Post by Kiwi on Jul 17, 2005 23:37:24 GMT -4
This story gladdens my heart:
AUCKLAND. — The message came loud and clear in the form of three quick karate chops to the face: Don't hassle this old hustler.
Pensioner Murray Hustler is the toast of Orewa, in Auckland, after he made a bloody mess of a young "hoon" who attacked him in the main street this week. The 67-year-old has a heart condition, arthritis in both feet, "a gammy knee and a crook back" and probably looked fair game for the young bully.
But what he did not realise was that Mr Hustler has three years of karate training and exercises for four hours a day to stay in shape. He parried the attacker's first blow, then sent him sprawling into a ditch with a rapid right-left-right combination to the head.
The incident began as Mr Hustler was pushing a friend's baby in a pushchair along a road on Monday. He heard a screech of tyres and turned to see a young man doing a "wheelie".
"He stuck his head out the window and screamed at me, 'Do you want to fight, you old expletive?"' Mr Hustler kept walking, but the young man decided to take it further.
Mr Hustler gave up karate a couple of years ago but all his training came back in a flash. "After I hit him he lay there and then got up — he had blood pouring from the side of his face — and said, 'You hit me first, you hit me first'. I told him I was there to protect the baby and for him to keep his distance." The man said "sorry" and ran back to his car, leaving a trail of blood on the footpath.
Mr Hustler said he had been hassled by young hoons in Orewa before and was tired of a small unruly element giving people a hard time. "My attitude is, you might as well take your lumps, get in and do as much damage as you can. If you are able to fight back, you should."
Police are making inquiries to find Mr Hustler's attacker. Senior Constable John Brambley hoped Mr Hustler's actions would reassure other elderly they need not adopt a siege mentality. "Just because there's snow on the roof doesn't mean there's no coals in the fireplace."
NZPA
Manawatu Evening Standard, Thursday 29 January 1998, page 3
'Hoon' learns the hard way not to hassle old Hustler
'Hoon' learns the hard way not to hassle old Hustler
AUCKLAND. — The message came loud and clear in the form of three quick karate chops to the face: Don't hassle this old hustler.
Pensioner Murray Hustler is the toast of Orewa, in Auckland, after he made a bloody mess of a young "hoon" who attacked him in the main street this week. The 67-year-old has a heart condition, arthritis in both feet, "a gammy knee and a crook back" and probably looked fair game for the young bully.
But what he did not realise was that Mr Hustler has three years of karate training and exercises for four hours a day to stay in shape. He parried the attacker's first blow, then sent him sprawling into a ditch with a rapid right-left-right combination to the head.
The incident began as Mr Hustler was pushing a friend's baby in a pushchair along a road on Monday. He heard a screech of tyres and turned to see a young man doing a "wheelie".
"He stuck his head out the window and screamed at me, 'Do you want to fight, you old expletive?"' Mr Hustler kept walking, but the young man decided to take it further.
Mr Hustler gave up karate a couple of years ago but all his training came back in a flash. "After I hit him he lay there and then got up — he had blood pouring from the side of his face — and said, 'You hit me first, you hit me first'. I told him I was there to protect the baby and for him to keep his distance." The man said "sorry" and ran back to his car, leaving a trail of blood on the footpath.
Mr Hustler said he had been hassled by young hoons in Orewa before and was tired of a small unruly element giving people a hard time. "My attitude is, you might as well take your lumps, get in and do as much damage as you can. If you are able to fight back, you should."
Police are making inquiries to find Mr Hustler's attacker. Senior Constable John Brambley hoped Mr Hustler's actions would reassure other elderly they need not adopt a siege mentality. "Just because there's snow on the roof doesn't mean there's no coals in the fireplace."
NZPA