# I took this as a compliment



## Hayabusarider (Apr 5, 2005)

The first week that I joined Muay Thai class ( about 6 months ago ) I signed up on the same night a local county sheriff did.
We were in the warm up area discussing the class, and our experience. I explained to him that I had no previous training. He explained to me that he had previously had some experience with Muay Thai, grappling, boxing, and other law enforcement training. About 15 years total.
Well in the first week of our training together ( I noticed that he always hit me harder than any other student would ), we were in a sparring match that we call " tag team " It's when you split the gym in half, and you have teams, and tag in a new partner every so often.The sheriff and I were on the mat, when he grabbed me by the head, threw a knee at my belly. At that point our instructor yelled " Whoa no knees ! " The sheriff then proceeded to knee me in the groin, and rip my head gear off. 
I was pissed off and frustrated with this. I asked people that I knew with M.A. experience what they would do in this situation. They all mutually said that what I needed to do was " Check " the sheriff, without making it to obvious.
I did not want to start a confrontation in my new home or with my new training partner, but I knew that something had to be done other that talking to him or my instructor.
A while later ( with some additional sparring under my belt ) . The sheriff and I were sparring together. I hit him with an upper cut, left hook, then right cross. All at about 85% power. He than said something to the extent of " Easy, you keep hitting me in the face, and I'm walking right into those "
That was the last of our confrontations with the hard hitting of each other. He is now one of my favorite training partners.
The other night, my wife was in there, and the sheriff told her something to the extent of " Your husband can take this stuff seriously. He might need to learn to relax ". 
She knows why I checked him, so does my instructor, and the students in my class. I have never hit anyone else in class that hard, nor have I ever been hit that hard by another student ( includeing the sheriff ). 
Was that the right thing to do after being the least experienced student in class, being somewhat abused by a more experienced student ? It has not happened since, and I hope that we are done with it now.
Either way, I took his comments, and his lack of hard hitting as a compliment


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## Silat Student (Apr 6, 2005)

You had a problem and it looks like you found a solution that worked...sounds about right to me.


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## SilatFan (Apr 9, 2005)

What does his job really have to do with the encounter?

Sorry, but im a bit touchy about this issue.  I understand that from your point of view you were "right."  But did you have any issue with him because of his job?   Or could you have been two "hard heads" (for lack of a better term) going at it?

You just kept reffering to him by vocation and not as a training partner, guy in class, senior student, etc, etc...  I wonder if maybe you both didnt add to the poor attitude.

Two cents from a guy that wasnt there.


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## Hayabusarider (Apr 10, 2005)

Well, I certainly would not have figured that anyone on Martial Talk would resort to name calling to get their point across.
I refer to him as " the sheriff " because he drives his work truck to every class. There is another student that drives his plumbing truck to class. If this story were about him, he would be referred to as " the plumber ".
He was also referred to as " the sheriff " because he was not my senior student ( we signed up on the same night ), there are plenty of other " guy's in class ", and I also did refer to him as my favorite new " training partner " etc, etc...
Also, why are you so touchy about this issue ? Are you law enforcement ? Or an overzealous training partner with the new guy's that doesn't know how to control themselves with less experienced people ?
Either way occupation has nothing to do with this story, and maybe you are a bit touchy on this issue


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## tshadowchaser (Apr 10, 2005)

> Was that the right thing to do after being the least experienced student in class, being somewhat abused by a more experienced student ? It


 


Sometimes people just have to try out the new guy, to see what he is made of.  Sometimes the new guy lets them know he is there for the long run and is willing to give as much as receive
People act differently is these situations but it sounds like you won his respect


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## SilatFan (Apr 11, 2005)

I tried to post earlier but had some trouble with it.  Sorry about the delay.

"Well, I certainly would not have figured that anyone on Martial Talk would resort to name calling to get their point across."
-Sorry.



"Also, why are you so touchy about this issue ? Are you law enforcement ? Or an overzealous training partner with the new guy's that doesn't know how to control themselves with less experienced people ?"

-Nope I'm not a LEO but I do have several police officers in my immediate family. I also have been in enough gyms to see people go "all out" when they learn that they have a cop with them and then complain when they get hit/choked back harder. Im touchy about it because as I see it MOST police officers are people who risk life and limb everyday for society and then have to deal with a lot of garbage on AND off duty. It makes me sad when my brothers feel like they have to lie about being police officers because of the garbage that they know they will recieve in simple social settings like bars and parties. Garbage that ive seen happen because of people with a chip on their shoulder because they got (or should I say earned) a speeding ticket/DUI or were arrested for something that they did. It is really sad and annoying to see people of a noble profession get crap from the very people that they just might give their life to protect and the effects that that has on them. 

-Look, I dont know you and I dont know this guy. He could be a total prick. We all see ourselves in the right most times and others who are wrong or who dont understand. And im not saying that you necessarily did that But my original point is that, from what ive seen, people act different when thay hear someone is a cop. From your emphasis of his job I read that as an issue, atleast to some degree, for you. Maybe Im wrong. 


