Be ready and prepared if this ever happen to you .... What would you do .

Story by : Mark Lentine

“You’re walking down the street and you’re 5 foot 3-inch woman.  You're approached by a 6 foot, 200 pound man intent on doing harm: what do you do?

This may seem a somewhat abstract question, but people around the country and especially in Hemet are faced with that question more than we’d like to admit. Even those well-trained in martial arts may not know what to do because the setting is completely hostile and foreign to someone classically trained in defending themselves.

Ken “Professor Ken” Haslam has the answer.

“I began studying martial arts Kajukenbo at age 10. I’ve fought the likes of Chuck Norris and Bill “Superfoot” Wallace, but in the 1970s, I slowly began to realize that something was missing from the application of Martial Arts in the real world,” Haslam said.  Haslam is a 10th degree black-belt, one of only a dozen in the world.

Haslam breaks down his martial arts philosophy into four areas:

1. Martial arts for soldiers is about killing and assassination.

2. Martial arts for law-enforcement is about subduing and capturing.

3. Martial arts for sport is about winning by playing by the rules of the game.

4. Martial Arts for self-defense is all about escaping unharmed.

The rules and the setting for each is different, but, according to the classically-trained Haslam, classical martial arts doesn’t necessarily look at it that way.

“I had to study criminology and criminal behavior, crime statistics, the law and actual case studies to distill all of the training of the previous 30 years…before I opened up 360 X self-defense,” says Haslam, adding, “I came up with the name “360X Self-Defense because I wanted to include all cultures, all arts (including firearms self-defense), and all sciences...with no prejudices,” says Haslam.

The programs have proven so popular that they necessitated a move to a new space at 537 East Florida.  “With the love, we picked up about an extra 700 square feet of space. We’re currently at about 1650 feet of space...and believe me, we use it.”

The vision of 360X Self-Defense is to serve the community by teaching practical, useful self-defense skills.  “We want to train people and instructors who will then go out and teach others either in a private setting or with schools of their own. We see our self-defense training as the equivalent of first aid training for someone going through a crisis...our first aid deals with self-defense in an emergency situation...and literally saving your own life.”

On Saturday, May 25, from 9am to 1:30, 360X Self-Defense Is holding their free, annual Sexual Assault and Violent Crime Self-Defense seminar, now in its fifth year.  “This can be a life-changing event, and we’re so glad to have partnered with CASA, the Center Against asexual Assault, because we’ve had situations where these women have flashbacks...and CASA has been right there on-site, to help,” said Haslam, adding, “the wonderful thing about this seminar is the transformation that occurs throughout the afternoon. Some of these women come into the seminar looking beaten and shattered and slowly...as the afternoon goes on, you see their faces change as they realize that they have regained their spirit their sense of self control.  

It’s a free, totally transformative event. I think it’s the greatest gift someone can give to a young lady in junior high, high school, college or even those young women going out into the world for the first time...”

If you would like more information about this Saturday’s event,  you are invited to come 951-330-9332 or contact 360 X self-defense at www.360xdefense.com”