Active Response Training
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • RSS
  • Home
  • Available Classes
  • Instructors
  • 2025 Classes
  • Recommended Reading
  • Contact
  • Class Reviews
  • Media

2022 Training Review

Back in the earlier days of my blog, I used to write incredibly  detailed posts about all the training and travel I completed each year.  I talked about how many students and classes I had taught, rounds I fired, and books I read.  You can read my older annual updates HERE     I enjoy […]

Posted on January 9, 2023 by Greg Ellifritz in What's New
firearms training, Karl Rehn, Rangemaster, Tom Givens View Post

Weekend Knowledge Dump- January 6, 2023

Knowledge to make your life better.  If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.   HOW DO YOU KNOW WHEN YOU’VE MASTERED A TECHNIQUE? My friend Nick Hughes answers an important question.     Are We Seeing A Revolver Renaissance? Tamara drops some revolver knowledge.  And to back up […]

Posted on January 6, 2023 by Greg Ellifritz in Weekend Knowledge Dump
ACLDN, active killer, Active Self Protection, active shooter, Calibre Press, carjacking, ccw, Chuck Haggard, Civilian Defender, firearms training, GAT Daily, Guerrilla Approach, Gun Mag Warehouse, holsters, Justin Dyal, Karl Rehn, Kathy Jackson, Massad Ayoob, medical skills, Mountain Man Medical, Nick Hughes, Primer Peak, Rangemaster, revolvers, scenario training, school shootings, Shelley Hill, Sherman House, shooting drills, Skillset Magazine, Steve Tarani, Steven Pressfield, Tamara Keel, The Truth About Guns, Tom Givens View Post

Skill Development- When Are You Good Enough?

Written by: Greg Ellifritz   “I like to throw myself passionately into a sport or activity until I reach about an 80 percent efficiency level.  To go beyond that requires an obsession and degree of specialization that doesn’t appeal to me.  Once I reach that 80 percent level I like to go off and do […]

Posted on January 4, 2023 by Greg Ellifritz in Articles
Dan John, Jeff Cooper, Paul Sharp, psychology, Seth Godin, training View Post

Top 10 Most Popular Articles of 2022

Seth Godin once made a very powerful statement in a 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 “popular.”  Which means […]

Posted on January 2, 2023 by Greg Ellifritz in Articles, What's New
View Post

Weekend Knowledge Dump- December 30, 2022

Knowledge to make your life better.  If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.   Ayoob Files: Furtive Movement: The Richard Palmer Case “The rule is, “You don’t have to be right, but you do have to be reasonable.” You can be cleared four times over in a shooting […]

Posted on December 30, 2022 by Greg Ellifritz in Weekend Knowledge Dump
Active Self Protection, American Cop, American Handgunner, Bombs, Carry Trainer, ccw, Craig Douglas, Ed Head, Erick Gelhaus, firearms training, flashlights, GAT Daily, holsters, Jocko Willink, Jon hauptman, Jordan Peterson, Justin Dyal, Kevin Davis, low light shooting, Mark Hatmaker, Massad Ayoob, medical skills, Off Duty/On Duty Podcast, police training, psychology, Richard Mann, shooting drills, Skillset Magazine, Spotter Up, suicide bombers, SWAT, terrorism, The Armory Life, Tom Givens View Post

Free Books- Part 265

Amazon has a tremendous number of FREE ebooks on their website.  You can find thousands of free kindle books on Amazon’s site every day.  These books can be downloaded to a Kindle reader or a free App on your phone or personal computer.  Even if you don’t have a Kindle, you can download a free […]

Posted on December 29, 2022 by Greg Ellifritz in Uncategorized
View Post

Personal Health Update- Cancer

*Fair warning,  The following text contains a frank discussion of cancer, death, and sexual function.  If any of those topics offends you, move on and avoid reading this piece.  If those topics don’t bother you, read on to learn about the challenges I’ve been experiencing during the last few years. – Greg     While […]

Posted on December 27, 2022 by Greg Ellifritz in What's New
View Post

Best of What I Read- 2022

Written by: Greg Ellifritz   Compared to the average American, I read a massive number of books.  I try to read  around 10 books a month.  I accomplish this because I don’t have TV in my house and I carry a book wherever I go.  Whenever I have a few spare moments, I spend them […]

