Edged weapons have been used by people for thousands of years to increase their survival chances. These days it is no different. Whether you were attacked by a caveman with a crude knife back in those days or a crack head with a screwdriver today, the angles of attack and the mechanisms would be the same.

As a student of blade work and a full time police officer the biggest mistake in defending against a blade that I see is retreating straight backwards as soon as a weapon is pulled. For most what this leads to is falling backwards and still getting cut or killed.

Some will tell you to be an arms distance plus six inches from those you encounter. This in my opinion is the very worst place you can be. The only two places you want to be if someone spontaneously pulls a blade is 100 yards away or right on top of them.

The majority of people are right handed. To access a concealed weapon they will have to move their hands fervently in the area of the weapon band. I refer to the weapon band as the six-inch imaginary band that goes around the waist.

This is where most weapons are carried. If movement is made towards that location during an altercation you are in a good position to trap it against the body before it deploys as long as you are within conversational distance.

If you are outside of conversational distance your response is more prone towards trying to get to that 100 yards away we talked about when you are only a foot away from the second best place to be.

The blade is a dynamic multidirectional weapon. Once launched even if blocked initially it will move like an angry yellow jacket and will not run out of ammunition. The only chance you have is to trap it against the body and explode with overwhelming violence.