Carrying a deadly weapon

Have you ever had a flat tire? It is pretty lousy, huh? No matter the kind of day we are having a flat tire always makes it worse. Thankfully a flat tire does not directly effect our engine performance, interior climate or comfort, radio, brake lights, etc. Even though the only thing effected is 25% of our tire ensemble the car becomes much less effective, almost worthless for transport. It is essentially taken it out of service, even if only temporarily.

Combat effectiveness can be defined in this context as: Any means or cause that provides one with an advantage in combat. The car has become less effective, without totally destroying it. Translate that analogy to a fight. If you break a guys hand, elbow, knee, or gouge an eye you have not destroyed the opponent, however, he has become much less effective in the fight. He cannot punch if his arm does not work, nor can he chase you if his knee bends the wrong way. Oh, and don’t forget breathing and eyesight, damage those and you have the upper hand!

If you damage more than one system, ie: eye, knee, and elbow, you have what is called compound trauma. This wreaks havoc on your opponent and gives you a marked advantage. Before we get carried away, let’s take a look at a few specific target points that can make one less effective in a fight.

  • Eyes – can’t see, can’t fight.
  • Throat – Can’t breathe, again, can’t fight.
  • Knee – Fairly fragile and hugely important, can’t walk on a knee that bends the wrong way.
  • Elbow – Like the knee but more fragile, bend it the wrong way and they can’t use their arm.
  • Hand – Break it and they can’t grip. That means no fist, knife, or gun for that hand.
  • Liver – I’ve seen guys black out over a good liver strike. It disrupts your system and your body does not like it.
  • Ears – Clap these bad boys hard and you cant stand up straight due to ruptured ear drums.

These are just a few of a long list of combat effective points on the human body. Some more effective than others, and some more potentially lethal than others. For example, punching someone in the throat is potentially lethal, whereas breaking an elbow is not likely to cause death. So, you need to understand the level of force you are using and apply it appropriately.

Pain. Pain is good, and can help you win a fight. But let me make one thing quite clear, pain is not sufficient to end most real fights. In fact someone who is under the influence of adrenaline, drugs, and/or alcohol is not likely to feel pain, and certainly not to the extent that you would like. That is precisely why you did not see a kick to the groin on the list above. While you can do some real damage to a fella this way, it is primarily pain. If however you lower that kick to the knee, he is likely to lose his immediate ability to walk. In a fight, your goal should be to prohibit the body’s ability to function, not inflict pain.

You can be combat effective without a gun. In a very large arsenal of tools a gun has a very important place, however, it is pretty limited in its use and ability. Hands/feet, sticks, pepper spray, contact weapons, etc. are all tools you can use to be highly combat effective. What is most important is that you learn and train. Then, you train and train some more. Never become complacent.

What can we learn?

  • You can be effective in combat or a fight without destroying your opponent entirely.
  • Learn the human body and what makes it work, then you will know how to shut it down.
  • Pain is not enough to end a fight,  you need to stop the body from working.
  • Know and understand what level of force you are using and apply it appropriately.
  • Never give up, and never stop learning

Stay Sharp,

Adam

Let’s run a quick hypothetical. I give you a bounce house and a good knife. Then I tell you that your life depends on getting it deflated in under a minute. You can use the knife, but on to stab no slicing or cutting. How would you deflate that huge thing in under a minute? Would you stab the same place over and over, or would you make as many holes as possible all over? Yeah, I thought so.

Now, take that same theory and apply it to self defense. If your life depending on “deflating”  a threat as fast as possible, why do we so concern ourselves with shooting such a tight group as to make on hole? Hmm, interesting. Let me offer a quick disclaimer here: I am not advocating you do not train to proficiency. I am advocating that you train to be good, real good, then maintain that same ability over time.

Let’s take a closer in depth look at compound trauma. We will use guns and gun shot wounds (GSW) for our mechanism of injury here. If you shoot a bad guy one time, he has one injury. If you shoot him 5 times in the same spot, he has one big wound. But, if you shoot him 5 times (in a 6-9 inch group) different spots, he has 5 wounds. If you are shooting the chest, that kind of group could cover the heart, and both lung,  and maybe even the liver.

