• How long has Dark Alley Defence been training students?
• We have been operating under the banner of Dark Alley Defence since 2008, but our head instructor has been teaching martial arts and self defence for almost 6 years, though he has been a practitioner and student of the martial arts and self defence for the last 22+ years.
• What style of martial art is the one taught at Dark Alley Defence?
• Dubhdorn, (pronounced Dove-door-n), a deeper description of the style can be found on the Courses page. It is one of survival, and primarily defence and escape.
• Dubhdorn? I don’t think I’ve ever heard of it before or seen it performed?
• The style is the invention of our head instructor. You probably haven’t seen it used as it is not only new, but it is not a performance art. The moves are not flashy, nor are they extremely technical. It is based on efficiency, directness, and simplicity.
• What kinds of techniques do you teach, strikes, grappling or what?
• We teach strikes, grappling, trapping, weapons techniques, improvised weapons techniques, and evasion. We also teach awareness and adrenal response. When protecting yourself you have to be able to not only be aware of every situation you encounter, but you have to be able to meet the threat and eliminate it as quickly as possible. We teach you how to use every tool you already have within yourself and any others you might find laying around. We are about self protection and the protection of your loved ones.
• I’m in the military, and am going overseas soon; can you show me techniques that will be effective in that type of environment?
• We actually have a program specifically designed for that type of situation. You can find it in our Course description called the Critical Force Program. This program was specifically designed for those who work in situations where their life is constantly in danger and you need to neutralize the threat as fast and as forceful as needed. The methods and techniques are as ruthless, brutal, and lethal as you need them to be in that situation.
• What are your rates?
• The rates for our courses are presented on the Rates page.
• What kind of gear do you use and how rough are you guys?
• We train in comfortable uniforms and in street clothes. As well as have situations where you will be asked to be in restrictive clothing. We try to cover all bases when dealing with self defence. From the clothing you wear to the ground you are standing on.
As far as other equipment, we use pads to simulate striking flesh at full force and will also use partnered training methods where you will be performing the techniques on a living person in order to know when it will be best to use these techniques in a type of live fire situation. As to how rough we are, you only receive what you put forth. When training we will push your limits but we are not here to hurt each other or humiliate each other. This is to be a learning environment not punishment. That being said though, we are tough teachers here at Dark Alley Defence. The subject of personal protection is one of a very serious tone and we take it very seriously. We are honest with you above all else. You are here to learn and grow and evolve as an individual. We will not just push you through the motions and ranks, just to get you through the entire program as fast as possible. If you are not ready, we will tell you and work with you until you are ready.
• How realistic/lethal is Dubhdorn?
• We pride ourselves in teaching very realistic maneuvers and techniques. We are specifically focusing on street survival. If the moves don’t work, it is the same as arming a police officer with a plastic gun in a shootout. We do not want people to have a false sense of security and put themselves into even more danger.
The question of lethality is commonly addressed by martial arts and self defence schools. Some instructors equip their students with a plethora of maneuvers that will kill without the forethought of the repercussion of doing so. A lot of instructors say that if you are defending yourself and you kill someone because of it, it was the attacker’s fault. Our legal system has a very definitive way of looking at what is necessary force and what is excessive force. If you are being attacked by someone and you don’t have a mark on you and your attacker is left on the ground maimed, and dead, chances are you are going to jail for manslaughter. We take this very seriously at Dark Alley Defence, and we do so by teaching techniques on how to neutralize the situation and escape. We also teach that you give more than what your attacker gives to overcome and dominate your chances of survival but never by any means do we use more than what is needed and never will we arm someone with a tool they are not ready to handle. Human life is one of the most precious and most valuable things in this world. We focus on that above all else, even if you are being attacked should you ever feel it is within your rights to take the assailants life unless absolutely necessary!
• Are there other styles in town that are like what you offer?
• We offer what is known in the martial arts community as a hybrid style or art. In order to get all of the techniques you would learn here, you would have to train in multiple styles of martial arts and self defence for years, and spend years of learning and un-learning techniques in order to get what Dubhdorn has to offer. Not only would you have to spend those years in martial arts but you would also have to take courses on criminal behavior as well as psychology. We train not only the body at Dark Alley Defence but the mind and spirit as well. We feel what we offer is an efficient answer to self defence; the physical part is merely one third of the training.
• Is Dubhdorn the best martial art or self defence system out there?
• We don’t make claims to such and never will. Dubhdorn is merely one answer among thousands to the question of self protection and survival. We feel our style is efficient, simple and easily learned. The martial arts are like styles of clothing in that, there are many different styles and people tend to gravitate towards what they like best. Then at closer inspection of someone’s style of clothing, there is going to be some minor things in which they have personalized and made it their own. We stand by our style and methods, as we feel they are what work best for us in every situation we encounter. We merely want to share it with the world and feel people would benefit from it no matter what the background. From the avid Karateka to the person who has never studied anything dealing with martial arts; everyone stands to learn something if not only the martial arts or self defence, but of themselves and the world they live in as well.