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Krav Maga for Public Safety Cyclists

Krav Maga for Public Safety Cyclists

By Gail Boxrud, Krav Maga Minneapolis

Krav Maga is a simple, intuitive, self defense system.  It is easy to learn, easy to retain and designed to bring a physical conflict to an end as quickly as possible. 

This makes it a great self-defense system for civilians (including women and children), executive protection providers, military personnel, and law enforcement officers, and other public safety personnel.

Law enforcement officers protect the public and EMS personnel deliver life-saving treatment, often in potentially dangerous situations.  In order to do their jobs, they must be able to protect themselves.  Krav Maga provides public safety personnel with simple, hand-to-hand, self-defense skills that can save their lives.  It teaches them tools to manage violent encounters, potentially reducing dependence on the gun and the need for deadly force. 

Sergeant Jeff Garland, retired from Maple Grove (MN) Police Department after 31 years in law enforcement, appreciates that Krav Maga teaches gross motor skills under stressful conditions.  Garland has an extensive martial arts background, was a bike patrol supervisor for 20 years and taught defensive tactics for 24 years. Garland has trained in Krav Maga for a few years, was recently certified as a civilian IKMF (International Krav Maga Federation) instructor, and continues to teach defensive tactics for law enforcement. 

“It's versatile and can be modified to the needs of the attack," Garland writes. "The movements are street- and battlefield-tested, which is ideal for teaching civilians, military, and law enforcement.  My only regret is I didn't take classes earlier in my career!"

Krav Maga teaches techniques to defend against common attacks:  punches, kicks, chokes, headlocks, grabs, bear-hugs, knife and stick threats and attacks, and gun threats. It includes defenses against attacks on the ground, always with the goal of getting up.  Ground fighting is dangerous and exhausting, especially when there is a crowd and the potential for multiple attackers. 

Krav Maga brings the attacked to a high level very quickly by teaching consistent defenses based on the movement of the attackers, rather than a specific skill for each type of attack.  It incorporates stress drills and multiple attacker scenarios to ingrain the skills into the defender and forge a never give up attitude. 

For Jake Gribble, a police officer and Marine who served two tours in Iraq, Krav Maga provides a "complete system focused on real-world defense."  As a longtime Krav Maga student, he finds the training fills the gaps found in many other martial arts systems:  armed suspects, multiple suspects and realistic context.  "I also appreciate the no-nonsense attitude that favors decisive, overwhelming action when appropriate," he writes via email.

Krav Maga was developed for the Israeli Defense Force.  Israel was formed, developed, and continues to thrive against formidable odds.  Surrounded by enemies on all sides when Israel declared itself a nation, citizen-soldiers of all ages and abilities had to fight for their very existence.  This forged a "never give up" spirit that keeps Israel going today.  Krav Maga carries on this "never give up" tradition in its modern self-defense system. 

Krav Maga for Bicyclists was inspired by attacks on civilian cyclists in Minnesota’s Twin Cities. In an effort to prepare civilian cyclists to repel such attacks, Krav Maga Minneapolis owners/instructors Gail Boxrud and Dante Pastrano attended the IPMBA Security Cyclist Course taught by Saint Paul Police Sergeant Murray Prust.  After earning their Security Cyclist certification, they spent many months combining their Krav Maga training with their IPMBA training to develop a program for civilian cyclists. 

Prust, an IPMBA Instructor and Bicycle Response Team leader, attended his first Krav Maga for Law Enforcement seminar in 2011.  "I couldn't believe that I was never taught these simple, effective techniques," he stated. "Because of Krav Maga’s teaching style, I was able to retain the techniques and perform them under stress.  Krav Maga teaches you tactics to end encounters fast, which reduces injuries to both officers and suspects."  After attending the class, he suggested developing a program for public safety personnel.

Inspired by the opportunity to enhance officer safety, Boxrud, Pastrano and Prust developed Krav Maga for Pubic Safety Cyclists and taught their first seminar at the 2012 IPMBA Conference in Saint Paul and repeated it in Baton Rouge in 2013.  They were unable to attend the 2014 Conference due to Krav Maga Instructor re-certification. 

Topics include weapon retention while riding a bicycle, dismounting the bike ready to intervene and fight if necessary, getting pushed off the bike, and defending against all types of attacks on the ground.  It will cover knife, stick and gun defenses.  

This course will prepare public safety cyclists to defend themselves from punches, kicks, grabs and chokes perpetrated by single and multiple attackers.  The reality-based drills and scenarios will help public safety cyclists manage stress, repel attacks, and reduce their reliance on lethal use of force options. 

About the Instructors: 

Gail Boxrud is co-owner of Krav Maga Minneapolis LLC. She is the director for Minnesota for the International Krav Maga Federation (IKMF), which is based in Israel. She is certified under the IKMF to teach civilians, law enforcement, women and children. She is also an IPMBA certified Security Cyclist. She has been training in Krav Maga for more than 12 years and teaching for nearly 8 years. She has achieved the rank of IKMF Expert 1.

Dante Pastrano is co-owner of Krav Maga Minneapolis LLC and certified under the IKMF as an instructor for civilians, law enforcement, women and children. He is also an IPMBA certified Security Cyclist. He earned his teaching credentials in August 2008. He earned his law enforcement instructor certification in May 2009 in Israel, and attended 3 additional LE instructor courses in Minnesota. He has achieved the rank of IKMF Expert 1.

Murray Prust is a certified International Krav Maga Federation Level 3 Law Enforcement Instructor under Tamir Gilad of IKMF GIT.  He has 17 years of law enforcement experience and currently holds the rank of Sergeant for the Saint Paul Police Department. He has been a bike patrol instructor since 2003 and an IPMBA Instructor since 2007.  He is also a Sergeant on the Bicycle Rapid Response Team that responds to civil disorder, crowd control, natural disasters, and other tactical situations.

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