A retired Ontario couple who spent the winter touring Mexico in a Winnebago say their years of police training helped them fend off eight gunmen during an ambush near the U.S. border.

Jack and Eileen Appleton were a few miles from the bridge that would take them from Matamoros to Brownsville, Texas, last Thursday when a gold SUV sped up beside them and a man wearing a balaclava and waving a rifle ordered the Canadians to pull over.

That's when their police instincts kicked in — both the Niagara Falls residents spent 26 years in law enforcement.

As the gunmen swerved into their lane to cut them off, 62-year-old Jack slammed on the brakes and threw the 10-metre-long motorhome into reverse. The former Mountie then sped to a nearby gas station while his 66-year-old wife, a retired Toronto cop, snapped photos from the passenger's seat.

"There's not many people in their life who get to stare down eight guys armed to the teeth," he said. "We weren't heroes or anything. You just do what you've got to do, and that's what we did. Maybe we just reacted on our training, although it's 40 years out of date."

The SUV followed the Appletons, pulling into the gas station trailed by two other vehicles carrying six more men with guns. Two of the attackers stormed over to the Winnebago and demanded the camera. Eileen refused to give it up and stuffed it down her blouse.

Nigel, the couple's 55-pound Airedale terrier, started barking madly and one of the men put a rifle to the dog's head.

"I said to one of the kids, 'Que pasa?' What's going on?'" Jack recalled in an interview Monday. "And he said to me in English, 'You're acting suspicious."'

During the struggle that ensued, one of the men grabbed Eileen and ripped open her blouse, snatching the camera. She attempted to hit one of them with a roundhouse kick but missed. All eight attackers then got back in their cars and sped off.

Nobody at the gas station would admit to witnessing the 10-minute incident.

The Appletons still aren't sure why they were targeted.

'Does not make any sense'

"To this minute, I cannot figure out what the hell these guys wanted," said Jack. "It just does not make any sense."

Perhaps they were after the Winnebago, or wanted money, he speculated. Local police said the men could have thought the couple was transporting rival gang members.

Mexican authorities took a report but didn't send out any cars or take any action, the couple said.

"You'd have thought we were trying to report a stolen bicycle," said Eileen. "They weren't concerned at all."

U.S. border guards also took a report, and the Appletons are considering approaching the Mexican embassy and their local MP when they return to Canada. They're currently spending a week in Texas.

The Appletons have spent the last 16 winters in Mexico and said they were aware of the risks tourists face in some parts of the country.

Foreign Affairs has a travel advisory in place, warning Canadians to avoid non-essential travel to Mexican towns close to the border.

An expert on tourism to Mexico said travellers should stick with organized group tours rather than venturing out on their own.

"There is a history of all kinds of undesirable events," said Gabor Forgacs, a professor at Ryerson University's school of hospitality and tourism management. "There are known pockets where there is frequent drug-related violence. Those are locations people should stay away from."

Canadians may not be prepared for the difference in culture and language, said Forgacs. Staying in a resort is the safest way for tourists to enjoy Mexico, he added.

But the attack hasn't deterred the Appletons, who say the weather in Mexico is the best on earth.

"As far as I know, we're heading down next winter. We may just change our exit strategy a little," said Jack. "We'll come through in the morning instead of late in the afternoon."