Valdosta’s new self-defense courses offer training from former law enforcement

VALDOSTA, Ga. (WALB) - Self-defense is a tool that every person should have in their back pocket - just in case you’re ever in a situation where you need to protect yourself. Well, former members of law enforcement in Valdosta say that they’re here to teach you.

KRAV Maga 911 is a self-defense training class that teaches people how to protect themselves if they’re ever put in a situation where they need to. Former law enforcement classes have expanded to teaching not only residents and members of the armed forces but women and children as well.

Bobby Cumby, owner of KRAV Maga 911 Valdosta, says it was his wife and daughter that inspired him to give back to the community and do something specifically for women to learn to defend themselves.

“I see what the trends are in terms of attacks against women nationwide and worldwide, and then what they do is they put together a curriculum and say ‘okay, here’s what’s going on,’ whether its chokes, whether its hair pulls, no matter what the attacks are, we generalize it, and then we put together a seminar for women only and teach them how to get out of certain life-threatening situations,” Cumby said.

Not only does KRAV Maga teach self-defense to women, but also to children who may experience bullying. However, these skills can be used by everyone.

“If you are looking for a place to bring your child or yourself for them to know legitimately how to defend themselves, a real-world self-defense, that’s what Krav Maga is all about. How to defend yourself, but also how to grow as a person.” BréLynn Cumby, KRAV Maga 911 youth director, said.

Cumby says the program is designed to teach you self-defense and it’s extremely critical and crucial for everyone to learn.

“Obviously in today’s world, from a law enforcement standpoint, and again as a retired special agent, I can tell you, the prayers that you never have to use any of these skills that you learned. But it’s better to have them in your hip pocket and not need them than to need them and not have them and a lot of people don’t understand that concept, in order to be good at self-defense, you have to be a fighter.”

KRAV not only teaches civilians how to protect themselves, but they specialize in teaching current and former members of the armed forces too.

“We have officers out there and I literally had them tell me they haven’t trained in years. The techniques are still the same that they learned 20 years ago. And unfortunately, the bad guys are training and they’re evolving so we have to keep up so with KRAV, we develop different techniques or newer techniques to keep our officers safe out there.”

Krav Maga is focusing on real-world situations and efficiency. Trainers say they are dedicated to teaching their students self-defense that can ultimately save their lives. KRAV Maga 911 teaches life-changing skills, and they say those skills can be carried with you forever.

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