Wheelchair Self Defence Manual and Training Package

Forward by the course developer

Wheelchair Self Defence Manual author Geoff “Tank” Todd

As a military armed and unarmed combat as well as military self defence master chief instructor, I thrive on the challenge of skills and tactics development to ensure the military combative doctrine and training packages are the best and safest means of objective achievement and as such threat neutralization.

The more difficult the problem solving truly brings out the best in me, utilizing my decades of experience in training, testing and qualifying in my chosen trade of military close combat.

Military close quarters combat and close quarters battle provides skills to combat and counter the extremes of adversity. Primary, secondary and emergency skills make up the Todd Systems European military combative packages. The tactics, principles and skills provide not only primary skills applications for specialist operators, but also skills to be employed when wounded, injured, suffering from starvation and dehydration, as well as when a prisoner of war, both to defend oneself or take out the enemy.

The Todd Group is the oldest of European military close combat training providers of its kind having been established in 1927.

Outside training military, police and close protection specialists, the Todd Group has a long history in developing skills for the disadvantaged, disabled and the downright underdog. I have personally developed courses for wide ranging disabilities, both for official organisations for the disabled, as well as individual tuition training.

Military close quarter combat must include the best, most proven and safest options in relation to self-protection and neutralising threats.

Developing the wheelchair self defence manual and the D-WAR (declare war against rape) anti-and counter predatory sexual violence manuals and packages, identified some skills that provided definite advantages for able-bodied as well as wounded combatants.

In military close quarters combat, always presuming your enemy is bigger, fitter, faster, stronger, highly skilled, goal driven and bent on doing you serious harm or killing you, as well as being armed, requires the best, safest, simplest skills to neutralise such threats.

Some of the counter abduction methods developed for the D-WAR package provided enhanced methods for preventing being moved, lifted, or decentralised that have definitely enhanced our battlefield close quarters combat packages.

The wheelchair package identified a mobility skill that with minor modification can be employed as an evasive footwork manoeuvre in close quarters combat that provides definite advantages in specific threat evasion situations.

Military close quarters combat, being a living package never stops striving for the best methods to neutralise current enemy threats including countering the most current of armed and unarmed close quarter combat techniques of the enemy.

Writing the wheelchair self defence manual and developing the wheelchair self defence package was something I was committed to and found considerable satisfaction in undertaking.

John Marrable has been a friend of mine for decades and when I approached him about borrowing a wheelchair to develop the package, he graciously agreed. I asked if he would be prepared to feature in the manual, demonstrating the skills I had developed and he enthusiastically agreed.

Returning the wheelchair a bit worse for wear and tear about a year later, I was able to develop the skills utilising the wheelchair over that year, which was very important to ensure time in the attention to detail of developing and testing skills.

Realising there are wide and varying levels of disability and diverse wheelchair types made the development of a package where all the skills would work for all potential users impossible. The reality was that I needed to provide the best and safest means to neutralize wide ranging threats and let the user choose from the package which skills they could utilize in relation to their capabilities and wheelchair type.

I asked John as I progressed with the manual and package what he would like to see additionally included in the manual and set about developing the skills to provide the means to counter the threats he had outlined.

I admire how committed John is to his many physical pursuits including his long history of training in karate. He has more motivation, commitment and physical capabilities than many able-bodied people. John is definitely a good man to provide instruction in the Todd Systems wheelchair self defence package and has my full endorsement and support.

My training team and I soon learned the superior mobility capabilities, John has in his wheelchair compared to us. What he makes look easy, we found difficult and demanding.

The Todd Group has an 86 year history of providing self defence and unarmed combat training and thrives on the challenge of developing programs and skills to counter or combat wide ranging violent threats that responsible citizens face in modern day life.

My greatest satisfaction is providing our armed forces and police, as well as responsible citizens with the best combative chance possible when there is no other option available to them.

Those in a wheelchair when the target of predatory sexual offenders, can by maintaining the element of surprise, utilising deception and masked employments of the best of military combative based dirty tricks, increase their likelihood of neutralising the threat and increase their personal safety as such. Nothing is guaranteed, however tactically correct, best of dirty tricks brigade practices can provide the best combative chance of threat neutralisation over defeat and injury, as a result of having no means or less than the best methods of personal self-protection.

Knowledge is power and enabling decent people to neutralise threats of violence made against them to me is something I am committed to. Everyone has the right to defend themselves and the disabled should not have to be victims of violent threats in a perfect world, however we all know we do not live in a perfect world and as such I consider with my background and expertise, a duty to provide the best possible means of self-protection to those that need it most.

I would like to express my appreciation and thanks to John and my assistants on my instructing team for their support of my development of this wheelchair self defence project. The manual is available from the Todd Group. [email protected]

I could not recommend more highly that organisations representing those in wheelchairs contact John to request his services to conduct training for their people. [email protected]

Wheelchair Self Defence Course Perth 1st and 2nd June 2013

John Marrable from Dunedin, New Zealand has just returned from Perth Western Australia where he facilitated a wheelchair self defence course.

Karen Harvey from Spinal Injuries Chatter in Perth was looking at arranging a self defence course but could not find anyone in Perth qualified to teach it. Enquiries led Karen to Deb Mitchell from Connecting People Coordinator at the NZ Spinal Trust who had organised a similar course in 2012.

That course was taken by Eddie Yee an instructor with the Todd Group and John Marrable a paraplegic since an accident in 1967 and a 5th Degree black belt in Okinawan Goju Ryu karate.

Debz put Karen on to John and subsequently two courses took place, the first on Saturday 1st June and the second on Sunday 2nd June.

The courses were just for persons in wheelchairs and saw 6 people attend the Saturday course and 8 on the Sunday. Some in power wheelchairs.

On the Friday before the course John got together with Karen, her son Corey (who has trained in ju-jitsu and Brett Ukich, a local first degree black belt and personal trainer. Corey and Brett were going to assist John in taking the course.

The course followed the Wheelchair Self Defence manual written by Geoff ‘Tank’ Todd, (which John was involved with) with John adding in karate kata applications that he has modified to work from a wheelchair. Each participant received a copy of the manual.

The course covered :

• Wheelchair mobility and evasion techniques
• Ramming
• Cover guard
• Striking
• Improvised weapons
• Escapes from various grabs
• Weapon threats
• Home and car security

Corey, Brett and Terry (Karen’s brother) assisted at the course by being attackers.

Terry was really good getting into the participants faces with life like aggression.

Comments received via Facebook were:

Symon Still “A great day thanks Karen, Corey, Terry (academy awards for you), Michael and John. Really useful stuff I’ll rehearse and practice for if the time ever comes to use it. Really relevant thanks for your organisation Karen”.

Douglas Milne “Yes it was a very relaxed training environment with lots of encouragement from our attackers…..thanks Corey and Terrence awesome work. and of course Karen”

Molly MacBlackas “Great! I hope you have a successful second day!”

Chelsey Phillips: “The wheelchair Self Defence Course today has been fantastic! Thanks to Karen Harvey, Brett, Terry and Cody for holding a fantasic & very important day. And especially thank you Karen for bringing the amazing Mr John Marrable 5th degree black belt (from NZ), to show us some empowering techniques to use in our own defence”.

For further information on wheelchair self defence or to arrange a course contact

John Marrable phone +6434561021 (home) +64212313887 (mobile) or email [email protected] or the Todd Group on +6434778902 or email: [email protected]

Photos from Day Two