I know you’ve seen this down at the local gun range…
(Actually, this may even describe YOUR typical live-fire session… but no worries – we’re going to fix that. 🙂
The typical shooter will set up their paper target about 7 yards away (ahhh, the good ‘ol “21ft. rule”, eh?)… take up a perfect shooting position… and a perfect sight picture to engage their “attacker”.
The assumption?
That the shooter will see the attack coming from a long way off… AND have all the time in the world to deal with it.
But is that REALLY how you will be attacked on the street?
Concealed Carry Tips: 3 Sneaky Ways Criminals Attack… And How To DEFEAT Them!
Look, if you carry a weapon for personal protection, you of course want to be prepared to USE that firearm under real-life conditions in order to save your life, right?
Well, the reality is that a gunfight – from our analysis of REAL attacks – can ONLY really break down in a few simple ways.
Let’s look at these attack strategies one-by-one so we can also examine how to defeat them…
1. The “I Don’t Care If You See Me” Approach
As much as I poo-poo the “21 ft target shooters” down at the range, it IS possible that you could notice a criminal from that far away.
Our analysis is that it’s reaaaally unlikely… but it CAN happen – especially if they TRY to make themselves known from a distance as a “diversionary tactic” so his buddies can creep up on you from your blind spots as you’re distracted.
What To Do: Control The Space… And Get Your Hand On/Near Your Gun!
If you see somebody coming at you, they likely won’t show a weapon because they want to get in close – and you WON’T be legally justified to just whip out ‘Ol Betsy and start waving your gun around without a solid reason.
That’s called “brandishing” or “menacing“… and that act alone could lead to a felony conviction that could literally make it ILLEGAL for you to own a firearm ever again.
But you don’t want to let this guy get so close you don’t have any reaction time either, right?
Your best bet is to CONTROL THE SPACE (360 degrees around you!) on YOUR terms…
From as far a distance as you can after noticing that YOU are the object of their direction, give a firm, powerful warning to them to “Stop right there! Can I help you?!”
You should also put your other hand up in the universal “STOP!” sign to reinforce your command.
If he stops, great.
If he keeps coming, you need to be prepared to draw if he charges you… OR if it’s a setup for the other thugs moving in on you.
Therefore, find a way to clear as much clothing away from your firearm as possible – without actually showing it – and discreetly get your hand on (or near) your weapon.
This is the longest part of the drawstroke and clearing the way to a lightning-fast deployment ahead of time just makes good sense.
This can actually be done discreetly with just one hand.
The whole time you’re doing this, though, make sure you’re ALSO scanning around you for OTHER people, just in case there are threats you haven’t noticed yet.
You MUST be “at the ready” because if you ARE attacked, you’re going to need to react EXTREMELY quickly.
2. The “Too Close For Comfort” Interview
An attacker knows that their odds of making you a victim increase when they’re as close as possible BEFORE they make their presence known…
… and they’re experts at it!
In fact, you likely won’t even see the threat until he’s entered your personal space.
If he has a weapon, you won’t see it until the last minute.
He’ll hide it until he’s in range to use it…
…OR he’ll show it you so that only you can see it, trusting that you’ll hand over your wallet or whatever else he wants.
What To Do: Focus On The Attacker FIRST!
If you didn’t or couldn’t challenge the threat until he was on top of you, you’re NOT going to “out-draw” your attacker like you’re some wild west gunslinger.
And as much as it pains me to say it… your best bet is to comply with his demands while keeping him calm.
Hand over your wallet or whatever else he asks for.
Now, if he has a GUN, I would also ask him to keep his finger off the trigger just for “safety” sake (“I’ll give you whatever you want… but we don’t need any accidents, right?”)
If the wallet is enough and he runs off?
Good!
If not, you may need to assume that your life is in danger… and take action!
However, you must focus on the the attacker FIRST.
You’ve got to CREATE the space you need to get to your gun and, to do that, you’ve got to deal with the immediate physical threat in front of you.
You’ve got to bring the fight to HIM – put him on the defensive, and get him away from you.
Forget the outdated ideas like the “speed rock” or the fantasy “tactic” taught by some schools in trying to fight him off with your support hand while you draw with your gun hand.
Puhleeeeeez!
This is why “hand-to-hand” and “hand-to-weapon” combat is so critical for the citizen carrying concealed.
Sorry folks… there’s no way around it.
But it doesn’t have to be hard and you don’t need to spend hours at a local self-defense school to be a badass with your fists.
A few simple moves is all it takes – but not the ones that most people think.
(More on that in a minute…)
3. The “Zero Space Ambush”
Obviously criminals don’t want a “fight” from you.
And being the cowards they are, they may not even confront you before taking your personal belongings.
I mean, it’s much easier just to crack open your coconut with a tire iron while your nose is in your phone than it is to give you the chance to say “no” or fight back, right?
One second you’re walking along minding your own business – and suddenly there are exploding flashes of light in your vision and you’re completely disoriented.
What To Do: Cover, Protect & Recover
Unfortunately, your ability to survive this kind of attack is up to whatever God you pray to.
But God helps those who help themselves, right?
For your part – if you suddenly realized you’ve been struck – your best option is to FIRST avoid getting struck again and potentially lose consciousness.
Your best option is a “covering guard”.
We go into how to use this technique (and other simple unarmed tactics) in our “Extreme Close-Combat Shooting” course, but basically, you need to get both arms over your head with your biceps up around your ears.
This will protect your head from trauma.
Use this guard to shield yourself so that you can get your wits back and orient yourself to where the attack is coming from.
From there, you can gauge whether you can run or if you can draw your weapon for a counterattack.
Adjusting Your Concealed Carry Training For Real Gunfights…
As you can tell from these 3 scenarios, these are NOT the type of drills you see being trained for down at the local gun range.
Fortunately, there’s a LOT you can do to make your training more realistic.
THAT’s not the problem.
The main problem is that training “poor tactics” only leads to reinforcing bad habits – ones that could get you killed in a real gunfight.
The old “speed rock” method that’s so popular in a lot of schools is a really good example of a technique that you could train until it becomes second nature to you… but that same move will STILL likely get you killed if you tried to use it in real life.
How do I know?
Because we looked at hundreds of video footage and the analysis of over 6,000 real-world gunfights to discover what REALLY works in a no-warning ambush… and what led to the death or injury of the victims we reviewed.
There isn’t enough space here to go into all of the 7 “Life Or Death” Factors we uncovered, but if you’re interested, you can get more information here…
The only thing I ask is that you keep an open mind because a LOT of the training we go over could actually be the OPPOSITE of what you’ve heard from other instructors in the past.
However, we go into “no b.s.” details for exactly WHY these methods are superior to other tactics so you can make your own decisions based on real-world analysis and pressure-testing.
If you’re an open-minded shooter (or if you’re always looking to fine-tune your current skills), then I highly recommend you check out this training now, ok?
I know you’ll walk away with a lot more confidence in your skills.
