Multiple Attack

[stoneheart]

When do you start your students on multiple attack drills? Do you wait until they are competent defending against a single attacker or do you stir the pot right away? Obviously some strategies that might work individually would be much tougher to pull off against two or more assailants.

Also, does anyone have any drills they would like to share that specifically pertain to defending against multiple attackers?

[hemi]

I’m not an instructor just a blue belt but we’ve learned two so far. I look forward to learning the rest.

[SifuDangeRuss]

We essentially begin dealing with Multiple Opponents at Blue belt.

At this stage we also open up the "Surviving the Circle" drill, mentioned in another thread to include weapons and multiple opponent attacks.

[Seabrook]

I have my adult students fight against 2, 3, and sometimes even 4 attackers at once. It is very tiring and difficult but they learn what to do and what not to do very quickly.

As for the 2-man techniques, I typically teach them at the appropriate levels, although I sometimes introduce them early to illustrate a particular theory.

[bujuts]

We set the stage for multiple assailants in the first lesson. Our white belts know well 1) the importance of mindset to the table, even before they so much as learn to make a fist 2) a platform for operation that is more conducive to developing spontenaity than the techniques, 3) environmental awareness as a critical basic , 4) the importance of spinal ring penetration and contact maintenance.

There's more, but we start it at white belt.

Great topic, I look forward to more.

Steven Brown
UKF

[youngbraveheart]

I definitely see the importance of developing in stages instead of jumping immediately into doing advanced training like multiple attackers; however, I also benefitted from being thrown in with advanced belts as a white belt in doing multiple attacking self-defense...I personally can't wait to learn the more advanced forms in our style, which show defense against multiple attackers, to learn more techniques (ammunition) to use for when we are asked to do defensive counter techniques against a single attacker or multiple attackers.

[madeku]

exactly, i remember seeing a tape with Larry Tatum, and he stated something along the lines of a multiple attacker encounter IS a life and death situation.. they could easily kill you without intending to. and im pretty sure that a jury or judge would agree.. if 3 ppl were attacking me and i had to break some arms and noses and knees to get away.. hell yeah i felt my life was in danger.

[Dianhsuhe]

We gradually teach students how to deal with multiple attackers...At more advanced ranks we have "2 man" and "3 man" techniques that are obviously dsigned against 2 or 3 attackers.

We do use the "Bull in the ring" style drills much earlier on and I really feel those are beneficial to anyone at ANY skill level. If nothing else they learn some situational awareness, movement, and maybe they just try to front kick everybody but it is all worth while!

Cheers!

[Texas Kenpo]

exactly, i remember seeing a tape with Larry Tatum, and he stated something along the lines of a multiple attacker encounter IS a life and death situation.. they could easily kill you without intending to. and im pretty sure that a jury or judge would agree.. if 3 ppl were attacking me and i had to break some arms and noses and knees to get away.. hell yeah i felt my life was in danger.

EXACTLY. If you get assualted by multiple attackers you had better break some knees or arms pretty dam quick if you can't run away and have to fight or chances are you are gonna get the crap beat outa you.

[Celtic_Crippler]

IMHO, multiple attacker scenarios should be treated the same as being attacked with a gun or other deadly weapon. There's no trying to subdue them, it's got to be straight up devastation. Take out knees, collar bones, noses, target the eyes, and throat.... you have to be serious or risk finding yourself in intensive care or the mourge. I look at it this way, if several people are planning on ganging up on me they can only have one thing in mind: Killing me. So that makes it "life or death."