Badger Johnson
Regular Member
One of the things that makes me laugh when watching shows like 'Personal Defense TV' and other pretty good shows on firearms is this.
They show the drill where the guy shoots his target, then goes to low ready and looks to left and right, and/or pivots a little and looks behind and then holsters his firearm is that I keep thinking that under a high stress situation the same person will do that move and look to left and right and the holster his/her handgun, EVEN THOUGH, when they looked there was a threat or another person coming at them.
Why? They only trained to look, and then holster their handgun and (I muse) that might be (holy cow!) what they do in a real SD situation they just do the "Looking" and then put their gun away and their brain, being flooded with neurochemicals and tunnel vision won't let them break that pattern.
Anyway, I think when you do more 'advanced' firearm training you should ALSO include a few instances where there IS someone running at the trainee (who is shooting snap caps or simmunition) and they have to do an actual reaction so that little 'look left and right' doesn't become a 'box' they end up stuck inside.
I think that situational awareness by its very definition will fail you WHEN YOU NEED IT MOST. So try and think it through well before that is a need.
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Now on to a more substantive comment. My partner said she wanted to know what she should do if coming out of a store some guy ran up and grabbed her before she got to her car - should she resist, should she go limp and seem to comply and then when he wasn't paying attention, access her firearm.
We talked about this and realized a couple things.
1. I think it's a myth that seasoned predators will run up and grab you and then also (at some point) not be paying attention. A seasoned predator will get control and then either subdue the victim, knock them unconscious, have a buddy system, or something where the CONTROL keeps INCREASING as the encounter proceeds.
2. NEVER get in the car. No matter what you have to do, even risking getting shot or stabbed once, don't get in the car. Once in he can knock you out or do whatever shielded from view, etc.
Finally, I said 'the problem is you got yourself into a situation where your options were becoming very limited. You had to get to the car, get keys out, have firearm accessible and then open the car and (bad place 1, here) turn your back at some point and then (bad place 2, here) go sit in the car and you're now pinned by the wheel. WHAT YOU SHOULD have done (I said) was go get a store employee or someone else to walk you to your car and not waited until your 100s of options were now reduced to two or three.
My point, I guess, is that if you are at the point where you need your SA to help you, you have already lost the tactical battle at several points where you could have de-escalated, defused, gone the other way or gotten help. Listen to your fear, be rude, ask for help and do it often and early.
$.02
They show the drill where the guy shoots his target, then goes to low ready and looks to left and right, and/or pivots a little and looks behind and then holsters his firearm is that I keep thinking that under a high stress situation the same person will do that move and look to left and right and the holster his/her handgun, EVEN THOUGH, when they looked there was a threat or another person coming at them.
Why? They only trained to look, and then holster their handgun and (I muse) that might be (holy cow!) what they do in a real SD situation they just do the "Looking" and then put their gun away and their brain, being flooded with neurochemicals and tunnel vision won't let them break that pattern.
Anyway, I think when you do more 'advanced' firearm training you should ALSO include a few instances where there IS someone running at the trainee (who is shooting snap caps or simmunition) and they have to do an actual reaction so that little 'look left and right' doesn't become a 'box' they end up stuck inside.
I think that situational awareness by its very definition will fail you WHEN YOU NEED IT MOST. So try and think it through well before that is a need.
----
Now on to a more substantive comment. My partner said she wanted to know what she should do if coming out of a store some guy ran up and grabbed her before she got to her car - should she resist, should she go limp and seem to comply and then when he wasn't paying attention, access her firearm.
We talked about this and realized a couple things.
1. I think it's a myth that seasoned predators will run up and grab you and then also (at some point) not be paying attention. A seasoned predator will get control and then either subdue the victim, knock them unconscious, have a buddy system, or something where the CONTROL keeps INCREASING as the encounter proceeds.
2. NEVER get in the car. No matter what you have to do, even risking getting shot or stabbed once, don't get in the car. Once in he can knock you out or do whatever shielded from view, etc.
Finally, I said 'the problem is you got yourself into a situation where your options were becoming very limited. You had to get to the car, get keys out, have firearm accessible and then open the car and (bad place 1, here) turn your back at some point and then (bad place 2, here) go sit in the car and you're now pinned by the wheel. WHAT YOU SHOULD have done (I said) was go get a store employee or someone else to walk you to your car and not waited until your 100s of options were now reduced to two or three.
My point, I guess, is that if you are at the point where you need your SA to help you, you have already lost the tactical battle at several points where you could have de-escalated, defused, gone the other way or gotten help. Listen to your fear, be rude, ask for help and do it often and early.
$.02