Martial-ing their strength

Kimberley McGee

Sunday, Aug. 8, 1999 | 9:34 a.m.

"I had a very scary experience with a psychotic murderer," Rayna Rogers says of a situation in 1996 that changed the way the forensic psychiatrist viewed her day job.

"I was left alone with this man for two hours and it made me realize -- if he had wanted to kill me, I had no way to protect myself," she says.

Rogers, a tall, slim blonde, was locked alone in a small room to determine the state of mind of a man who had recently murdered two Catholic priests.

"I started studying karate, specifically, to save my life," she says.

Martial arts is not just for boys anymore. What was once an intimidating sport for women has become a new fitness fad. And more women -- and girls from the age of 3 and up -- are enrolled in area studios.

"I'd say it was 5 percent (10 years) ago," says Richard Black, regional director for Nevada's United Studios of Self Defense, about women's attendance at self-defense classes. "Now, I'd say, it's up to 40 percent."

Recently Rogers joined veteran USDS members Darby Swamberg and Teri Ruthe to practice at the school on Cheyenne Avenue, which recently opened to bring the number of USDS studios in the valley to eight.

The trio kick their legs powerfully through the air as chief instructor Scott Charett guides them through a warm-up series, each brown belt producing a high-shrilled grunt at the end of each movement.

"Everyone has their own specific sound, called a 'Kiai' (pronounced 'key-i'), " Charett says.

Working on their kicks, rolls and hand movements, the class moves together gracefully through the maneuvers -- brows furrowed, lips pursed, eyes set straight ahead. When they finish a set, their faces relax with slight smiles on their lips.

Swamberg moved to Las Vegas four years ago to work as a registered nurse at St. Rose Dominican Hospital in Henderson. "I worked the night shift at that time and I just wanted to know that if I got attacked I could get away," Swamberg says.

She wanted the confidence of karate, but found the whole thing intimidating, so, with a girlfriend in tow, she went to a Green Valley "dojo" (martial arts center) for a free introductory lesson. "Master Black (taught) it to my level and it wasn't intimidating," Swamberg says. "He actually instructed me (on) what I wanted to learn."

Swamberg walked away from the first lesson knowing how to get out of an attacker's grasp. "I wondered if I would be comfortable with it," she says. "But after the first time I loved it. After a while it changed for me. I didn't want to do it just for self-defense, I also wanted to get physically in tune with my body," she says, adding she lost 50 pounds within the first six months.

Rogers says that karate made her a better person -- and psychiatrist.

"I began to understand more about human nature, the way that people interact with one another," she says. "The deep philosophy that karate comes out of informs me on a daily basis about what to do, what's right, how to be the kind of person, and doctor, I want to be."

Martial art styles vary, but most follow the same principles, she says.

"Protect yourself, don't attack others, humility, don't advertise yourself, don't brag, respect yourself, respect others, it's very spiritual," she says.

Ruthe adds: "(This) is woven into every class you go to, it's the way they teach us."

Her husband gave her kick boxing lessons for a Christmas present a year and a half ago.

"After my first (kick boxing) lesson I saw the belts on the wall and I knew I wanted to do that," she says of the eight colorful belts ranging from the introductory white to the experienced black belts that represent the level of martial arts mastering. "I wanted to have a goal to look forward to each time I came in. I was really addicted."

The petite woman grunts as she punches the air rapidly with alternating fists.

Ruthe's two young daughters learn protective measures through osmosis, she says, warning Mom not to park next to vans, which may hide criminals, or dark areas. "I was very trusting in a shopping atmosphere or in a parking lot, I was not very aware or careful," Ruthe says. "Now, I'm aware of parking situations and so are my little girls."

She says she has learned discipline, body awareness and control over her short temper from her dedicated 10 hours a week in the studio. "You are obtaining knowledge," Ruthe says. "If you just work out (in a gym), what have you learned, unless you pay someone $150 to teach you all the basics of what your body is doing?"

