Avoidance question

[psi_radar]

A sprawl looks a lot like the posture you'd take if you were trying to unstick a car from sand or snow, with your arms under the bumper and your feet pretty far out behind you, legs spread for stability and strength, leaning at about a 60 degree angle (if standing is 90). Now picture the car as a person instead, your arms under theirs, head under your chest. A sprawl is executed to foil the takedown, happening simultaneously, so it's very much a timing move that requires practice. Ask any wrestler to show you, it's one of the first moves they learn.

Another simple maneuver you may want to try is shoving their head downward to the ground while they're shooting in. You'll probably have to be moving backward yourself while doing this so you don't get overwhelmed by the speed of their attack. This probably won't hurt him, but it might get him to change his tactics--people's natural reaction to this is to right themselves, stand up straight. They might get discouraged or turn to striking, which is more your forte.

If you know any Silat people, ask them to show you a Patu Coppala. This is another simple and very effective move that's useful in this situation and countless others. An elbow to the jaw, nose or temple can take away a shooter's enthusiasm too.

 

[Lisa]

I have a heck of a time sprawling too. For me it is a mental thing, I think. Anyways, I really like Psi radar's rendition of what a sprawl looks like. I received a really good answer to sprawling from one of the other students in my school.

Remember to fall just infront of your opponent, with your hips landing first. Your arms will be either catching your oponent or around their back, or whatever, but you aren't stopping your opponent by pushing down at your arms; you're pulling them down with your center of mass.
If you take a piece of paper and drop it, it floats to the ground in a very unsteady manner. However, if you fold the paper diagonally from corner to corner, both ways, your paper is slightly cone shaped. If you drop it now, it floats straight to the ground without all the unbalance a flat paper has. Try it!
This is how a sprawl works, with your hips being the center of mass.
Falling infront means your hips should be landing first, and just infront of your opponent's head or a little to the side, giving him little room, but probably not hurting him since your hips are carrying the most weight force. Since you're also moving horizontally as well as down, more than just your hips will absorb the impact when you land, lessening the point force on contact. I also find that wherever my arms are, they take up the rest of the landing force so I don't get hurt. When your partner shoots, you should have already changed levels, but you'll likely only want to sprawl once they are actually shooting. Then, your arms or possibly your chest will come in contact with your opponent first, giving you control as you fall. So, your hips hit the ground first yet don't crush your opponent's head, but your arms give you control before then, and take up the rest of the shock.

This made lots of sense to me. Hope it helps.

p.s. Thanks Kyle!

 

[psi_radar]

I'd like to add that a sprawl isn't an end in itself; a quick follow-up move (such as a shuck or a guillotine) is required since a skilled shooter can easily escape a sprawl after he gets his legs back under him. That, and all your weapons are occupied (except maybe your teeth) during the sprawl.