When Summer rolls around, you can find me on the NC highways riding a motorcycle I probably shouldn’t have. Fall, I’m climbing into a variety of trees, treestands, and blinds or swinging from a saddle harness, chasing some of the biggest monster deer that Johnston County has to offer. In the Winter and Spring, I’ve probably made my way deep into the woods on a dirtbike with my camera and campling gear exploring anywhere and everywhere across the country, in search of whatever natural beauty I may find. My hobby closet is FULL of different outfits, belts, gear setups, and equipment… So why is it that when I practice my defensive shooting, I’m always in my everyday work clothes?
What if you’re in fishing waders? Wearing waterproof gloves? In a rocking boat? Wearing a face-covering? How does your shape and mobility change when you’re decked out doing your favorite passtime? I mean, most of us have had at least a passing thought about where to move your carry gun to adjust for the change of kit, but is that enough?
I remember a specific instance a few years ago, when I was getting ready for a morning hunt in the fall. I had been getting my gear ready for weeks, and had already made the decision to relocate my carry gun onto a belt that I’d had set up for the trip. I’m still proud of the belt, which was a repurposed duty-belt, now equipped with my rangefinder, hunting license, flashlights, and an off-body safariland holster, that I knew would allow me increased mobility to climb in and out of treestands, drag deer, and manipulate my rifle without interference.
What I didn’t think about until I was in the field, however, was the type of clothing I’d have layered on in addition to the hunting kit. I had on several layers of thermal clothing, hunting gloves (the convertible kind that have the flip-on mitten tops). After my first failed sit in my stand, I was looking down at my Glock, and started to wonder how my draw would be affected, should I need it. For the next hour or so, on a safe range, I got to design a new process that saw me flipping back the glove, and operating the level three retention on the holster to draw and fire. I had a lot of fun doing it, and got decent at this new and unique draw stroke during the practice session, but I also began to wonder how different it would have been in the months prior, when I had less thermal clothing on, but an archery release on my wrist.
After that, a whole can of worms was opened in my brain. I’d been riding for motorcycles for years, and had adjusted my carry pistol ONLY to an area that it could be more easily reached. As for accounting for wearing my protective gloves, or drawing and firing with a helmet on… I hadn’t. I thought of my camping and hiking equipment, I thought of swimwear, I thought of the hundreds I’d spent on different guns and holsters to allow me to carry semi-comfortably in a few dozen different situations, and how I’d somehow overlooked the fact that should I ever need to actually draw and shoot, especially under duress, what that would look and feel like.
Since then, I’ve had a few… interesting range trips. I’m lucky enough to have places to shoot where I can safely replicate those situations, and introduce elements of those scenarios into my practice. It’s not all uncommon anymore to see me practicing a draw process that involves full recreational gear (ever practicing defeating a cover garment when that cover garment is a heavy armored jacket? I have) and even experimenting with specific processes like allowing a motorcycle to stall when I release the bars to draw, and where to plant my feet when doing so.
Am I ready for absolutely anything? Probably not, but have I been able to get a lot more familiar with some of the unique positions that I find myself in due to my lifestyle? Absolutely, and at least being aware of those variables may well shave split seconds of decision making if the time were to come for me to use my gun to defend myself and my loved-ones. We all know that in a defensive situation, those split seconds can make a lifetime of difference, so on top of being a fun and unique way to shake up your next range trip, putting in this sort of training is just another step you can take towards being as proficient and prepared as possible. If you have the space and the safety precautions in place, I recommend it.
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