I don’t know where it came from, but for some reason women new to handguns, and especially interested in concealed carry, are always told to buy revolvers. Sometimes, women should buy a revolver. For example, if they like it, are proficient shooting with it, and have found it easy to conceal. It shouldn’t be everyone’s automatic go-to though, and here are a few reasons why:Continue reading →
The problems with “holding” bad guys
Frequently in discussions about various types of criminal assault I see people discussing their intention to “hold” a criminal assailant for the police to come and collect. Naturally if some hammerhead just kicked your door down or threatened your family you want to see that sucker cuffed and stuffed into the back of a cruiser. It’s a perfectly natural desire…but remember that surviving the encounter in one piece is more important than getting to watch the bad guy perp-walked and locked in a box. Attempting to “hold” somebody for the police can expose you to grave peril.
Most often when bad guys encounter an armed good guy, they run. When I say “run” I mean the extra-special sort of adrenaline-assisted instinctual running that exists as an emergency sub-routine in our amygdala…the bit of our brain that is often referred to as “reptilian”. When our lizard brain is triggered under extreme stress the rest of it doesn’t function so well any more. Human beings are generally not outsmarted by doors…but watch how these armed robbers, under the influence of adrenaline, struggle with a door:
The bad guys here were certainly not rocket scientists to start with, but in the moment when that shot went off whatever passes for their rational mind was not in control as they fled in sheer panic. Note how when they encountered an obstacle (in this case, one another) they tried to move through it despite the futility of such an action. A person who has a single-minded focus on escape isn’t likely to respond to commands, and if you’re between them and the exit they’ll try to get through you even if you’re pointing a gun at them. Getting between them and the exit in an attempt to capture them for the police is going to increase the odds of a violent end and injury on both ends of the equation. I don’t much care if bad guys get hurt, but I’d hate to see a good guy get themselves needlessly injured because they tried to stop a criminal from fleeing the scene.
A bad guy who beats feet the second you clear leather is a really good outcome for you. It likely means that you’re going to survive the encounter with no injuries and no homicide investigation to deal with. This is a win. If the bad guy wants to run away and hand you a win, let him. When I started to draw on a skeezy looking drifter who tried to rob me, he sprinted from the scene like somebody had lit him on fire…and you know what? I was glad. I was pretty stoked that I wasn’t bleeding and that I didn’t have to spend the wee hours of Christmas morning explaining why my hollowpoints were now in that dude’s face to detectives. As robbery attempts go, it was as good as it gets. Trying to apprehend the guy would have placed me in greater physical danger and in greater danger of unpleasant legal consequences. The law in most places looks more favorably on a use of force to stop a criminal assault than it does a use of force that follows an attempt to chase down and capture a bad guy.
As I said earlier, most bad guys will run away and will do anything possible to actually get away…but occasionally some bad guy’s might not immediately take off like a jackrabbit. This is where it gets really dangerous. The bad guy who didn’t run at the sight of your gun might have the IQ of tartar sauce, or he might be unable to run because he’s voiding his bowels in abject terror. In such a state you might be tempted to think you have “control” over them. That’s where the danger kicks in. Human interactions, particularly ones where violence is involved or could shortly be involved, are not static. They don’t always stay in the state they begin. The bad guy who was frozen with fear and unable to pull his concealed weapon the instant you pulled your gun might not be so scared 3 minutes later when he’s hearing you give your location to the police.
An acquaintance of mine actually had a situation like this happen to him some time ago. He confronted someone who broke in to his place of business and at first the bad guy was scared of the Benelli shotgun in his hand and cooperated nicely. When the bad guy’s larger brain functions started to kick back in he started sizing up the man holding the shotgun and figured that he wasn’t cold blooded enough to pull the trigger on that shotgun upon slightest provocation. (Most good people would like to avoid killing anyone if they can. Most bad people can pick up on that and will use it against them if possible) The bad guy, a dude who had a street rep of being dumb as a post, starts trying to play mind games questioning who the shotgun-toting man was, claiming he was going to file assault charges, the whole deal. He was moving as he did this. The guy managed to talk his way to his feet and actually pulled a screwdriver on my acquaintance and started to close distance before the acquaintance realized what was really happening.
