Vunak's Top 50 Combat Secrets Ch. 20

Chapter 20 – The double progressive indirect attack (the greatest fake in the world).

When two novices are throwing blows at each other, the likely hood that these will be exaggerated single direct attacks is about 99%. When we watch John Wayne movies (or most television shows for that matter) we see the director’s idea of a fight. Exaggerated single direct attacks. It would be easy to extrapolate from various examples, that man kind does not throw combination striking naturally. The most natural blows are single directs. However, when we train individuals, we teach that combination punching is more effective. The second blow, and the third blow, usually have a higher percentage of hitting than the first blow. So now the trained fighters, throw in rhythms of one -two, one-two-three, sometimes all the way up to six.

“It does not matter what ever style we are referring too karate, kung-fu, kicking , punching, etc…”

This is why the trained fighter, will beat the untrained fighter. When all other factors are equal. For example if we take two identical twins, and teach one brother how to punch and kick in combinations, for six months, and then let them fight. Now even though DNA and family upbringing are moot points, twin number 2 would win 99 out of 100 times. Now lets say you took both twins and taught them both how to punch and kick in combinations. If these two cats were to fight, out of a 100 times, it would be close to 50-50. Now we take the same two twins, that know how to hit in combination, and teach one of them how to throw fakes, and if they were to go back and fight each other 100 times in a row, the twin that faked would win 95% of the time. When we throw fakes, to quote the old commercial. The opponent never knows if it is real or if it is Memorex. The ability to throw fakes, not only increases the odds of hitting the opponent by twenty, it also enables one to fight outside of their weight class. The game is now less about size and strength and power, and more about technicality and precision. When one fakes this deflects the energy into more of a chess game. Especially when you are faking the eyes and going to the groin, or faking the groin and going to the eyes !

This method of attack is not single direct, is not attack by combination, but progressive indirect attack. It is progressive in that it takes up distance, and indirect in that it takes up time.

Up until about 18 months ago, progressive indirect attacking has been considered the highest level. However the $64,000 question is what if both identical twin brothers each know how to execute progressive indirect attacks. Picture the scene…brother A fakes high, and kicks low, and brother B knows its coming. Now brother B fakes low and strikes high, and brother A knows its coming. This impasse that occurs amongst the highest level kick boxers is due to the fact, that subconsciously each knows the others game.

What we are about to discuss is extremely difficult to pull off, and should only be attempted by your most advanced students. Lets say we pull one of the brothers off, and teach him the following… Instead of faking high and striking low, or faking low and striking high, execute two fakes in a row. Fake high and fake low, now strike your opponent a third time, back to high. I will write this in a very simple binary code to make it even easy for aliens. A 1 is a strike a 0 is a fake. Instead of the typical progressive indirect attack , 0-1, when one is attempting to execute the double progressive indirect it would look like this, 0-0-1. Picture anyone who is advanced in kick boxing, and picture how they are hardwired to receive a progressive indirect attack. After they receive any fake, they will always know the real thing is coming. What if the real thing didn’t come, what if after the fake, the second blow was also a fake. Now the third blow, becomes the real strike. This my friends is how to beat your contemporaries. This is how to get out of a rut. And get to the next level. And this also happens to be the greatest fake in the world.

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Vunak's Top 50 Combat Secrets Ch. 19