If you are looking to do serious damage to somebody, this is how you will achieve it. If all 5 rounds went into one lung, he has a major problem. However, that is quite survivable and he can even stay in the fight if he is determined, or under the influence. If however, you get the lungs, heart, and or liver, he cannot breathe and will likely collapse in just a few seconds due to loss of blood. There is no amount of determination of drugs that will keep him in the fight. The body will fail to function and that will be that.

Are you starting to see the effectiveness of compound trauma? Moving beyond the physical effects of it, we can take a peek at the psychological effects of compound trauma. One wound is bad enough, but when you have several different wounds and you are feeling the different effects of them, panic and maybe even shock will set it. This is good for you. If he can become focused on himself and not you, he suddenly becomes less interested in the fight and a lot more concerned with staying alive.

If this happens to you, being the good guy, you need to stay calm and do not panic. Finish the fight or die trying. Then start treatment. You can’t stop in the middle of a fight because of injury, that only gives them further advantage. You must press on and finish the fight. Once done there, you can use the first aid training you received to dress your wounds and call for help. It is of paramount importance that you do not give up mentally. There have been many cases of someone with a would that should have killed them survive because they refused to succumb to the injury. Stay strong and stay in the fight!

Compound trauma is not a topic often talked about or discussed, but I think it is important for you to understand. Not only for you own benefit if you experience it but also for inflicting it to use against a threat. Not just with guns either. You can combine and mix any combination of weapons and tools to inflict compound trauma, that is the beauty of it.

What can we learn?

  • Many holes are more effective than one when it comes to injury.
  • The body will stop working faster with several injuries as opposed to one.
  • Compound trauma works fast to shut the body down and keep it from functioning.
  • Train to be good and stay there! 6-9″ groups are very combat effective on the torso.
  • Get first aid training…

Stay Sharp,

Adam

San Bernardino April 10, 2017: An estranged husband enters his separated wife’s school where she is a special needs teacher, goes to her classroom and immediately opens fire on her using a “large-caliber revolver*”. The wife was the intended target, sadly however, two young children were also injured, one of which later died at the hospital.

A few years back a town just down the road from where I live experienced a similar event. A woman who was in fear for her life from an abusive boyfriend ended the relationship. He went to her place of work ( a place he knew she would be) and shot her multiple times with a shotgun, her fears were justified. These events are truly tragic on multiple levels and yet, not that uncommon…

We are going to look at this from two angles. First from a avoiding a dangerous person angle, next a “how does this effect me” angle. It is hugely important that when dating and interacting with the What general populace that you are aware of some common and easily recognizable warning signs to a dangerous or potentially dangerous person. Disclaimer: Just because someone exhibits one or more of these behaviors, it does not mean that they are dangerous, they may just be nosy. Warning signs are just that, signs.  However, you can begin to see the image when you start putting puzzle pieces together.

One of the easiest and most recognizable signs is over inquisitiveness. If someone is asking too many questions, or out-of-place questions that should send red flags, especially if they are not offering any information themselves. For example: Where do you work, what time do you get off, do you carpool, do you live alone, etc. Those are obvious, but the smart ones are subtle in gathering this information. They may ask: What do you do? Oh, nice, a 9-5 Mon-Fri job huh? A subtle and innocuous way of gathering personal information they don’t need.

The other sign we are going to discuss is control. If someone is trying to control you in any way you need to pay close attention for other signs! While some control may be overt, this does not typically come until the relationship has some time on. Not letting you leave, controlling all of the money, controlling friends, etc are all overt. Some of the covert methods they use early on are harder to see, but there none the less. Try texting a friend in their presence ignore them, and laugh a lot. If they keep asking questions about who it is, what you are talking about, what’s so funny, or something along those lines, pay attention! All the more so if they seem serious or bothered at all by the test.

The second angle  is “how does this effect me?”. Well, read the opening story again. An 8-year-old that was not targeted was killed and another seriously wounded. Have you figured it out yet? Collateral damage… If you are in the area of a domestic event, you may be in danger. If a co-worker is separated from a potentially dangerous subject, take heed. The worst part is, you may not even know it. People all around us, including our coworkers and friends may not share those kinds of things with us. This is one reason I think you should take time to invest in your friends, but I digress.

