience. Lastly I hope that my training and experience as a combat veteran and former Special Forces Soldier and combatives instructor can attest to my knowledge and experience of reality based techniques. Now with that said, I want to address some of the "woo-woo" karate/ martial arts critics out there!

In 2008 my first book Combat Application Techniques was published. This book was in response to a terrible Modern Army Combatives craze that struck. Being a soldier who has been to combat and yes had to kill the enemy at close range I can tell you that the Modern Army combatives training is trash! In fact it is nothing more than MMA with body armor. The philosophy behind the techniques of the Modern Army Combatives program will get soldiers killed. However, Techniques are like assholes, they all stink and some smell worse than others; so with that said, Combat Application Techniques is my stinky asshole! I was shocked at exactly how hateful and spiteful critics were to my book. I have received some reviews from a majority of what I call "Woo-woo" martial artists that are filled with vitriol. So this blog is in response to those critiques, and hopefully I can clarify some issues.

First let's respond to "Cliff" :

Cliff: "Though the author may know what he is doing in this book, you may already as well. If you took some sort of M.A. class for any period of time that was worth anything, then you would have learned most if not half of these techniques for knife fighting."

Andy Curtiss: "First off Cliff thanks for taking the time and reading Combat Application Techniques. As for anyone already knowing many of the techniques in the book if they had already taken some sort of Martial Arts class for any period of time that was worth anything, that's the point. What I am trying to demonstrate is that you don't need to take Martial Arts Classes for extended periods in order to learn techniques that are worth anything."

"Combat Application Techniques is not aimed at the long time Martial Artist or "Kung Fu" Master. It is directed toward those with little to no experience or training and designed to cut through all the BS associated with the traditional martial arts. The reader can learn several effective techniques and principles in a fraction of the time it takes to learn the same techniques and principles in the martial arts."

Cliff: "There are however a lot of pictures and this guy does a decent job of explaining them, but the pics are in b&w and the people in them are wearing camos. My WTF gripe with this is that the index lists what page number covers what topic, but no where in the book has not one page number on it.."

Andy Curtiss: "Thanks again Cliff, I understand that the pictures are in black and white and we were wearing camos when we did the shoot. The pictures are clear however, but there is also a color version available on E-Book. I once offered the E-Book on my website Knife and H2H Combat.com, but due to some recent modifications for a second edition coming soon, it is currently unavailable. Which brings me to the index and page number issue. This is a publisher formatting error, that I am currently working on getting Authorhouse to fix in the second edition. I do however appreciate you bringing that matter to light."

The next Critique comes from "Nobody":

Nobody: "The author (while he may have been in combat) clearly hasn't done a lot of actual H2H"

Andy Curtiss: "Do I really even need to address this? My H2H experience is 100 percent verifyable There are even fight videos out there on the internet. I also happen to have military awards for such exploits. What sort of verifyable H2H experience / expertise do you have Nobody? I believe that your pseudonym says it all!"

Nobody: "Mr. Curtiss shows poor knowledge of anatomy ("humorous bone"???)"

Andy Curtiss: >"Once again I can relate this as a formatting error. Spell checkers are often a curse and it is easy to see how the words Humerus and humorous can be crossed during a spell check. Although I again appreciate this type of critique, the vitriol is not appreciated. By the way are you an anatomy expert? I am sure that you are just another nobody."

Nobody: "Erroneous ideas about the history of fighting knives (and that of the Ka-Bar, specifically) what constitutes a "good steel" (his recommended "440 stainless" is a extremely hard steel, a poor choice for a fighting knife that may need to be sharpened in the field).This and his ideas on the reason for the "blood-groove" or fuller clearly show his unfamiliarity with knife-design and construction....This matters because the author dedicates quite a bit of space to writing like he knows a lot about all of the above-mentioned topics."

