Often, when people make the decision to take an active role in their own safety, they take steps that seem to have a great impact as opposed to steps that really make marked difference in the safety of the life they lead.

A perfect example is the rush that many people have to acquire a firearm, ammunition, accessories and training that they believe will keep them safe.  Now do not take this the wrong way folks!  For some people, that firearm WILL mean the difference between life and death.

But for many more, there are other skills and tools that will be the keys to saving lives.  Skills like, first aid and CPR.  Skills that deal with choking, or treating someone with traumatic injury.

Nope.  Not anywhere near as sexy as defending your family with a gun, But, it is statistically MUCH MORE LIKELY that you will provide someone with life saving care than protect them with your gun.

To that end, today we are going to talk to Caleb Causey of Lone Star Medics about the importance of emergency medical skills.  What skills are the most critical?  Who needs to have them?  What tools are critical to saving lives and where you can get those skills?

I am looking forward to sorting out some important ideas regarding defensive training today with Caleb Causey of Lone Star Medics.

When folks think about their personal security and self-defense they immediately move towards shooting, striking, you know the sexy stuff.  But the fact is that is only part of the equation.

People like Caleb Causey of Lone Star Medics are critical to personal protection as they help round out the package and help you develop all the skills you need to truly be safer that is why we are talking to Caleb today and that is why we will be hosting Caleb next month for Lone Star Medics Medicine X EDC.

And a whole lot more!

 On March 21st and 22nd we will be hosting Lone Star Medics here in Cleveland Ohio to teach Medicine X EDC.

This is a two day course that combines a touch of lecture, a strong dose of practical medical skills with life fire and FoF scenarios to help you gain the knowledge, skills and confidence to deal with injuries that you or someone you love could sustain in a violent attack or simply while going about your daily life.

Sign up for a medical course.

Then get a tactical medical course under your belt!

Register for Medicine X EDC

Our next episode we will be back to talking about holsters!

Thank you for investing your valuable time with us today!  I appreciate it greatly. Get out there, get some training, some medical training.  When you do, keep it simple, stay safe and as always have a great day!

Please visit us at Safety Solutions Academy for information about Med X EDC and other important courses.

When it comes to equipment issues there is no area where folks struggle more than in selecting the right concealed carry holster. 

Getting it wrong can have some serious consequences ranging from discomfort to safety issues.  This means that there are some things you need to get right the first time. 

In my trailer, I have a bin full of holsters that students often need to dip into to solve holster problems in class.  Wouldn’t it be better if we could sort out some of these issues before we make a holster mistake.  Or even before we make another holster mistake?

The Jobs of a Concealed Carry Holster

A concealed carry holster has a complex job.  Often times the different duties of the concealed carry holster are counter to each other.  This makes a holster difficult to design and difficult to select.  This can be one of the most difficult and at times frustrating aspects of concealed carry.

If we work to understand concealed carry from a conceptual concept  it can help us to break down the complexity and make some good choices.

Conceptual Purpose of a Concealed Carry Holster

You should expect your concealed carry holster to carry your concealed carry handgun safely, comfortably and securely while allowing you quick access to your handgun should you need to defend yourself or your loved ones in a life threatening violent encounter.

Your Concealed Carry Holster and Safety

Your Concealed Carry Holster and Comfort

Your Concealed Carry Holster and Security

Your Concealed Carry Holster and Quick Access

Characteristics of a Quality Concealed Carry Holster

 Let’s take a look at the characteristics of a quality concealed carry holster.

Everyone that carries a gun has to deal with holsters of one kind or another and there seems to be no more universal frustration among those that carry concealed than holsters.

Hopefully today’s show gave some good quality concepts for you to start looking at you holster as a tool to accomplish a goal as opposed to a pain in your rear.

If you found today’s pod-cast helpful please head to iTunes or Google or Facebook and leave an honest review and rating regarding SSA and what it is that we do.

This gives me valuable feedback when it comes to improving the show as well as help others find the information on the interwebs that will be truly beneficial to them.

Thank you for taking the time to leave those reviews and ratings!

Also:

Critical Defensive Handgun

March 7th and 8th 2015 Atlanta GA

One or two day options

If you don’t live in Atlanta, or if class has come and gone, don’t despair,

Head to www.ssa.training/cdh for info and registration.

Next podcast we will be taking to Caleb Causey of Lone Star Medics.  We are going to dive deep into the idea of Medical care and why it should be a key part of your defensive skill set.

Then we will be back on holsters taking a specific look at how you can find the right holster for you.  We will discuss carry position, holster material and how to evaluate that holster you have or are thinking about buying

William Aprill is a mental health professional with almost 20 years of experience in a wide variety of roles.  His back ground as a Sherrif's Deputy and a Special Deputy to the US Marshall's Service combined with his mental health experience and tenure as an instructor in the combative arts puts William in a Uniqu position to understand the violent criminal's mind and what that means for those that train to lead a safer life.

William takes the time to discuss why understanding the violent criminal mind is important and why failing to understand can lead to inappropriate training and a failed response when we are faced with violence.

