Xander Cage + James Bond?

May 26, 2008 6:22 PM

Resources for thrill seekers and general superhero/spy training in Texas?

I've decided to go through a second childhood. And I'm gonna learn how to do all of the things I've always wanted to learn how to do but there's no reason to learn because, come on, I'm a twentysomething secretary living in a small suburb of Dallas - there's no logical reason for me to learn this stuff!

....... but i still want to learn how to do these things!

Instead of looking independently for a place to rock climb, a place to learn how to shoot and learn swordplay and knives and learn how to speak Russian or Serbian and swimming and martial arts and learning to ride a motorbike and learning how to do a 180 AND a 360 in a car and all of that kickass shit... are there any resources that I can use to find various places, instead of me scouring the net, looking for not only legitimate places but also references?

The only thing I can generally find is "thrill seeking", but that's extreme sports - and while I would love to learn to snowboard, I don't want to limit myself to just sports.

(Asking anonymously because my friends read AskMeFi and will call me an idiot for wanting to learn all of this cool stuff.)

posted by anonymous to sports, hobbies, & recreation (11 answers total)

Thunder Ranch will teach you the shooting stuff.
posted by Comrade_robot at 6:46 PM on May 26, 2008

Oh, and they link to Texas Close Quarter Battle Course and the Tactical Defense Institute
posted by Comrade_robot at 6:48 PM on May 26, 2008

You can take the MSF class and get your Motorcycle Endorsement by taking the Basic Rider Safety Class from the Texas Motorcycle Safety Foundation.
posted by SpecialK at 7:27 PM on May 26, 2008

Texas A&M University has an extension called TEEX -- Texas Engineering Extension -- that does all the firefighting, police training, rescue training, etc. I don't know if they have any community classes available, but I know they've come around to different departments at the university (which is my workplace) to do things like fire extinguisher use and things like that. The fire extinguisher use was actually pretty cool -- they lit a wastecan on fire, taught us where to aim it, what happens if the can's on it's side, etc.
posted by SpecialK at 7:30 PM on May 26, 2008

It's not in Texas, and it's expensive, but if you're willing to spend this kind of cash, you're probably also willing to do a bit of traveling out to Arizona or Colorado. Incredible Adventures has weekend courses that seem to cover what you're looking for.
posted by Bun at 8:58 PM on May 26, 2008

Similar to the MSF road motorcycle certification (which I most highly recommend), you can take Dirt Bike School (two locations listed for Texas) to learn how to ride in the dirt. Unlike on the street where there are traffic rules and regulations, when riding a motorcycle in the dirt you get connect to your inner adolescent -- spinning tires, drifting around corners, jumping, etc. (Be safe, ride in approved areas only, all the usual caveats.)

Honestly, I think you will get better instruction by seeking out specialists in what you are interested in learning, rather than a package deal where you get to dabble in a little bit of everything but never quite learn anything. The things you are thinking of -- driving fast, motorcycles, guns, skydiving, etc -- deserve to be taken seriously, because screwing up has real consequences, and learning them well has real benefits even if you never become an undercover brother.
posted by Forktine at 9:17 PM on May 26, 2008

Hmm.. I'm also at A&M and we've got a place called disaster city. (no joke) It's used to train recuse workers and stuff. I've last time I volunteered I played dead under some ruble for a bit while they tested out the recuse dog to see if he could find me.
posted by magikker at 9:28 PM on May 26, 2008

Check out Adventure Alliance. They have a covert ops package, which includes: evasive driving, contact driving, fast attack vehicle gunner, tactics, raids, hostage rescue, recon, c.q.b. tactical shooting, codes and ciphers. It's in Georgetown, TX.
posted by alcopop at 10:06 PM on May 26, 2008

this sounds like a totally awesome project. good luck with it!
posted by rmd1023 at 5:09 AM on May 27, 2008

I've got some friends in Austin who take what they half-jokingly refer to as "superhero training," which sounds like a mix of boot camp and light parkour training. Contact me by mefimail and I'll ask them if they can find out about a DFW equivalent.

(I don't think you sound like an idiot for wanting to learn that stuff)
posted by adamrice at 8:53 AM on May 27, 2008

Get a current copy of Soldier of Fortune magazine. I've seen ads (years ago...) for "Adventure Camps" that will teach you this sort of stuff.
posted by lisaici at 7:51 PM on June 19, 2008