Andy Curtiss: "My erroneous ideas about the history of fighting knives stems from the actual research that I have done on them to include reading books, undergoing training in the military (I.E.) S.E.R.E school and asking experts such as Allen Elishewitz of Elishewitz Custom Creations. I do recommend "440 Stainless steel" because it is cheap, extremely durable for survival situations in which you may have to use the knife as a tool as well as a weapon and is extremely rust resistant. If you are worried about sharpening your blade in the field I recommend that you learn how to use a stone or carry something easier to sharpen. Your lack of knowledge and skill doesn't make other ideas poor.

In regard to the "Fuller" or "Blood Groove" which it is commonly known by. I mention in the book that I spoke ad nauseum to Allen Elishewitz about that, where he described several studies and workshops that discussed just that issue, and after a long consultation with Allen I was enlightened to learn that this feature had very little science to back it's usefulness. So that is why I take a stance along with experts in the field on that feature. As for spending quite a bit of time writing on the subject I beleive if you take away the pictures of different types of knives then I wrote a total of 3 pages on the topic of blades which included no history as you precluded a little about the design and characteristics of different types of blades, a little about the "Fuller" feature and a little about "440 stainless steel". Clearly you were a bit overwhelmed by 3 pages. I recommend perhaps that you stick to picture books only in the future."

Nobody: "To top it off, the photos and cut/paste captions are shoddy."

Andy Curtiss: "I am pretty sure that there are no cut and paste captions since I actually wrote them. I am not sure weather you are insinuating that I copied someone else or you are just an idiot. But then again you are just a Nobody."

Nobody: "The author's public (Youtube) knife videos (and H2H as well) show a truly poor training methodology, and don't inspire any faith in his skill as taught in this book."

Andy Curtiss: "Where I am from if you run your mouth you should be able to back it up. Based on the cowardice of using a pseudonym on your Amazon profile, I am 100 percent sure that you could not back up your lip. Now with that said I did a little research on Nobody. It appears that Nobody is one of those wierdos that are into internal martial arts and Traditional Chinese Kung Fu. He rants and raves about some bizarre "Traditional Chinese Kung Fu Vol. 1: Liu He Ba Fa" video. and then for a Kali video.

Although, I agree that he gives homage to Fairbairn, Sykes and Applegate as being the real deal because they were, I also disagree with his raves for Krav Maga. I have to say, I'm not really into promoting flying kicks or spending all my time on 1 attacker in the case of multiple. Having worked with Ireaelis in my time I am not impressed with their training methodology for close protection.

As for Cliff, based on his reading reviews on Amazon, he is just another typical "Woo Woo" Martial Arts guy looking for the answers to his mystical martial arts journey by searching books like "The Secret art of Pressure Point Fighting" and "Wing Chun". I'm not knocking traditional martial arts, but I am saying that Combat Application Techniques does not fit into the Chinese Kung Fu, Wing Chun, Chi Kung , Arnis or Kali genre.

Who will enjoy my book?

The type of people that will enjoy Combat Application Techniques: Principles of Destruction are those that want to learn effective methods and techniques that are tested in combat and the close protection field. Security professionals, soldiers, Marines, police and survivalists. This may also be a book that black belt martial artists with open minds are interested in. On every bad critique that the book has received it is mentioned as Nobody did "Very basic" techniques are demonstrated and taught.

In the real world of combat; not every soldier, Marine and security professional is a highly trained blackbelt in the martial arts. Many do not choose to dedicate their lives to combative arts outside the scope of their profession. Also trying to cram in years of developmental martial arts training is an unrealistic goal for the men of Special Forces, security contracting companies and other like professions. This is who the program and book was developed for. Also, keep in mind in combat very intricate techniques go out the window very quickly.

Basic is king!

It is clear that the closest that these critics have come to combat is reading books or watching movies; and that they have no concept of real close quarters combat. I am sure that "Nobody" and "Cliff" are hanging out in their mom's basement right now scoping out women to harrass on date.com or are chatting it up on the Ninja.com forum about how bad ass they are. In the end, I take their vitriol and criticizim as validity that Combat Application Techniques has accomplished it's goal of providing simple easy to use H2H solutions to the operator.

