Personal Carjacking Lesson Learned
It IS in fact true that when people are faced with impending doom, they revert to their lowest level of training instead of using their brains.
At about 0400 one morning, I was by myself in my Avalanche sitting in an intersection downtown waiting for the red light to turn green. From my 10:00 position, an intimidating street type started to approach my vehicle.
I should have FLOORED it and gotten the hell out of there. But no, I'm a law-abiding citizen and I dutifully was waiting for the light to turn Green. But as I spied this guy headed my way, I couldn't help but notice what looked just like a tire iron in his right hand, and I drew my 1911 from my strong side Fobus holster and got a good sight picture. Through the closed window I shouted as loud as I could "Don't come any closer!!".
It was ony then that the light turned Green and I suddenly realized what an idiot I had been in sitting there that whole time when I could have easily floored it and sped off safey before he got as close as he did. The good news was that the BG saw my sidearm pointed at him, and he turned and ran like the wind. My lessons learned that morning included the following pearls of wisdom:
1. Use Situational Awareness ('SA') at all times.
2. Be willing to 'break the law' (run the red light) if your life is in danger.
3. Don't hesitate to go to low-ready if you're "not sure" about a situation that may be developing.
4. Don't let a street thug get within your Zone of Danger before drawing down on him if your Gut Instict (a very useful tool) says "Danger Will Robinson".
5. Be in Condition ONE when carrying your defensive firearm.
The mistake I made was in not phoning in the the incident to the police. For all I know the BG could have sprinted away to a phone booth where he might have called in a "Man with a Gun" call.
If you have an opportunity to take an Evasive Driving course, take it.
If you have an opportunity to take a Vehicle Defense tactics course, do it.