Strategies for Handling Yourself in a Bar Fight

I spent five years of my career as a police officer in a small municipality that spans only ten miles of geographical area, but possesses over two hundred and fifty bars. Additionally, this town is seasonal in nature, and its population grows to over three hundred thousand during the summer months. So, you may understand why I consider myself somewhat of an expert on barroom brawls. Following the strategies presented below should help you in protecting yourself, should you ever end up in one of these incidents. This advice is only to be used for defensive purposes.

Avoid Possible Troublemakers

Most of the time, it is pretty easy to identify the characters that have the potential of starting trouble. Men in particular seem to develop a “flirt or fight” mentality when inebriated (feel free to replace “flirt” with an alternative “f” word-I’m just attempting to keep this family friendly). The more drunk they get, the greater their desire to fulfill either of these goals. Simply distance yourself early to avoid any possible confrontation; their targets are often random.

Size up the Situation

Sometimes preventive measures are ineffective, so you find yourself being challenged by an intoxicated person. The very first thing to do is evaluate the totality of the situation. Is the challenger actually addressing you? Why? Is he alone or with a group of friends? Where are your avenues of escape? Is he in possession of anything that could be used as a weapon (a bottle of beer, a pocketknife on his belt, access to silverware on the bar, etc.)? Your decision to act needs to be based on as much information as possible.

Diffuse the Situation

If you are reading this article to learn how to pound someone into the ground, you are wasting your time. You will fare much better in these types of situations if you learn to talk your way to a safe resolution. If you determined in the previous step that the troublemaker believes you wronged him in some way, there is an easy fix: apologize for your actions (it doesn’t matter if you really did anything). This will likely stun the aggressor, as he expects you to come back in force. He will believe that he “won” the confrontation. That’s fine; let him believe whatever he wants. He’s a drunk and you’re safe. Walk away and enjoy the rest of your evening.

What Did You Say?

Of course, walking away doesn’t always work. If that is the case, you need to adjust your strategy. If the aggressor continues to escalate the situation, by screaming, your best option is to do the opposite. Actually lower your voice when responding. I’m not suggesting that you act meek. You should speak with authority and confidence, just at a lower decibel. The drunk will be forced to lower his own voice just to hear what you have to say. Without even knowing it, he will start deescalating on his own. You will control the situation by manipulating your opponent with your voice. One word of caution…the inebriated person will likely move closer to you. You need to be prepared in case he attacks. While this action is less likely than before, the proximity means that you need to be quicker to react.