Now you can see for your self why Combat Application Techniques is the real deal when it comes to knife and H2H combat.

"

Now is your chance to see what's in Combat Application Techniques.

Basic Offensive Knife Techniques

Learn More Knife and Hand to Hand Combat

www.knife-and-h2h-combat.com

Knife and H2H Combat.com Great new combatives webpage!

This new website Knife and H2H Combat.com is geared towards anyone who is interested in reality combatives. What you will find on this Website is the following:


- Information about Knife and H2H Combatives
- Information about Combat Application Techniques: Principles of Destruction Book
- Articles on Knife combat and H2H
- Practical Martial arts
- Merchandise page with E-Books, DVDs, Audio seminars and more...

Go to http://www.knife-and-h2h-combat.com/ for more information

Disarming a knife weilding assailant using an arm bar. Installment 4

In this installment I would like to cover, what to do once you have faced off with your assailant, entered the trapping zone and have already "defanged the serpent" or are in the process of it. The technique I would like to focus on today is an arm bar. Notice I used the term "an arm bar" and not "the arm bar". That is because there are many different types and variartions of armbars. Today we will use the standing armbar.

Earlier on in this blog We talked about the Knife Combat Imperatives. In the last segment we covered "defanging the serpent". Today's imperative to focus on is "Control". Control is an ongoing and constant principle in everything we do. Without control there is anarchy. In combat whenever you lose control, you risk losing your life. The question then arises; what are we controling. The answers are simple.

- Self

- Weapon / weapon hand (yours and the enemy's)

- Situation

What is there to control about yourself? You should always attempt to curb your fears and emotions. The ancient Samurai of Japan used to believe that a warrior who could be un affected or detached from the situation. This aided the warrior in doing what ever it took to gain a victory. The Samurai would not engage in argument or allow their ego to be stroked. Thus they were not emotionally affected by the words of the enemy, or their actions. Control is necessary in order to keep a clear and vigile mind.

It is quite obvious that we would want to maintain control of the weapon. The weapon is the advantage. If you are armed then you should be mindful and concious of your own weapon. If you are engaging an adversary who is armed and you are not , then it is priority that you get control of their weapon.

Lastly, the situation is able to be controled as long as you are in control of yourself and the weapon or weapons. There is an old adage, "he who is in control of himself is in control of the situation". In the case of an engagement with an edged weapon, this is survival.


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Disarming a knife weilding attacker using an armbar









The attacker lunges in. The defender Steps straight in and begins a cover technique; staying close to the attacker and simultaneously protecting his upper and lower gates.

Immediately following the cover the defender seizes control of the weapon arm by grabing the weapon wrist; and assists with the other hand by striking the triceps / humorous (above the elbow)

Striking above the elbow and pulling the knife wrist to his opposite hip, the defender causes the attacker to lurch forward. As the the arm locks into the armbar position; the defender breaks the elbow and strips the knife from the attacker, all the while controlling the limb with his other arm, by pulling the attackers arm into his waist.

The defender has now successfully defanged the serpent and controls the former weapon arm of the attacker. He clears the attackers arm across his body. (Never losing contact with it and wraps his arm around the attacker's using a whizzer.)

The defender pulls the whizzer in tight and thrusts the blade upward into the cavity under the attackers jaw.

Once the blade sinks into the hollow cavity in the jaw, the defender now controls the attackers head and begins to step through the attacker for a takedown.

Once he takes the attacker down he locks the attackers arm into another armbar; by keeping control of the whizzer and locking the attacker's elbow across his knee.

Again the defender snaps the attackers arm backwards to expose the face and neck. The defender maintains control of the arm lock and delivers multiple stomps to the attacker's face and neck.

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Through out the entire sequence the defender never loses control of the attacker. This is an excellent demonstration of entering, defanging the serpent,and control. Hope you've enjoyed this installment and also hope that you'll never have to use it in real life. Remember; if given the opportunity to escape. escaping is the best and safest option .

