INTERVIEW: Michal Ščepko (part 2) – what makes SEALTAC courses stand out?

The Slovak SEALTAC project organizes tactical and shooting courses based on real combat experience and knowledge from current conflicts. The wide range of courses also includes interesting and relatively unusual topics in our region, such as the civilian Home Defense course or a comprehensive range of courses focused on combat swimming, diving and water operations. You will be guided through all of this by professional instructors with many years of experience in various special forces. Want to know more? We asked Michal Ščepko, who is responsible for the SEALTAC project, for you.

Michal Ščepko served in the Armed Forces of the Slovak Republic, and is the only Slovak to have successfully completed extreme training with the Navy SEALs. We discussed his experiences and expertise in the first part of this interview, which you can find here. However, he does not keep these valuable and in a way unique skills to himself and, together with his colleagues from among former members of special forces, passes them on as part of the SEALTAC project, which we will be dedicating today's interview to.

Michal Ščepko underwent extreme training with the Navy SEALs and shares his experience in SEALTAC courses. Source: Michal Ščepko, SEALTAC

Michal also applies versatile training elements inspired by special forces training in his gym in Sereď, Slovakia, where he works as a strength and fitness coach. He offers personal and online coaching and is dedicated to both the general public and the strength and fitness training of MMA fighters. If you set high goals and are looking for truly professional training, you have come to the right place.

What opportunities does the SEALTAC project bring?

The range of tactical and shooting courses is relatively high-quality these days and is constantly expanding. So why consider SEALTAC and travel to Slovakia for a course? There are several reasons.

• The professional instructors who will guide you through the training have served in special units, such as the US Navy SEALs, 601st SFG or 2 ndREP of the French Foreign Legion. And you will have a unique opportunity to "extract" the maximum knowledge from them during the course. If you are truly interested in combat service and training experiences, they will certainly be open to discussion.
  

• The concepts of the courses are based on real combat experiences. Thanks to professional cooperation with external instructors from all over the world, the SEALTAC training programs are constantly being improved and updated. Therefore, you will not expect any outdated and boring training according to a template. On the contrary, you will work with the latest knowledge and adapt to current conditions.
  

• The individual courses together form a comprehensive whole that will provide you with a really high-quality foundation that you will be able to rely on even in extreme situations. You will find the most popular courses in the online offer, but do not hesitate to contact us if you are interested in a specific skill or type of training.
  

All SEALTAC courses will be led by professional instructors with experience from special forces. Source: Michal Ščepko, SEALTAC

4 main areas of SEALTAC courses: What to expect?

• Tactical courses are dedicated to classic green and black tactics. Green focuses primarily on small unit tactics and specializes in reconnaissance, topography, ambushes and much more. This category also includes military and civilian versions of the tactical survival course, which promises to get the most out of you. In black tactics, you will go through CQB in detail in several follow-up courses, including Vehicle CQB, and for the experienced, there is a course for personal protection.
  

• In addition to the first aid course, civilian courses also offer the very popular Home Defense course, where you will first learn to recognize necessary defense and extreme emergency using real examples and then practice basic tactical procedures for protecting your house or apartment.
  

• Water operations have a very wide scope – from combat (low-profile) swimming through specialized diving courses (including a diver rescue course) to the complex execution of an amphibious operation.
  

• Shooting courses provide a set of consecutive courses in shooting from long and short weapons of various difficulty levels.
  

SEALTAC courses are unique in that they take place on land and in the water. It also offers a number of civilian courses, such as Home Defense. Source: Michal Ščepko, SEALTAC

Strength and fitness training in Michal Ščepko's gym

Michal Ščepko has been involved in sports since childhood, when he was engaged in competitive swimming. He continued to intensively engage in various forms of exercise after joining the Armed Forces of the Slovak Republic. However, he finally fell for CrossFit during his training with the Navy SEAls. Since then, he has trained soldiers, actively competed and trained, for example, in Kandahar CrossFit in Afghanistan. His training was successful and his charges appeared on the podium more and more often. The time has come to move the training further and start planning his own gym...

