Survival Tactics

Written by: Greg Ellifritz   It hasn’t been long since movie theaters re-opened after being closed for nearly a year during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic.  Predictably, shortly after re-opening we’ve seen our first movie theater shooting.   On Monday night, a suspect shot two people in the head during a screening

Amazon has a tremendous number of FREE ebooks on their website.  You can find thousands of free kindle books on Amazon’s site every day.  These books can be downloaded to a Kindle reader or a free App on your phone or personal computer.  Even if you don’t have a

I just booked some short notice classes that will be running in a little less than a month.  I think there is probably enough local demand to fill them quickly.   I’m teaching “Impact Weapons for Personal Protection” and “Extreme Close Quarters Gunfighting” at James and Korey Cocking’s private range and

Written by: Greg Ellifritz Viking Tactics owner Kyle Lamb has a very fast paced rifle/handgun transition drill you should be trying if you have a range that allows for forward movement towards the target.  The drill covers strong and weak shoulder rifle shooting, sling transitions, and pistol transitions in a

Knowledge to make your life better.  If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.   Dealing with Challenges in Rainy Weather Part One Four well-known firearms instructors weigh in about the effect rain has on a training class.   MA Officers Used LRAD to End Standoff with Rise

*Last week I was talking to my old friend Andy Stanford on the phone.  For those of you new to the shooting game, Andy was a pioneering instructor in the 1990s and 2000s.  He focused a lot of his classes on handgun skills and operating in a low light

Written by Greg Ellifritz http://www.picserver.org Picture by Nick Youngson   Here’s the short version of the article: the environment wins.   A few years ago, I had serious stomach surgery and couldn’t carry my normal carry guns during my recovery.  I had seven incisions in my belly and the biggest one was directly behind

Knowledge to make your life better.  If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.   12 Easy Ways to Secure Your Home Against Bad Guys Inexpensive options to make your home more difficult to enter.     7.62 AK Mags: What You Need To Know I see articles about AR-15

Amazon has a tremendous number of FREE ebooks on their website.  You can find thousands of free kindle books on Amazon’s site every day.  These books can be downloaded to a Kindle reader or a free App on your phone or personal computer.  Even if you don’t have a

Written by: Greg Ellifritz   If you want a small taste of how many police executives (the ones running the show) are astonishingly corrupt and inept, read this short article by my friend Kevin Davis (linked below).  It highlights some of the egregious acts of misconduct he personally experienced in his

Written by Greg Ellifritz   Last week I re-posted an article I wrote a couple years ago on my Facebook page.  That article generated a lot of questions from my readers.  Most of the questions were something along the lines of:   “If I get stopped by a cop in a state

Knowledge to make your life better.  If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.   LIFE SKILLS | Pathway to Violence “To increase your odds of avoiding a violent physical threat, it is critical to maintain visual control of your surroundings by applying your awareness. Situational

Written by: Greg Ellifritz   A few weeks ago I saw this particular news article and thought that the event it described would be worthy of discussion.  Read the link below.   Man Fatally Shot By Armed Citizen After Harassing And Attacking Others At Outdoor Park   For the sake of argument, let’s state the

  Written by: Greg Ellifritz   David Bowie coaching a student at TDI   I’ve known for a long time that the words we use when coaching a shooting student can affect how quickly that student grasps a certain concept.   One important concept I’ve used over the years is to express all of my coaching

Knowledge to make your life better.  If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.   Surveillance Detection If you are involved in any public altercation or if you encounter suspicious people, it’s not a good idea to drive directly back to your home.  Claude shares some

Amazon has a tremendous number of FREE ebooks on their website.  You can find thousands of free kindle books on Amazon’s site every day.  These books can be downloaded to a Kindle reader or a free App on your phone or personal computer.  Even if you don’t have a

Written by: Greg Ellifritz   I recently did a drill in class where there was a high likelihood that some of my students would accidentally drop their unloaded guns.   Instead of letting them potentially damage their pistols, I passed my gun around and let them use it instead.   One of the students asked:

Written by Greg Ellifritz   In Colorado last week, an active killer shot a police officer and then began to fire his shotgun at other targets in the crowded downtown area.  After running out of ammo, the killer then went to his vehicle and swapped his shotgun out for an AR-15

About 15,000 of you have signed up to get email updates whenever I write a new article.  The service I’ve used to provide those updates is Feedburner, a company now owned by Google.   Back in April, Google decided to change the core functions of Feedburner.  Sometime in July, Feedburner will

Knowledge to make your life better.  If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.   Are Pistol Sights Actually Useful For Self-Defense? “The real paradox of the point shooting versus sighted fire debate is that learning to quickly acquire a sight picture essentially trains you to

Written by Greg Ellifritz   My shooting skills have been slipping.   I retired from my police job last August.  Since I’m not confronting criminals on a daily basis, the motivation to stay in tip top form is diminished.  Combine that with Covid-related range closings, high ammo prices, and the fact that I’ve

Today and tomorrow are this year’s “Prime Days” on Amazon.com.  For members of their excellent “prime” service, they are discounting thousands of items site wide.   It’s kind of like the sales you would see on “Black Friday” or “Cyber Monday.”  Some really good bargains are available.  You have to be

Written by: Greg Ellifritz   I picked up a new Ruger LCP II in .22 long rifle last week.  I’ve owned the same gun in .380 acp since it was introduced.  It fits the small niche of a “back pocket” gun better than any other.   The downside of the .380 version of

Knowledge to make your life better.  If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.   Modern Holsters: Carrying into the Future Tamara Keel writes a superb article about the design features available on modern IWB holsters.  If you don’t know about “wings,” “claws,” and “wedges,” you

Amazon has a tremendous number of FREE ebooks on their website.  You can find thousands of free kindle books on Amazon’s site every day.  These books can be downloaded to a Kindle reader or a free App on your phone or personal computer.  Even if you don’t have a