*This article is a guest post from my friend Jonathan Willis. Jonathan is a retired paramedic and fire lieutenant who teaches with Dave Spaulding for Handgun Combatives. Jonathan has extensive firearms training experience, but this was the first shotgun course he took. I took the class as well and echo the author’s comments. The class […]
Written by: Greg Ellifritz I am constantly reminded of the saying that “If you want to learn something new, read an old book.” I was recently re-reading the 1935 edition of Pistol and Revolver Shooting by A.L.A. Himmelwright and found some very useful ideas. I often complain that the firearms shooting skill levels […]
“95% of criminals carry their guns on their strong side, mostly stuck in the front of their bodies, inside the waistband without a holster.” – From a US Secret Service Seminar on detecting concealed weapons Why are all the thugs carrying pistols in their waistbands in front of the hip? And why do most […]
*This is a guest post from my friend Bryan McKean. Bryan is the training officer for the police department where I work and has significant combatives and firearms training experience. In this piece, Bryan writes about how switching to carrying just one type of gun led to a performance increase. Personally, while I can see […]
*This is a guest post from my friend and fellow police officer Bryan McKean. Bryan is an acccomplished shooter and an excellent instructor across a broad domain of tactical topics. I think many of you will find his perspective valuable. -Greg Firearms manufacturers are always looking for ways to improve upon their products. The […]
Written by: Greg Ellifritz This article is part of a chapter from my new book Choose Adventure- Safe Travel in Dangerous Places. If you like this style of information written in the context of international travel, please consider buying a copy. It’s on sale 30% off until May 5th. The paperback version will be […]
Written by: Greg Ellifritz Many of the questions I receive from students involve the use of chemical sprays. It seems that nearly everyone carries or is contemplating the carrying of some type of Mace or chemical irritant. Accurate information about the selection and use of these chemicals exists, but it is often difficult to […]
Written by: Greg Ellifritz As of today, every state in the USA has some type of provision to allow citizens obtain a permit to carry a concealed handgun while engaged in lawful activity. In some states, that permit is easy to get. In others (like California or Hawaii) it is almost impossible unless you […]
*This is a guest post from my friend Ron Borsch. Ron is a long serving police officer, trainer, and researcher. I enjoy his perspective and I hope that you will as well. -Greg HEADS-UP! AVOID MAWOL Copyright 2019 Ron Borsch Heads up! Is a common phrase meant to alert someone. To be […]
Written by: Greg Ellifritz Last week, there was yet another terrorist vehicle run-down attack. This one was in Israel. You can read about it in the link below. 12 soldiers wounded, 1 seriously, in suspected terror car-ramming in Jerusalem A couple points after looking at this attack… 1) Vehicle run down […]
Written by Greg Ellifritz The news articles linked below describe the actions of a retired firefighter with a concealed carry permit who shot and killed an elementary school teacher after a confrontation about a loud party. The entire confrontation (22 minutes long) and the shooting was videotaped by the shooter. He was charged […]
Written by: Greg Ellifritz Have you ever trained to draw and fire your pistol from any position other than standing? Most recreational shooters haven’t. Fights are messy. Sometimes the unexpected happens. Take a look at this story. A man was fleeing armed robbers and slipped on the ice, causing him to fall. […]
Written by: Greg Ellifritz A would-be victim of last month’s London Bridge terrorist stabbing attack used a fire extinguisher to distract/disorient the terrorist as another person stabbed the man with a narwhal tusk to end the attack. Seeing the photo below got me thinking about how best to use a fire extinguisher as a […]
Written by: Greg Ellifritz In the last few weeks my social media news feed has been deluged with videos of inept police officers who cannot fight. Most citizens assume that the police officers who patrol their neighborhoods are competent fighters. Those people couldn’t be more wrong. Depending on the state, police officers […]
Written by: Greg Ellifritz I recently returned from a two-week trip to South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Botswana. The primary focus of the trip was going on safari to see all the legendary animals that inhabit the African plains. On the trip I did 12 different safari outings, either on foot, by safari truck, or […]
Written by: Greg Ellifritz I’ve read many tactical debriefs of the recent shooting incident at the West Freeway Church of Christ. I have no plans to re-hash what has already been discussed in countless articles and videos. There were lots of good things (a near-perfect head shot from an extended distance, no mistaken […]
Written by: Greg Ellifritz Seth Godin made a very powerful statement in a recent blog post. “My most popular blog posts this year…weren’t my best ones. As usual, the most popular music wasn’t the best recorded this year either. Same for the highest-grossing movies, restaurants and politicians doing fundraising. “Best” is rarely the same as […]
Written by: Greg Ellifritz After Sunday’s active killer attack on a church in Texas, I thought some of you might be looking for resources to determine “best practice” recommendations for your house of worship. Here are more than a dozen highly informative articles/videos covering the topic: Church Safety On Active Shooters […]
Written by: Greg Ellifritz Many of my students are serious practitioners of the art of self-protection. They’ve graduated from numerous shooting schools and hold black belts in various martial arts systems. Although they generally enjoy the training process in general, their ultimate goal is to become better fighters. They are hoping that the skills they […]
Written by: Greg Ellifritz Early in 2017, I published an article titled “When Do School Shootings Occur.” I studied every American active killer school shooting over a three year time period from 2013 until the end of 2016. Interestingly enough, I determined that 43% of the school shootings I studied occurred outside of official […]
