Michael Strauch was born in Coburg, Germany. His father is a computer engineer and his mother is a nurse. Mike’s father served in the air force protection squad and his grandfather was a professional career soldier. He was one of the last group of soldiers to get out of Stalingrad on the last plane. Mike played American football for ten years and has been practising martial arts for 20 years. His major style is Bujinkan ninjitsu. He describes ninjitsu as a pretty good and complete traditional battle field art. The only problem with the art is that it takes way too long to learn and to be mastered to a point where it can be used for any practical purposes and it focuses mainly on traditional weapons.
Mike describes his fifth dan grading as nothing strenuous and just a matter of dodging a downward stoke of the training sword from behind.
Mike spent a year in the military serving in the Parachute regiment which he enjoyed very much. He left the Parachute regiment to attend university where he achieved a Masters degree in psychology. He then spent two years at medical School to qualify as a naturopath medical practitioner.
Mike speaks fluent German and English as well as intermediate level French and basic Spanish and Arabic.
About three years ago when Mike was working as a contractor in Iraq he was introduced to CrossFit by a friend and fellow operator who had formerly served in the Rhodesian SAS.
Mike researched CrossFit and initially thought it looked a little stupid but then on reading the CrossFit definition of fitness,he became interested.
Mike started his CrossFit training completing one years training at Crossfit Zurich followed by completing his trainer’s certification in England. He then opened his CrossFit Assault facility in Germany which is located close to US military bases.
He has trained special forces groups including amphibious assault groups and high intensity physical fitness relating to battle fitness.
Many of his clients and some of his assistant instructors are US serving members and their dependents. Mike’s goals with this CrossFit training at his age is to stay fit and healthy and achieving his limits strength wise.
Mike has also done a weekend training seminar with Tony Blauer in his SPEAR system which he describes as being based on utilising the flinch response to prevent freezing when confronted. You can then progress into your own style or system from there. Mike then read on-line about the Todd system and became interested as it was a more offensive system. He signed up for the 2012 Todd Group HQ course in New Zealand and the following is his post course opinion.
“The system is very good and after the one week course you get the proficiency and confidence to know you can use the skills in real situations.”
Mike also was a successful phase 1 test candidate on the course accepting the challenge to test his skills against other phase one candidates that made the trip down under.
He is now authorised to instruct phase 1 CQC and phase 1 military self defence.
Mike describes his phase 1 test as very hard challenge especially having to maintain a cool head and control your aggression and breathing at all times.
Being able to overcome adversity especially when you make mistakes and being able to carry on and achieve the objective was most important.
The Todd systems prepare you for all the contingencies and you are capable of overcoming your own mistakes and doing what you have to do as a result of the skills and methods of training provided. Mike really enjoyed the phase 1 test being undertaken without protective suits and the like as this proved to yourself you could face a real situation endure and fight through the barrage of attack being thrown at you.
For the realist the Todd systems being of such a long history and being currently taught to the military elite are made up of only the most practical and effective of options including the methods of training and testing.
The testing methods have been carefully developed and although there are only minimal essential protectors the safety considerations have been well thought out and provide the exponent with the exposure to live contact including disarming live blades as required to develop confidence.
Mike describes this second phase training as a means to deal with situations by other means than threat neutralisation by means of unarmed attack and counter attack. Phase 1 and 2 fit together perfectly and there is no loss of momentum combining them which allows for more ways to get an outcome.
Mike’s PSD was mainly in Iraq where he worked CPP as a medical specialist on both low and high profile jobs in Bagdad and all over Iraq. It was while working in Iraq that Mike got into a hostage situation and started to realise that all the traditional martial arts he had learnt would not provide the means to aggressively fight his way out of the situation. That’s when he started looking for training that led him to the Todd Group. Mike has also worked PSD in Afghanistan and Chad.
He completed a close protection course under John Graham in the United Kingdom formerly of the British SAS. He then had to undertake a two week pass or fail course with the company he worked for in Iraq.
Mike’s has worked with operators of many nationalities as part of his PSD work.
He is pleased to report that he has not had to use his medical training in the field yet in the face of any dire emergencies.
He has through his training in the United States undergone and achieved proficiency in emergency medical procedures in realistic training environments.
Much of this training in practice has been on pigs under anaesthetic including procedures such as inserting chest tubes, performing emergency tracheotomies
and stitching wounds.
Mike’s future plans include expanding his training to the provision for operators to include the Todd systems of CQC as well as battle fitness, emergency medical procedures and shooting.
Mike and I agree that operating a Todd Group individual tuition and small group training depot out of his CrossFit Assault facility along with the inclusion of Mike’s specialist physical fitness and emergency medical training will be appealing to operators and serious realists wanting to get into specific high risk employment.
Mike has had a definite plan in achieving levels of expertise in subjects that would enable him to work in various fields of interest to him.
Some of Mike’s achievements and experience include being responsible for instructing military and police units in tactical shooting skills as well as being a security consultant for German police at their HQ in Kabul. He has completed US National Registry Emergency Medical Technicians Basic course of instruction and an advanced Operational and Emergency Skills course of instruction conducted by Deployment Medicine International. Other courses Mike has completed include combat marksmanship with the pistol and a tactical rifle instructor course along with the sniper training basic advance and instructor level courses of instruction.
Combine this with his personal security and emergencies training operational emergency skills training and close protection training and you will see Mike has forged a definite path of learning to enable him to work in a wide range of tactical environments as well as providing medical and physical fitness training.
He has obviously branched out into areas and methods of training that he has heard about during his career journey.
Striving for self improvement and the type of training that will provide him with the most current and proven methods as an operator and as an instructor enabling him to hand on what he has been taught by his superiors has ensured Mike has progressed in a positive professional progressive direction in his career.
