Tactical Awareness

Tactical Awareness

Self Defense Article #3

Wow, you won the violent confrontation at the park.  You have talked it through with your partner and a couple of close friends.  You feel good about the results.  You took time to learn the physical skills you need to protect yourself.  You went out and purchased the tools that gave you tactical advantage.  You share your interest with your partner and she has joined you in your exploration of self defense. 

The next aspect you can work on is creating what is often called a tactical mindset.  Part of that is the winning attitude you have already created.  Another part is being able to look at situations and assess the tactical position you are in and how to gain advantage. 

To start with let’s talk about what is called the Color Code of Awareness.  This is a five color code to indicate your level of awareness and state of alertness. 

1)      White – This is the level of alertness often associated with being in a safe place, like your home.  You are relaxed.  There are no threats, no unknowns.  You are safe with your family watching TV or doing something fun and interesting with the ones you love.  This is the ONLY time you should find yourself at this level of awareness, it has no other place. 

2)      Yellow – You are out for a walk with the dog, or taking your kids to school.  You are shopping at the local supermarket.  You feel relatively safe in environments that you are familiar with.  You are relaxed but alert to everything and everyone around you.  When you are driving you know where the vehicles are on all sides.  You are paying attention. 

3)      Orange – A potential threat has appeared.  It could be the guy driving really fast and coming up on your rear bumper.  It could be the 4 punks on the corner wearing gang colors.  Anything that could be a potential threat needs extra attention and evaluation.  You are watching and listening, you are aware of the smallest changes.  You have tuned in and are ready for action if it becomes necessary. 

4)      Red – A threat is present.  The punks on the corner have spotted you and are moving your way.  The vehicle that was coming up fast behind you does not appear to be slowing down.  Action is required.  The action depends entirely on the circumstances you are in.  That is why you continue to study and practice.  You have run through scenarios in your mind so you can react quickly, you already have several options available to you so you don’t freeze up in a situation.  You do whatever you need to do to protect yourself. 

5)      Black – This is where you never want to be.  Too late.  You freeze up.  You were in white when a threat presented itself, you couldn’t respond fast enough and you do nothing.  You just became a victim.  NEVER allow yourself to go to black. 

How do you get to black?  Well one way is to be in white, unaware, too relaxed.  A threat appears and you need to be in red to deal with it affectively.  You can’t get there fast enough.  It is very difficult to jump from white to red.  Too much space in between.  You can jump two levels, but not three.  So you can be walking around in yellow and move to red to deal with an immediate threat.  You can jump one level at a time very easily, two is workable but not three.  What can happen is you don’t respond at all or you jump to black and just loose it. 

Being tactically aware is a vital survival skill.  As I have already indicated if you are not in the right mindset you cannot respond fast enough to a threat. 

Always be aware of your surroundings.  Where you are, who else is there.  Where your avenues of escape are, what safe areas are nearby, what areas you want to avoid.  What weapons are available to you.   These are all things to consider. 

Here are some of the things I do to stay safe.

·         I always stop for a moment before I enter a building.  I stop at the front door of the bank and take a look to make sure I’m not walking into a robbery or something.  I stop near the front of a restaurant to see who is there and what the atmosphere is. 

·         When driving I am aware of who and what is around me at all times.  I look as far ahead as I can to see what is happening with traffic.  I try not to drive in the middle lane so I don’t get blocked in at a red light.  I always have enough distance in front of my vehicle when stopped to pull out and go around the guy in front of me.   Make sure you can see his tires in contact with the pavement.  That will give you enough room to move. 

·         A safe following distance is 3 seconds between you and the car in front of you while moving.  Just pick and spot on the road and when the vehicle in front of you passes it start counting.  You should get to three before you reach the same spot.  This is the best way to judge distance as it doesn’t matter how fast you are going, just count to three. 

That should be enough to think about for now.  Until next time, be alert, be safe.

Raven, Spirit Warriors