Wandering Warrior Martial Arts™, Cain Morano, pfsslc.com, [email protected]
The Heart of PFS: The RAT
By Cain Morano
PFS, Progressive Fighting Systems, is the second generation evolution of Bruce Lee’s Jeet Kune Do. Bruce Lee’s personal expression of martial arts research was called JKD, theoretically nobody except for Bruce Lee can be said to perform JKD. However, the material that Bruce Lee discovered and refined according to the Taoist philosophy was given to Dan Inosanto, who then further researched and expanded it. This first generation of JKD, Dan Inosanto’s personal expression of JKD, is typically referred to as JKD Concepts and Inosanto Kali. Dan Inosanto has many great students, but one stands out from the rest. This student is Paul Vunak, who left the Inosanto Academy as an instructor with Guro Dan Inosanto’s blessing and encouragement. When Paul Vunak struck out on his own to form Progressive Fighting Systems, it was for the benefit of Jeet Kune Do.
PFS is the next evolution of JKD concepts, a streamlining of ‘the blend’ down to the principles of training for violence and not art. While Vunak maintains some of the more artful aspects of JKD to preserve the original teachings, he has fleshed out a collection of techniques more compatible with the aggressiveness and simplicity of what he feels JKD is meant to express. PFS is based on the blend and theory of JKD but is taken a step further, a step out onto the street. His system is so effective in high pressure tactical situations that the Navy hired Paul Vunak and partner Tom Cruse to train their special warfare operators, the SEALs, for three years.
This provides the perfect example of a martial art in its original use. Martial means military, and in this case the art was being taught to a military unit that is the best at their game, unconventional warfare. The analogy is that PFS is designed for the little guy to take out multiple big guys through the use of dirty, brutal techniques applied with a strategy and a killer instinct. This is the same thing as a small unit being highly trained, highly motivated and highly equipped, applying very precise and heavy firepower using a doctrine of warfare that is not conventional. In PFS, there are no rules of engagement; you do whatever you have to do to win. If you want to win, you need the mentality and the tools. Biting, head butting, groin shots, grappling, eye gouging, and weapons are all in the toolbox of a PFS practitioner. The unconventionality of PFS lies not only in the aggression and well roundedness, but also in the preference of fighting in trapping range where we can do the most damage the fastest. In other words, we like to close with the opponent. The definition of a warrior is one who is intent on closing with the enemy. The core of PFS training methods revolves around this.
PFS has proven itself through trial by fire. It is not that ‘the blend’ itself is superior to other arts, after all there are no superior styles, only superior fighters. PFS is a success story because as an integral part of its philosophy it says that there are no superior styles, and seeks to develop superior training methods. The basis of PFS is Jeet Kune Do, which stresses simplicity and functionalized movement, or in the words of Bruce Lee, “Absorb what is useful, discard what is useless, research your own experience, and add what is specifically your own”. The training method in general is based on the continuum from self perfection to self preservation. This means that all drills fall somewhere between attribute training and fighting, usually a percentage of both.
In its most simple form, PFS lacks artfulness and tribute, being most brutal and practical. There are certain aspects of JKD that require far more motor skills and thus are far less practical and have been removed. JKD utilizes some practices and techniques that aren’t strictly for brutal effectiveness, but are there as a part of the philosophical and technical foundation. For example, most of the Wing Chun and Kali have been stripped down to the most simple and effective techniques and principles.
Wandering Warrior Martial Arts™, Cain Morano, pfsslc.com, [email protected] 1 Wandering Warrior Martial Arts™, Cain Morano, pfsslc.com, [email protected]
Therefore, the PFS training goal is about self preservation, while using the artful or indirect as training methods to self perfection.
What makes the PFS practitioner so effective is embodied in a set of tools called the RAT, Rapid Assault Tactics. It is the archetypal application of the JKD blend and philosophy of fighting. The RAT is also the central strategy of PFS. While most arts present an arsenal of techniques and give the order to do whatever it is you need to do however you can with that array of weapons, PFS has at its core the aim of closing the gap, getting in the clinch, and applying the sledgehammers.
