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Mark Hatmaker – Extreme Self ProtectionMy students and I love Mark Hatmaker's grappling techniques. Perhaps it is because he is such a great innovator, perhaps it is because he has these amazing "chains" where one arm lock flows to another, where each counter has an answer. His techniques are like a puzzle; one move fits into another. It seems like he has an endless back of tricks.
One of his specialties is Western Wrestling. Although he respects all styles he is a strong advocate of the techniques and strategies of western submission wrestling. He draws upon techniques from many long forgotten arts, tests them in his 'laboratory', blends them with current knowledge and information, and serves them up to us. Having had the pleasure of training with Mark many times I can testify that he is an amazing teacher; knowledgeable, clear and precise in his explanations and entertaining in his delivery. He also has incredible names for his techniques, from the "Telephone Crank" to the "Near Side Hangman Choke" to "Jacob's Ride to Banana Split". He is also a gentleman, a sensitive soul and a good friend. He always has a kind word to cheer up your day. Mark researches the history of competitive fighting, for the dual purpose of learning valuable techniques and for the interesting historical insights. You can contact him to get on his e mail list and enjoy his Friday lesson; always some interesting historical tidbit or some useful conditioning tips. If you can't train with him in person or attend one of his seminars, I highly recommend his DVD's. I own several myself, they are easy to follow and full of great techniques.
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with Mark Hatmaker at Karate College