"Either way occupation has nothing to do with this story....."

-I couldnt agree more. The fact that it was pepered throughout the post made it standout to me.

 
PS
The guy probably drives the car there because most sheriffs are assigned a vehicle to take home.


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## Hayabusarider (Apr 11, 2005)

Well Silat, hats off to your nobel reply. I have plenty of friends that are LEO's, and your right, they take plenty of crap for their job situation. I'm sure that he drives his truck to class because it is assigned to him.  I kind of like a marked vehicle out front of our gym because we train in a bad section of town, and late at night.

My main point to the story was what I did acceptable behavior in training ? Most people that I have spoken with say that it was, and is also the unwritten rule of training in full contact sports.
I'm just glad that it worked, and did not provoke a war with the two of us. Or cause any ill feelings with us both


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## Simon Curran (Apr 11, 2005)

Just my opinion, but I think you did the right thing, give as good as you get and earn respect where it isn't freely given.


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## Kenpo_man (Aug 11, 2005)

Simon Curran said:
			
		

> Just my opinion, but I think you did the right thing, give as good as you get and earn respect where it isn't freely given.


It's the instructors job to make sure people are sparring and not fighting. If they fail to notice, it falls on you to either quit the dojo or set a precedent. Don't let deflating some guy's ego worry you. I'd say you did him a favor!


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## Hayabusarider (Aug 13, 2005)

My instructor did notice. One night we were doing something called tag team. That is when you tag a partner to spar with, and you keep tagging in and out with different partners. 
He must have noticed the sheriff and I going at it hard, because when my instructor and I were sparring each other, he got me in a clinch and whispered " I know what your doing " and threw a hard left hook to my belly. It almost made me throw up. I guess that was to let me know that I could be easily " checked " back.
That story was from a long time ago though. The sheriff is gone now, and I am no longer the new guy


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## lonekimono10 (Aug 13, 2005)

Hayabusarider said:
			
		

> My instructor did notice. One night we were doing something called tag team. That is when you tag a partner to spar with, and you keep tagging in and out with different partners.
> He must have noticed the sheriff and I going at it hard, because when my instructor and I were sparring each other, he got me in a clinch and whispered " I know what your doing " and threw a hard left hook to my belly. It almost made me throw up. I guess that was to let me know that I could be easily " checked " back.
> That story was from a long time ago though. The sheriff is gone now, and I am no longer the new guy


 you know when he hit you in the belly i *would have thew up on him*
  sounds like this could be something we could see on PPV:idunno:


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## AdrenalineJunky (Oct 27, 2005)

Muay Thai isn't exactly a "soft" system. 

New students should not be free-sparring; there are sparring drills which I will endorse, but free sparring is for intermediate practitioners, IMHO.

If one cannot spar according to the rules, ones does not get to spar.

In all my years practicing Muay Thai, I've never "checked" anyone. That suggests to me that one or both of you have the wrong attitude.



> Two cents from a guy that wasnt there.


I concur.


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## mantis (Oct 27, 2005)

Hayabusarider said:
			
		

> The first week that I joined Muay Thai class ( about 6 months ago ) I signed up on the same night a local county sheriff did.
> We were in the warm up area discussing the class, and our experience. I explained to him that I had no previous training. He explained to me that he had previously had some experience with Muay Thai, grappling, boxing, and other law enforcement training. About 15 years total.
> Well in the first week of our training together ( I noticed that he always hit me harder than any other student would ), we were in a sparring match that we call " tag team " It's when you split the gym in half, and you have teams, and tag in a new partner every so often.The sheriff and I were on the mat, when he grabbed me by the head, threw a knee at my belly. At that point our instructor yelled " Whoa no knees ! " The sheriff then proceeded to knee me in the groin, and rip my head gear off.
> I was pissed off and frustrated with this. I asked people that I knew with M.A. experience what they would do in this situation. They all mutually said that what I needed to do was " Check " the sheriff, without making it to obvious.
> ...


looking at it
i think the sherrif taught you your first martial arts lesson.
your oponents can be tough, and in general people would love to take advantage of your being nice and the only way to stop them is this!
i think you did the right thing. you had to do it at least once to stop this mess.
good story... better than my grandma's stories man!


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## Hayabusarider (Oct 30, 2005)

I hated to " Check " this guy, and as Adrenaline Junkie suggested maybe we didn't have the right attitudes. But it worked.
It's funny that this subject came back up because yesterday I was in a grappling class with a former student from Muay Thai, and when I invited him to come back to class, the first thing he said was " Is that a--hole sherrif still there, he used to beat the crap out of me every chance he could. "
So I'm guessing that I'm not the only new guy that he was overzelious with.
Most likley it's because his skills make the difference between life and death in his job.
I'm glad that he's gone now, or I'd like to have him come back if he could behave with the new guy's


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