Chapter 19 – The Power of the Fork

Not a pitch fork, not a spoon and fork, not a fork lift, not a fork in the road, but a fork in chess. This is an offensive move that, not only attacks one piece, but it attacks two pieces simultaneously. For all of you non chess players, imagine two pawns 20 feet apart, and a horse gallops right in the center, the horse is now 10 feet from each pawn. With one leap he could get either one. If the pawn on the east runs away, he hits the pawn on the west. If the pawn on the west runs away he hits the pawn on the east. The value of attacking two things simultaneously, is immense, deep and even profound. This concept is universal and immutable. Regardless if we are discussing business, chess, debate, or martial arts. And in martial arts, the style of kick boxing that truly illustrates this point is Savate. If a regular kick boxer kicks your thigh, they aim, point and kick, directly at your thigh. If that same regular kick boxer wants to kick your head, they will aim, point and kick, directly to your head. If a Savate man however, wants to execute the same moves, he will aim and point his knee in between the thigh and the head. This move will be executed in the form of a fake, and will evoke a reaction from the adversary. They will either guard their head, in which case the Savate man will kick their thigh, or they will guard their thigh, in which case the Savate man will kick their head. Not only does this make it difficult, it makes it down right impossible for the opponent to know which attack will be finally executed. The opponent would literally have to have a crystal ball. Now these forks that we are referring too, when executed be a true “savateur” are always done in combinations. Say two, three, and as many as four at a time.

To me the most amazing thing about watching a “Savateur” perform a combination of forks, is exactly how slow these fellas can pull this off, when they want too. When one is crafty enough, they can literally kick and land, at 25% speed (pinpointing the jaw, the groin, solar plexus, kidneys or thigh) ! There is literally no speed required when one uses a fork. This is why, in Savate, the best Savateurs are between 50 and 70!

And of course the Brazilians have their fork… The difference between a purple belt and a black belt, is how they attack. Both can attack in single direct attacks, both can attack in combination attacks. However what differentiates the two, is the black belt is executing the progressive indirect attack i.e. the fork. The black belt is always attacking two, sometimes 3 things at one time. I put in 6 hours of private wrestling with Rickson every week for 4 and half years. Sometimes literally meeting him at 5 in the morning. And I can honestly tell you, that in the thousands and thousands of times that I have tapped from that man, every single solitary time he faked me out!

He would attack my arm, I would defend my arm, and in a nanosecond he would be attacking my foot, I would pull my foot in, and within a nanosecond I would be tapping to a choke. I am one of the few people that have had the privilege of spending thousands of hours with most of the Gracie brothers, Rolyer, Royce, Rorion, and Rickson. Many people have subsequently asked me how do they differ ?

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Practical Fencing With The Cane (Part 1) By Jean Joseph-Renaud (1912)

Part 1 of “Practical Fencing With The Cane” is taken from “La Defense Dans La Rue” written by Jean Joseph-Renaud 1912.

Renaud was a professor of Savate, Jui-Jitsu, La Canne and Le Couteau. He taught the use of the revolver and was well versed in the dirty tricks of the French Apache.

Often featured in French news papers of the era, Renaud offered tips on self defence for both men and women to combat the on going problems with the French Apache.

This article on the cane highlights his thoughts on the long range use of the weapon.

While his writings indicate that he was in disagreement with the larger developments
( arming or chambering phase used prior to striking ) he does acknowledge that their use was valid when finishing of a “groggy” opponent.

Boxing played a large role in Renauds analogy of the strikes used in his approach to French cane .
Special thanks to Martin Prisse for translating this article.


Guard

“En guard” have the cane in front of you, the nails under, like the sword but elbow closer to the torso to avoid someone taking your cane by surprise.


Strike (horizontal) to the right side of the face

From the “en guard” position, without describing the big horizontal circles mentioned in the classical methods the wrist and the forearm must go backward a few centimetres and then go to the right in the same time that the hand turns, stretch the arm nearly completely out (when striking) – otherwise the blow wouldn’t be as violent at the end.

Hit with the nails on top. In the same time cut through lightly but this follow through must not happen after the arm is stretched out like in fencing, but on the contrary in the same time exactly like if you are giving a punch. The action should be that of a punch.



Strike (horizontal) to the left side of the face

From the same position, hit the other side of the opponents face in the same manner but in the opposite direction with the nails under.


Strike (horizontal) to the legs and body

In regards to striking the shin and the body this strike is the same as above.


Strike (vertical) to the head

Let fall the top of the cane and bring it back a little so it describes a circular movement, the thumb is facing under and the elbow is not moved back. Continue the circle and strike down on the opponent’s head, thumb finishes on top.


Feints

Feints are executed like real attacks but stoped approximately half way.