Posted on December 26, 2022 by Greg Ellifritz in Book Reviews, What's New
View Post

Weekend Knowledge Dump- December 23, 2022

Knowledge to make your life better.  If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.   How to Choose a Good IWB Holster Part 2 | Secure and Fast   Part two of the IWB holster selection article I posted last week. While we are looking at “Part Two” articles, […]

Posted on December 23, 2022 by Greg Ellifritz in Weekend Knowledge Dump
.22, American Cop, American Handgunner, Ammoland, backup gun, Edwin Leap, Erick Gelhaus, Force Science Institute, gun digest, Gun Mag Warehouse, holsters, James Howard Kunstler, knife fighting, low light shooting, Lucky Gunner, Massad Ayoob, medicine, one handed shooting, Paratus, Pew Pew Tactical, police training, Practical Eschatology, Primer Peak, shooting drills, situational awareness, Steve Tarani, TDI, The Firearms Blog View Post

The Body Language of Deceit

Written by: Greg Ellifritz   During my police career, my  department sent me to several schools covering criminal interview and interrogation tactics.  Most of the classes I took involved what is known as “Reid Interviewing.”  The Reid Method teaches a very specific interview method that won’t be useful for most of you.  However, some of […]

Posted on December 22, 2022 by Greg Ellifritz in Articles
body language, criminology, psychology View Post

Ammunition Choices for 9mm Revolvers

Written by- Greg Ellifritz   When I was teaching at the Gunsite Pat Rogers Memorial Revolver Roundup last month (sign up for next year), I had a couple students using revolvers chambered in 9mm caliber.  One of the students asked me about best choices for a defensive loads for a 9mm revolver.     Looking […]

Posted on December 19, 2022 by Greg Ellifritz in Reader Questions
9mm, ballistics, George Harris, handgun stopping power, revolvers, Ruger View Post

Weekend Knowledge Dump- December 16, 2022

Knowledge to make your life better.  If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.   Can Perception Determine Reality? Predators use physical cues to help them choose the easiest victim.  In this article Shelley describes gait variations and the information they are giving to a criminal.     The […]

Posted on December 16, 2022 by Greg Ellifritz in Weekend Knowledge Dump
Active Self Protection, burglary, ccw, Cecil Burch, Chris Fry, Craig Douglas, crime statistics, de-escalation, firearms training, Gun Mag Warehouse, Guy Schnitzler, Hock Hochheim, home invasion, home protection, impact weapons, John Hearne, knife fighting, Kyle Lamb, Lee Weems, magazines, Massad Ayoob, medical skills, Michael Janich, Paul Martin, police, Reflex Handgun, research, retention shooting, revolvers, saps, Shelley Hill, shooting drills, shotguns, situational awareness, snubnose, Soldier of Fortune, Steve Moses, survival, terrorism, That Weems Guy, The Art of Manliness, The Mag Life, The Suited Shootist, Wayne Dobbs View Post

Free Books- Part 264

Amazon has a tremendous number of FREE ebooks on their website.  You can find thousands of free kindle books on Amazon’s site every day.  These books can be downloaded to a Kindle reader or a free App on your phone or personal computer.  Even if you don’t have a Kindle, you can download a free […]

Posted on December 15, 2022 by Greg Ellifritz in Uncategorized
View Post

Bomb Threats

Written by: Greg Ellifritz   Within the last couple weeks, dozens of schools have been targeted by hoax bomb and active killer threats.  Check out some of the news articles below for details.   Multiple fake threats made involving Montana schools Friday Multiple schools threatened with ‘hoax’ shooter phone calls Police respond to false calls […]

Posted on December 14, 2022 by Greg Ellifritz in News and Tactical Advice
Bombs View Post

Don’t Use Bird Shot for Self Defense

Written by: Greg Ellifritz   Take a look at this article.   Tacoma man shoots would-be burglar in the face   The link above shows what happens in  a typical birdshot defensive shooting. The birdshot created the desired response (stopping the attack), but it certainly didn’t incapacitate the burglar. If the burglar had been armed, […]

Posted on December 12, 2022 by Greg Ellifritz in News and Tactical Advice
ballistics, birdshot, home defense, shotgun, stopping power, Tim Chandler View Post