I want to make something absolutely clear: If you have not thoroughly searched a bad guy and put him in restraints, you do not have him under control. Even at that, there are a multitude of stories of police officers who have been killed by guys who were in cuffs. The dangers multiply with multiple bad guys. One scared good guy with little experience trying to control potentially violent criminals is going to have a dickens of a time keeping his attention and focus sharp enough to keep one bad guy under control for the 5-15 minutes it’s going to take for the police to show up…much less two or three. Bad guys he has not searched or restrained, remember. It’s probably dark, and the stress is probably evident in the good guy’s voice while he talks to the 911 operator. We talk all the time about how you can use a bad guy’s excited state and his focus on something other than what your gun hand is doing to reclaim the initiative during a criminal assault…but that very same stuff can be used against us, too. In fact, we’re even more vulnerable to it because good guys have to play by the rules…and bad guys know it. My aforementioned acquaintance heard the bad guy he was trying to hold say “You can’t just shoot me, man! That’s murder! They’ll jail you!”
There are some things you can do to tilt the odds in your favor, of course…but trying to figure out what they are when you’re looking over the sights at sumdood isn’t going to work. It probably wouldn’t occur to you under stress that something as simple as telling the guy to pull his shirt up over his face and leave it there helps you out by robbing him of vision and exposing the area where weapons are most often carried. Law enforcement officers who deal with bad guys frequently develop all manner of tricks to keep a bad guy from regaining the initiative…but even then one of their primary tricks is having a whole bunch of cops pointing guns at the dude,ready to blow him to kingdom come. Even then it sometimes ends in gunfire.
Take the time to really assess the dangers that trying to hold a bad guy presents to you before assuming it’s something you’re going to do in the real thing.
RIP Louis Awerbuck
One of the truly great minds has passed. Fair winds and following seas, Louis.
HK VP9 90 Second Gun review
I had some technical difficulties with camera gear this morning, resulting in me shooting the video in one manic take on my Blackberry. But the video speaks for itself: I really, really like the HK VP9.
Just another day at the office
Even on the tough days, this job is pretty radical.
What if they held a world championship and no one showed up?
The World Speed Shooting Championship, aka Steel Challenge is happening this weekend. The last time I was able to get numbers, there were fewer than 30 entrants in the match. Report from the “on the ground” indicate that there isn’t even a super squad.
I’ve talked about how USPSA is killing Steel Challenge, and the reports I’ve been hearing about the match in Utah aren’t filling me with lots of confidence. Let me be absolutely clear: Steel Challenge is an important match, and an important part of our sport. We should be trying to preserve it, not banish it to die in the desert; which I suppose an improvement over dying in the swamp.
Here’s the thing. The last two years for Steel Challenge saw declining attendance and sponsorship. I believe that 2014 is the make-or-break year. If there are fewer than 100 shooters at the main match, USPSA should just pack the match up, and sell it to someone who cares about it, so they can begin the process of growing it back. It’s a sad testament that the best Steel Challenge-Style match right now is the US Steel Nationals held in Titusville, and not the “world” championship.
I’m not in Utah this week. I’ll be reporting on the match with updates from friends and shooters who are in attendance. If you’re at Steel Challenge this week and would like to share your thoughts, email them to us at [email protected] and I’ll publish them as we go! Can Steel Challenge be saved? This is where we’ll find out.
Tuesday derpday: Steampunk AR15
Whoever did this to a perfectly good AR15: this is bad and you should feel bad. You’re a bad person. My only hope is that this was done to a garbage rifle, like a Bear Creek Arsenal or Battle Rifle Company gun. Maybe it’s an airsoft gun, in which case I won’t feel bad at all, because I know that it will be the loving property of a fedora wearing m’ladyboy.
