In this issue of On the Edge I will discuss the techniques and tactics of a unique personal defense tool - my Travel Wrench. The Travel Wrench or Impact Kerambit is a devastatingly effective yet low profile non-lethal force tool for personal protection.
The visual appearance of the Travel Wrench is deceptive and few people have any idea exactly what it is on initial examination. Designed as a lightweight defensive striking tool, the "L" shaped high-density plastic can be dismissed as nothing more than a sport wrench, key ring, or massage tool for arthritis or acupressure.
When questioned about it by authority figures, one person offered it was a tool to adjust the side draft carburetors on his Austin Healy sports car, another said it was a acupressure massage tool, still another referenced a suitcase handle, as well as other interesting stories.
Originally the Travel Wrench was designed to assist martial artists in developing confidence in empty hand striking skills and precision targeting. The first models were called DTL or Impact Kerambits and changed later to offer a more covert public carry tool for personal protection. The Kerambit of old was a simple yet potential lethal palm knife used in the “barrio” or rough streets of the Philippines.
I redesigned it in 1993 for non-lethal usage, the Travel Wrench (Kerambit), has experienced acceptance worldwide. Civilians, bodyguards, police officers, and military personnel have carried and passed through customs and security checks almost everywhere in the world. This includes U.S., Canada, England, Australia, New Zealand, Germany, Philippines, Thailand, Viet Nam, Singapore, Japan, Kuwait, and other high security check-points. As a discrete personal protection tool it attracts very little attention and allows the carrier to walk with confidence from home to vehicle, parking garages to work, public parks, shopping, cash machines, or sporting events. Let’s face it; the potential for crimes or criminal acts in our society is at an unprecedented high and completely unpredictable. We can become targets for assault or robbery at a moment’s notice. Of course, there are no guarantees that we could actually detour an assault, even a trained fighter runs the risk of defeat in a street confrontation. Most criminals are not looking for a fight just an easy victim. The appearance of confidence and awareness can be enough to create the aura that you are not a person to be toyed with or even to be approached with bad intentions.
The predator feeds off the power of fear in their prey through deception to lure you into a trap. Also visual and verbal intimidation is used to distract or position you for physical control and violence. As mentioned, most criminals are seeking an easy victim not an opponent to detour their power play.
Turning the tables and creating the deception of you cowering allows you a brief moment to retaliate, this would be considered “Attack by Draw” (“ABD”). ABD is one of several Jeet Kune Do strategies developed by Bruce Lee and the intent is to open the attacker up for a quick counter strike while he is psychologically gloating and transitioning for a more dominant position of control. The physical image of cowering is similar to a fetal position whether standing, kneeling, sitting, or prone, we just draw our hands and arms in and cover our face and torso. No doubt to someone seeking to intimidate and control us, this is a sign that the power play was extremely functional and well orchestrated. Strategies such as “ABD” are simple yet essential in establishing a personal defensive system you can process and apply instinctively.
Survival Strategy
Personally we can deceptively use the cowering position as giving up or use it as a trap, coiling like a snake preparing to strike. When kicked, a dog will drop its head just prior to striking out viciously with its teeth in an aggressive defensive counter attack. This is a natural instinct in it's crudest form. The dog appears as though it is ready to cower away and then unsuspectingly strikes before the attacker can react. We humans have suppressed this crude attribute of survival in an effort to become more civilized. Fear and anger are interactive, use your adrenaline wisely. Process fear into controlled anger and strike when the opportunity presents itself! Hesitation will limit your defensive capabilities and could mentally trap your response due to adrenal overload. If you stop to think, you may already be trapped!You must instinctually react in a calculated manner, think about situations before they happen. When watching the evening news or reading about an assault, you need to ask yourself honestly "what would or could I do in a similar situation?"
If you cannot come up with a decent self-assuring answer, you need help! Seek a professional with skills and knowledge to assist you in creating valid survival plans. I have mentioned many times in seminar that we become conditioned to social guidelines, even in extreme situations we rarely allow our survival instincts to take precedent over our thought process. We suppress animal instincts in an effort to become more civilized based on the ideals that social laws will govern behavior and everyone should abide by the same laws.
Without a doubt this ideology is flawed. Friends, family, and innocent individuals from all walks-of-life fall prey to the criminal element. Many criminals live right next door and closer than most of us wish to think about.
In essence, the majority of society are becoming victims in waiting. It is extremely important to take charge of our own destiny. Re-cultivate our “Animal Instincts” or more appropriately, human instinctual response attributes. Personal defense survival skills being at the top of the list, it does not matter how much money or how many toys you have if you are a “sitting duck.” Avoiding situations is a logical step in self-preservation, be aware of people around you and don’t get caught off guard. You may even have to take the stance of being rude in public to set up proper awareness perimeters. Think of how you would instruct your wife or daughter to avoid verbal or physical engagements while walking to their destination and “practice what you preach.” This is a good tactical mindset of observation implemented between home and destination or vehicle and destination. A mentally prepared distraction technique, even if it is only verbal, can assist in detouring a conversation you should not engage in. Being rude to one person you do not know can actually prove to be safer than trying to assist in giving directions or being detained for any reason unimportant to you!