This topic is two-fold and overlapping. Not only preventative but also reactionary. If you can recognize danger signs and avoid the threat, do it! Sometimes we find ourselves around those who did not see the warning signs, or walking through an area with a domestic event in progress. Either way we need to be prepared to protect ourselves in a proportionate way against the threat.

 

 

What can we learn?

  1. You do not have to be the target of an event to be a victim
  2. Domestic Overflow is real, and can be dangerous
  3. Work, recreation, public, etc are all venues that domestic overflow can happen
  4. Know what the warning signs are, and look for them, it is a passive process and simple
  5. What are you doing in the life of those around you to stay plugged in and help them
    • If you are taking care of a friend and “one-anothering” you will likely know something is going on and can help them through it, including help keep them safe.

Stay Sharp,

Adam

 

 

*Police One

Every now and again, I find myself watching, and trying to enjoy a good action flick. Then it happens… The antagonist (bad guy) sees the protagonist (hero) from across a busy lobby area, full of people. He pulls his gun and begins to shoot our hero as he runs away. Hero then turns around and begins to fire back, all while there are dozens of terrified bystanders running around screaming.

Ok, yes, that is indeed a movie, however, with today’s violent society who is to say that cannot happen for real? As a matter fact it would not take long for me to produce a dozen such incidents that have indeed happened. A murderer opens fire on a large crowd of people. Put yourself in such a situation, for just a minute. How would you respond?

Shooting into a crowd is an incredibly dangerous and complicated process. The best hostage rescue teams in the world train every day for years on shooting around people they don’t intend to kill. How much time have you spent doing this?… Yeah, me either… Some operations, if time allows, the teams will create a replica of the area, and train for days, weeks, or even months on executing a specific rescue mission.

While hostage rescue is a little different, it is more simplistic than shooting at a dynamic (moving) target around a lot of other moving people… My point here is: The best in the world would not flippantly take a shot like this, think twice before you do…

Let’s go beyond the typical scope here, and look at no gun incidents. How can you defend yourself if a gun is not warranted? Well, a non-lethal approach is obviously needed. What are our options? Depending on where you live and the laws you have the following open to you:

  • Pepper spray
  • Electronic Control Device (stun gun)
  • Air Horn / Whistle
  • Hands

Any of these can be used to defend yourself. Given the situation, different tools will be more applicable or effective. An air horn or whistle is great to alert the police that are 40 yards away, but, in the middle of getting punched, I would recommend a more hands on approach…

Some basic hand to hand skills and techniques will go a long way. You do not have to be a master martial artist to defend yourself against some addict looking for a hit. The appropriate amount force, applied properly can be enough to save your skin.

We will take a look at pepper spray in-depth another time, but let’s look at it briefly here. Pepper spray comes in many forms, shapes, brands, concentrations, etc.. However, they are all aerosols and the contents atomize upon release. One thing you need to be aware of, if you release it, you may get some too; especially if you are in a small area (car, room, etc.).

Pepper spray has a great ability to temporally “blind” the threat and cause panic, pain, and disorientation. It also works on animals such as dogs.

One benefit to having people around and having to defend yourself in a crowded area is: witnesses! Others will be able to substantiate your account of what happened. This will help law enforcement with their investigation.

Defending yourself or others in a crowded environment is not where you want to be. It stinks, no two ways about it. So, we have to have a plan going in and be wise about it! Know what is legal in your area before hand, and prepare yourself accordingly. Train and equip for defending yourself, especially without a gun, in a crowded environment. Consider the options for tools, and employ them!

What can we learn?

  • Shooting into a crowd = terrible idea
  • Lethal force is not always available, nor a good idea.
  • We are liable for all that we do, be careful and wise with your strategy.
  • Don’t always assume a gun is the best option.

Stay Sharp

Adam

 

One of my dreams is to hike a section of the Appalachian Trail. This trail about 2200 miles long running from Georgia to Maine, and takes several months to hike in its entirety. I have watched documentaries, read stories, looked at maps, etc. to get a feel for the experience. In my studies, I learned of a little shop at the top of a hill close to the southern trail head. A hiker would likely get to this shop within a couple of days. It is full of all kinds of random things, off the wall trinkets, obscure and expensive gadgets, and hiking equipment. It also is well stocked with the essential hiking equipment.

