Boatman Knife Defense

[Disco]

Does anyone have any insight/experience with the Peter Boatman knife defense system? Story has it that the police/bobbies in England were having a difficult time with knife attacks and Boatman devised a system of physical defenses to deal with that. Rhetoric has it that there was over an 80% decrease in officers being injured, after learning this system. In my mind, if this is actually such a good system, why isn't it being offered over here or other places around the world. Maybe it was, but I haven't seen or heard of it except from a friend.

 

[billc]

I'm always interested in new knife fighting systems. I hope someone writes in.

 

[FieldDiscipline]

Maybe ask him? http://www.expertsearch.co.uk/cgi-bin/find_expert?4328

 

[FieldDiscipline]

This is interesting also.

 

[Disco]

This is interesting also.

The biggest thing I have against this sort of training is that it's really not realistic. Any time you wind up rolling around on the ground and the other guy has a knife, your gonna get sliced up. For one, from a pure self defense out look, they are letting the attacker get way to close and their not even offering a preemptive strike to any vital areas(s). If you can't stop/seriously hurt/incapasate the attacker, you will get hurt or worse. As far as the defensive aspect of Boatmans or the guy from Canada who claims to be the actual inventor of the system, I'm looking for anyone besides the inventor to offer a factual critique.

 

[Skpotamus]

Boatmans defense program worked well enough to get him knighted. It's the only knife defense system I know of that has been put into such widespread use and gave the results it's given. Saying it won't work when it HAS WORKED for a large number of people (police officers who actually used it against real bad guys) is a bit..... silly.

 

[xfighter88]

Anyone got a website out there for "his" method. I am interested in researching it a bit more but could only find forums with people discussing it.

 

[frank raud]

Boatmans defense program worked well enough to get him knighted. It's the only knife defense system I know of that has been put into such widespread use and gave the results it's given. Saying it won't work when it HAS WORKED for a large number of people (police officers who actually used it against real bad guys) is a bit..... silly.

Boatman was knighted for his defense system? Seriously, can you provide a link to back that up?

 

[Skpotamus]

Boatman was knighted for his defense system? Seriously, can you provide a link to back that up?

Actually, no I can't, I was told this by one of his instructors that was teaching the program. Since he himself was a police officer and LEO trainer, I took him at his word.

The system he teaches works under pressure and was pretty quick to teach. We took Sharkee marking knives and wore white shirts, and padded up, and went at it as close to all out as you can in training (including with airsoft guns for firearm access). The material works, even when the assailant is kicking, punching with the free hand and headbutting. The only hard part is working through some scenarios with a mouthpiece in, makes it hard to talk (scenarios included subject attacking, not attacking etc, so as close to a street stop as you could make it for the trainees).

Now, does it fail? Sometimes it does. No weapon defense program is perfect, but this is one of the best ones out there I've seen. It works especially well for police officers with a vest as the wrapping portion of the system often puts the blade close to your body while you tie up the arm. If you've done a good pat and wrap, they can't get you good, but we were able to touch the blade to the torso sometimes by wrist articulation after the wrap, I doubt it would've been with enough force to penetrate skin, but it is possible.

 

[Carol]

This article on e-budo mentions that Peter Boatman was with the Northamptonshire Police.

http://www.e-budo.com/forum/showthread.php?t=5872&page=2


This article on a LE blog says one Peter Boatman who runs the company that supplies the Northamptonshire Police with tasers appears to have taken his life in October of 2010 under some rather uncomfortable circumstances

http://81.187.243.53/blog/?m=20101002

Don't know if they are the same person

 

[frank raud]

Actually, no I can't, I was told this by one of his instructors that was teaching the program. Since he himself was a police officer and LEO trainer, I took him at his word.

I can see where Peter Boatman was awarded the Queens Police medal for distinguished service, but nothing that specifies it was specifically for his putative knife system. Had he been knighted, it would have been mentioned in his obituary.