The RAT is a great name for this sequence of techniques for two reasons. First, rats adapt, and adaptation is a tenet of JKD; to be able to flow within and between ranges, arts, and opponents. This is how the process, the philosophy, of JKD generates the creative and formless fighter. Familiarity with lines of attack and different ranges is an incredibly powerful element of being a good fighter, as well as having attributes physically superior to your opponents’. The second reason the name is appropriate is because of the speed and aggression of the execution of the attack.
The RAT is part Bando/Lethwei (head butts), part Wing Chun (straight blast), part Muay Thai (clinch, elbows, and knees), and part Kina Mutai (eye gouges). The stereotypical incarnation of the RAT occurs first with a straight blast with aggressive footwork up the centerline, a head butt into a clinch, and then knees, elbows, and eye gouges to finish. The whole sequence will be broken down and some training methods explained. Also, the training method as the process of JKD will be elucidated.
The RAT begins with an entry upon hostile encroachment, or as we call it in the arts, “Someone getting in your face”. Actually if someone were to get close enough to be in your face, the head butt comes first, then the blast or clinch or whatever. The straight blast is a series of rolling vertical punches along the centerline. The strength of this technique is that it is so fast that the opponent goes on the defensive as you immediately apply pressure. This technique forces the opponent to move, either out of the way or backwards. There isn’t much you can do to ‘block’ a straight blast, however closing the gap to jam or grappling to seize the arms will end a blast. The straight blast is used to clear the centerline. If hands come up during your entry, trapping and grappling techniques can be applied.
If you are a PFS practitioner you will have a response to the hands coming up, since you have been practicing all of the appropriate energy drills, such as higot hubud-lubud (mix, tie, untie), chi sao (sticking hands), and bong-lop. A very effective response to defensive pressure is to apply Dumog techniques, since you have a perfect reference point for that. Once you gain control, the head butts can commence.
During the roll of the Jik Chung Choy (straight blast), there are techniques that can be applied when the hands are going in and when the hands come back out again. For example, arm immobilizations, jip sao, and arm bars. This is not a single-use tool. Every motion has a weapon attached; using every opportunity is economy of motion, a tenet of JKD. Again, the straight blast may not come into play due to close quarters.
Once the opponent is on the defensive, you should charge while applying the straight blast. If the opponent falls down then you were more effective than you hoped, but now you have to do something other than a head butt. After forcing the enemy to relent their floor space, grab their head and head butt their face. There are different types of body mechanics to execute a head butt, but getting a result is not difficult. You are hitting someone in the face with a bowling bowl attached to a torso. One example of a head butt with simple mechanics is given here. The head butt begins when your hands can reach behind the opponent’s neck. The grab should be around the back of the neck, which is useful since you are about to go into the clinch. Give a little room between your hands and the
Wandering Warrior Martial Arts™, Cain Morano, pfsslc.com, [email protected] 2 Wandering Warrior Martial Arts™, Cain Morano, pfsslc.com, [email protected] neck, then pull with a slap and make the head jerk forward as you bring your head down so that contact is made on their face above your hairline. Watch out for teeth! You might have to turn the target head a little so you can head butt without walking away with buck teeth sticking out of your head. Some targets for the head butt are the side of the jaw, the nose, the cheek, the eye, or the temple. The proper striking surface is above your hairline, the top or side of the head. A head butt could make a bloody mess, so watch your eyes and mouth if your opponent’s face erupts.
Bruce Lee boiled fighting principles down to very simple ideas, like using the weapon that is closest to the target. In some cases the RAT uses the head butt immediately as opposed to engaging with hands up, from the straight blast. As mentioned before, the principle is that if someone harasses you in close quarters there is no need for a pushing contest or a square-off before a fight. This is masculine macho crap. The fight is already in your face; use the head butt, then clinch and knees, or pick and choose what you need according to the situation. This is also a situation where you would apply killer instinct and not the general harassment and posturing you can use in long range. To elaborate, in long range we stay relaxed but when we are close enough to trap then we change emotional states and become a highly aggressive animal. The problem with this sort of behavior in long range is that you can’t reach the opponent, you wear yourself out, and you are more likely to make a mistake that could end the fight. This RAT is a cold calculating animal, when encroached upon it springs into action immediately and doesn’t toy with its food like two high school jocks trying to air out their egos.