This store sells the essentials, and buys  the excess. Hikers very quickly learn what is important. Every ounce matters in the pack. Those who pack in unnecessary gear for an extended hike may be well-funded, but lack experience/knowledge. They learn quickly just how important knowledge is, and are willing to sacrifice equipment once they understand what they are doing.

We can circumvent the vast majority of this difficult and possibly costly learning curve by doing some homework, and learning from the pros how to do it right. This approach carries over to pretty much every aspect of our lives. Let’s take a look at how this applies to our personal safety.

Every now and again I have a student come in with a brand new $1000+ dollar handgun that has never been shot, because they have never shot a hand gun… They have the equipment, but no understanding of how the thing works, essentially rendering it a really nice paper weight (but, they came to learn!). On the other hand, I have had students come in with grandpa’s old revolver that has seen better days. And yet, they perform very well! They have trained, learned, and bothered to gain the knowledge necessary to get the best from any tool available.

There is an old song that goes by the name of “Touch of the Master’s Hand“. It says that even though something may appear worthless, in the right hands, it is priceless. This puts focus on knowledge and capability as opposed to gear and equipment. Some of the most capable “operators” I know use quality equipment, train with it extensively, and place knowledgeable above all else.

What knowledge is most valuable? A few key topics come to mind: Tactics, Weapons manipulation, Human functionality, and Your own limits.

  • Tactics: We must know how to move, where, and when with purpose and intent.
  •  Weapons Manipulation: If you don’t know how to handle your weapon proficiently under stress, you better get there!
  • Human Functionality: We need to know how our body acts under stress, as well as how a threat’s body reacts to injury and other input.
  • Our own limits: You cannot do what you cannot do. There are some physical limitations. Can you honestly say that you can take a head shot into a moving threat through an active and dynamic crowd in a mall? I can’t. I know that, if you are being honest you can’t either, not without hitting a bystander. That is just reality…

I am not saying you cannot have nice gear, far from it! We should invest in quality gear. However, consider getting a $800 gun and spend $1200 on training, as opposed to $2000 gun with no training. If you can do both $2k on a gun, and train, more power to you! Most of us however, must settle for good quality consumer grade tools and train, and train… and train some more.

Never feel like you need to compete with other people’s gear, more on that here. What they have may not work for you, shoot, it may not work at all! Sometimes I see some “tactical” gear and cringe due to its disastrous potential! Gear does not equal good. A 10 lb rifle may look cool, but is all but worthless when clearing rooms. Your goals and priorities must be weighed, measured, and considered when creating a strategy for your safety. Seek professional help if necessary, but please learn!

What can we learn?

  • What is more valuable, gear or knowledge? Without gear, knowledge is worthless, without knowledge, gear is.
  • Gear is not always good, nor is it always helpful.
  • Equipment can be good, but be selective.
  • Avoid becoming obsessed with equipment
  • Spend time and resources on training!
  • Knowledge will cost more time than anything else, it is worth the investment!
  • Knowledge is power!!

Stay Sharp

Adam

Ivan Pavlov was a popular Russian scientist in the late 1800’s through the early 1900’s; being awarded the Nobel prize in 1904. He began an experiment studying the salivary glands in dogs and how their saliva impacted the digestive process. Every time he would feed the dogs he would measure the saliva and perform other tests. His team began ringing a bell to signify feeding time before every feeding. After a short time the dogs began to associate the bell with food, after all, every time they heard the bell they got food. They discovered that when they rang the bell, the dogs’ salivary glands fired up, even without the presence of food.