Knife Combat Imperatives "Installment 2 Knife Combat Instruction"

Over the years, I have had many opportunities to take part in several different venues of Knife combat training. Throughout my several experiences I have taken the training in a buffet style mentality. I take what applies to me and my own personal style and use it. What does not apply to me I throw away. The sad fact is that there is never a 100 percent solution. There are always so many variables. There are many excellent clinics, seminars and schools out there. Unfortunately the ones that I have attended always neglect the very most important aspects of Mortal Combat when dealing with edged weapons. They always touch on it yet never expound. What I am talking about is the Imperatives. Every school,"Master", Seminar and Clinic always mention The first imperative "Expect to get cut". There is a little more to edged weapon combat besides expecting to get cut. There is an entire mentality that should accompany that particular expression. In this Blog I am going to adress the Imperatives in edged weapon combat. I will stress that these imperatives do not exist solely for edged weapons , but any form of combat. The following are the Imperatives of Knife combat that I chose to give mention in my book Combat Application Techniques: Principles of Destruction.

1. Expect to get cut
2. Defang the serpent
3. Time is of the essence
4. Control
5. SURVIVAL

Expect to get cut! If you embrace the fact that there are only two outcomes to an encounter with edged weapons it is easier to gain the mental edge. the two outcomes of a knife to knife encounter are that someone will leave the encounter in a bag and the other will go the hospital. Accept it and then realize that there are two choices; Survival and Escape. You must decide when to fight and when to run if you can.

I attended a S.C.A.R.S "Knife fighting" clinic in the early 90s There I was taught to "Defang the Serpent" The weapon of your adversary is nothing more than an extension of the hand and acts as the fangs of a poisonous serpent. There fore if one takes away those fangs it renders the snake harmless and unable to bite.

Knowing that you will get cut and realizing that you must ."Defang the serpent" is simply ineffective unless you also realize that "Time is of the essence". When dealing with edged weapons in particular time is of the essence. When flesh gets cut and adrenaline rush sends pulses to over 180 beats per minute it is only a matter of seconds before one can bleed out. Not to mention that the longer you tangle the longer you become tangled. You give your assailant more time to inflict damage which leads to life being bled out from under you.

I always teach at my clinics and seminars that Control is of the utmost importance. We must be in control of ourselves mentally, physically, emotionally and with these things in check it becomes much easier to control the situation and your adversary. Keeping it under Control is all a part of gaining the mental edge.

The last Imperative is certainly the most important. I always mention it last because it is all encompassing and simply culminates the entire list. SURVIVAL is what it is all about. SURVIVE by any and all means. That means run away if you must , Fight if necessary. Spit , bite, dig , choke, what ever it takes to SURVIVE.

For more infor mation on how you can acquire a copy of Combat Application Techniques: Principles Of Destruction go to http://www.unarmedcombat.zoomshare.com/

So you wanna learn to fight with a blade? "Installment 1 of Knife combat instruction"

Growing up I always had a fascination with knives and edged weapons. It was Tarzan with his jungle knife that really got me interested as a young boy. Later on there was John Rambo with the Gigantic Survival knife; and let's not forget every boy's favorite, the "Swiss Army knife". I always wanted a "Swiss Army Knife", because it was a tool and a weapon all in one! As I grew older I engaged heavily into the Martial Arts and gained an even deeper respect for the knife as an edged weapon. Along with that respect I began to fear it as well. I was learning so many unarmed techniques; but i always had a worry in the back of my head about what should I do if someone pulls a knife on me and I can not escape. Luckily for me the martial arts school I went to had a special guest instructor (One of Jerry Peterson's Guys) come in and teach basic knife combat to us.

