The recent SurvivalBlog article on a home invasion robbery reminded me of a situation I experienced a couple of months back. I attribute my successful evasion of a possibly harmful or even deadly situation to my preparations, long before the fact.
Part of my work involves the inspection of in-service bridges to ensure they are structurally sound. This is by far the most dangerous work that I do because many of these bridges are in bad neighborhoods and I am sometimes by myself. I have been in dangerous neighborhoods before and observed literal word of mouth travel up the block that an “outsider” is in the area. Within minutes foot traffic in the area increases dramatically and a general unease settles in on me.
A couple of months back I had to run out and take a quick measurement on a bridge that my partner and I had forgotten to measure when we were there the day before. I would be out of my truck for no more than two minutes. The bridge was in an area that would be considered relatively safe, so I will admit that my awareness was not what it should have been. However, I did have my [.32 ACP] Kel-Tec P32 pocket pistol that I carry religiously. I hopped out of my truck, climbed under the bridge, performed my task and was climbing back up when I noticed a shady-looking character on the bridge sidewalk above me. I remember a feeling inside me that simply said “… be careful ”. When he saw me, he made contact:
Stranger: “I’m in distress. Call 911.”
A quick assessment led me to believe that this guy was not in any “distress”. He was moving normal and showed no signs of pain.
Me: “I’m sorry man, I don’t have my phone,” I lied. (As I said this, I was backing up towards my truck (Approx. 50 feet off) “What is wrong with you?”
Stranger: “I said I’m in distress, call 911.” (He rounded the bridge guardrail, left the sidewalk, and was briskly approaching me.)
I felt that it would be more hazardous to myself to show weakness by apologizing or making any concessions to him. I decided to continue to escalate what was becoming a very tense situation by being very firm.
Me: “Look, I just told you I don’t have a (censored) phone. I will call as soon as I’m back at my office but there’s nothing I can do for you here.”
Stranger: (He pointed to Leatherman case on my hip and became extremely angry. His pace picks up and he begins swearing profusely at me.)
“I see your phone on your hip, call 911 now or I will take it and call myself.”
Me: (I’d finally reached my truck, but there is no way I will feel safe turning my back to open the door. He was by then only about 20 feet in front of me, visibly angry and moving closer. I decides I had no other options, so I drew my gun from my pocket with one hand and steadied it towards his chest. My other hand opened the door and I slid in, strong arm still outstretched between the open door and the truck frame. My free hand goes for the center console and [the more capable] 9mm pistol that is in it. I exchanged pistols, always keeping a barrel on him. I started the truck’s engine, hit the auto window down, and finally I was able to shut the door, with the strong arm still outstretched. I dropped the truck into reverse and backed up about 100 feet. “Tell me what is wrong with you and I will call 911 right now.”
Stranger: (He made no response. I left and call the police to inform them that someone may need medical assistance, but was also acting extremely suspiciously. I do not mention anything else. I will never be convinced otherwise that this man had anything other than nefarious intentions, but I still felt the need to end the situation with a clear conscience.)
From the time that I drew my pistol until just before I left, there were no words exchanged. We were finally communicating on the same primal level. I responded to his threat of violence in kind and no words were needed. What did amaze me is that my mind was as clear as it had ever been; I heard no other sounds but his words and footsteps, I felt no other presence but him and my truck behind me. I am surely not the “high speed, low drag” type, but I believe I was able to perform under pressure because of mental preparation.
Situational Awareness (SA)
One area that I failed in was Situational Awareness (SA). Proper SA would have likely dictated that I circle the site and assess any threats. I did not do this; like I said before, I was in a “decent” part of town, traffic was not far from me, I’ll only be a minute, etc. I did take a moment before I got out of my truck to scan the area for perceived threats; I did not see anyone in the area.
