The Fence is the most innovative technique to enter the field of protection for many years. Learn it in this book from the inventor himself, Geoff Thompson.
Clear and easy-to-follow steps to enable a reader to master The Fence protection principle.
Fully illustrated with photographic examples.
Geoff Thompson made violence his profession working as a doorman at some of Britain’s roughest clubs. As the holder of the rank of 6th Dan black belt in Japanese karate, 1st Dan in Judo and equally well qualified in other martial arts he is a TOUGH man.
I worked the doors in Coventry for over nine years, and in that time encountered just about every malevolent, un-sentient being you can imagine. Their one goal in life – at least it appeared – was to make a hole in the ground with my head. This wouldn’t be so bad if the very same people didn’t want to hug and kiss me to oblivion every Christmas and New Year. I’m labouring the point, what I’m trying to say is that, after nine years of dealing with shit, I learned the best way to shovel. Without doubt my greatest physical development in all those years of neutralising violence was ‘the fence’. I can’t really say that I invented the fence because many people were, and are, already inadvertently using it successfully. What I can say is that I brought it to the forefront and categorised it.
Recognising the potency of this devastating, yet simple, technique, I developed it into an art form, so that many others who perhaps have less experience in the world of brutality might adopt it as a life-saving technique for the contemporary world of ‘in your face’ violence. I have to say that, conceptually, the fence is simple and anyone, irrespective of their skill level, can adopt it.
In most aspects of our life where a problem might present itself, simplicity is usually the answer, but often it is grossly overlooked because of its modest demeanour. The fence is no different; it is so real and so obvious that only the enlightened few seem to be able to see it. Many, it would appear, are looking up their own backsides for some mystical, complex, aesthetic dance routine that might devastate several opponents with a flick or a trip, and – at the same time – endear them to their peers. To the latter I would say ‘stick to the kung fu movies because that’s the only place it’ll work.’
Sir Winston Churchill once said that many people stumble upon the truth and then get back up and wander off as though nothing had happened. And that’s generally because the truth is often too simple – or it hurts – or it might mean too many changes. In short the truth is not palatable, it strikes at the heart of lost souls and forces them, momentarily, to see just how far astray they are. At face value the fence looks so simple that many people fail to see it’s potency. It’s not pretty enough to go into the curriculum of the majority who collect techniques like football cards. I don’t collect ornaments to be displayed, I collect rocks that can be thrown at malevolents who wish to enter my world...
The Premise...
In this book we are working on the premise that, if a street confrontation occurs, you have already exhausted all other options, i.e. avoidance, escape, verbal dissuasion, loopholing and posturing. Most self-defence situations and attack scenarios issue rays of prior warning, if you are perceptive enough to spot the attackers ritual. If you are foolhardy enough to heighten your vulnerability by placing yourself in a dangerous situation (walking down a dark alley at night etc) you cannot expect any prior warning and will have to make the best of a bad situation. You then fall into the ‘ambush attack’ scenario. Most people in society are so switched off, both mentally and environmentally, that many attack scenarios fall into this category. If this is the case – and it so often is – then you will be fighting tooth and nail for your very existence. The majority will not survive the ambush attack purely because they have never trained for it.
Previously I talked about the verbal communication that often precedes an attack upon the person and the victim who is quite often disarmed or shocked rigid by it, The time lapse between the disarming, or scarifying verbal (which can be very short) and the attack itself is ‘your time’. During these seconds you may ‘seize the moment’, as it were, and be pre-emptive, effecting attack or/and escape. Alternatively you can elongate the verbal by replying to the aforementioned dialogue with submissive or aggressive counter-verbal. These seconds before battle are absolutely pivotal. They must be managed quickly and without demur; remember, hesitancy begets defeat. This arena is that of the 3 second fighter.
When the police talk about self-protection the key word is ‘target hardening’ that is, making yourself a hard target by means of placement and awareness of environment and the enemy. When I talk about the physical aspect of self-protection I am always working on the premise that, for whatever reason, a situation has gone beyond this and reached dire straits and the possibility of escape is no longer an option...
Table of Contents
Introduction 8
Chapter One The Premise 20
Chapter Two The Fence 28
Chapter Three Action Trigger/Brain Engagement 42
Chapter Four The Knock Out 45
Chapter Five Attacking off the Fence 52
Chapter Six The Mr R Method 69
Chapter Seven The Mr H Method 71
Chapter Eight The Mr G Method 74
Chapter Nine The Thompson Method 76
Chapter Ten The Mr Briggs Method 82
Chapter Eleven The Mr T Method 84
Chapter Twelve The Mr Anderson Method 87
Chapter Thirteen Kicking Off The Fence 90
Chapter FourteenChoking Off The Fence 92
Conclusion 95
Reviews
A reader...
Direct and to the point. I have rated this book 5 stars on the material that it covers, ie The Fence. The material which is direct and to the point could be a life saver some day. Don't expect a full self defense guide however. You will have to get some of Geoff's other books to get the full picture.
About the Author
Geoff Thompson made violence his profession working as a doorman at some of Britain’s roughest clubs. As the holder of the rank of 6th Dan black belt in Japanese karate, 1st Dan in Judo and equally well qualified in other martial arts he is a TOUGH man.
As well as many books he has written a film script, Watch My back, based on his life and a stage play, One Sock, that inspired The Royal Court Theatre in London’s West End to invite him into their exclusive writers’ group.
In 1997 Geoff was flown out to the United States by Chuck Norris to teach at his international seminar. As an ambassador for the martial arts, Geoff has appeared on national and international TV and Radio - for a couple of years as the BBC Good Morning self defence expert - talking about and, giving advice on self protection and related subjects.
His work is both innovative and thought provoking. He is currently Sub Editor of Martial Arts Illustrated and contributory editor of Men’s Fitness magazine.He has published several articles for mainstream glossy magazines such as Loaded, Maxim, FHM, Arena, Esquire and has published several articles with GQ Magazine (Britain-Paris).
He has also appeared many times on mainstream TV including ITV’s Martial Arts: The Real Story televised in two - one hour programmes. As well as his books and videos He was Martial Arts choreographer for the production 'Hard Fruit' at the Royal Court, London and winner of the EMDA Award for the screenplay of the film 'Watch My Back'.
In 2004 Geoff's short film Brown Paper Bag won a BAFTA.
