also want to thank all the other instructors who have taught me over the years and inspired me to continually progress, with special mentions going out to Robert Mustard Sensei, Andy Dobie Sensei, Michael Seamark Shihan, and Perry William Kelly Sensei.
Thanks to all my training buddies who made themselves available to help me work on my book by asking questions, putting pressure on my concepts, and play testing them, including Jonathan Jamnik, Stu Cooke, Jon Thompson and Matt Der.
My students have also been a rock of support through the writing of my book, cheerleading me on as I finished each chapter, reminding me who it’s all for.
A big thank you also goes out to Bud Sperry, who “found” me, believed in my vision, and supported my book from proposal, to editing, and all the way through to publication.
Last, but not least, I want to thank my parents who raised me to be driven, strong-willed and compassionate. I may not have followed the path of a “traditional” woman, and they may not understand all that I do, but they have always stood behind me and been excited to share in my joys and successes.
Foreword by
Steve Hiscoe
Daily law enforcement officers are called in to intervene and manage situations that the general public are unable to solve. These situations can range from trivial in nature to affecting the arrest of violent individuals. These arrests can sometimes lead to physical confrontations resulting in all-out-knock-down-drag-‘em-out fights.
That being said, it is inevitable that officers will find themselves, at some point in their career, fighting on the ground. Over the past 20 years, the law enforcement community has seen the introduction of new and innovative intervention options, such as pepper spray, defensive batons, and conducted energy weapons (tasers) added to their duty belts. Moreover, the physical description of police officers has changed dramatically, from mostly physically large males, to a diverse workforce, which includes men and women of all shapes, sizes, and ages.
As such police training has seen the emphasis move away from physical hands on combative style training to more of a reliance on the use of intermediate intervention options. The result is that during any arrest situations police officers bring weapons with them. Therefore during a ground fight, these weapons are difficult to access for the officer and could also be available for the subject to grab. Therefore, when you’re rolling around in the mud, the blood and the beer, the goal is not to submit but rather to control your suspect and get them handcuffed. Bad guys are learning to ground fight from watching television and would take extreme pleasure from making a cop “tap out.” Unfortunately, tapping out is not an option for a cop.
As a martial artist of 35 years and 20+ year veteran police officer, I have found myself in many arrest situations where a suspect has wanted to hurt me or take me to the ground. My ability to recognize pre-attack threat cues and take action immediately has kept me safe. As a police officer the last place I want to be is on the ground. I am also a national level Public and Police Safety Instructor with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (R.C.M.P). As such, I have had the opportunity to participate and evaluate several ground fighting programs advertised as being for law enforcement. Many of these programs have simply taken the sport application and attempted to apply it to law enforcement, which is not that easy.
I first met Lori O’Connell Sensei about 10 years ago when she moved to the Vancouver area of British Columbia, Canada. After meeting at several training seminars and camps that I had hosted, it was not difficult to recognize her enthusiasm and passion for jiu-jitsu and the martial arts. During these past 10 years she has become the highest ranking woman in Can-Ryu in all of Western Canada. To challenge herself and take her learning to the next level, she began to explore BJJ and MMA concepts related to ground fighting. Lori was also seeking how to incorporate this knowledge into the Can-Ryu system. Recognizing her talent and extreme energy for the topic, I personally asked her to review our curriculum’s existing ground defense techniques and see where improvements could be made. I did place one condition on her research; that the techniques had to be consistent with the existing principles of our style. Lori accepted the challenge and put her analytical to mind to work. Lori spent many hours trying out new techniques and counter tactics while taking her own physical attributes into consideration. You see, Lori is about 5’3” and weighs around 124 pounds, which means she cannot rely on her size to control someone, she has to rely on her technique.
Lori conducted a seminar to demonstrate the techniques to our black belt instructors, the techniques were so well received that I decided to include them in our main curriculum.
In my professional opinion, I believe the information you will find in this book to be extremely valuable to your safety and personal well-being. Any instructor who teaches self-defense should have this book in their resource library.
—Steven Hiscoe Shihan
8th Degree Black Belt Can-Ryu Jiu-Jitsu Owner/Chief Instructor Hiscoe Jiu-Jitsu Vice –President Canadian Jiu-Jitsu Union Chilliwack, British Columbia
Foreword by
Jennifer Weintz
Having trained in Brazilian Jiu-jitsu (BJJ) for over 10 years, I’ve developed a long-standing love affair with the cerebral nature of the art. I love the ebb and flow of two energies merging as the roles of attacker and defender shift back and forth in an extended physical chess match. The artistry of the style is something I’ve come to appreciate over the years the more I’ve tuned in to its subtleties through many countless hours of developing my craft.
The focus of my grappling training has been primarily competition oriented, but I am fully aware that these same ground fighting techniques are also useful in real-life self-defense scenarios. As a smaller woman, I’ve learned how to “take the path of least resistance” and use speed, agility and finesse to hold my own. That being said, there are important factors to defending one’s self on the street that aren’t present in the competitive arena. This naturally raises questions like: What if my attacker tried to kick me in head? What if my attacker pulled a knife? What if there was more than one attacker? What if my attacker is so much bigger and stronger than me that finesse isn’t enough?
Lori O’Connell answers these questions and many more in this book, addressing issues that are not always regularly discussed in submission grappling schools. It provides a complete look at all the major positions and defensive situations, with detailed, easy-to-follow instruction that walks you through every move step-by-step, making it an ideal choice for learning practical, effective techniques for real-life self-protection.
Over the course of my training, I’ve discovered the importance of keeping an open mind and learning from people of all walks of life to refine and add to my set of skills. Both men and women, beginners and experts, people with training in BJJ and even other martial art styles can have something to offer. An opportunity to learn can always be found. Being a smaller woman herself, Lori knows what it’s like to be at a physical disadvantage and understands what it takes to overcome it to escape dangerous situations, ones you may not necessarily be able to “tap” your way out of. So if you’re looking to learn to make the most of a bad situation, fighting from the ground without rules or refs to keep you safe, and the odds stacked against you, you’ve come to the right place.
—Jennifer Weintz
Brazilian Jiu-jitsu Brown Belt