Observations

These principles might irritate some professors who teach that to hit a target 50cms away, it is first required to bring the cane back behind your neck.

Please think about this, a beginner will have to train a few weeks before being able to hit with strength but employing our method he will hit with strength as with the classical method.

In Boxing does the student receive instruction from his American or English professors
(Instructors) to bring back his fist to his shoulder before the hit? In the contrary he is told
“You must throw your fist directly and get in the habit of hitting with strength this way”. It’s the same principle that applies with the cane.

By using a development you will never hit fast and precisely and you expose yourself every time you bring your cane back for a strike.

On the contrary, by hitting directly nearly like a punch, with a good final contraction of all the muscles, especially the forearm muscles, you have a lot of strength and good speed – and your attacks are less exposed.

When an opponent attacks you with a development you have the time to execute a violent stop hit and even do a parry if the stop hit was not sufficient.


Developed strikes

Note that when you can expose yourself without risk, then you can use a developed strike. For example in the street, you can simulate the beginnings of a strike to the head looking carefully into the eyes of the inexperienced opponent,

and then hit the leg with a formidable developed strike. Or if you have already stunned the opponent with several ordinary strikes, you can, with no risk, finish him with a committed strike that you can develop as much as you like.

Many fighters, when their opponent is groggy, will not hesitate to finish with strikes given by the weight of the right arm half swinging half crossing in which they use a lot of preparation and all their body weight and muscle strength -these strikes would be impossible or dangerous to try in front of a fresh opponent.


Where to hit

The areas to strike are both sides of the face, the shins, the wrist and the top of the head if not protected by a hat .


Compound strikes

The feints that I recommend are as follows .

• Feint a strike to the head, hit to the left or right of the tibia (shin) depending on the position of the opponent, of course never strike the calf muscle which is the same rule with the coup de pied bas (low kick).
• Feint a strike to the left side of the face and strike the wrist the moment he parries.
• Feint a strike at the side of the face and hit the tibia.
• Feint a strike at the left or right tibia and hit the top of the head.
• Feint a strike at the tibia and strike the side of the face.
• Feint a strike at the top of the head, and make a strike at the body.
• Feint a strike at the body with the tip of the cane and make a strike at the face followed by a strike at the tibia.
• Feint a strike at the face with tip of the cane and strike the tibia.

The feints must be more ” drawn ” than when really executed, the general body attitude and facial expressions trick the opponent more than the actual movements of the cane.


Parry- Ripostes

Parry the left side of the face and riposte with a strike to the tibia.
Parry the right side of he face and reply with a strike to the left side of the face and double to the right side of the face.

(Like in boxing, you must double or triple the strikes, often, the first strike will not knock your opponent out .)

As soon as the first strike touches, you must give a second- (if the first has been parried and replied, you must of course parry the reply and give another straight away, this is called a counter riposte.)

Parry the tibia, riposte to the head and then double to the shin (right or left depending on the position).

Parry the right side of the body, riposte to the left side of the face, triple by striking to the head and follow with a strike to the left side of the face.

Parry left side of the face, triple to the head and left side of the face.

Strike to the right side of the face - double.

Strike to the left side of the face - double.

Strike to the tibia, double it to the head, and triple it with a strike to the right side of the face.

Parry the left side of the face, riposte with a strike using the tip of the cane to the face and double to the right side of the face and tibia.

(The strike with the tip of the cane is executed like a straight shot (thrust) in fencing but the extension and step is performed at the sane time.)





NOTES

My deepest gratitude to Craig Gemeiner for his kind permission in reposting this article to my site. Contents cannot be copied, republished or transmitted without prior consent from him. Copied from http://defensedanslarue.wordpress.com/skills/practical-fencing-with-the-cane-part-1/



You can contact him care of his various sites below:

http://gemeineracademy.wordpress.com/
http://www.savateaustralia.com/
http://lacannevigny.wordpress.com/
http://defensedanslarue.wordpress.com/
http://bootfighter.wordpress.com/http://www.freewebstore.org/bootfightercatalogue/index.aspx?pageid=1000146

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