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

Timing…a Missing Component in Training

Written by Greg Ellifritz   One of the hardest things I do as a firearms and self defense trainer is convincing people that their lives are worth defending.  Many students come to my classes with an attitude that displays an extreme lack of self worth.  It’s hard for me to comprehend, but many people do […]

Posted on December 17, 2019 by Greg Ellifritz in News and Tactical Advice, Tactical Training Scenarios
ccw, resistance strategies, robbery, TDI, training View Post

Lessons Learned from a Successful Use of Pepper Spray

  Watch the excellent surveillance video of a store owner and his wife fighting two robbers armed with knives. The store owner is able to access a large can of pepper spray and blast his attackers. He then holds one attacker down on his counter while his wife kicks the dude in the face. Nicely […]

Posted on December 16, 2019 by Greg Ellifritz in News and Tactical Advice, Tactical Training Scenarios
pepper spray, resistance, robbery View Post

Weekend Knowledge Dump- December 13, 2019

Knowledge to make your life better. If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.   Getting Friends and Family (Slightly) More Prepared How to gently steer reluctant friends and family members in the direction of being better prepared for emergencies.     Factory 6.5 Creedmoor Ammunition Accuracy Velocity and […]

Posted on December 13, 2019 by Greg Ellifritz in Weekend Knowledge Dump
Active Self Protection, ccw, children, Claude Werner, Dave Spaulding, David Yamane, Deadly, firearms training, holsters, Karl Rehn, knife training, medical skills, Melody Lauer, Michael Janich, modern service weapons, police, revolvers, Rifle Shooter, Silent, survival blog, Swift, terrorism, The Revolver Guy View Post

Shooting Drill- The Humbler

Written by Greg Ellifritz   This shooting drill is one of the hardest I’ve ever attempted.   I got it from Kyle Defoor’s page.  It is a 70 shot drill with 700 possible aggregate points.  Allegedly, no one has ever shot a perfect score.  I certainly haven’t ever even come close.  I’m happy if I […]

Posted on December 10, 2019 by Greg Ellifritz in Shooting Drills
Kyle Defoor, shooting drills View Post

Choosing a Gun for the Woman in your Life

  Written by: Greg Ellifritz     Reading the article The Right Gun for a Woman, According to Women  got me a little fired up.  Go check it out before you continue here. Female Shooters On: Semi-Autos vs. Revolvers       As most of you know, I’m not a woman.  I don’t purport to […]

Posted on December 9, 2019 by Greg Ellifritz in Firearm Reviews
firearm reviews, women's carry View Post

Weekend Knowledge Dump- December 6, 2019

Knowledge to make your life better. If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.   When You Can’t Pull the Trigger I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard ignorant gun owners make the statement “I’ll just shoot him if he grabs my gun.”  It isn’t quite that […]

Posted on December 6, 2019 by Greg Ellifritz in Weekend Knowledge Dump
active killer, Active Self Protection, active shooter, Alain Burrese, Andrew Bawidamann, carjacking, ccw, Claude Werner, David Yamane, Ed Head, firearms training, Hock Hochheim, home defense, Integrated Skills Group, Jeff Gonzales, Marcus Wynne, Mark Manson, Massad Ayoob, Organic Prepper, Pat McNamara, psychology, Richard Nance, school safety, school violence, shooting drills, Steve Moses, terrorism, Tier Three Tactical, Tom Givens View Post

Weekend Knowledge Dump- November 29, 2019

Knowledge to make your life better. If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.   Shooting from Retention A discussion about in-fight weapons access, timing errors, dominant positioning, shooting from the “two,” and the dangers of floating the gun.  These are the factors that are commonly misunderstood by well-meaning […]

Posted on November 29, 2019 by Greg Ellifritz in Weekend Knowledge Dump
active killer, Active Self Protection, active shooter, AR-15, ccw, Clint Smith, Close quarter shooting, Concealed Nation, crime statistics, extreme close range, Integrated Skills Group, Karl Rehn, Kelly McCann, Legal, Massad Ayoob, police, Rangemaster, revolvers, school violence, shooting drills, situational awareness, snubnose, The Suited Shootist, Tiger McKee, Tom Givens View Post