The study produced not only the intended results, but it also produced one of the biggest psychological discoveries of the day, that is: Classical conditioning. We often refer to this as Pavlovian Response after it’s namesake. Classical Conditioning is one of two forms of learning, as we understand learning at this point. Classical conditioning is how we learn as a result of stimulus and actions. Operant Conditioning however is learning by consequences; for example we learn fire is hot shortly after we touch it…

We will focus on Classical Conditioning for the purpose of this writing. I can understand your confusion here. What in the world does saliva in dogs (gross) have to do with self-defense? Let me see if I can unpack this a little bit; but let’s back up a touch. We react to a lot of things, at all time, in everything we do. We have to act or react, and the point can even be made that reacting is an action, but I digress. In our reactions we have two categories: Good & Bad… When driving down the highway, and the semi on your left starts drifting into your lane you have to react right? Ok, so you have two ways to react: good or bad. Good: We carefully whip into the lane to our right away from the semi, and give the diver a polite but firm 10 second horn blow (we have strategically kept the lane to our right open in just such an emergency right?). Bad: We do not move, or worse move into the semi!

Why do we react in the way that we do in such situations? Well, there is a primal instinct to survive at play, but beyond that alone we have been conditioned to react in that way. In the example given above, you may react due to either/or/both Operant or Classical conditioning.

Classical conditioning for self-defense is important for several reasons, the biggest of these is: Survival stress reaction. During a survival stress situation, our brain goes into a primal mode and makes many actions and thought processes we take for granted difficult if not impossible. However, when we train ourselves to react to a situation we have conditioned ourselves to react without thinking about it. This may very well be the difference between life and death, or at least bodily injury.

This can be done with firearms, body, mind, and any other tools. This response takes is time, dedication, and proper practice and stimulus. If we want to train to draw our firearm the second a threat is presented, then we need to have a threat presented to us in a safe controlled manner. Yelling “threat” or “gun” to initiate a response is not going to get it alone. Auditory input is great; for example drawing to the sound of gunfire. However, you must incorporate visual stimuli into your training as well.

We can train ourselves to a Pavlovian response in a mind-boggling array of topics. What happens when you smell your favorite meal being cooked to perfection? Your mouth waters, you get hungry, and you just might smile. Why do we do this? Because we have been conditioned to know that smell is a sign of good things to come, in short order. Our body begins to prep itself for receiving food, in turn you get hungry(er). Congratulations, you have been conditioned!

Do not underestimate the power of your body and mind. I have made it a personal mission through my work at Strategic Defense Group to help you understand the awesome power and control we have through ourselves as given by our creator. Classical conditioning is an important facet of how we can overcome and survive.

What can we learn?

  • Ivan Pavlov put a name to something that has been designed into us from the dawn of time: Classical Conditioning
  • Classical conditioning is how we learn to react to stimuli.
  • Pavlovian response is important to self-defense due to how we react to survival stress situations
  • Take the time and effort to dedicated  training for Pavlovian response in some common self-defense areas ie: drawing your handgun from concealment.

Stay Sharp

Adam

 

Sometimes I go to training and see the guys with $3,000+ rifles, $1500+ handguns, and $1,000+ worth of accessories with the latest and greatest of everything Tactical; the latest 5.11 Tactical gear, hats, gloves, plate carrier, helmet, so on and so forth… Then I look up my gear and realize it’s a working man’s load out, I have maybe $1,000 into my rifle and then less than $500 in my hand gun.  I am sometimes embarrassed by my “Poor Man’s” load out; then I realized, it’s not just about high-end gear, it is about a whole lot more…

America has become pretentious as a whole. Unless you have the latest car, nicest clothes, and biggest house you are somehow inferior to everyone else. This worldview carries over into the tactical world, believe that. Tactical is synonymous with macho/ego at times, only serving to exacerbate this problem. Some folks look down on people for not being able to afford the all the highest end gear, others may not want to spend that much even if they can.

I understand the feeling, most intimately I assure you. As and instructor I get people of all walks come through our courses. Often I have someone come in with everything nicer than me, and that is ok. Other folks have what some would call “cheap” gear, but that is all they can afford. I don’t understand this attitude of: “you suck unless you have nice gear”. This irritates me to no end. I have known a lot of folks who do not have much money, however, they are good at what they do for this reason: They buy a decent tool, and spend time with it…

Now, let me clarify something real quick: I am not saying that you cannot have nice things, not at all. If you can afford the high end gear, go for it! However, you should avoid at all costs judging others based on their gear! On a related note: worn out gear, of decent quality, is a sign of experience and time, don’t let worn out gear fool you. In my construction days we would joke about the guys who roll up on a site with all new tools; this was a dead give away to that guy not having a clue what he was doing. His tools were all new because he has never used them.