Team Comp-Tac shooter Gordon Carrell wins ESP at 2014 IDPA Carolina Cup
HOUSTON, Texas – With seven division stage wins and the second fastest overall time, Comp-Tac Victory Gear‘s Gordon Carrell took the Enhanced Service Pistol division title this past weekend at the Carolina Cup IDPA Championship. This marks the fourth time in the past seven years Carrell has won a division title.
Held in Oxford, N.C., the Carolina Cup drew 331 top IDPA shooters including 89 competing in the ESP division where Carrell finished with a final time of 208.58, more than 34 seconds faster than his nearest competitor.
“The Carolina Cup is one of IDPA’s most challenging matches and always draws a number of the country’s best shooters. It’s gratifying to come out of such a difficult match, against a very competitive field, with the title win,” said Carrell, who in addition to competing for Team Comp-Tac is the General Manager at Comp-Tac Victory Gear.
Carrell won the match firing a Smith & Wesson M&P Pro 9mm pistol, featuring Apex parts and outfitted with Warren sights, from a Comp-Tac International holster with Twin Paddle pouch on a Comp-Tac Belt. For concealment he used a custom vest from Armadillo Concealment. In addition to Comp-Tac, Carrell is sponsored and supported by Smith & Wesson, Apex Tactical Specialties, Warren Tactical Sights, Armadillo Concealment, GLC Shooting Academy and Sportsman’s Outlet.
Also representing Comp-Tac in the match was fellow Comp-Tac team shooter Randi Rogers who placed fourth Master and fifth in the Stock Service Pistol division finishing with a final time of 248.75 seconds.
For more information on Team Comp-Tac, and the full line of Comp-Tac Victory Gear holsters and accessories, visit www.Comp-Tac.com, like Comp-Tac on Facebook at www.facebook.com/CompTac, or follow @CompTac on Twitter.
Media Contacts
Randi Rogers: 281-209-3040
Sarah Luna: 1-866-441-9157
Paul Hendrix resigns from USPSA under allegations of cheating
By now you’ve heard of Paul Hendrix, the USPSA Range Officer accused of cheating. Posted on the Area 6 Facebook page today, here is his “apology” and resignation:
To the members of USPSA Area 6.
I have spoken with people that I trust and respect their views.
In review it appears that I have fallen short in safeguarding the trust and duties place with me in this sport.
I apologize for those shortcomings.
I accept the full responsibility for my shortcomings, as well as, any pain or embarrassment caused.
I have resigned my membership in this great organization.
At some point in my future I hope to rebuild that trust.
Humbly Submitted,
Paul Hendrix
Many people, myself included, are rather underwhelmed by Paul’s apology. I hope that USPSA does the right thing and continues their investigation into the cheating allegations and if they are found out to be correct, issues a lifetime ban on Paul Hendrix from the sport. His resignation appears to be nothing more than an attempt to circumvent the proceedings against him and calm the storm.
Team Colt’s Maggie Reese Wins Third IronMaiden Title at MGM Ironman 3-Gun Match
WEST HARTFORD, Conn. (June 19, 2014) – Colt’s Manufacturing Company congratulates sponsored shooter Maggie Reese on claiming her third IronMaiden title at the MGM Ironman 3-Gun competition. Reese competed in the Open division and finished with 509.0427 match points. She also won the IronMaiden title in 2011 and 2013.
“Maggie did an outstanding job defending her IronMaiden title,” said Joyce Rubino, Vice President of Marketing for Colt’s Manufacturing Company. “This is a difficult match, with stages that can take several minutes to complete, so we are very proud of the skill and athleticism Maggie showed.” Reese competed with a Colt LE6920 through the match’s rifle stages, where round counts were well over 100, and Mother Nature added even more difficulty.
“The Colt 6920 was very reliable as I navigated not only through the stages, but also the heat and lots of dust,” said Reese. “The match was very physically challenging, and I walked away with some burns and bruises, but those were well worth it.”
Reese’s next competitions include the USPSA Area 8 Championship in Fredericksburg, Va. and the USPSA Handgun Nationals in St. George, Utah.
Follow Colt on Facebook at Facebook.com/ColtFirearms to keep up with all of Team Colt’s competitions this year.