New dagger videos

[Jay Vail]

I have posted seven instructional/demonstration dagger videos on Youtube. Please let me have your thoughts, comments on them. (As I have taken shots at other people's work, now's your chance at mine. )

Part 1 — http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F6xCpOCiEWk

Part 2 — http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AXSt6guzmMk

Part 3 — http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pphi7OFIA70

Part 4 — http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6EizHpEVMVs

Part 5 — http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZlBdopF1RXI

Part 6 — http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KjaHpnACb9I

Part 7— http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z143thJWRBQ

[Sal Bertucci]

I don't know much about dagger work yet, but it seems pretty good to me. Is that part of the Adept Program?

[Joshua Hintzen]

I don't know much on dagger fighting, but the videos themselves were clear enough for me to get a grasp on the technique.
And whats the Adept Program? It sounds menacing.

[Vance Osterhout]

From what I gathered in the outline of the program it is not yet an Adept program but likely will be. I'd Imagine that Jay would be the Captain.

[Sal Bertucci]

The Adept Program is part of the optional curricula for ARMA members. It will hopefully be starting up this spring, and is open to anyone of General Free Scholar and above.

It also happens to be really cool, and I'm really looking forward to it.

[Benjamin Smith]

I think it looks pretty good overall. I'd like to applaud your work.

One very minor thing to bring up is that a couple of times when countering the thrust from below, you or your partner tend to get bent over with the feet together to add distance between yourself and your opponent's weapon by stepping back with your front foot. All of the positions shown in the manuals at the beginnings of your videos show the normative wider stance with the hips tucked under the upper body at the moment you grip your opponent's weapon/arm.

I don't think you're doing anything wrong, what works works right. Compromise positions are part of fighting, and ought to be shown as viable options or variations on the technique, especially if they work in sparring. I think that the demonstrations from the masters assume that you engage your opponent's weapon more quickly when the technique is executed properly. It seems to be the case that this happens when you don't react quickly enough to your opponent's attack, which just proves that while the techniques are scripted it isn't choreographed and shows how reaction time and adjustment plays an important role of the art. The resulting compromise stance may be more vulnerable to an aggressive opponent, I'm not sure, having done only a little dagger work myself.

I think these demonstrations work very well. They demonstrate how the techniques work with sufficient pause between the motions for someone to analyze. They are smooth and clear, and have little need for direct explanation outside your book. I'd also like to see some additional demonstrations that are quicker and show more non-compliance on the part of the opponent.

[RayMcCullough]

I liked how the first video started. The first technique was done very quikly the 1st time then slowed down the next to times to show how it was performed. It is a good way to show the critics that it works at speed and then shows at a slower speed how to do it.

Very nice Jay.

[Joel Norman]

Hi Jay, I don't know if you remember me, but we met at the IG and talked politics among other things over dinner. And yes, I did get around to buying your book, as I promised I would then.
I really like these videos, though, almost as much as I liked your class at the IG. I've been trying to do more with the dagger lately, and even my wife is now getting curious about it when she sees me practicing techniques with other guys, (which is cool because I think that swordplay is a little too nerdy for her, at least in her mind). What I'm curious about is whether it's possible to get a compilation of these and other dagger videos you may have, say in a DVD format? I think it would be a useful companion to your book.

[Jay Vail]

What I'm curious about is whether it's possible to get a compilation of these and other dagger videos you may have, say in a DVD format? I think it would be a useful companion to your book.

I'm glad your wife is interested as well. She will be safer by mastering even a small number of the techniques.

The dagger material is really good for modern self defense because the 90+ percent of the techniques will work with any knife, even tactical folders. And, you know that the stuff isn't dojo dancing made up by some clown who has no idea how knife attacks occur in the real world. It was put together by guys who faced the ever present possibility of knife attack and had to train realistically to face it. Those old masters were the Massad Ayoobs of their day.

I expect that the vids eventually will be available to ARMA members as part of the Adept program. Until then, just send a check for $19.95 to . . .

[Joel Norman]

Well, the wife and I did a couple of hours of drill and unarmed/dagger freeplay yesterday, so I can tell she's definitely on board with learning this material. Your book has been a great resource; she even showed it to her other lady friends who have nothing to do with ARMA or any martial arts at all. Some of them were a little grossed out by the cover art (which I myself thought was one of the coolest parts) but were impressed by the content, and especially at how simple the techniques are when we showed them a few.