Back on topic now, what is most important is learning to use the tool. Say for example you have a $1000 budget for a new handgun. You could buy a $1000 dollar gun sure, OR you could buy a $5/600 gun, spend a hundred bucks on getting some professional instruction, and spend what ever you have left ($3/400) on ammo and time on the range. You will learn more about your gun in a week like this than most learn in years!

The cold hard reality is %95 of the population does not need the best gear, they need good gear and the best training! So, next time you are at the range or a training and you see “Tactical Tommy” over there, wearing his AR-500 plates and carrier, ballistic helmet, 14 AR mags, thigh holster and 12 inch “tactical” knife ask yourself this question: “Will any of those things help me defend myself and my family”? If you wake up in the middle of the night, are you gonna throw on all that gear, or when you are at a Gala, will you be wearing your plates? I highly doubt it… Train for the fight you are most likely to have. All of the tactical gear is fun, believe me, and it has its place, but don’t get to caught up in all of the flash and forget the substance…

What can we learn:

  • Gear does not define a man, character does
  • Do not get so caught up in the gear itself, you never bother become proficient with it
  • Will all of the tactical gear equip you to better protect you and your family in the “real world”?
  • Do not allow yourself to judge others based on equipment, not everyone has the ability to have the latest and greatest

Stay Sharp

Adam

Yeah… I said it! I’ll say it again too; Guns are not always the answer! Well, now that you are yelling at your screen let us take a quick walk through the park to cool off. We are walking through the park on a brisk evening, enjoying a display of lights just before Christmas. There are a lot of other people in the park all around us but, it is fairly secluded and peaceful in this section. Before you realize what is going on some punk jumps out from behind a well decorated pine tree.  He is not holding a weapon, you see both his hands and they are empty. He is making erroneous threats and saying he will beat you up and take your wallet if you don’t give it to him. He has not touched either us, he is about 6 feet away, and he is alone as far as far you can tell. There are two of us, we are both carrying guns, and there are a lot of people around including small children just on the other side of the bushes. What do you do!?

Hold up! Before you answer; think through the entirety of the scenario. Can you shoot him? We are both packing after all. What lethal threat has he presented to authorize you such action? If you see any, I missed it. Even if you are in a “stand your ground” state, justifying that shoot would be a stretch at best. If you are in a “duty to retreat” state, you must run away from the guy before you use lethal force, even if it is justified.

So, if I can’t shoot him, what can do? Now you are asking the right question. The answer: A lot! There are many options available to you that can be summarized in this phrase: Non-Lethal. Anything that is not likely to result in serious physical injury or death is on the table. Here is one I like: Pepper Spray. It is cheap, easy to obtain, effective, and easy enough to deploy a child can do it, and most importantly, it is not lethal.

This punk is a threat no doubt, he is threatening to beat us up and seems to be willing and capable of doing so, or at least trying. But he is not a lethal threat as described. That leaves us with a gun that we have trained with and a moment we have physically and mentally prepared for, and we can’t use the gun… The gun is not the answer here. Firearms are great for defense in the narrow field of lethal force. There are only a few triggers that allow for lethal force. In contrast however, there are a plethora of triggers for non lethal force.

Quick side note: Don’t hear me saying that you should stop thinking about your gun and training with it. Even though it may be a narrow field, lethal force is extremely serious and you should be proficient and ready to meet this force with your handgun. What I am saying is you need to prepare and be prepared for those encounters where the gun cannot help you. Additionally, the threat as described above could become lethal in an instant. Just because you don’t see a knife or gun does not mean he does not have one, but I digress.

I want to get you out of this single track mindset of get to my gun. Do you need to be prepared and well-trained with your gun, you betcha! However, there are countless scenarios in which you need to defend yourself and your loved one(s) with non-lethal force. Please, promise me one thing: If you decide to start carrying pepper spray with you, do not leave it buried in your purse, pocket, or glove box… Like your gun, you need to be able to get to it in an emergency and quickly. Whatever non lethal tool(s) and/or systems you wish to employ train in them and with them. Train hard, and fight like your life depends on it, it just might.

