Leading the reader through simple yet powerful, brutally effective methods of self-defense designed for use in myriad street crime scenarios, this guide explains the use of force continuum and teaches how to efficiently avoid potentially violent encounters though the use of "pre-incident indicators." The techniques depicted are credible, relevant, practicable, and utilized by members of elite military units and U.S. government personnel traveling abroad to high-risk areas of operation. The philosophy of "less is more" results in a succinct system of self-defense that is drawn from the author’s experiences as well as the collective experience of his students around the world.
Combatives for Street Survival
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Editorial Reviews
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"McCann has kept his hands dirty for the 28 years I've known him, staying in the fight and has served, as Warriors do. This book contains his direct, unflinching opinions about close combat and he ought to know." — A.M. Gray, former commandant of the Marine Corps; former member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; and a current member of the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies, Washington, DC
"Kelly McCann's approach to combatives works because it embodies two basic principles: simplicity and proven effectiveness. —L.H. "Bucky" Burruss, lieutenant colonel (retired), U.S. Special Operations; cofounder, 1st SFOD-D "Delta Force"
"If you're serious about self-defense, don't settle for theory. Buy this book and get the real deal." —Michael Janich, author and founder, Martial Blade Concepts
"Kelly was one of the driving forces in updating the . . . old close combat program to make it fully functional on the modern day battlefield."
—Cardo V. Urso, former chief trainer of instructor trainers, Marine Corps Close Combat Program
"Kelly McCann's combatives mentality is as honest and straightforward as it can get." —Pat Miletich, five-time UFC world champion with 14 years of experience training police and military forces
"Kelly's understanding of close sudden violence is derived from personal experience." —Bill Bratton
"Kelly McCann approaches the study of combatives from a scientifically based model of 'what and why,' but does so with an almost religious fervor to find the 'best way.'" —Jim McDonnell, chief of staff and Medal of Valor recipient, Los Angeles Police Department
"Kelly McCann is probably the toughest person I know, and one of the smartest. Both qualities are on display in this terrific book, which is not only wise and useful, but a compelling read." —Tucker Carlson, host, MSNBC's Tucker; cohost, CNN's CrossFire; and author, Politicians, Parasites and Partisans
About the Author
Kelly McCann is a combat instructor with more than 25 years of experience, a former CNN security analyst, and the founder and president of Crucible, a high-risk environment training provider that services Department of Defense special-missions units and federal law-enforcement agencies. He lives in Los Angeles, CA.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
41 of 42 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
An experience based book,
By
This review is from: Combatives for Street Survival (Paperback)
Kelly McCann, also known under the pen name "Jim Grover" has produced some of the best DVDs on close-quarter self protection. His previous book Street Smarts, a collection of his magazine articles, defined his status as one of the most significant names in the field of self-protection.
Now, at last, he has written a book covering the rationale, training and application of self-protection for today's situation "whether in battle or in Boston" Having already absorbed the previous material, I was eagerly awaiting the book, and, to quote Winston Churchill "it exceeded my expectations; which were very high". Right from the introduction, which describes the delights of the morning after an arduous Combatives workout, the text grips you. Kelly McCann speaks with the authority of having trained thousands of government personnel to face extreme hazards, and having extensive personal experience of hostile environments from South America to Iraq. His material on the Combative Mindset and the fight-winning attitude are spot on. Kelly McCann is obviously a major proponent of what I termed the tactical lifestyle. He states "You should always carry a weapon or an item that can be used as a weapon. Period. Arm yourself with a weapon that can be carried legally in the jurisdiction where you live." Difficult to fault that logic. For me one of the highlights is the section describing McCann's involvement with the current US Marines Close Combat Program, and the "show-stopping" input of former WW-2 Marine Raider Jim Smith The book has numerous case studies to emphasise the learning points. These are taken from current activities and are a sobering look into the realities of sudden violence. The photographs are first class, printed on high quality gloss paper. I'm sure that this book will be a best seller, and take its place as a classic of the genre.
35 of 36 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Good info but bad design,
By
This review is from: Combatives for Street Survival (Paperback)
I am always a bit apprehensive towards anything put out by Black Belt and Ohara Publications. Many of their products strike me as being aimed at the juvenile market and the magazine itself has never been very well edited. In this case the editing is better than the magazine; still this book has a few cheap tricks to make it attractive to a younger readership. The book is softbound and roughly 8X11 in size. Just reading through my copy the first time resulted in obvious wear and tear and crease marks on the cover. The paper the cover page is printed on is not very robust and I won't be surprised if the edges become dog-eared and the pages quickly come loose from their glued-in binding.