The women get together and practice moves on their own.

"I never struck up a conversation with anyone on the treadmill (at a gym) that lasted longer than 30 seconds," Ruthe says. "But here, it's a family atmosphere. It's very supportive."

Gabriel Hinks, owner of Martial Arts of America studio at North Rainbow Boulevard, says more women have been lining up at the self-defense classes, spurred on by the popular aerobic Tae Bo kick boxing fad that has swept the country through gym classes and videotapes.

"The main thing of women coming in is the cardio kick (which is beneficial to the heart) and the Tae Bo thing, (but) then they realize some of the benefits martial arts can do," Hinks says, adding that they learn how to avoid putting themselves in a bad situation -- from parking in a well-lighted area to how to approach a blind corner while walking at night.

"They become a lot more aware of their surroundings and know what to look for," he says. "In most rape cases (experts) have found exactly what it is that makes (an attacker) spot you and where they pick out targets. If you can avoid being spotted, you can avoid any kind of conflict."

Las Vegas Metropolitan Police officer Anthony Brown agrees that confidence can deter criminals.

A black belt in the Korean self defense art of tae kwon do for 16 years and a police officer for the last seven years, Brown says that martial arts touch every part of his life. In his 11 years as an officer, Brown says "you meet more good people than bad" and that could be due to the calm confidence self-defense has taught him.

"It has taught me to be patient, given me a sense of confidence," he says. "I don't always have to go to my baton or my pepper spray (when in an altercation). If there is a threat you have a sense of confidence about yourself that even a bad person knows this person can handle themselves. (That) is a deterrent in itself."

This doesn't mean it leads to overconfidence, he says, but rather a person who is well schooled in self-defense and knows when to walk away from trouble. "Any school worth its salt will teach you that fighting is not the answer," Brown says. "(Martial arts) gives you a sense of what you can do, and you don't have to prove it."

At night Brown is a dancer at "Jubilee," the production show at Bally's hotel-casino. "(Martial arts) parallels dancing," he says. "To dance you must have discipline, you have to stay on top of your art by constantly training."

Local parents use the teachings of martial arts, such as discipline, loyalty and respect, to give their children a better sense of self, and self-control.

Peter Doyle enrolled his children, 6-year-old Christian and 4-year-old Savannah, when they were each 3-years-old to help instill a bit of traditional character building. "It teaches them discipline, responsibility, manners," Doyle says. "I've noticed they get along better in school."

His wee wonders can also protect themselves. "If somebody does come up and try to hurt them, they know to use their strongest (asset), their voice, because they are not strong enough (physically)," he says.

But the added benefit of polite children with strong social skills has him bringing them back for more. "Their attention span is better, they listen when (an adult is) talking to them," he says. His toddler daughter, especially, pays rapt attention not only to the instructor, but now to her father.

His advice to parents: "Go and see a class, see how the kids respond and see if they smile," he says.

The 20 children standing on white stars on the cushy blue gym mat at Dave Berry's Tae Kwon Do Black Belt Academy on Cheyenne Avenue and Buffalo Drive respond "Yes, sir" to the instructor, their little voices shrill with the effort to sound so serious, faces set in determined scrunches. They light up with big smiles when they are awarded a star for good form or knowing the answer to a question and they straighten their small backs and puff their chests out with pride.

Sherri Bonica brought her son, 6-year-old Giovanni, and daughter, 4-year-old Tiffany, to the academy four months ago.

"I wanted to keep him out of trouble," she says with a laugh. Originally, Bonica enrolled her children to learn how to take care of a scary situation, such as an adult trying to snatch them, but continues to bring them back because of the results she has seen.

"It teaches them respect -- respect for their elders, more respect for (Mom) and (Giovanni) listens better," she says. And she can't keep Giovanni -- who teaches his sister at home -- away from the class, she says.

"If we go away for the weekend he says, 'When do I go back to karate?' "

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