Timing School Shootings for Higher Body Counts

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 […]

Posted on November 25, 2019 by Greg Ellifritz in Articles
active killer, active shooter, school shootings, school violence View Post

Weekend Knowledge Dump- November 22, 2019

Knowledge to make your life better. If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.   What is The Best Revolver Speedloader? Justin did a massive amount of work and shot a whole bunch of rounds to provide you with this useful data.  Throw a buck in his Patreon account […]

Posted on November 22, 2019 by Greg Ellifritz in Weekend Knowledge Dump
Active Self Protection, AK-47, Caleb Causey, Cecil Burch, Claude Werner, Integrated Skills Group, ITS Tactical, Jack Donovan, Lone Star Medics, Mark Rippetoe, Massad Ayoob, medical skills, open carry, Organic Prepper, Paul Gomez, Recoil Offgrid, restraints, revolvers, situational awareness, speedloaders, The Revolver Guy View Post

The Saugus High School Shooting

Written by: Greg Ellifritz   Details are starting to come out about last Friday’s shooting at Saugus High School in Santa Clarita, California.  If you haven’t seen any of the details, you can read a brief summary here.   This was a school shooting that would be categorized as pretty “typical.”  There was nothing exceptional […]

Posted on November 19, 2019 by Greg Ellifritz in News and Tactical Advice
active killer, school shootings, school violence View Post

Weekend Knowledge Dump- November 15, 2019

Knowledge to make your life better. If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.   3 Techniques Predators Use to Hunt Women “Having studied this platform of evidence-based “real world” violence, particularly where the victim has been a female, I have identified three techniques that criminals consistently use to […]

Posted on November 15, 2019 by Greg Ellifritz in Weekend Knowledge Dump
ACLDN, Active Self Protection, Bombs, Claude Werner, diet, Ed's Manifesto, gelatin tests, health, Hock Hochheim, impact weapons, Karl Rehn, Larry Vickers, Legal, Lucky Gunner, Massad Ayoob, pet first aid, pets, Recoil Offgrid, revolvers, school shootings, school violence, shooting drills, The Revolver Guy, Tom Givens, travel View Post

Kung-Fu for the Concealed Carrier

This is a guest post from my friend Steve Moses, owner of Palisade Training Group.   He was the guest author of  a very well-received article on shotguns for home defense I posted last week.  Since you all liked Steve’s contribution, I’m going to publish this one as well. It covers a topic that many CCW […]

Posted on November 12, 2019 by Greg Ellifritz in Articles
Cecil Burch, Chris Fry, Close quarter shooting, Craig Douglas, Dave Spaulding, Fletch Fuller, guest author, Jerry Wetzel, Larry Lindenman, Paul Sharp, Shivworks, Steve Moses View Post

5 Tips for Making Online Sales Transactions Safer

Written by Greg Ellifritz   A friend sent me the following question last week:   “Greg, I have been shopping on eBay and Craigslist lately and it brought some concerns to mind.  I was wondering if you have any safety advice regarding buying items on eBay/Craigslist.  My two main issues are: 1)      Personal safety when […]

Posted on November 11, 2019 by Greg Ellifritz in Reader Questions
scams View Post

Weekend Knowledge Dump- November 8, 2019

Knowledge to make your life better. If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.   FSI Investigates Unintentional Discharges: When Are You At Greatest Risk? Force Science takes a look at where police unintentional discharges take place and what we can do to prevent them.     Federal Syntech […]

Posted on November 8, 2019 by Greg Ellifritz in Weekend Knowledge Dump
Active Self Protection, Claude Werner, Daniel Coyle, drugs, Force Science Institute, Gabe Suarez, Justin Carroll, Lucky Gunner, Massad Ayoob, medical skills, Organic Prepper, Pat McNamara, pepper spray, police, police shootings, psychology, Recoil Magazine, Recoil Offgrid, revolvers, robbery, scams, shooting drills, survival, travel View Post

Thoughts on the Defensive Shotgun

This is a guest post from my friend Steve Moses, owner of Palisade Training Group.  I’ve taken several of Steve’s classes at the Rangemaster Conferences we’ve both taught at over the years.  Steve is a very thoughtful and competent instructor and I recommend his material highly.  If you are down in Texas, check out some […]