I’ve heard LEO joke before about being able to pick a comrade out of a crowd simply by looking for “cop eyes”. “Cop eyes” are wide open and aware. They dart from car to car to check for occupants and take a quick glance to the rear as they walk in the parking lot. They scan the room as they enter, assessing the situation as a whole and then individuals that seem out of place. They look for primary and secondary points of egress. I’ve practiced this to a point where it usually comes naturally now, especially if I’m in strange surroundings. SA is only one tool in your chest, and often leads to:
Trust Your Gut
When I popped up from under the bridge and saw this guy mere feet from me (Almost side by side, but I was about 10’ below him so I was able to gain some standoff room before he rounded the bridge rail.), my instincts actually said: “You just scanned the area and no one was near, how did this guy get to you so quick – be careful .” My subconscious knew something did not equate in the situation. By listening to my gut, my alert was heightened and I was able to react accordingly. I’ve been in situations before where a general feeling of unease overtakes me. This may result in me hanging a left where I should have a right and taking the long route around, or stepping back in the store with my wife because I “forgot” something and wanted to browse a minute more. I don’t know if this has saved me from trouble or not. That’s the thing about your gut: when it works, you usually don’t know. Read the book “The Gift of Fear
Wargaming
Many of us cannot go off to some self defense boot camp for a weekend and expend several thousand rounds practicing the high art of the tactical pistol. Wargaming does not by any means replace proper training. It does however, help prepare your mind for situations beyond your control that seem to happen within the blink of an eye.
I’ve always done this, but didn’t always refer to it as “wargaming”. It was just something I did when I was about to face a stressful situation. In college, if I had a presentation the next day, I would take turns with buddies practicing the speech. If a Q&A was to follow (usually it would), we would try to throw the speaker with questions they may have not prepared for. By the end of our wargaming, each of us had thoroughly thought through our topic and could defend our position very well. I often do this for work as well, running possible scenarios through my head of what may happen in a meeting later in the day. I try to map out how I should react to varying positions and how to properly articulate my opinion so that I come across well prepared and knowledgeable.
I have wargamed many encounters in my head: being approached by someone in parking lots, while in my vehicle, while out on an inspection, coming home to a breached door, with or without my wife, phone, gun, and so forth. Wargaming works best when you have someone to offer counterpoints, so I’ll discuss this with someone that I trust. We’ll go through scenarios until we think we have planned for as many unknowns as we can. I believe this simple exercise helped me remain calm and collected during the above encounter. I feel I did not react too quickly, yet I did not allow my personal security zone to be compromised.
Muscle Memory and Training
Practice! Practice until the act is a natural extension of yourself. Whether it is typing blazing speeds or operating your handgun as if it is a big clunky metal/polymer extension of your hand, practice what you think you need to know, so that when you need it, you execute without even knowing it. I carry my gun in the same position as much as possible. I practice drawing my gun when I’m doing target shooting as well as drills. How do you know you’ve practiced enough? You don’t until you need those skills in a real time situation, so do not become complacent in your training.
My brother and I developed a [dry practice] drill [with an unloaded pistol] where he would approach me from the side (perpendicular to firing stance). I react as if someone is approaching head-on. This way he is never in the line of fire. He will run through different scenarios (visibly angry from the beginning, sudden hostile change in behavior once he is within close distance, etc.). My weapon stays holstered until I perceive a threat. We try to run through scenarios that include talking out of a situation, drawing and retreating and of course use of force. The purpose of the drill is not to “win” but to mimic your actions in real life. This drill requires both parties to operate on the honor system and stay “in-character”. It is an eye opener when you, as the “victim”, read the “hostile” improperly and “lose” several times in a row. Several lessons learned include:
* The instant you perceive a threat is usually much later than the time in which the threat actually began.
* Distances can be cleared very quickly by a determined individual. Keep your weapon easily accessible. [JWR Adds: Any practice with the Tueller Drill will show you that seven yards is a scant minimum safe distance!]
* There is a time for racket and a time for silence. When your gun is out, you are wasting “brain RAM” by focusing on conveying a message. At this point it is only fight or flight. Shut off all other programs in your head, so that all of your “brain RAM” is being focused on those two options.
In writing this article, it forced me to think through my actions on that day. I don’t remember making decisions on how to react in my head, I just remember reacting. If I didn’t listen to my intuition, I may not have entered the situation on high alert. If I had not previously thought through what I would do, I may have frozen up. If I didn’t carry in the same position every day and practicing drawing and firing, I may have reached for the wrong carry position, only to find nothing. A failure in any one of these areas might have cost me dearly.
Thank you for this site and what you do. God Bless you.