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Upcoming Classes- August and September 2024

Here’s what I have scheduled for August and September this year.   My next open enrollment classes will be held at the amazing Blackwing Shooting Center in Delaware (near Columbus), Ohio.   August 17, 2024- Tactical First Aid and System Collapse Medicine at Blackwing Shooting Center in Delaware, Ohio. Registration details here..   This version […]

Posted on July 30, 2024 by Greg Ellifritz in What's New
class schedule View Post

Weekend Knowledge Dump- July 26, 2024

Knowledge to make your life better. If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.   New York Reload: Does It Work? I’d encourage you to put yourself on the shot timer and try drills like this.  It isn’t always a clear cut answer and it really depends on where […]

Posted on July 26, 2024 by Greg Ellifritz in Weekend Knowledge Dump
Active Self Protection, Adam Winch, American Cop, American Handgunner, Brian Hill\, ccw, Claude Werner, crime statistics, Crisis Medicine, crowd violence, edible wild plants, firearms training, Grant Cunningham, Gun Mag Warehouse, home invasion, Jim Cirillo, malfunctions, Massad Ayoob, medical skills, Paul Martin, Primer Peak, psychology, riots, Shelley Hill, shooting drills, Steve Tarani, Survival Sullivan, That Weems Guy, The Firearms Blog, The Human Behavior Podcast, The Shooting Wire, The Suited Shootist, Tiger McKee View Post

Free Books- Part 301

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 July 25, 2024 by Greg Ellifritz in Uncategorized
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LE Weapon Handling During the Assassination Attempt

If your social media feed looks anything like mine, you’ve been deluged with photos, videos, memes, and speculation regarding the failed assassination attempt against former president Trump.  Among my friend group (a lot of cops and firearms instructors) the primary shared discussion has been about the poor weapon handling displayed by a certain female agent […]

Posted on July 24, 2024 by Greg Ellifritz in News and Tactical Advice
ccw, firearms training, holsters, LouAnn Hamblin, police, police training, Tatiana Whitlock, Vicki Farnam View Post

The Cat is Out of the Bag

This is a guest article from Dr. Lauren Pugliese, a DVM and board-certified veterinary surgeon.  Readers contacted Lauren after her previous articles and requested a similar article about treating injuries in cats.  I cover lots of trauma medical techniques (for people) on the blog.  Here is some knowledge about our furry friends.  -Greg     […]

Posted on July 22, 2024 by Greg Ellifritz in Articles
Dr. Lauren Pugliese, guest author, pet first aid View Post

Weekend Knowledge Dump- July 19, 2024

Knowledge to make your life better. If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend. Beware!   I’m starting this week’s dump with some sage advice from John Farnam.  I believe your tribal identity statements are more likely to get you killed between now and the upcoming presidential inauguration than […]

Posted on July 19, 2024 by Greg Ellifritz in Weekend Knowledge Dump
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Prime Day Deals 2024- Part Two

Today and tomorrow are this year’s “Prime Days” on Amazon.com.  For members of their excellent “prime” service, they are discounting thousands of items site wide.   It’s kind of like the sales you would see on “Black Friday” or “Cyber Monday.”  Some really good bargains are available.  You have to be an Amazon Prime member […]

Posted on July 17, 2024 by Greg Ellifritz in What's New
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Weekend Knowledge Dump- July 12, 2024

Knowledge to make your life better. If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.   Full Recordings of Free Public Webinar on Ten Essential Observations on Guns in America  Dr. Yamane is placing recordings of his “Sociology of Guns” classes online for free.  I had the opportunity to watch […]

Posted on July 12, 2024 by Greg Ellifritz in Weekend Knowledge Dump
A Girl and a Gun, active killers, active shooters, American Handgunner, Dave Spaulding, Defenders USA, Dr. David Yamane, firearms training, Grant Cunningham, Gun Curious, gun digest, Gun Mag Warehouse, Integrated Skills Group, Kevin Creighton, Lucky Gunner, Massad Ayoob, modern service weapons, police, police training, revolvers, Safariland, Seth Godin, shooting drills, shotguns, Tatiana Whitlock, The Armory Life, The Revolver Guy, Travis Pike View Post

Free Books- Part 300

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 July 11, 2024 by Greg Ellifritz in Uncategorized
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Defenders USA Video Podcast

A couple weeks ago I recorded a fast paced and wide ranging podcast with Defenders USA.  They just posted it on their YouTube channel tonight.   It was a fun show covering everything from police training to life with metastatic cancer to how to stay safe during foreign travel.  I really enjoyed this interview and […]

Posted on July 10, 2024 by Greg Ellifritz in What's New
Adam Winch, Defenders USA View Post

Cops: The Young versus The Old

  In my last year as a police officer, I worked with a very young crew of cops. I usually worked the street with four other officers and a sergeant. It wasn’t unusual to have the combined years of service of those five guys adding up to a number significantly less than the 25 years […]

