Asking Ourselves the Hard Questions
When it comes to training, we must be honest with ourselves, and accountable. “Am I training hard enough?” is a question we should always have in our minds. “Am I training on everything I should train on for combat (whatever combat situation yours may be)?” We all have areas we can improve. A simple way to look at this is to break it down into the three categories of combat. Shoot, move, and communicate. In being honest, we all work on shooting more than the other two. At least, I know I do because it the easy and fun button. We understand guns, we understand shooting, the ding of the steel is instant gratification and feeds our ego. But we are training for combat (whatever that may be for you.) What I’ve learned in my 20 years of military experience and multiple combat vacations is there’s no room for ego in combat. When people depend on us, we must own every mistake and be humble in every success.
We’ll start with shooting. Like I said, it’s the easy one. We all own guns, or should. We all know where ranges are and have taken classes, but are we training or just having fun? We never want to be the guy on the range who has the extremely tight shot group, and is there to show off to his friends how well he can make tight little groups in paper. We are training for combat. When we leave the range, we should be physically and mentally taxed. We should push our limits. Something as simple as shooting off-handed. I suck at shooting with my left hand, so I shoot with my left hand and get better at it. When I’m at a public range and I have people there that I don’t know and they’re judging me with their eyes because I’m missing when I’m taking hard and difficult shots with my off-hand, I have no ego about it. I’m training for combat, there’s no room for ego. I’m not going to take my training ammo and switch to my strong hand and show them how fast and accurate I can be -- they don’t matter. I’m here to train.
So, when you are assessing your firearms training, are you making it hard enough for yourself? If you are a basic shooter and are new to this lifestyle, work on the fundamentals. Surprise, surprise, what makes you an expert is doing the fundamentals well. As you start to make things more difficult, add things like firing from different body positions. But always remember the fundamentals. Now, there needs to be caution here. When I talk about making training difficult, I’m talking about pushing boundaries, making ourselves uncomfortable and trying new things. I’m not talking about doing stupid and unsafe drills. I’m not talking about trying to recreate some fool on YouTube who came up with some drill in his backyard that is unsafe and does not reinforce the fundamentals. When you come to an LTAC class, Jared and I and the other instructors have developed our training regiment off of combat experience concentrating on these three things: is this a realistic scenario? does it reinforce the fundamentals? and is it safe? Pay attention to your firearms training and plan, is it preparing you for your combat? Is it challenging enough? Or is it there to build your ego and make you feel better about yourself?
Training movement. This is the middle of the road category. For the most part, we all do something in this category. Again, it varies upon the individual. Some of us just walk the dog, some train for marathons. Being in good physical condition is one of the best ways you can prepare for the stresses of combat. Remember, we are asking ourselves the hard questions. When it comes to movement, am I an asset or am I a liability? Remember, there is no ego in combat, we have to be honest. Here are some areas to focus on:
First, and the obvious, my bipedal method of moving from one location to another. What my range, and does it meet my combat scenario?
Next area of focus, often overlooked in this day of technology: Can I find where I’m going? Learning the fundamentals of navigation will be extremely useful in any situation. It will not only give you reassurance and confidence in a stressful situation, but it will also give confidence and reassurance to the other individuals that you may find yourself with. If you think of yourself as an Alpha, a leader, and you depend on a GPS, I’m sorry to tell you, you’re a follower.
The final thing to think about with movement is vehicle movement. It seems a silly question, but in this day and age, Do I know how to drive a vehicle with a manual transmission? We all must learn sometime. Remember, no ego in combat. You do not want to find yourself in a situation where your only means of Exfill is a vehicle you can’t drive. There are many great 4-wheel drive courses and clubs all over the U.S. with people who are as passionate about driving as you are about firearms. Do your research, reach out to these organizations and learn something. These are ways to expand your training to meet your combat situation. Remember, getting to and from the fight requires movement.
The third and final category is communications. We will all acknowledge that this is an important one and most likely the area that we are all unprepared for. Again, having no ego, my commo plan is: primary is my cell phone, alternate is the internet. Contingency is, hope that the alternate and primary are still working, and I never make it this far down the PACE plan. We’re not even going to talk about emergency. So, I’ve identified that this is something I need to fix in my combat plan. Like most of us, the first thing I did was buy equipment. I sought out experts, took their opinions, and purchased stuff. But do I know how to use that stuff? No. It sits in a box. Right now, I’m changing that. My wife and I are studying to get our amateur radio licenses. Both technician and general, which will allow us to train and use the equipment that I have already purchased. I’ve started to look forward to utilizing commo training within my own family. This is an area that is uncomfortable for us, but good training makes us uncomfortable.
This coming July, I’ll be bringing Dan Metcalf up to LTAC, who is my personal go-to guy for all things commo. Come to his Emergency Communications Seminar. You will learn a lot from him, and it is a great starting point. Next, seek out a HAM or amateur radio club in your area or the American Red Cross. Most give free classes to get you prepared for the licensing exams. Yes, you are going to have to go deal with some very passionate people, but remember, have no ego about it. Then, once you have done the training and know what equipment is out there, purchase your equipment. Don’t be like me.
Here’s a glimpse into my future commo training plan. I have a local outdoor range that is about ten miles from my house as the crow flies. When I go to the range without my wife, I plan to set up my radios and practice communicating with my household. Then, the next time I’m in PA, I plan on practicing my long-range communication with my family. Yes, it takes a little bit more time, but we plan for that. Doing this will make me more combat effective.
The hard questions are the hard questions for a reason. As much as we want to pretend we have no ego, no pride, we all do. There’s nothing wrong at being pleased with your capabilities and the things you do at a high level. But remember, we want to always be honest with ourselves and be goal-oriented. We’re preparing for combat (whatever that may be for you). By being honest with ourselves about our capabilities, we’ll reach our goals of being prepared for that combat situation much faster. When that day comes, we will meet it like an old friend, with a smile and confidence in our true abilities and not with fear that we’re going to be called out for our inadequacies. We should always be our harshest critic and toughest judge. That’s the way to get better. Only fools lie to themselves.
Chris