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[edit] Real Life Stories Involving Aikido
[edit] Knife attack
Whilst traveling in Israel I got into a bad argument with a man. I struck him and held him with a kotegashi pin. He suggested we discuss it outside, and stupidly I followed him. He seemed to be more relaxed and pacifying me, but now I realise it was a cover to edge towards a wall and pick up a rock. Before I realised this he swung at me with a rock in his hand. I stepped off centre-line and struck him with my fist into his face (very much like a jo thrust), causing him to drop the rock and temporarily stunning him. I managed to keep the upper hand with strikes, and eventually we both tired. I realised at that point he had also previously drawn a knife and had cut me on my arm and neck (though superficially), but that I had over-powered him. I managed to escape. If I hadn't moved off centre line at the instant of the attack I believe I would not be alive today since the rock was probably pre-empting a more serious knife attack. Also, it made me realise that often you don't know if someone has a knife until later.
[edit] Aggressive Drunk
I was in a night club noticing a large muscley man pushing people onto the floor and waiting for a response. Most people scampered off. As he approached he pushed someone (I didn't know) near me, but this person got up to retaliate. Without being able to think I leapt forward to stop the muscly man swinging at the inoccent person - by tucking his hand under my arm in the form of irimi-nage and holding him against a wall. I kept saying to him 'calm down'. I didn't realise that his friend was about to attack me from the side, but my friend had realised and prevented this. The muscley-man stood uo straight, picked me up and through me across the dance floor, but I just rolled backwards and stood up again (with no injury). The bouncers arrived at this time and escorted him (but not me) out. I think they were impressed with my role and could see I was no violent. What I learnt: I was lucky not to be attacked from the side; adrenalin makes you do weird things.
[edit] Aikido Can Be Gentle
I was at a party and a particularly drunk girl was playing with a knife she had got from the kitchen, slashing it from side to side. People were very scared. She was being silly rather than aggressive. Calmly I took her wrist and gently used kote-gaeshi to disarm her. Although she initially didnt want to let go, she was not hurt nor upset by the event. I learnt that dangerous situations can involve friends.
[edit] Anyone Can Be Beaten
I was in a student night club. An aquaintance of mine, whom I knew to be quite gentle and kind was there, and he also happened to be the karate instructor. During the evening two large men were being abusive towards him and eventually one picked him up and through him on the floor, sat on him (the mount) and started hitting him. I went over and grabbed the aggressor in a rear choke. The bit in between was went blank in my memory but the next thing I remember was me shaking my finger at the aggressor and him being a lot more passive. No one was evicted by the bouncers (did they not see?!) but the evening was finishing anyway and the aggressors were now passive. I learnt that a suprise attack (and multiple attack) can be very debiltating to someone no matter who they are and what they train in.
[edit] Misunderstanding
I was in a London night club and I just turned to see a very large man grabbing and pushing another man who was much smaller and covered in blood across the dance floor. Thinking the large man was going to kill the other, I lept on his back and got him in a choke hold (from aikido I realised that rear attacks are the most effective!). At this point I noticed he had an ear-piece and was obviously a bouncer, and then noticed that another bloodied person was being escorted out by another bouncer; i.e. I had interferred with a bouncer escorting someone out. I climbed down and apolgised and was non-violently escorted out myself. I learnt that conflict situations are often complicated and you don't always know what is happening.
[edit] Aggressive Bouncers
My girlfriend of the time was being asked to leave a nightclub for what a bouncer considered lude behaviour. I felt it was completely unjustified and tried to reason with him (very calmly) and they asked me to leave as well. Just before the exit I turned around to question the decision again, and the bouncer grabbed me around the throat from the front and tried to choke me. Simultaneoulsy on the left another bouncer grabbed my arm. At the same time I did nikkyo to release the grip on my arm and pushed the chin of the throat grabber back with my right hand (like tenchi-nage but slow). I was released by both but was now surrounded by 4 or 5 bouncers who I managed to stop them grabbing me, but I couldn't move and eventually one bundled me out the door. The police arrived at that moment and managed to get my girlfriend released. I learnt that it is easy to release the grip of even several strong men quite easily, but that moving can be difficult in confined spaces.
[edit] Not Always Good To Run
I was leaving a pub with my girlfriend with whom I'd argued and she walked off. Two large men cornered me and said that she'd asked me to leave her alone - they were going to stop me. One of them was using particularly aggressive body language. As he thrust his face aggressively towards me I jabbed my finger in his eye, slipped past the next and tried to run away. Both of them were far faster runners (I'd guess they were rugby players), and tackled me from behind, sending me to the floor. They both sat on my chest (the mount) and hit me. I managed to protect myself a bit with my arms but was quite incapacitated (got a black eye). I was also strangely relaxed, and also quite guilty (I could see blood running from his eye). Got a bit scuffly and eventually he insisted we go to the police since he was worried about permanent injury. The police were just around the corner and they had better things to be doing. I learnt that running can put you in a very bad position defensively.
[edit] Bottle
There was some young children drinking alcohol outside my old age neighbours house and bing rowdy one night. I went to them to ask them to keep quite and one of them threatened me with a bottle. I did ikkyo (without putting them on the floor) and took the bottle. They then insisted I gave the bottle back and I said I would only give it back to them further up the street. They were pushing and shoving and I was just weaving around them but eventually one swung at me with a bottle from the side - I raised my arm in time to deflect it from my face although it wrapped around the back of my head and broke (didn't really feel anything and no bruising!), two others took the opportunity to strike me with punches at the same instant. Meanwhile two youngers ones had grabbed large rocks from a garden and were threatening my girlfriend who had just come out the house to say she'd called the police. They ran off when the police arrived very shortly after. I learnt that situations can escalate very quickly, children can be quite savage, and with a multiple attack you may have to take people out of the situation if you want to survive. I felt lucky this time, but it could easily have been very bad for me.
