I just came back from the “Trial By Firearms” event in Las Vegas and really loved it. We got to do simunition training, which was really cool. We had to go into a house, retrieve a gun, then make our way upstairs, all the while there were several attackers hidden throughout the building. Some were unarmed and might jump out of a corner to tackle you and you had to get them off and get away. Other attackers had guns and were shooting simunition rounds, which are non lethal, but sting a lot when they hit your arms or legs (the rest is covered with protective gear). You could then use your own gun to shoot back. Once the attacker had been hit, you could move on.
It was my first time ever doing something like that and I loved it. It made me think of different tactics I might have used, both as the attacker and as the defender. For example, is there a “right” way to move through a building under these types of circumstances (the scenario was that you are in the basement and the only exit is upstairs, so you HAVE to move through the building to get to safety). For example, would it make sense to walk with your back against a wall when walking down a room or hallway, so you can be sure that there is no one behind you and you don’t have to look over your shoulder every few seconds? But what if you come to a corner? Should you stay close to the wall and then peek around the corner, or maybe move a few feet off the wall first, so if there is someone hiding there it will give you a few extra moments to brace yourself for an attack and give yourself a better chance to fight back? But then, if the attacker has a weapon, you might expose yourself too much and lose your ability to make a gun defense, as you are now too far away from the attacker to carry it out.
If there is someone shooting at you from a far corner in the building and you HAVE to get past him, would you ever try to move through the room, shooting wildly and hoping you won’t get hit? Or fight your way to another cover first and then inch toward the exit little by little? Or stay behind the wall and just shoot back at him, hoping you will hit him to eliminate the threat and only THEN move on? It seems that if you just try to get through the area quickly you are taking a big chance, but, if you succeed, you may be able to get past and move on. If you stay covered, you are safer, but may be pinned down for a long time (and there are the other attackers to consider).
Of course, there probably isn’t one right or wrong way and it all depends on the circumstances, but I was wondering if anyone here had ever done this type of training before and what their personal experience was or if anyone knows any rules of thumb that may help to get a defender through this type of scenario more safely.
I hope we’ll be able to do it again soon and I’m trying to figure out what I might be able to do differently/better next time.