Posted on July 8, 2024 by Greg Ellifritz in Articles
police View Post

Weekend Knowledge Dump- July 5, 2024

Knowledge to make your life better. If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.   Bringing The Right Gun to Your Training Class Good information.  The right gun depends on your skill set, goals, and the class you are taking.  You might also like Essential Gear for Firearms Courses. […]

Posted on July 5, 2024 by Greg Ellifritz in Weekend Knowledge Dump
A Girl and a Gun, active killer, Active Self Protection, active shooter, American Cop, American Handgunner, drugs, exercise, firearms training, fitness, Gun Mag Warehouse, Guns and Ammo, kettlebells, Legal, Massad Ayoob, medical skills, Michael Bane, Mike Boyle, Rangemaster, revolvers, shooting drills, Swift Silent Deadly, Tatiana Whitlock, Uncle Zo View Post

Protecting Your Outdoor Gathering

Last week I published an article on the difference between “mass shootings” and active killer events.  Yesterday, I was scanning my news feed and came across the article linked below.   Missouri groom shot in robbery during his backyard wedding     In last week’s article, I mentioned how most of the reported recent “mass […]

Posted on July 4, 2024 by Greg Ellifritz in News and Tactical Advice
active killer, active shooter, home defense, home security View Post

“Peace Officers” vs. “Law Enforcement Officers”

Written by: Greg Ellifritz   Last week, I became involved in a discussion about the term “law enforcement officer.”  That’s what many cops are calling themselves these days. The words sound almost professional.  The problem isn’t really with the term itself; it’s when officers embrace the idea that their sole occupational mission is to find […]

Posted on July 3, 2024 by Greg Ellifritz in Articles
police View Post

Weekend Knowledge Dump- June 28, 2024

Knowledge to make your life better. If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.   Skeeter Skelton on Point Shooting (1968) Skeeter was my favorite gun writer when I was growing up.  Thanks to Karl and his crew for digging up this older article.     Concealed Carry Clothing […]

Posted on June 28, 2024 by Greg Ellifritz in Weekend Knowledge Dump
Active Self Protection, body armor, Caleb Causey, Everyday Marksman, firearms training, Gun Mag Warehouse, history, Hock Hochheim, Kevin Creighton, knife fighting, Louis Awerbuck, Lucky Gunner, Massad Ayoob, medical skills, Michael Bane, Personal Defense Network, pistoltraining.com, Primary and Secondary, Rangemaster, Sheriff Jim, shooting drills, The Revolver Guy, tourniquets, travel, Uncle Zo, Widener's View Post

Free Books- Part 299

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 June 27, 2024 by Greg Ellifritz in Uncategorized
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Words of Wisdom from Louis Awerbuck

  Ten years ago today, one of the world’s truly great firearms instructors passed away.  Louis Awerbuck served in the South African Defense force before moving to the USA to teach at Gunsite.  He was chief range master at Gunsite until 1987 when he formed his own company, Yavapai Firearms Academy.     He wrote […]

Posted on June 24, 2024 by Greg Ellifritz in Articles
firearms training, Louis Awerbuck View Post

Weekend Knowledge Dump- June 21, 2024

Knowledge to make your life better. If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.   The Value of Mirror Image Shooting I agree with Mas here.  I think a lot of instructors would get an incredible benefit out of taking a basic handgun class “mirror image” with the non-dominant […]

Posted on June 21, 2024 by Greg Ellifritz in Weekend Knowledge Dump
.22, .380, Active Self Protection, American Handgunner, Ammoland, AR-15, Ash Hess, Breach Bang Clear, Calibre Press, class reviews, Clint Smith, Dave Spaulding, Ed Head, firearms training, gun digest, Gun Mag Warehouse, history, Integrated Skills Group, Kevin Creighton, Legal, Lucky Gunner, Massad Ayoob, police, police knife attacks, police training, Rangemaster, Rob Haught, Shelley Hill, shooting drills, shotgun, Swift Silent Deadly, Tatiana Whitlock, The Firearms Blog, Uncle Zo View Post

Hiker Self-Protection Strategies

Last week, I wrote an article describing an incident I experienced on a local hiking trail.  I encountered a single female hiker on a remote trail.  The woman had a large skinning knife in her hand.  In the article I discussed how I handled the situation and what I might have done to handle a […]

Posted on June 19, 2024 by Greg Ellifritz in Reader Questions
ccw, hiking View Post

Enough Gun?

With the recent introduction of the Smith and Wesson/Lipseys collaborative snub nose revolvers, I’m seeing more and more folks arguing online about what is “enough” gun for concealed carry.  Some folks think that a snub revolver without a reload is perfectly adequate.  Other folks, like the author of this article, think that carrying anything less […]

Posted on June 17, 2024 by Greg Ellifritz in News and Tactical Advice
active killer, ccw, Jeff Gonzales, Justified Defensive Concepts, terrorism, Tim Chandler View Post
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