The author makes the point several times that Combatives are efficient and effective without anything fancy, yet the editors at Black Belt felt the need to over-design a cheesy layout that is anything but efficient and simple. On every page of the book, the text and photos are centered inside a ¾ inch black frame with red uneven lines. To me it looks like a page border from Microsoft Word; it's not artistic and honestly detracts from the information in the book. This framing actually takes up a large portion of the 197 pages; space that that could have been dedicated to more text or larger photos and part of what you are paying for is a lot of black filler and cheesy design. The photo sequences are well shot and the accompanying text is clear and easy to understand, some of the photos appear to have been slapped to the book with athletic tape. Black Belt did not miss the opportunity to make you pay for a catalog as well; in the back are 4 pages advertising books and DVDs and then one additional page advertising the website where you can watch some videos. This book could have been greatly improved by streamlining the design, using a page layout that doesn't look like a carnival prize, and printing the book in hardbound. Most of the author's previous work is published by Paladin Press, and even they put out a better product that is going to last longer than Black Belt did with this one. For those of you familiar with the work of Kelly McCann (a.k.a. Jim Grover) the material presented in this work will be familiar to you. The author has been talking and writing about this subject for a long time and has developed a style of prose that is concise and to the point. The author's personality is evident in his choice of words and the stories he uses to get his points across. The folks at Black Belt didn't entirely edit out the "street" talk and one will find the occasional F-bomb. The writing is engaging and conversational with the author speaking directly to the reader. The book is divided into three parts and eight total chapters. A good portion of the book is dedicated to an explanation of combative principles. From chapter five the reader is introduced to physical movements and from there strikes. The photo sequences are well shot and the reader can understand the principle or technique being demonstrated. The author takes the time to explain how a strike is executed, demonstrates how to train the strike with speed and power delivery safely with a partner, and then how it is applied against an opponent. Through out the book the author recommends training to the edge of safety with your partners, but to expect your share of bruises. Part three is dedicated to scenario situations resulting in the author demonstrating Combatives. The most valuable part of the scenarios section is the introduction and the part of each scene where pre-incident (pre-attack) indicators and avoidance opportunities are discussed. The photo sequences then demonstrate one possible way to deal with one potential "attack". The cons: Cheap binding, waste of page space, and cheesy layout that jacks the price up. The pros: Besides all the cons, the information in the book is well explained and laid out for the reader. I would have gladly paid more for a plain page layout in hardbound or better bound soft cover, but once you get past all that, the book is worth adding to the library.
13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent Book on Hard-Core Self-Defense,
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Combatives for Street Survival (Paperback)
"Combatives For Street Survival: Hard-Core Countermeasures for High-Risk Situations" by Kelly McCann is an excellent addition to any self-defense library, and if you only want a few self-defense books, this is one you should have. I've liked McCann's writing and teaching for years. He has one previous book, which is a collection of articles he wrote, and a number of instructional DVDS, some under his name and others under his pen name Jim Grover. All of the provide outstanding advice and instruction.
After appearing on the cover of Black Belt magazine in 2008, he wrote this book that was published by Black Belt Books. It's an attractive 8 1/2 x 11 inch book with full color pictures throughout. Some might not like the larger black borders, or the full page photos that introduce the chapters, but I found them to be different than many self-defense books and felt it made this book unique and didn't mind them at all. I liked the different layout. The real reason this book is valuable is McCann's knowledge. It could be written on the back of a napkin and would still be worth reading. His no BS, straight to the point, style is as direct and powerful as the basic combative strikes and kicks he teaches. Chapter one describes what combatives are and provides a little history as well as the current state of combatives. I also really liked the short section regarding internet forums. Chapter two touches on the realities of confrontations. There are short sections on avoidance, situational awareness, and attack-recognition skills. He also discusses physiological effects of imminent danger, mitigating duress dysfunctions, and combatives traits and characteristics. Mindset, winning, and confrontations in real life are also topics in this chapter. Chapter three contains short descriptions and illustrating photographs of fourteen combatives principles. Principles such as go armed, apply power explosively, use the right weapon, and full body-weight striking. These principles are important for self-defense regardless of any style or techniques you may practice. Chapter four covers combatives methodology and explains McCann's hard-core training routines. Real altercations and confrontations are serious, and so is the training McCann advocates. He does include information on training aids and safety, but the real thing that stands out from this chapter is the intensity and hard-core training presented. Chapter five instructs on combatives positions and movements. Stances, or starting positions, movement, and swaying and hollowing out are some of what's covered in this short chapter. Chapter six, defensive skills, covers just what the title states. Fending, checking, and blocking are covered here. This includes blocking weapon attacks. The things McCann teaches are illustrated with accompanying photographs. Chapter seven teaches the combatives strikes. These include the finger jab, hammerfist, face smash, ax hand, and knees, elbows, and kicks among others. Again, accompanying photographs illustrate the various blows. McCann also is clear when describing the execution of the techniques that you explode into them and use all your body weight to your advantage. Chapter eight provides some unarmed situational self-offense situations. McCann provides a brief bit on use of force, and then provides a few scenarios with examples of how one could defend themselves in such a situation. The pictures are clear and the techniques simple and brutal. A couple of the scenarios involve handgun defense, which are the same techniques those familiar with McCann's DVDs have seen him teach. Finally there is an afterword that contains a few corollaries between combatives and the U.S. Marine Corps Field Manual 1 (FM 1) Warfighting. "Combatives For Street Survival: Hard-Core Countermeasures for High-Risk Situations" by Kelly McCann provides some excellent advice and instruction regarding self-defense and the person who learns the techniques and principles in this book, and who trains hard as McCann advises, will be much better prepared if ever faced with a violent and unexpected assault. Reviewed by Alain Burrese, J.D., author of the DVD set Streetfighting Essentials.
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