Michael Mesa, our staff member who is currently serving in the Army National Guard, with the first seven years in active duty Army as an Infantryman. He is the Bravo team leader/Squad Designated Marksman in our Washington guard. His prior years were spent in Recon section and recent overseas tour was spent as a Recon Sniper, vs his first tour to the Middle-East as a counter-IED specialist/ rifleman; working along side ODA and EOD groups. Mike is an expert marksman in a plethora of firearms ranging from pistols, carbines, machine guns, and grenade launchers. He has served two tours on two vastly different continents, first being a combat tour and second as a show of force. He conducted operations that consisted of Direct Action, Disrupt and Destroy, Long Range Reconnaissance, Guardian Angel ( High-Value Personnel Protection), and many more. His current certifications consist of level 2 Modern Army Combatives Instructor, FAA Drone Part 107, Tactical Combat Casualty Care, CPR, and his past certifications consist of Army UAS operator, Counter IED, Counter-terrorism, and Counter UAS ( Drones).
Mike's civilian passions revolve around global travel, seeking as much out of life as possible, his pup named Leo, and playing music on his guitars. He has over 10k hours of free diving and spearfishing experience, traveling bodyboarder, pursuing his Advance Freefall certifications, indoor skydive, and SCUBA. Mike's pursuit makes him a well-rounded operator who is seasoned in knowing the relationship between the student, practitioner, operator, and instructor. Although Mike has over a decades worth of MMA experience, he will maintain his perspective of Student for Life in hand-to-hand combat.
Michael's training style comes from a keep-it-simple mentality. He does his best to break the processes down to a science and understanding as to why a motion or task is performed in a certain way. He goes from the ground-up approach, with an analytical approach to body mechanics and mental focus. A student can expect lessons that range from calm, low-intensity training, focused on fundamentals of accuracy, to rugged, high-intensity, cross-fit style training that is focused on IMT's ( Individual Movement Tactics). One can come to breathe and learn to focus or come to sweat to improve dynamic tactics! As a born and raised Islander from Guam, one can sense his laid back and patient characteristic to ease any situation he comes in contact with. He often states that "clear minds prevail in chaotic environments." You can always expect a "shaka" and witty greeting from Mike as you cross paths with him.