Class teaches rape avoidance techniques

As soon as the enormous man grabbed her, Engineering freshman Sonya Wood sprung into action, kicking, punching and screaming. The other women in the room yelled words of encouragement: "Knee him!" "Get up off the ground!" "Run!" Wood, along with seven other women, was participating in the final phase of the Rape Aggression Defense class -- simulated attack. The large man grabbing at her hair and clothes was not a real attacker, but a heavily padded University Police officer. But that didn't matter to Wood or any of the other women -- as far as they were concerned, they were fighting for their lives. "They were hitting hard, doing the right techniques and following their own instincts," RAD Coordinator and University Police Officer Stacy Livingston said. "They were not being overly aggressive at first, but they were doing what they had to." The 12-hour RAD course is sponsored by the Virginia-based RAD Systems company and offered locally by the University Police. The free class is intended to teach women self-defense and avoidance tactics. During the first phase of the course, students learn about rape itself -- what constitutes a rape, what kind of date rape drugs are on the market and how to avoid looking like a target. "Obviously, a short skirt and high, high heels may not be the most productive thing to wear late at night," Livingston said. After the women have learned the basics, the instructors move on to the meat of the course -- basic principles of defense. They learn how to throw and block a punch, how to kick and how to escape should they wind up on the ground. The class culminates with an optional attack simulation, in which both the women and their mock attackers -- University Police officers Miguel Ortiz and Norman Owens -- are heavily padded. The women who choose to participate get suited up with helmets, elbow pads, knee pads and padded gloves. Ortiz and Owens -- who end up as punching bags for the women -- are even more padded in full body suits, each of which costs between $1,100 and $1,200. The women and their "attackers" then participate in three mock attack situations. In the first scenario, either Ortiz or Owens walks up to his intended victim, asking her for help or directions and ultimately grabbing her. In the next situation, an attacker grabs the woman from behind as she pretends to be using an ATM machine. Finally, the lights are turned off and both Ortiz and Owens -- each well over six-feet tall and weighing more than 200 pounds -- approach the woman and begin to taunt her. She is told to keep her eyes closed until one of the men grabs her. When Wood was grabbed, her eyes flew open and she began to pummel Owens. Ortiz stood by looking menacing as Wood and Owens fought. After a few tense moments of violent confrontation, she finally succeeded in knocking him to the ground. Then, she had to contend with Ortiz. He wrestled her to the ground and grabbed her foot, but she managed to twist free and run to safety. Wood was shaken and out of breath, but she was smiling broadly. "I do karate, but I haven't been to class in awhile," she said after catching her breath and removing her padding. "I like the feeling that I can protect myself."