Weekend Knowledge Dump- December 9, 2022

Knowledge to make your life better.  If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.   AAR- Pat Rogers Memorial Revolver Roundup 2022 An incredibly detailed AAR of the Pat Rogers Memorial Gunsite Revolver Roundup  that I helped teach last month.  If you like wheelguns, this is the training class to […]

Posted on December 9, 2022 by Greg Ellifritz in Weekend Knowledge Dump
Active Self Protection, building search tactics, Calibre Press, ccw, Chris Cypert, crime rates, Dave Spaulding, firearms training, GAT Daily, gelatin testing, Gunsite, Hipster Tactical, history, holsters, Jeff Gonzales, John Boyd, Legal, Lucky Gunner, malfunctions, Massad Ayoob, Personal Defense World, pocket pistols, police, police training, psychology, Reflex Handgun, revolvers, shooting drills, shotguns, speedloaders, statistics, Tamara Keel, Tatiana Whitlock, The Firearms Blog, The Mag Life View Post

Useful Training References- Shooting Drills

Written by: Greg Ellifritz   I was at the range shooting yesterday and I realized I was using two really useful products to improve my practice sessions.  I thought you all might benefit from knowing about them.   I’ve written before about the books I use to create the best handgun practice routine.  I use […]

Posted on December 6, 2022 by Greg Ellifritz in Shooting Drills
Claude Werner, firearms training, Jeff Gonzales, shooting drills View Post

Public Expectations of Police Officers

In the last decade, the relationship between the police and the society they serve has been quite contentious.  Have you ever thought about how exactly you want your police to act?  What mission priorities would you charge them with handling?  It’s an interesting thought exercise.     If you care about this issue at all, […]

Posted on December 5, 2022 by Greg Ellifritz in News and Tactical Advice
Bryan Eastridge, Darryl Bolke, Off Duty/On Duty Podcast, police View Post

Weekend Knowledge Dump- December 2, 2022

Knowledge to make your life better.  If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.   Concealing for Two Tatiana Whitlock explores the issue of concealing a handgun when pregnant.  You’ll also want to read The Second Trimester as well.     Using DCC Clips on the PHLster Enigma Attaching […]

Posted on December 2, 2022 by Greg Ellifritz in Weekend Knowledge Dump
Active Self Protection, American Handgunner, Ammoland, Andrew Branca, Ballistic Radio, ccw, Chris Kresser, exercise, firearms training, fitness, GreyBeard Actual, Gun Mag Warehouse, holsters, Jeff Gonzales, Legal, LPVO, Massad Ayoob, Matt Little, medical skills, medicinal plants, Paul Martin, PHLster, Rangemaster, red dot sights, revolvers, Rory Miller, shooting drills, shotguns, slings, Steve Moses, T-Nation, Tatiana Whitlock, The Armory Life, The Mag Life, The Revolver Guy, Tom Givens View Post

Free Books- Part 263

Amazon has a tremendous number of FREE ebooks on their website.  You can find thousands of free kindle books on Amazon’s site every day.  These books can be downloaded to a Kindle reader or a free App on your phone or personal computer.  Even if you don’t have a Kindle, you can download a free […]

Posted on December 1, 2022 by Greg Ellifritz in Uncategorized
View Post
«‹1718192021›»

Do you want to subscribe to our newsletter?

Recent Posts

  • Weekend Knowledge Dump- May 16, 2025
  • Shooting Drill- Bill Wilson’s 5 x 5 Skill Test
  • Weekend Knowledge Dump- May 9, 2025
  • Free Books- Part 318
  • 2025 Rangemaster Tac Con Roundup
Support Active Response Training on Patreon!
Become a patron at Patreon!

Most Shared Articles

Friends Don't Let Friends Open Carry

Shares: 23432

The Rayshard Brooks Shooting

Shares: 8167

How to Spot a Bad Guy- A Comprehensive Look at Body Language and Pre-Assault Indicators

Shares: 17278

Reporting "Social Distancing" Violations

Shares: 86131

The Serpa Compendium

Shares: 10353

© 2023 Active Response Training - Made with ♥ TheBlackBellCo
Privacy Policy