William will be coming to NE Ohio  April 25th and 26th, 2015, to co-teach a course called "Unthinkable" which will be a well balanced course that deals with unarmed combative skills, armed skills and criminal psychology.

Follow this link to find out more information about William Aprill, Unthinkables and how you can properly prepare to deal with a Violent Criminal Actor.

Situational awareness is one of the pillars that has been taught for self-defense and personal protection for decades.  It is an important skill that we should use whenever possible, but we need to understand bot the limitations of situational awareness and when it can fail us.Today we will talk about specific examples where we count on situational awareness to save our tail when instead we should count on counter ambus training because awareness simply isn't likely to work.  We will also talk in detail about how situational awareness really can make a difference in your personal safety.Check out the resources that go along with this podcast at Safety Solutions Academy!

I had the opportunity to speak with the General Manager of Blade-Tech, Kyle Thompson at the National Association of Sporting Goods Wholesalers Show in Little Rock Arkansas.Kyle and I talked about a variety of topics such as the difference between Kydex and injection molded hosters, how versitile holsters can help you decide how to select the best concealed carry holster, what makes for a quality belt for concealed carry and ambi appendix carry holsters.Take a few minutes to listen to what Kyle has to say about BLade-Tech and concealed carry and then apply as needed.

If you own an AR-15 you probably appreciate the number of accessories that are readily available for your rifle.  Whether its stocks, rails, sights, optics, lights, lasers, or cigar cutters you can hang it off of your rifle.  Of all the accessories, the most important  may be the one that feeds your blaster.  Magazines are an important part of your rifles function.  

Quality AR-15 magazines are reliable and durable.  Today, magazines can do more than just feed your gun.  The folks at HexMag have shown that they can work, look good and even make life a bit easier in some ways.

There are plenty of polymer magazine manufacturers for the AR-15 rifle and it's cousins out there.  HexMag is a Colorado based company that is fairly new to the market and is committed to building quality mags for training, defensive use and use by professionals that carry rifles for a living.

The HexMag AR-15 Magazines are a full polymer body with a stainless steel spring.  Of course the follower is a no tilt follower and the magazine can easily be disassembled with no tools.  The easy disassemble encourages magazine maintenance and is accomplished through a colorful push button hexagon on the bottom of the magazine.

The Pushbutton hex on the bottom of the mag not only allows for easy cleaning, but it can also be swapped out for different colors.  This allows the magazine to be easily identified by color as the hex is easily visible even when the magazine is stored in a pouch.

It is these types of innovations that separate HexMag from some of the polymer magazine manufacturers that have been around for awhile.  I talk with the guys from HexMag about their magazines, the Second Amendment and much more.  Give it a listen.

Targets make a big difference when it comes to your defensive firearms training.  Targets are more than measurement tools for recording your hits and misses.  When used properly, they can also help you to recognize when scenarios require you to shoot and when they don't and even force you to think in ways that are similar to the ways you will need to in a real life violent encounter.

The folks at Hill and Mac Gunworks seem to have taken the steel target and refined it.  Steel targets provide great auditory feedback and targets that fall give some good visual feedback as well.  

Steel targets aren't without their difficulties though.  If they are steel, they make lead and copper fly and with poor design that can be a problem.

If the targets are reactive, they need to be reset which takes time.

And neither of these points addresses the fact that typical steel targets don't address the fact that visual stimulation of the need to shoot is left out of the equation.

Hill and MAc Steel Target Systmes are certainly worth a look if you are searching for steel targets for defensive firearms training.

I haven't yet had the opportunity to shoot a HMG target, but with the experience I have with shooting steel, the targets are certainly promising.  Their design increases safety and at the same time provides convienience.

The available accessories are also an important factor.  The targets can be lifted up to traditional human heights with an elevation kit and there is an optional electric reset kit that will allow targets to be reset or exposed using the spring loaded base and a remote control.  

As a defensive shooting instructor, the electronic reset is where I find the most value with the HMG targets.

HMG has taken on the challenges that targets present to quality defensive firearms training.  Take a listen to my conversation with Mac to find out how.

When it comes to shooting, cleaning my guns afterwards is one of my least favorite parts.  Gun cleaning is messy, it smells and there is no doubt that making the wrong choice in solvents can lead to problems including damage to your firearms.  

Breakthrough military grade weapon cleaning solvent helps to cure some of those pains. Breakthrough is a non-toxic distilled petroleum product that removes carbon, lead and copper fouling without damaging the metal, finish, polymers or wood attached to your guns.

Erick Navarro takes some time to discuss Breakthrough gun cleaner, what it is and how it works.

Rob Pincus is the owner of ICE Training, the developer of the Combat Focus Shooting Program, Executive Editor of the PErsonal Defense Network and the man is a serious nomad.

We took some time to chat about the new Personal Defense Network DVD release which includes 14 new feature length videos from a variety of outstanding defensive instructors on a whole host of important topics.

You can purchase the videos by following this link to the ICE Training Store.

Make sure to click here to check out the show notes for reviews of the videos as I watch them and lots of helpful links!