n l Melissa's Adventure

BY MELISSA CLEMENT
PHOTOS BY STEPHANIE BRUCE

I have this recurrent dream. I’m somewhere in the dark, just standing there when suddenly a large, menacing man appears and lunges for me. I wake up, and with chills. It is always the same face. I’ve decided to give him a name to make him seem less threatening. I will call him Percy.

Ron Czolek teaches Melissa Clement how to free her arms from an aggressor.

I can’t stop the dreams, but I can do something about feeling so vulnerable. That’s why I decided to take lessons in self-defense from Ron Hansen, who teaches judo.

I’ve learned a lot in just a couple of weeks, but it takes a lifetime to develop all the skills you need for judo, and at 75, I have less lifetime than most. I will never earn a black belt, but in a short time I have earned a few black bruises.

I’ve also learned to admire Hansen, who gives unselfishly to teach judo for free to both children and adults twice a week at the Police Training Center. A former Fayetteville police chief, Hansen not only teaches the art of judo, but also instills manners and respect for others. He says he expects students to be good citizens, help others and contribute to the good of society. Other black belts who volunteer to teach are Ron Czolek, Haciento Santiago and José Abudo. Collectively, they drive more than 200 miles a week to teach for free.

What else I’ve learned is how to avoid dangerous situations. I’ve learned not to fight if you can avoid it. Flight is better, Hansen says.

“The first rule: You don’t want to fight, particularly if you are elderly. Scream, blow a whistle, do whatever you can to bring attention. If they catch you and you have a cane, use it across the nose. Go for the eyes or here,” he says, pointing to his windpipe. “With a broken nose, or if they can’t see or breathe, they will not be interested in you.”

Hansen says people can be trained on basic self-defense — at least, the physical part — but they need to be mentally aware of their surroundings.

“Lock car doors, and if you have a bad feeling, be aware of that and take precautions,” he says. “Have access to a telephone. If you are threatened inside the house, you need to get inside a barricade. Pepper spray ... if the wind is blowing the wrong way it could blow back in your face.

“Always be aware of your demeanor. If you walk somewhere and appear to be frightened, people are going to sense that.

Don’t be a target. Act confident. Particularly in today’s society, you have to be aware of your surroundings and be confident in what you do.’’

ASSUME YOUR POSITION

So what do you do if a predator grabs you? There are many ways to retaliate. That’s the fun part of what I’ve learned.
Hansen showed me several moves for escaping. Some require stepping back with one foot and lowering the hip with a twisting motion before using different movements, according to the position of both pairs of hands.

Ron Hansen, with the aid of Akaela McGinty, teaches Melissa Clement how to get away from an aggressor.

If both of your hands are held down by the aggressor, you can make your hands into fists and with a twisting motion, pull up with both hands to free yourself. Follow through with a twist of the arm to hit the opponent’s eye.

If the predator grabs only one hand, put the other hand over his arm and grab your own hand. Your two hands together create a lever. Use the power of your whole body to pull up and away. When you pull away, use an arching movement overhead.

If you are facing the opponent, you might try a groin punch with your leg, but it has to be directly on target and hard or it may create more aggression, I am told.

Suppose the attacker grabs your waist from the back. Get a hold on his or her little finger or a thumb, twisting it backward. The best defense is to thrust one foot back and scrape it down the shin of the attacker. Ouch.

LEARN HOW TO TAKE THE FALL

Suppose my dream man, Percy, is just a bad dream and I never face a real boogeyman. Well, sooner or later, we all fall down. Years ago, after I hosted a newsroom party, I fell down my front eight steps. Since I was well fortified with wine, I was not hurt. I was relaxed. That is said to be the best way to fall. Not with drink, of course, but relaxed. It will do less damage.

After three classes, I learned how to best fall, if you have to fall. It is done by never letting all your weight fall on one body part. Spread the fall out as much as you can to avoid breaking bones. When falling, you need to get as close to the ground as you can before hitting it. Sink to your knees or squat, and you won’t have as far to fall. If you are falling frontward, turn your head to the side to protect your nose, and don’t put your hands out in front of you. I did that and it hurt. Land on your outstretched arms, held close to your body, to spread the impact over the whole body.

The reporter practices taking a fall by tucking in her chin and spreading her body weight.

If you are falling backward, tuck your chin into your chest and don’t fall flat on your back. Roll your body into a curl like it was a rocking chair, and when your hands and legs hit the floor, let them bounce back up to ease the impact.

Watching students practice falling, I was impressed by the way they curl their bodies into a worm-like shape when falling backward and slapping their hands on the mat. It takes a lot of practice to do this kind of fall, Czolek says.

“Then it becomes second nature,’’ he adds, as he helped me learn some methods of self-protection taught in judo:

“If you are attacked, don’t resist. Let the other person’s aggression flow off you. Let it flow like water around you. Chances are the person is stronger than you. Don’t go force to force. Let him push you and take advantage of it. Go with the push. It’s called ‘Tai Sabakai,’ body and motion, but stay in balance. Use his energy to your advantage.’’

I learned that you can take advantage of the energy of the aggressor as he comes at you by quickly stepping sideways and throwing the aggressor over your shoulder or letting him fall from his own force. That is a skill that would require the kind of practice, fortitude and devotion to judo that the students I saw were practicing.

I am impressed with judo and those who teach and learn it. I have learned much — and am a little wiser and more “street smart” because of it.

Now all I have to do is to learn to relax ... if and when Percy ever springs to life and comes to get me. n

Ron Czolek teaches Melissa Clement how to turn the aggressor’s energy into a fall.

Protect yourself!

• If a predator demands your purse, toss it away from you and run. Chances are, the person will go for the purse and leave you alone.
• Before getting into your car, always look in the back seat and floor.
• If you are thrown into the trunk of a car, kick out a tail light and stick your arm out the hole and wave. The driver won’t see you, but others will.
• Don’t sit in your car with the door unlocked and work on your checkbook or make lists. This may be an opportunity for a predator to get in and possibly threaten you with a weapon. As soon as you get into your car, lock the doors and leave.
• Take elevators. Stairwells are dangerous places to be alone, especially at night.
• Women are often sympathetic to others who seem to need help, or those who walk with a cane. Serial killer Ted Bundy was good-looking and well-educated and played on the sympathies of unsuspecting women. He asked for help into his vehicle and then abducted his victims.
• Trust your intuition. If you have a gut feeling, for example, that a person in a mall parking lot is suspicious, turn around and go back into a store and ask for a security guard to escort you to your vehicle.