In today’s crowded streets, you can wave at just about anyone and have them wave back until they realize that they actually do not know you. By then, you have created a distraction, avoided the verbal engagement and detoured the confrontation. Physical reactions include distractions such as tossing a few coins in the confronter's face and changing your destination path. Learn to be more evasive, walk at a faster pace, or even run. Do not hesitate to enter a place of business to avoid a physical conflict and re-evaluate the situation, contact help or report your concerns to another person. The clothes you wear can limit mobility; try to dress appropriately for the task at hand. Back up defense options include shriek alarms, OC Spray, hand held striking tools, and knowledge of selfdefense.
The Travel Wrench
I designed the Travel Wrench after the Barrio Knife of the Philippine and Indonesian martial arts, sometimes referred to as a "Sickle Knife." The updated version is small and blunt and the instructional curriculum is a combination of the most effective martial arts systems practiced today. Concepts and tactics of Modern Arnis, JKD, Wing Chun, Ju-Jitsu, Western Boxing, Silat and other dynamic systems are blended into a cohesive defensive method that offers blocks, deflections, striking, locks, throws, traps, and controls. Most importantly, it is the “master tool” that cross references the attributes of stick, knife, and empty hand!
Let us look at holding and gripping the Impact Kerambit / Travel Wrench defensive tool. This is a simple task of placing the index finger into the "large loop" and gripping the shaft with the lower probe facing away from the body and grip tightly. In karate training, it is said and instructed that the top two knuckles of a closed fist provide the strongest striking impact area for punching. This fist position is sometimes referred to as the fore fist. To stabilize the striking position of the wrist, place the lower probe against a wall, a door frame, or post, and shift your wrist subtlety to allow the upper index finger ring to touch the surface simultaneously with the lower probe.
Using the previously mentioned grip will be the most efficient ergonomically correct hand position for striking and is an easy adjustment of proper wrist alignment. (Note the position of the top two knuckles and the alignment of the top and lower probes on the Travel Wrench!)
In a self-defense situation, the impact of the Travel Wrench is direct and extremely penetrating, so rarely is full force blows needed to detour an aggressor. Additionally most aggressors will respond to a strike by jerking away or collapsing when struck, this slightly dissipates the pressure at your wrist Always tightly grip any impact weapon and be aware of “Grip Shock” on impact. The next strongest impact area of a closed fist is the base of the fist, sometimes referred to as the hammer fist. The hammer fist Travel Wrench disperses a great deal of force in a small area at impact and when executed creates the least amount of physical strain being absorbed through the wrist area.
The gripping action of the hammer fist is identical to the fore fist grip but there is no need to flex the wrist forward since all the force of the defensive impact directs itself toward the base of the fist and the lower probe area. To practice, grip the Travel Wrench tightly and position your closed fist with the Travel Wrench on a smooth hard surface (a scrap piece of wood works well) and begin striking repeatedly increasing the force with each impact strike. While gripping the Kerambit/Travel Wrench in your hand, extend your opposite arm and lightly strike your own forearm, wrist, or fist area just to get an idea of the pain level implemented with a minimal amount of force. Get together with a training partner and exchange placement targeting to different parts of the body utilizing vertical fist and hammer fist positions without making hard impact. Also grinding and scraping the surface will give you a great appreciation for the control power while executing locks and traps. On nerve points and directly on bone surface an oscillating motion increases pain compliance during application of containment techniques.
Specific Targeting
It doesn’t take a martial arts degree to figure out what hurts, literally anything hit, hurts. Another option for development is researching or by referencing a diagram of an anatomy chart or acupuncture chart. Just a brief viewing will allow you to determine what areas of the body are susceptible to impact pain. As previously mentioned, impact tools generally seek bone to create pain and a reactionary response of compliance. With proper placement of an impact tool, targeting muscle groups can be just as effective and possibly less physically damaging to the attacking individual. Muscle targeting is effective due to the fact the nerve centers of the body are located directly on and around specific muscle, tendon, and ligament junctions. By focusing on the concept of de-fanging the snake or destroying the attacking weapon, we can target specific nerve or pressure points on the arm while defending our perimeter. Ideally, this allows the defender adequate time to disengage and escape to avoid further attacks or ample time to launch a neutralizing counter attack to control the outcome of the confrontation.
Connecting the Systems with the Travel Wrench
The Travel Wrench’s concise instructional method of extracting techniques from multiple systems is more effective and takes less effort and strength to execute than the empty hand techniques from which they originate. The progressive curriculum extracts from the base arts and blends them into a versatile self-defense system referred to as Natural Spirit Connecting the Systems. The curriculum is specifically divided into sub-systems encompassing a direct reflection of what I personally absorbed by training under some of the world’s most skilled martial arts instructors. Remy A. Presas, the Grandmaster of Modern Arnis, Bruce Lee’s first student Jesse Glover, Ted Lucaylucay, Sonny Umpad, Leonard Trigg, Dr. Brett Jacques and others. This information has been processed and refined into multiple tactical defense systems that embrace Military Hand-to-Hand, Wortac Tactical Knife, Modern Arnis, Destroy Trap Lock for personal protection as well as an aggressive Street Defense curriculum called Renegade JKD. I got the opportunity to refine these instructional methods, as the primary Impact and Edged Weapon Instructors for the 1st Special Forces Group at Ft. Lewis, Washington which embraces all the theories and concepts in a diverse arsenal of arts!
Check in next issue for Part II of the Travel Wrench.
