Who are you training to fight?

[Mitchell, Esq.]

When you train, sometimes you wonder why you are pushing so hard...

Here's one answer...

http://www.totalprotectioninteractiv...highlight=todd


That long thread about Aikido got me thinking about the assumptions that we make about our potential opponents when we enter into any kind of "self-defense" training. I suppose that virtually any martial art or fighting system will work if your opponent is a moron, but how does it fare when you have to go up against the rare "black swan" event---the perfect storm opponent situation?

Since you cannot control who you will run into, maybe it is prudent to create a template for a worst case opponent and assume that is who you will have to face in a fight for your life? Let's call him "Todd."

Physical fitness? Discipline? Motivation? Todd is a former Division I-level athlete. He benches over 350 and runs an all-out quarter-mile in just over 50 seconds. Todd spends his mornings pounding out miles of hard roadwork, pumps iron like a maniac in lieu of eating lunch, and spends his evenings dry-firing his EDC handgun, studying ways to hurt people, and beating the hell out of his Spar-Pro and heavy bag. He maintains an extensive library of books and videos on combat and survival-related topics.

He goes to bed tired but satisfied every night, satisfied because he has no other hobbies and because he looks at training as money in the bank---he will cash in his full paycheck on the fateful day that he faces you in a fight.

Todd spends his weekends doing strenuous physical activities and competing in IPSC Limited or IDPA matches. He spends his vacations going to places like Crucible, the Rogers Academy, and BSR. Todd has no other hobbies and he is not really concerned with being a "weird, paranoid freak" in the eyes of many normal people. Todd does not really hang out with "normal" people, anyway---he prefers to hang out with people like himself.

Warning of an attack? Deception? Good luck trying any Jedi mind tricks on Todd: he studies NLP and evolutionary psychology. Todd does not dress like some kind of thug, either: he knows that a clean-cut appearance increases his time/distance window of opportunity to ambush his prey. Pay very close attention to Todd's choice of boots, belt, and watch---they may be the only warnings that you get.

Todd knows that anonymity is the most important weapon in his formidable arsenal. He does not threaten, he does not warn, he does not talk shit or insult---those things take time and telegraph intentions. Todd just makes a binary decision and then acts.

Training? Background? Todd trains in the most effective fighting and survival techniques that he can. He is open-minded and non-judgmental, caring only that techniques fit within an overarching framework of logic and ruthless pragmatism. He lives his whole life this way---it is his structure, his discipline, his religion. Todd may have a black belt from Rickson Gracie, may have been a Golden Gloves boxer or a freestyle wrestler or a linebacker, may have trained in the famous Muay Thai gyms of Holland, maybe a student of WWII Combatives or battlefield jiu-jitsu methods. Maybe---and now the plot gets chilling (as Marcus Wynne describes in his books)---Todd has been the recipient of millions of dollars in government-sponsored training...money that was specifically spent to turn him into some kind of professional shadow-warrior badass, like John Macejunas or Kelly McCann.

Maybe Todd is all of the above: operator, martial artist, fighter, contact-sport athlete.

It does not really matter where he got his start, because he has synthesized his approach into a combination of very destructive, attack-oriented techniques that he can perform with maximal effort without much fear of hurting himself in the process. He can strike and he can grapple, and most importantly he always tries to hit first.

Weapons? Equipment? This is the best part: trying to beat Todd in an unarmed fight is largely an academic exercise, because you will never, ever catch Todd unarmed. He carries a Glock or 1911, Fox OC spray, and a fixed-blade with him CCW every single day of his life. Todd is not interested in hitting you with his hands or feet---given even the slightest provocation, his opening gambit will be to present his handgun from the holster and to demand that you remain very still and quiet. If you then try to disarm Todd, strike Todd, or reach for your own weapon to attack Todd, Todd will not hesitate to shoot until slide lock.

Todd also trains in ways to use his knife to great effect---maybe pikal, maybe more of a Kni-Com technique, maybe both. Names like James Keating and the Dog Brothers are very familiar to Todd.

Todd will run you over with his SUV if you give him reason to. If you are more of a distant problem, he keeps an M4 or a DSA FAL in a Pelican case in the trunk, next to his trauma med kit and bugout ruck.

Forget trying to get to Todd at home: his place is like a fortress, complete with crazy locks (Todd studies B&E, too), a large dog, and the ubiquitous Scattergun Technologies 12-gauge with Sure-Fire light.

Remember that Todd likes to move first---his first move is to draw a weapon on you. Todd is not stupid. This isn't Bloodsport or a Sho Kosugi film. Todd wants to win...period.

Todd sounds like a nightmare, doesn't he? Well, let's all take heart---while we cannot control whether or not we will ever have to face a Todd, we CAN control our own training and preparation. We can become "Todds" (!). Many of you probably consciously found similarities between your own lifestyles and habits and the ones that were described above. I think the idea is to imagine the most ferocious and skilled opponent that you could face in a nightmare, then try to become that person (within whatever constraints that you face). If you are not willing to become a Todd, then you need to ask yourself who it is that you believe you are training to face.