Posted on November 4, 2019 by Greg Ellifritz in Articles
guest author, shotguns, Steve Moses View Post

Weekend Knowledge Dump- November 1, 2019

Knowledge to make your life better. If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.   6 Real-Life Cases That Highlight the Dangers of Open Carry Openly  carrying your firearm is a very poor tactical decision in most situations.  In this article Massad Ayoob provides six examples which should give […]

Posted on November 1, 2019 by Greg Ellifritz in Weekend Knowledge Dump
Active Self Protection, American Partisan, Doom and Bloom, gelatin tests, Grant Cunningham, Growing Up Guns, Hock Hochheim, Justin Carroll, Lucky Gunner, Massad Ayoob, Matthew Allen, medical skills, open carry, Organic Prepper, psychology, Recoil Magazine, revolvers, riots, scams, Tamara Keel, The Revolver Guy, third world travel, Tiger McKee, travel View Post

Snubby Revolver Class AAR

Written by: Greg Ellifritz   Last weekend I taught my inaugural Snubby Revolver for Concealed Carry class.  Dann Sternsher from G4 Personal Safety hosted the class at his excellent private range/classroom facility.   This was my very first time teaching a commercial revolver class.  I got certified to teach revolver skills to cops and security […]

Posted on October 28, 2019 by Greg Ellifritz in What's New
Chuck Haggard, class reviews, Claude Werner, Grant Cunningham, Hardwire Tactical, Michael deBethencourt, revolvers, TDI, The Revolver Guy View Post

Weekend Knowledge Dump- October 25, 2019

Knowledge to make your life better. If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.   ONE ANSWER FOR THREE QUESTIONS Do you know how to answer the three most common distracting questions criminals use to approach you?     Counter Sniping Tactics Mandatory for Preppers and Survivalists I’ve attended […]

Posted on October 25, 2019 by Greg Ellifritz in Weekend Knowledge Dump
active killer, Active Self Protection, active shooter, AR Build Junkie, AR-15, David Yamane, firearms training, Gabe Suarez, Integrated Skills Group, Lucky Gunner, Massad Ayoob, medical skills, medicinal plants, Michael Bane, Mike Seeklander, police gunfights, psychology, recall, robbery, school shootings, school violence, shooting drills, shotguns, sniper, Steve Moses, Survival Mom, Tamara Keel, third world travel, travel, vehicle tactics, Wim Demeere View Post

Two Quick Recommendations…

Written by Greg Ellifritz   Here are two quick reads written by some friends of mine.  I finished both of them this week and found each to be a valuable resource.   The first is Annette Evans’ book The Dry Fire Primer.   Annette introduces the book as: “Dry fire – practicing without live ammunition – […]

Posted on October 24, 2019 by Greg Ellifritz in Book Reviews
Annette Evans, Claude Werner, dryfire, firearms training View Post

Best 9mm Carry Ammo

Written by: Greg Ellifritz I got a question from a friend and student last week.  I think the answer will help all my readers better understand terminal ballistics and choose an optimal bullet for self protection.  Here’s the question:   “Quick question: What’s your suggestion for 9mm carry ammo?  I’m about to replace my near […]

Posted on October 23, 2019 by Greg Ellifritz in Reader Questions
ammunition, gelatin tests, handgun stopping power, Lucky Gunner, Prepared Gun Owner View Post
«‹4546474849›»

Do you want to subscribe to our newsletter?

Recent Posts

  • Weekend Knowledge Dump- August 8, 2025
  • Using Blanks in Scenario Training
  • Upcoming Classes- August and September 2025
  • Preventing Police Training Deaths
  • Weekend Knowledge Dump- August 1, 2025
Support Active Response Training on Patreon!
Become a patron at Patreon!

Most Shared Articles

Friends Don't Let Friends Open Carry

Shares: 23438

The Rayshard Brooks Shooting

Shares: 8172

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

Shares: 17293

Reporting "Social Distancing" Violations

Shares: 86131

The Serpa Compendium

Shares: 10358

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