The Concealed Carry Balancing Act
I'm meeting with a new student in a few hours to talk about her options for personal defense and look over some possible guns for her. She's a 65 year old widower and has a niece who is a trainer…
Community Building
A few of my friends in the firearms world have been poopoo-ing the SIG Sauer Rose Retreats, where women pay a healthy chunk of cash ($5k or so) to get some training, a signature pistol and hang out for a…
New Class: Home Defense Carbine
Once vilified as an “assault weapon,” the AR-15 is, in fact, a very effective tool for home defense. Light, easy to handle and with little appreciable recoil, it can be quickly adapted to fit each user in ways other rifles…
Mission Creeps
YouTube decided to serve me up a video for "The Top Five Church Security Handguns." Really? REALLY? I'm in the process of standing up a security team for my house of worship, and trying to standardize on a handgun for…
Skills vs. Application
Do you need to have been in a gunfight in order to teach defensive tactics? For the armed civilian, I think the answer to that question is “No.” Skills are universal. For instance, I had the chance last year to…
AUTOMATICITY NOW!!!
I freeloaded my way into Brian Hill’s “Pistol Essentials and Beyond” to write an article for work (full disclosure, Brian’s wife Shelley writes for us), and while there, I had some breakthroughs about the mind game of shooting. As some…
The Six CYA’s Of The Armed Lifestyle
Challenge Your Assumptions: Think you “know how to shoot?” Prove it. Shoot a 5x5 or a Dot Torture drill with no warmup, and see if you’re right. Can’t do that? Well, then it’s time to… Cover Your Assets: Prepare yourself…
Our Priorities Are All Wrong
If you take any beginning pistol class or decent concealed carry source (3 or more hours of instruction), you’re going to get lots of tips on grip, stance, sights and trigger. These are important things, and need to be taught,…
Speed of Lightning, Roar of Thunder
Let’s talk for a minute about three interrelated topics in the armed self-defense world, namely the sub-second draw, the stealthy or surreptitious draw, and the principles of counter-ambush. Taking them in reverse order, let me acknowledge the huge debt we…
There’s A New FDLE Pistol Qualification Headed Our Way
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement Pistol Qualification has been a staple of firearms training not just for police officers here in the Sunshine State, but also armed civilians all across the country. It’s shot at realistic distances with generous…