What can we learn?

  • Guns are not always the answer
  • I love guns, I mean I really really enjoy guns; that said, guns are still not always the answer
  • Guns are a last resort, you would be amazed at how much you can do for your personal safety before you ever get to the solution that is a gun. These are a small part of a big picture, albeit a critical one
  • There are countless situations in which you need a non lethal solution, get some non lethal tools, train with them, carry them, and be prepared to deploy them
  • Understand the laws in your state. Be very clear on what the law allows for lethal force, learn it so well that you don’t have to think about it in the moment, you can just react appropriately

Stay Sharp,

Adam

I have seen countless videos on social media and other venues of guys and gals shooting with extreme speed and accuracy in competition. Moving from one target to another after one shot with incredible fluidity, engaging with one shot to drop a steel target. This is no doubt impressive, and I encourage you to find your balance of speed and accuracy, push yourself and grow!

Before we get going, let me make one thing clear: I am not bashing competition, I compete when my schedule allows it. There are many benefits to structured competition, but that is another article.

I am going to come right out and say it: Competition speed shooting builds a false sense of reality when you shoot once and the target falls, that is just not reality. One of my first times shooting an IDPA match I found myself allowing speed to trump accuracy! While I support the saying: A fast four is better than a slow 5, there needs to be a balance. What I saw myself doing was getting a fast 2 or 3 and moving so fast that my time makes up for my poor shooting, this is not permissible!

The thing that bothers me most about watching these folks shoot 10 rounds in 3 seconds, engaging 10 targets is this: It creates within you that you shoot the target once, and the threat is neutralized, this is just not true, especially when we are talking handguns (unless you hit the “light switch”). According to a study performed over 12 years at King-Drew Medical center in Los Angles, they found that only 24.5% of handgun gunshot wounds to the heart were fatal (learn more here)!

What I am getting at here is don’t allow competition, or watching others compete, influence your tactics. While there are situations in which you may need to engage numerous targets in rapid succession, don’t get in this habit of shooting once and disengaging. You can still engage numerous targets in a short time by planting a few well placed rounds in one target and moving on. It takes you more time to transition from one target to another than it does to squeeze your trigger finger a few more times.

Side note: Consider training for head shots. With the ever-increasing availability of body armor, “center mass”  shots may not get you where you are going. Training for head shots within 7 yards will not be a waste of time and resources, I promise. If you want to train for the one shot and move on kind of engagement, you must train for head shots.

What I’m not saying: Single shots are ineffective. A single, well placed shot does something, what exactly, varies based on the situation. I was talking with an officer friend of mine, and he was telling me about an encounter a friend of his had out west. He shot a suspect 3 times (it was justified for the record), the suspect then began to fight, and hard. The officer was in the fight of and for his life for over 30 seconds, which might as well have been 30 hours. An autopsy of the suspect revealed that the officer’s first shot blew the suspect heart to pieces. He was dead but he did not know it for 30 seconds. Thirty seconds are a long time do serious damage…

Speed and accuracy are critical for effective handgun self-defense, but, they are not everything. We must use sound tactics; which means addressing the threat until it is no longer a threat. Shooting once and disengaging may leave the threat intact, I mean, what if you miss?! This is why follow through is so important. If you decide to use your handgun use it to its maximum potential, don’t hit it and quit it…

What can we learn?

  • Speed kills; Question is, will it be you or the threat? You decide that through your tactics.
  • Don’t shoot once and move on!
  • If you compete do not allow your time to influence your shooting.
    • Hold fast to your commitment to accuracy and shot placement, speed will come naturally.
  • The majority of handgun wounds are not fatal, that goes for you and the threat both.
  • Follow through to ensure that the threat stops being a threat.
  • Everything you do is training, act like it.