We can become the "worst-case scenario" for someone else to have to deal with. I believe that these forums are about this...the mindset, the techniques, the equipment. There has been a lot of heated debate lately on various subtopics beneath the mantle of self-defense, but we are all students (no one has all the answers) and we are share far more similarities than we do differences. I don't believe that anyone here is interested in promulgating some kind of massive mind-meld---dissenting opinions are what fuels progress and interesting debate.

[Corlissimo]

When I first read this on TPI it was very sobering. While I had considered the possibility of being on the "short end" of an SD situation, this post made it seem much more real to me. Currently looking for some good, defense oriented MMA/BJJ training close to home since this training will need to be a regular and ongoing affair. No joy yet.

The scariest part of that scenario: the BG above just HAD to be "Todd". What a psycho!

[the_swede]

Interesting thoughts but one thing came to my mind. Todd spends a lot of time training and preparing. Rangetrips, matches, working out, unarmed combat classes, knife classes, reading etc etc. This obviously comes at a cost as written above. Todd only hangs out with equals and doesn't have "normal" friends. Sure we all like to be prepared as much as possible should we ever get into trouble and to match Todd's "lethality" we would have to put in as much time and effort as him. But there needs to be some balance as I'm quite sure that most people can't or won't be like Todd even if that means taking risks in that specific troublesome situation. People have families, kids, wanna hang out with their friends. Being Todd basicly means doing nothing else with your life except going to work and preparing for that one moment.

Going to the range a couple of times a month and working out. Maybe just taking a basic self-defense course I think you know more than most people you'll ever face in a fight. But as with all performace gains, whether it's tuning your car or preparing for a fight, it's those last percent that cost so much to get ahold of and most people I've met so far are not willing to go that extra mile.

[Joe in PNG]

We've seen guys like the above before, and typically a "Todd" gone bad will have a partner. Guys like Matrix/Platt and Phillips/Mătăsăreanu. Rare, but rather scary when it happens.

[TGS]

This "Todd" guy is exactly who I don't want to be.

If that means I get my ass kicked or killed some day, then so be it. Feel free to piss on my grave and use me as an example to make yourselves feel better. I'm here to live and experience a good life. My self-defense training is to secure a good life to a reasonable degree, not the point of living itself.

With the exception of someone who's doing this stuff for his job where he's expecting to use it, I would go so far to say that someone who acts like "Todd" needs to get a girlfriend, go on a vacation, or volunteer themselves to a selfless cause...because they're really missing out on what could be actually worth saving, rather than harping all their energy on preparing for "that day" and not living at all in the meantime.

Balance. Don't be the proverbial Todd. Train hard and focused when you train, but don't make it your purpose of waking up every morning.

[Kyle Reese]

This "Todd" guy is exactly who I don't want to be.

If that means I get my ass kicked or killed some day, then so be it. Feel free to piss on my grave and use me as an example to make yourselves feel better. I'm here to live and experience a good life. My self-defense training is to secure a good life to a reasonable degree, not the point of living itself.

With the exception of someone who's doing this stuff for his job where he's expecting to use it, I would go so far to say that someone who acts like "Todd" needs to get a girlfriend, go on a vacation, or volunteer themselves to a selfless cause...because they're really missing out on what could be actually worth saving, rather than harping all their energy on preparing for "that day" and not living at all in the meantime.

Balance. Don't be the proverbial Todd. Train hard and focused when you train, but don't make it your purpose of waking up every morning.

Thanks for being Captain Bringdown........

[voodoo_man]

I have no issue being "Officer Todd."

This mentality has saved my life a few times over, not going to change it.

[TGS]

I have no issue being "Officer Todd."

This mentality has saved my life a few times over, not going to change it.

I guess I wasn't clear enough when I wrote the following:

With the exception of someone who's doing this stuff for his job where he's expecting to use it,

[TGS]

Also on TPI, HH wrote something that strikes what I'm getting at:

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to attend the Picasso to Warhol exhibit at the High Museum here in Atlanta...[snip]...

On the way over, she and I discussed how frequently members of the gun culture limit themselves in their opportunities to be a part of the American experience because of their security needs. Balance is an important part of being a “normal” human being. It’s one of the key things that distinguish us from the crazy Jihadis. One of the main reasons they’re nuts is because they spend all their time focused on one thing, their religion; it makes them unbalanced.

[NETim]

Always someone bigger, badder, faster, stronger, younger and/or meaner somewhere. At 56 years of age, no matter how hard I train, there are those who will be able to take me with nowhere near the training "Todd" engages in. Not to say one shouldn't attempt to prepare to the best of their ability, but one must be realistic about this stuff.

In my world, I am more likely to come in contact with some little psycho punk kid with an SKS who feels bad 'cause Susie the Cute Girl doesn't like him. I just hope I am not the first one in his sights.