Anne Arundel Self-Defense Experts Offer Free Knife Defense Course

After an Odenton man was mugged at knife point, Joe Lynch and JB Jaeger knew they had to do something. Lynch, a US Army veteran and expert marksman owns Annapolis Defense & Security. Jaeger, a bouncer and martial arts instructor, heads the Maryland Jeet Kune Do Academy. Two weeks after the mugging, they hosted a well-attended open workshop for the community on the realities of edged weapons violence, and the steps that can be taken to avoid knife attacks, and what to do in the worst case scenario if you are confronted with a blade. In addition to concerned citizens, the workshop was also attended by local law enforcement and military members interested in learning how to protect themselves against attackers armed with edged weapons.

Jaeger has trained in the Filipino martial art of Kali since 2000 and encountered knives during his work as a doorman in Washington DC and Annapolis. He says for all that training and experience, it is not a situation he ever wants to find himself in again. Jaeger believes the art of Kali, seen in movies like the Bourne Identity, offers the most realistic preparation for a knife attack. Kali differs from other martial arts in that it starts with weapons first, instead of empty hands.

“The techniques that Joe and JB shared were realistic and practical, there was no bs,” said Joe Sanchez, who attended the seminar. “They were techniques anyone could perform; that is, you didn’t need to be a lifelong martial artist to perform them.”

“We were pleased to have the opportunity to host the Maryland JKD team and to participate in this valuable introduction to knife defense,” ADS owner Joe Lynch said.

Lynch, who teaches a variety of tactical firearms and self-defense courses partnered with Jaeger to demonstrate why even a firearm does not guarantee safety against a knife.

”Whenever this topic comes up, eventually someone will say if someone attacks me with a knife, I’ll just shoot them,” Jaeger explained. “If you’re a civilian in Maryland, it’s highly unlikely that you are legally carrying a firearm in public, and even if you are, it takes a significant amount of specific training and practice to be able to counter a knife at close range and deploy your firearm.”

The two instructors demonstrated that fact to the attendees inside Annapolis Defense & Security’s tactical training center. Lynch armed himself with a holstered pistol loaded with simulated ammunition and Jaeger stood twenty-one feet away, armed with a plastic knife. Jaeger was able to cover the distance at a rush and slice Lynch’s throat just as Lynch drew and fired his weapon.

“The reality of edged weapon violence is that it won’t happen from twenty-one feet away and your attacker is not going to let you know he is about to attack you. Training and practice is always important,” Jaeger said and Lynch agreed.

“I would rather be in a gun fight than a knife fight,” Lynch explained. “The odds of getting shot in a gun fight are about two in ten. The odds of getting slashed or stabbed in a knife fight are about ten out of ten.”

“The workshop today is about awareness and survival, about making the choices beforehand so you can avoid being in these confrontations, and if you end up in them, how to escape,” Jaeger told the students. “We’re not going to teach you complicated disarms or how to defeat a knife wielding attacker. We are however going to teach you how to end up back at home at the end of the night, in the same bed you woke up in that morning. That’s the goal of self-defense.”

“In the end, if this helps even one person, that’s worth so much more than one weekend afternoon,” Jaeger concluded after the seminar. “That’s why we do this.”