With the head butt comes the clinch. The clinch is used to control the head; control the head and the body will follow. There are different methods of clinching, here two will be explained. The first clinch we use is the clinch for pulling the opponent onto knee strikes. Cup the hands around each other; do not knit your fingers together. Place the cupped hands on the back of the opponent’s head to bend their neck down. This grip will allow you to squeeze your arms together tightly around the neck, while applying pressure across your forearms onto their collarbones. Do not break posture; bring the opponent’s head to you. Yank the head violently around, keeping the opponent off balance, directing them onto your strikes. During the clinch, elbow strikes should also be employed to take out the enemy. This is the best position for elbows since you have firm control over the opponent’s head, which means that none of the force will be dissipated into moving the head, all the energy will be used in impact. The other clinch is commonly referred to as the neck tie. The hands clasp behind the neck, fingers cupped into the web of the thumb of the opposite hand. This allows a firm clasp to keep the hands together, which means a strong pinch of the forearms can be employed which will enable you to have better control of the opponent’s head. This clinch position doesn’t enable you to pull the head down as much though. Use of the clinch reflects the dumog element of PFS tactics, where we are trying to push and pull the opponent violently, when in clinch range, in order to couple the jerking motions with strikes to increase their power.
The clinch will enable you to move the enemy around with ease and strike continuously. The clinch can be finished by throwing elbows and knees until the opponent is down, executing throws to the ground or against heavy objects (such as using a man as a shield), or you can open range again and finish with punches and kicks. Always keep in mind the original formula though; HKE/TIE – head butt, knee, elbow, thumbs in eyes. It shouldn’t be too hard to complete the mission once you head butt someone in the face.
The other technique which will take out your opponent pretty easily is the eye gouge. You can execute this as a finger jab from long range, as a rake across the face, or with the thumbs while holding the head in clinch range. This is a technique that gets mixed in between head butts, knees, and elbows. While holding the opponent’s head with your hands on both sides, bring your thumbs across the eyes from the nose to the sides of their head. If you are going to train this, be careful and only brush your
Wandering Warrior Martial Arts™, Cain Morano, pfsslc.com, [email protected] 3 Wandering Warrior Martial Arts™, Cain Morano, pfsslc.com, [email protected] thumbs across the forehead or eyebrow ridge of your training partner. This technique will screw up a guy even easier than a head butt. You could always just jam the thumbs into the eyes but that’s not continuous in a fight with more than one person or with a belligerent individual. The long range eye jab can be used as an intercept and entry into the clinch.
The RAT should be trained progressively. This means isolate the tools and cooperate with your training partner. Two people trying to do the same thing at the same time with no cooperation is a fight, not training. Training safely in this case, is dependent upon participant cooperation. Partners must communicate and allow their partner to do the techniques.
Train the tools in the order of appearance. Before executing the RAT to one hundred percent, break it down into its components. Practice the straight blast by sprinting short distances while punching (solo drill), do it from a totally still position to develop explosive power. Once the explosiveness and technique has been properly captured to some extent, move onto the partner drill. A good exercise is to couple the straight blast with something like a jab drill where the straight blast is executed as an entry from an interception or destruction. Practice straight blasting heavy bags to get accustomed to those square jaw freaks that will not budge, and practice the straight blast against focus mitts to get accustomed to the feather weight who folds or flies. Next, practice the clinch starting from the clinch. After some experience with the clinch, use the straight blast for entry into the clinch. Practice the clinch first with no resistance, and then have partners try to escape as well as throw body shots. Practice the clinch so you have full control of the opponent, and total balance. Also, practice grappling drills like ‘pummeling’ from the over/under positions, and ‘swimming’ to gain position in the clinch.
Knees and elbows are practiced from the clinch. When throwing elbows, you will enter a new type of clinch using only one arm to secure the opponent’s head. There are also variations of the elbow using the inside of the arm as well as the hard outside of the arm. These movements are all coordinated with other strikes and controls. Get the basics first before attempting something that may cause you to lose control of the opponent. The beauty of the RAT is that it is immediately employable, does not require high maintenance, and is versatile. Use forearm pads to provide a good impact surface and to protect your training partner. Of course your skill in bodily controlling an opponent will evolve over time, but try to use good body mechanics of the clinch before attempting knees and elbows. Go slow and have someone spot your training. This position, the clinch, is your base of power for several skills, such as dumog, wrestling, and kickboxing. If your clinch game is strong it will make your knees and elbows a lot more effortless. Keep in mind that the torso, groin, and head are not the only targets for knees. Remember the low line, even in short range. Straight knees into the thigh can cause an opponent to gel, leaving more slack for you to work with in the clinch. Some other offensive weapons to use in the clinch would be foot stomps, shin rakes with the instep, ripping the ears or eyelids, pulling the hair, and biting. It’s really up to you how violent you need to get. If lives are at stake, there is no limit to the violence and cruelty you can mete out to the bad guys.