His military career was ended by MMA wrestler Attila Végh. Thanks to his strength and fitness training, he began to devote himself fully to coaching and embarked on a professional career. In addition to Attila, he also trained other MMA fighters – Braňo Zuzák and Dan Hromek. Today he offers personal and online coaching and broadly focused one-off and long-term training.

Are you halfway persuaded? Ask the most professional!

Hi Michal, once again introduce yourself briefly to our readers and tell us what you've been up to.

I spent more than 20 years as a professional soldier. For more than 18 years, I worked (among other things) as a military diving instructor. I started as a senior diver and gradually worked my way up through squad leader, platoon commanding non-commissioned officer to reconnaissance company commanding non-commissioned officer. At the end of my career, I was also in charge of work related to special military search.

I spent quite a bit of time abroad and after various trainings. I enjoyed working in the army, but due to various circumstances I decided to quit and work privately. Today, I work as a professional strength and fitness coach (I have been a certified coach for more than 10 years), as well as an instructor of shooting and especially tactical courses under the SEALTAC and ESG (Elite Skills Group) projects.

Who is behind the SEALTAC project?

Me and Miro Trauer, a former member of the 2nd REP of the French Foreign Legion, stand behind the project.

How did the whole SEALTAC project actually come about? And what is its main idea?

This project came about when a mutual friend of ours saw what I was doing, that I train people, physically prepare many members of the army and police for selections for their special forces, that I dive, shoot, etc. Then he found out that Miro also ended up in the French Foreign Legion and that he also loves sports, shooting, tactics and the like. So we met, one word led to another, we came up with a concept and here we are.

How are SEALTAC courses different from other courses with a similar focus? In short – why do it at your place?

Our uniqueness is that we teach tactical courses on land as well as in water. We have actually learned, trained and tested water operations with members of the US Navy SEALs and the French Foreign Legion. We also have CQB tactical courses and small unit tactics not only learned and tested, but what is very important, also updated from modern combat environments.

Nowadays, you can also find many shooting courses on offer, and certainly high-quality ones with skilled instructors. In our shooting courses, we teach procedures and some details that are unique because they are battle-tested, and we also try to update our courses according to the latest proven procedures from modern battlefields.

Where can our readers familiarize themselves with the SEALTAC course offer? And where are the courses held?

The vast majority of our courses are described on our website. Due to the excellent conditions in western Slovakia, all courses take place here. We have great shooting ranges, buildings and spaces for green and black tactics, protecting your home "Home Defense", survival and also excellent conditions for water courses.

Who are the SEALTAC courses for?

The courses are intended for the general public and also for the state forces. Airsoft and paintball clubs will also get their share.

Are there courses on offer that can be used purely in civilian life?

Certainly yes. We have received very good feedback on our Home Defense and Survival courses. Shooting courses can also be excellently used for the self-protection of any civilian.

Do you need to bring your own material, weapon, firearms license to the tactical and shooting courses?

You do not need to own/carry a weapon or a firearms license for shooting courses. The courses require clothing according to the weather, and for the survival courses we prescribe a few basic things and that's it. We provide everything.

And is it necessary to have previous experience, or can a complete beginner come to the course?

Some experience is an advantage, but we have often learned that sometimes it is better to know nothing than to eliminate bad habits...

SEALTAC also offers water operations courses, which is quite unique. What do they contain?

We teach combat swimming courses, amphibious operations courses, combat diving and various diving courses that incorporate elements from the military environment.

How does such a course usually work? (And don't you motivate your students with the words motherfucker, as you experienced in Navy SEALs courses? :-)

In today's hypersensitive times, I better not :-) Many courses require the completion of some of our basic courses. After that, just repeating the basics and safety and it's on.

In addition to the SEALTAC courses, you also run your own gym, where you train e.g. Attila Végh. Where do you work and what do you train?

I have a gym in Sereď, where I mostly do group strength and fitness training (functional training) and also private strength and fitness training according to clients' goals.

Do you also offer online coaching?

Online coaching is my main job. In addition to various strength and fitness trainings for the general public, I also prepare people for selections for various state departments (army, police, special forces, firefighters).