by GrandUltimate on Mon Jan 07, 2019 11:28 pm
A few years ago I left a bar in a relatively highly inebriated state, was threatened by someone who said he'd rob me at a bus stop, and successfully defended myself against him...until 5 other guys ran in. Luckily I wasn't hurt and got away, but it changed my whole take on things because after a lot of lucky times of being the victor in scuffles, this experience made me realize that the whole fighting a guy with honor thing is pretty dumb in these types of violent situations (a concept I knew in theory very well since day one of training martial arts, but clearly did not apply in my life).
So my new go to is: a "utility" folding knife (my main is a cold steel ak-47: good blade length, concealable, and easily taken out of my pocket and ready to go in one motion) and pepper spray. The pepper spray would have to be ready preemptively in a best case scenario, but either way it lets you do some damage and distort someone's vision from a distance. At that point, having a knife and martial arts skill puts any martial artist at a major advantage even against other martial artists and other attackers. That said, I'd prefer to have an extendable baton instead of a knife, but I don't have the baton because it's more of a hassle. Overall, (preferred portable concealable weapon) + (pepper spray/mace) seems pretty optimal for me. I'd definitely like to see what else is out there thought.
"As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another"