Training Makes the Difference

[Dwight55]

I'm mostly self trained, . . . some books, some videos, . . . mostly just one on one IDPA type scenarios.

Never have had to use it.

Came home today from my son's house, . . . walked into my own house, . . . there was a noise that sounded just like someone in my bedroom knocked something over.

Before I could formualte a plan, . . . my 1911 was in my hand, safety off, and I was calling out to the "intruder" to ID himself or stand by for the consequences.

No sound, . . . I waited, . . . no sound, . . . finally took the chance and did the old cutting the pie check out of the room: nothing.

This whole post is just to thank all of you out there who keep hammering on the training, . . . practice, . . . training, . . . practice. It all came naturally, did not have to think, . . . and, . . . uhh, . . . no, . . . never did find out what made the noise.

May God bless,
Dwight

 

[peacefulgary]

No sound, . . . I waited, . . . no sound, . . . finally took the chance and did the old cutting the pie check out of the room: nothing.

I'm just curious...

How long did you wait before "cutting the pie" and checking out your room?


Was your bedroom door open or closed?


Is there a door leading out of your bedroom other than the one you were covering?
Windows?



Thanks,
Gary

 

[Dwight55]

How long did you wait before "cutting the pie" and checking out your room?

I didn't wait at all, . . . moved straight past the north door, . . . circling around to the west door of that room

Was your bedroom door open or closed?

Both were open

Is there a door leading out of your bedroom other than the one you were covering?

Yes.

The "plan" was to herd the individual, . . . if they existed, . . . into either the bathroom or the closet, . . . neither of which have another exit.

They of course could have also exited the north door and out through the side entrance of the house, . . . and that would have also been fine.

Just glad it apparently was something that tipped over coincidentally with the time I was walking into the house from having been gone a while.

May God bless,
Dwight

 

[g.willikers]

And what if there were more than one intruder, in different parts of the house?
Or someone was being held hostage?
Or it was dark?
Or lots of other scenarios one might not think of, without having experienced them before.
Like in a training situation.
Can't have too much training.
Just saying.

 

[Hiker 1]

This is a good post. Regular training helps decisiveness and confidence.

 

[WildBill45]

This is a good post. Regular training helps decisiveness and confidence.

Training is good, but nothing beats experience!

You can read every book on Ballet ever written, or watch videos, but do you think you can join the Moscow Ballet? Dangerous actor extermination is also an experience based skill!!!

Keep up the training, but also practice, practice, and then practice again...

 

[manta49]

I would have closed the door moved a safe distance and rang the police no training required for that.

 

[Hiker 1]

Training is good, but nothing beats experience!

Experience in what, real-world shootouts? Those are generally hard to come by.

 

[Glenn Dee]

Sometimes when a person percieve some serious danger... they can go into a automatic mode where their training and practice takes over and the person can concentrate on his tactics, and technique.

Thats what I think the O/P experienced.

 

[peacefulgary]

The "plan" was to herd the individual, . . . if they existed, . . . into either the bathroom or the closet, . . . neither of which have another exit.

Hmmm....some folks can be herded.
These are ususally unarmed peaceful folks.

But herding an armed intruder (or armed intruders) might prove much more difficult.
Especially ones that might be hiding and ready to ambush you, or ones willing to stand and shoot it out with you.

And backing a possibly armed and possibly desperate intruder (or intruders) in to a corner with no escape route might lead that intruder to feel that he has no alternative but to shoot it out with you.

I didn't wait at all, . . . moved straight past the north door, . . . circling around to the west door of that room

Why the rush?

 

[Dwight55]

Why the rush?

It is a hold over in my training from less peaceful days as a platoon sgt of a light infantry company.

"If you have the enemy on the move, don't give him time to regroup, think, or sort out his options, . . . pursue and engage".

Once I crossed over into "taking action" (which I had done in challenging and drawing), . . . pursuit and engagement were really the only options because of the layout of the house and my personal location at that moment.

Plus, . . . forcing them to move, . . . would most likely cause them also to reveal their true location by the noise they made by moving.

May God bless,
Dwight

 

[Frank Ettin]

It is a hold over in my training from less peaceful days as a platoon sgt of a light infantry company.

"If you have the enemy on the move, don't give him time to regroup, think, or sort out his options, . . . pursue and engage"...

On the other hand, coordinated group combat is different from solo house clearing with an ensconced adversary present.

. . . forcing them to move, . . . would most likely cause them also to reveal their true location by the noise they made by moving.

If there were someone there, he might choose not to move to instead ambush you. Or there could have been more then one Bad Guy willing to engage you.

We've discussed the inadvisability of solo house clearing here, here, here, and here.

So it really appears that things worked out for you because there was really no one there who wanted to do you harm. Had there been someone there who wanted to do you harm, things might not have worked out so well.

 

[Glenn Dee]

Way back in the days when I regularly cleared apartments, and commercial spaces (often by myself) I preferred to stay as still and quiet as I could. The perp will ALWAYS let his curiosity, or his need to escape get the best of him.

 

[Slopemeno]

Totally true. That's pretty much my go-to technique. Move off the line, listen, decide, move.

 

[SgtLumpy]

I carried a bag of tennis balls in my unit.

Emplace yourself and get silent. LISTEN. Throw a tennis ball at closet or bedroom doors and it startles someone hiding inside. He may shout because of the startle factor, bolt through the door, try and secrete himself further or in very rare cases, come out shooting or shoot from behind the door. The last scenario is probably very unlikely unless the guy is a wanted cop killer or something similar.

Tennis balls are also great for safely knocking on someone's door. Instead of standing in the kill zone in front of the door, stand several feet away, around the corner of the garage or similar. Throw the tennis ball (or two or three) at the door to "knock" then verbalize your usuall "Hello" or "Police" or whatever.

And in a non-gun related mode, tennis balls are great for chasing away pigeons from your roof/eaves. You can't break windows or damage people or livestock with a tennis ball. You probably won't even hit the pigeons. But hit a big, metal air conditioner unit that makes a loud noise, and you'll scare the birds away at least for a few minutes.

Eventually take the old tennis balls to the desert and shoot 'em up...


Sgt Lumpy

 

[peacefulgary]

Smart thinking Sgt Lumpy!

It is a hold over in my training from less peaceful days as a platoon sgt of a light infantry company.

"If you have the enemy on the move, don't give him time to regroup, think, or sort out his options, . . . pursue and engage".

But you didn't have "the enemy" on the move.

All you really did was rush in to what could have been an ambush.

Like Frank alluded to, individual tactics are not the same as platoon tactics.