Many may be familiar with the program, it was called (SCARS) Scientific Combat Reactionary System. This was my foundation to what I would later develop into a program of knife and hand to hand combat for my Special Forces team; that would later turn into a system of armed and unarmed combat techniques. Now, after having attended this training I wanted to go a step further. I was so impressed with what I learned. The biggest thing that I learned was that my mind was the the most sharp and superior weapon. The techniques that I was taught were only the most insignificant detail in the course. The biggest realization I had come to was the fact that when dealing with an attacker who has an edged weapon I will get cut. Once I was able to accept that; I was truly able to be comfortable when it came to edged weapon combat.

Years later I joined the U.S. Army and looked forward to learning the very best in knife and hand to hand combat. Boy; had I been mistaken. It wasn't till I was nearin the end of my Green Beret Training later in my career that I learned any substantial combative techniques. I have always been the kind of guy that although I am always looking to learn new techniques I also study the basic principles of science and physics that make techniques work. I have always believed that if one can understand mechanics of movement then they will truly be an effective fighter / martial artist. I continued to train on all I had already learned and began to experiment and create my own methods based on everthing I had been taught. Eventually I was asked to develop a program of instruction for my team; because what the Army offers in so inadequate.

The program that I developed caught on and became the system that I teach today. Combat Application Techniques. It is from this system that I will be providing tips on Knife vs Knife Combat as well as Knife vs Unarmed and ultimately Unarmed vs Unarmed Combat. I will provide example techniques and excerpts from clinics and seminars all so those who are interested can gain further knowledge in Knife and Unarmed Combat. So now that you the reader knows about where my passion and interest comes from when it comes to knife combat let's get started down the path of Edged Weapon Combat!

The first thing I would like to get started on is mental preparation. The reason that Professional Soldiers, Mercenaries and Mixed Martial Artists are so lethal is that they think differently than the average person. They do not get personally get involved with the mark, opponent or target. Instead they accept the fact that it is just a sport or a job. The next thing that separates these professionals from the average joe is that they learn to separate their target from them by de humanizing the opponent, mark or target. "How do they do this?"; you ask. Simple; they spend hours training and drilling their minds saying (Example), "They are just a bunch of Rag Heads, or Gooks or Scum buckets,Pussies and Terrorists." This mentality alows the subconcious mind of the Soldier, Mercenary or Fighter to create the illusion (even if just in their mind), that they are battling a monster and there is an opportunity for them to be a hero and do something great. Dehumanizing also short circuits the natural resistence of the average human mind to taking or destroying another human life. When dehumanizing; you are not killing a human; but a subhuman or a monster.

One of the very most important things however is that MMA Fighters expect to get hit. Soldiers or Mercenaries are ready to die in battle if necessary. There are often many reasons for this. They believe in what they are fighting for, which is where dehumanizing can come into play. They know that it is their duty or responsibility; (I.E. The MMA Fighter knows that he is responsible for fighting and defeating his opponent, the Soldier or Mercenary knows and fully understands that they are past the point of no return and that unless they vanquish their enemy; they will loose their lives.) They accept the possibility of defeat and they expect for serious damage or casualties.

In spite of the popular psychology belief that this thinking is negative and detrimental to a victory or positive outcome; the effect is quite the opposite. Shock is the number one cause of death in combat. Very seldom is the actual injury the cause of death, it is shock. When one actually conditions themselves to believ that they are going to get shot and they will get cut, kicked or punched; it takes away from the initial shock of the traumatic experience. By conditioning our minds it is possible to short ciruit the wiring of out normal thought patterns and thus elimanating the panic response.

For this first installment I would like to leave you the reader with the thought in mind that mental development is the key to any victory. Weather it is in the arena of Professional fighting, soldiering, enforcing the law or even just protecting one's self from a predator or attacker confidence and mental fortitude will generally decide who wins, looses, lives or dies. The only one that can condition our minds is us. Please keep checking this post for follow on installments. The next issue will be on the imperatives of knife combat.




If you are interested in in learning more on knife combat or Combat Application Techniques: "Principles Of Destruction" go to http://www.unarmedcombat.zoomshare.com/