Practicing the head butt impact is not as important as training the correct body mechanics. The head butt can be practiced on something soft like a pad but hitting your head against things is not a good habit to get into – it isn’t good for your brain or your neck so be careful. Work on getting the correct position to employ the head butt, which is the entry, trap, or clinch. Your position and mechanics are what will make the head butt work best. The head butt is one of those techniques that work without integrating the entire body, but if you do train the right mechanics your head will be a formidable weapon in close range. The bottom line is to go slow, talk to your partner, be supervised by an educated observer, and respect your partner. As with any sequence, start slowly and with little resistance, then build in variability and intensity. Remember that PFS is about progression and regression. Break the drills down, isolate the tools, spend time against resistant opponents, then put it all together and spar it out. Don’t forget that when you are working on the effectiveness of this weapon,
Wandering Warrior Martial Arts™, Cain Morano, pfsslc.com, [email protected] 4 Wandering Warrior Martial Arts™, Cain Morano, pfsslc.com, [email protected] you need to work on your killer instinct as well. This means that as you close range and move through each stage of the RAT you’ve got to crank up the intensity. If you are out in long range, you should be relaxed, and when you close you should be like a rabid animal. Incorporate this emotional training into the range transition, as your fighting measure accordions so should your killer instinct. How you train is how you’ll fight, so be relaxed or you’ll lose your wind early in the fight which means you are a dead guy.
This brings us to the next topic of attributes. Any set of techniques is more effective when applied by someone with superior physical attributes. If the RAT theory and application are the heart of PFS, then attribute training is the blood. This means that as a fighter, your system’s effectiveness is fueled by roadwork, calisthenics, weight training, diet, sleep, hydration, positive mental attitude, and well-roundedness. A fat guy smoking a cigarette and eating a twinky is never a PFS guy. PFS guys are lean, mean fighting machines. We aren’t dojo ballerinas or sombrada studs. We are hardcore, strong, athletic individuals. Even if you have shitty technique and only know a tenth of what the other guy knows, if you can take a beating and last longer under physical stress then you’re the guy who walks away. It’s also a matter of animal mentality. The mental attribute of toughness is as important as physical toughness. PFS is a return to our animal roots, cultivating the desire to snap at the finger that tries to steal food from our plate or mess with our pups. There is no way to train this other than practicing. PFS is all about getting in there and doing it, the RAT is the number one tool to practice to cultivate the desirable attributes.
To summarize, the principle behind the RAT is explosive, violent reaction. The aggressor comes within range, you straight blast into a clinch, throw a knee to soften them up, lift the head, eye gouge with the thumbs, whack him with a head butt, some elbows, more knees and that’s it… hopefully. The bottom line of PFS is to have one more dirty trick than the other guy, to be far meaner about it, and to be able to get back up when he does it to you.
Rapid Assault Tactics also encompasses other ways of dealing with confrontations like a fast punch in the groin and then driving their head into a wall, or quickly picking up a chair and slamming it into the head of an attacker while still in the negotiation stage. If you sense danger, the intention that the enemy is about to make a move on you, there is no such law as “wait till the other guy hits you first”. If you want to win you have to act fast, this is one interpretation of the Jeet of JKD. Bruce Lee promoted the idea that sensing the enemy’s intention and stopping it there was the ultimate skill level of JKD. This requires a lot of experience and a keen eye for telegraphing motions. People who look menacing are not always menaces and people who are dangerous may have good poker faces. Intuition is important, so is judgment, but when the chips are down whip out the heavy artillery. In conclusion, irrespective of what was described within this essay, the message is that you must practice and become comfortable being very close to your opponents and moving very quickly and aggressively. This is the epitome of the RAT…
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