Never A Victim
Marksman
Shivworks- Extreme Close Quarters Concepts 12/2/2016-12/5/2016
This is a course review for Extreme Close Quarter Concepts taught by Craig Douglas of Shivworks. This course was taught from 12/2/2016 to 12/5/2016 and was hosted by Tactical Response in Camden, TN. Gear used during this course was a Glock 19, NSR LLC-4 holster, SOE belt, and 5.11 BDU pants.
I was excited to take Extreme Close Quarters Concepts (ECQC) and have been looking forward to it all of 2016. It was my last training course of 2016, and I was excited to cap off a year of good training with subject matter that was relatively new to me. ECQC aims to bridge that gap between a gunfight and a grappling encounter.
I found myself soaking up all of the information during this class. While there was some material I was familiar with, most of the grappling and ground fighting with a gun was either completely new to me, or something that I had limited exposure to. At the end of day two and day three, Craig had the students go through “evolutions” to practice some of the techniques that were taught that day. All of these “evolutions” were ground fighting-based, and they also involved a simunition gun. The students wore padded helmets and light to medium striking was encouraged. A common misconception for those who carry a gun is that they will just pull out the gun during a ground fight and that will end the situation. Until you take a course like this, you have little idea how difficult it is to draw your gun with someone on top of you, much less make accurate hits. Position has to be established before the gun can come out of the holster. Several students learned this the hard way.
Other lessons learned during this course:
-Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is an excellent martial art to learn how to get the better position on the ground. If you can get the better position, you can get the better shot.
-During a grappling fight for a gun, it is almost guaranteed that you will experience a malfunction after the first shot. Knowing how to clear a malfunction one handed is critical.
-Carrying a fixed blade-fighting knife is mandatory. Most students had no idea they were being stabbed as their focus was on the gun.
This class was an ego killer--train your weaknesses! During this class, some students realized they are not in good enough physical condition to survive a violent encounter. Other students realized they are comfortable on the ground, or they freak out when someone else is on top of them. Regardless of what your weaknesses are, ECQC offers something for everyone. I think it is safe to say that everyone went home on Sunday night knowing how to better train.
Take this course.
This is a course review for Extreme Close Quarter Concepts taught by Craig Douglas of Shivworks. This course was taught from 12/2/2016 to 12/5/2016 and was hosted by Tactical Response in Camden, TN. Gear used during this course was a Glock 19, NSR LLC-4 holster, SOE belt, and 5.11 BDU pants.
I was excited to take Extreme Close Quarters Concepts (ECQC) and have been looking forward to it all of 2016. It was my last training course of 2016, and I was excited to cap off a year of good training with subject matter that was relatively new to me. ECQC aims to bridge that gap between a gunfight and a grappling encounter.
I found myself soaking up all of the information during this class. While there was some material I was familiar with, most of the grappling and ground fighting with a gun was either completely new to me, or something that I had limited exposure to. At the end of day two and day three, Craig had the students go through “evolutions” to practice some of the techniques that were taught that day. All of these “evolutions” were ground fighting-based, and they also involved a simunition gun. The students wore padded helmets and light to medium striking was encouraged. A common misconception for those who carry a gun is that they will just pull out the gun during a ground fight and that will end the situation. Until you take a course like this, you have little idea how difficult it is to draw your gun with someone on top of you, much less make accurate hits. Position has to be established before the gun can come out of the holster. Several students learned this the hard way.
Other lessons learned during this course:
-Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is an excellent martial art to learn how to get the better position on the ground. If you can get the better position, you can get the better shot.
-During a grappling fight for a gun, it is almost guaranteed that you will experience a malfunction after the first shot. Knowing how to clear a malfunction one handed is critical.
-Carrying a fixed blade-fighting knife is mandatory. Most students had no idea they were being stabbed as their focus was on the gun.
This class was an ego killer--train your weaknesses! During this class, some students realized they are not in good enough physical condition to survive a violent encounter. Other students realized they are comfortable on the ground, or they freak out when someone else is on top of them. Regardless of what your weaknesses are, ECQC offers something for everyone. I think it is safe to say that everyone went home on Sunday night knowing how to better train.
Take this course.
