Von Ng's Bag Keeps Him Ready for Anything!

Beijing’s an urban jungle, and in any jungle, we need tools to survive and thrive. As urban jungle dwellers, we’ve managed to blend practicality with style, resulting in the modern bag. Here, form meets function, and what looks stylish and fashionable on the outside contains all our essential survival tools on the inside. Inspired by this, we ask expats each week, “What’s in your bag?” and get insights into which essentials they keep on hand when out and about in the capital city.

My name is Von Ng, I’m director of Krav Maga Global (KMG) for China, and head instructor at Warrior One Training Center. I’ve been teaching self-defense in Beijing for over a decade now.

I was born in the Philippines, then moved to Vancouver and later Los Angeles as a child and teen. My brothers and I found ourselves growing up in a racially-charged time, when there were clashes among minorities in the cities we lived in. We learned to fight and defend ourselves on the streets, and in those years, martial arts defined some of the highest and lowest points of my life. When I returned to the Philippines as an adult, I continued my martial arts training, as it was by then an important part of my life and what I did.

I’ve trained in several martial arts since I was young, most notable of which was Kyokushin Karate, a hard-style traditional Japanese martial art. But when my then-girlfriend (now wife) and I moved to Beijing in late 2009, I had the opportunity to get more into Krav Maga.

Krav Maga, an Israeli military system, is about self-defense and street combat – that is, disabling your attacker as quickly as possible, with no qualms about fairness, art, or fighting “clean.” A lot of my contemporaries in Kyokushin Karate – incredibly powerful high-level fighters – would have shunned the very idea of Krav Maga as fighting without honor. But because I’d seen violence in my youth, often times finding myself in terrible situations where no one cared about a fair fight, I understood what Krav Maga had to offer in terms of real self-defense.

Teaching Krav Maga in China has been interesting – in the first few years, many people didn’t seem to understand why learning self-defense or situational awareness was valuable. Over the years, however, they have come to better understand that training self-defense is an important life skill, and actually translates to things like better decision-making under stress, better judgment of people and situations, as well as more confidence and overall fitness and strength.

In a decade of teaching Krav Maga to ordinary people – men and women, young and old – we’re proud to say we’ve been able to equip many thousands of people from all walks of life with technical skills, fighting fitness, mental capabilities, and tactical sense for using the right “solution” for each situation. With all the things happening in society today, we feel that it’s even more important for us to continue the work we do, reach more people, and arm them with the skills and mindset for better navigating the world we live in.

About My Bag:

My trusty Camelbak HAWG is a medium-sized (20L) backpack that’s low-profile (not overtly tactical), with a lot of useful features and customizable storage options. It’s one of the top choices for the rucking crowd (guys who load up backpacks with heavy objects and run around or exercise with it), because it’s surprisingly tough for just how lightweight it is.

The bag itself is good for everyday use and organizing your things, and it’s also great for activities like hiking and mountain biking. I’ve brought it on many training trips around the world, and it’s small enough to stow under the seat in the airplane. A plus is that when it’s not full, you can compress it so that it becomes flatter on your back – great when you’re moving around a lot.

What’s in My Bag

Five things I have in my bag all the time are my Nextorch TA30 flashlight, an IKEA flexible chopping board, a utility pack, a mouthguard, and a pair of Mechanix gloves.

The Nextorch TA30 Flashlight goes with me everywhere – typically in my pocket so technically not in my bag. Having lived in cities like Manila as well as LA in the mid 90s, it was ingrained in me to always have something that you could use as a defensive tool. The TA30 has multiple settings, including a blindingly high-powered light. It comes with a glass breaker, and you have the option to add a finger ring that helps ensure a quick deployment and secure grip of the tool when you need it, especially in cold weather. It’s comfortable enough to grip firmly if you need to use it as a non-lethal blunt tool for self-defense, and it has the soft-press function, which is good for blinding someone with a flash of light in a defensive situation (most commercial flashlights can’t do this). Police use this kind of flashlight, but we also have taught ordinary men and women how to use it for defensive purposes.

The IKEA flexible chopping board sits at the back of my bag, in the water bladder compartment. I always believe that whatever you carry, you should try to get more use out of it. In Krav Maga, we teach people to use their bag as a shield-type weapon in a self-defense situation. This practically weightless addition to my bag makes it instantly more rigid and puncture-resistant, and therefore a better shield if I ever need it.

My Everyday Utility Pack consists of a lot of things, but let me highlight a few key items:

20 feet of 550 paracord, which is the gold standard for tying and carrying heavier loads
Ziplock bags in case I need to waterproof my phone, passport, or other valuables, or store food or small hygiene items
Leatherman Multitool, in case my bike needs repair or something needs an emergency fix
First aid kit and emergency meds, including general allergy meds, food poisoning meds, and multi-purpose topical ointments (the strong stuff)

I have a pair of Mechanix Mpact Gloves, which have rubber molding on top of the fingers, back of the hands, and knuckles. When I’m fixing things or if I have to grab or hold something that has sharp parts (splinters, jagged or rusted metal, etc.), it’s good to have hand protection. I also use this when I’m training Kali, a Filipino stick fighting system, where your hands can get hit by your partner.

Finally, I have a Mouthguard in my bag at all times, because I’m always headed somewhere for training. Whether I’m cross-training at another gym or outdoors with my team, one thing you’ll never be able to borrow is a mouthguard. Also, if trouble arises and you’re given the opportunity to equip yourself with a mouthguard… well, dental work is expensive, so why not?