Stay Sharp,

Adam

In 1989 Patrick Swayze starred in a film called Roadhouse. It is a rough and tumble movie with even rougher characters. Swayze is hired for his reputation, site unseen. They know this guy is as bad as bad can be. He woops butt, and loves the back leg spinning roundhouse (possibly why the movie carries that kick’s namesake). He brings in his mentor (played by Sam Elliot) when things get rough. A few guys want to prove they are tougher than they hear these two are and are dead set on proving it; then the fight is on! Both of these men had reputations that far surpassed their geographical reach. What does your reputation say about you?

Every now and again, I meet someone who says: “Markesbery? any relation to….”, or “I think I met you at…” or maybe even “Oh my gosh, I’m your biggest fan!”. Okay, I made that last one up. However, I often meet people who have heard of me, know of me, or know some of my family. They have some predetermined view of me, and have made assumptions based on what they have heard, seen, or read even though they have never met me personally.

We have no control over what people think of us, how they see us, or what they say about us when we are not around. What we can control however, is our own actions. This is where we need to spend our efforts, not worrying about what others say about us. I have had some nasty rumors spread about me in the past, but, those who hear them discard them out of hand, or ask me about it. I have spent many years gaining and maintaining a reputation of honesty, integrity, humility, and character. Those that have spent time with me know that if they hear something counter to what they know me to be, know the rumor to be bogus because it is inconsistent with my character.

What in the world does our reputation have to do with self defense? Frankly, nothing directly, but, indirectly is another story. Your reputation does not help you shoot straight under stress, make you stronger, or sharpen you blade. What our reputation does for our defense is spread the word. I have personally witnessed several fights that started as a result of something someone said about someone else, or at least were accused of saying.

If you have a reputation of being above reproach in character, as well as being a capable warrior, then you are a lot less likely to be attacked by those around you. If, on the other hand, you have a reputation for drama, histrionics, and starting fights, guess what? You are going to be in a lot more fights.

I was able to avoid fights for the most part growing up, as I was born bigger than most and maintained that advantage into adulthood. At 6’5″ and 240 lbs, I am larger than most. One day, during my stint in public school I somehow collected for myself a bully, he was 3 years older and 2 grades above me, with about 70 pounds or more (even if it was all fat, it was still mass). He kept pushing me around and down. One day, after I reached my tipping point I told him “If you do that again, I’m going to hit you back”. He and his two friends were standing over me mocking me and betting with their tongues I wouldn’t. They bet wrong… The next time he pushed me down (about 5 minutes later) he started walking away. I stood up, and commenced to run as fast and hard as I could, lowered my right shoulder and put it into his lower back right on the spine with everything I had. He went flying in the air for a few feet and landed on his face. He started to get up and come back at me, and one of my buddies tripped him again. He then got up and left the Gymnasium.

From that day forward, if I was in and around the Gym, he would not come in. Several times I witnessed him looking through the doors, we would make eye contact, and he would walk away. What did I do in those five seconds of action? I established my reputation. Everyone there that day knew that if you pick on me, there will be retaliation. I did not have a problem with a bully for quite some time after that.

What does your reputation say about you? Are you an easy victim, a pushover, liar, drama queen/king, a jerk, rude, needlessly combative, hateful, arrogant, etc? Or, are you humble, gentle, kind, hard, strong, an intercessor, a warrior, capable, honest, man or woman of integrity? Don’t get me wrong, I have my moments; my wonderful wife can tell you that I can be a jerk at times. But, does that define me? I certainly hope not, nor is that the feedback I get from people I interact with!

What does your reputation say about you? If someone was telling me about you, what would they say? Is it flattering or degrading? Would what they say honor or embarrass you? People will not remember you for what you had, but for who you where; what does your reputation say about you?

What can we learn?

  • Your reputation proceeds you.
  • Be conscience of your reputation and do your part to ensure you project the kind of person you want to be
  • People talk. If you are a jerk, people will know about it. If you are kind and capable, people will know about it
  • It takes 1 second to ruin your reputation, and years to repair, if repairable (consider public figures who lie or cheat, they are often ruined and fade into obscurity)
  • Integrity and character is critical for establishing a positive reputation
  • A good reputation won’t keep you from spontaneous attack (robbery/mugging, indiscriminate attack, etc.)
  • What does your reputation say about you?

Stay Sharp,

Adam