Former CIA employee now runs a spy school, teaching survival, surveillance and evasive driving skills

CEDAR CITY — In a remote area outside Cedar City, Jason Hanson teaches people just a little bit about what he learned in the CIA, and it’s not always as easy as they make it look in the movies.

“Duct tape is the number one way all over the world that criminals kidnap people,” Hanson said.

Hanson has impressively mastered a technique for both the hands and feet to escape from duct tape bonds. He said the key with tied hands is to pull fast and out with the elbows, breaking the tape over the stomach.

He also teaches a procedure for what to do if locked in a trunk. Most of Hanson’s clients don’t end up in this type of scenario, but if they do exactly as instructed, it doesn’t take long to be freed.

“A lot of the customers and clients I have are more high-risk, meaning they’re politicians, billionaires or multimillionaires so they do have a target on their back,” Hanson said.

Maybe the most thrilling task to learn from Hanson is evasive driving. The key ingredient to a great spy thriller. The idea for one maneuver is to quickly reverse the car and turn around to get away. He teaches another which involves hitting another vehicle at a controlled rate of speed.

“In movies and Hollywood, you see them going 60 miles an hour. You don’t want to do that in real life, because it will trash your own car,” Hanson said. “You may break something — destroy it. Your car is going to break down a mile down the road.”

After seven years in the CIA, Hanson says he’s grateful that he gets to keep doing what he loves there.

“Teaching people to crash cars, shoot guns, escape and evasion. It’s a wonderful way to make a living,” he said.

His clients are not only high-risk clients, but others he says he calls “Disneyland.”

“They’re coming out here for a fun time, they want to learn new skills and just have a good experience,” Hanson said. “I love it. I’m incredibly blessed. I mean, look at this!”