Posted August 17, 2015 2:17 pm by Comments

By Brad Fitzpatrick

BF (3)Prepared Does Not Mean Fearful: I’m often asked if I train with firearms because I’m afraid of bad guys. That’s as illogical as asking a trauma surgeon if they went into medicine because they are afraid of being hurt. There is a vast difference between being prepared and being afraid. And, if you do find yourself in the midst a violent encounter, fear does very little to help you survive. Preparation, on the other hand, provides you with the mental and physical tools you need to win.

“In a confrontation, you let your opponent know that they’ve bitten off more than they can chew,” Campbell says. “They thought you were a proverbial sheep, but in reality you are a sheepdog.”

Col. Cooper also describes the prepared attitude as not being one of, “an uncontrolled, explosive kook.” According to Cooper, the best preparation leaves you, “in full control of your mind.” And, ultimately, that is the key—learning to be in charge of yourself and your actions even in the midst of a terrible, violent attack. So important was mindset to Cooper that he made it part of the Triad which Gunsite still uses and still teaches to their students, along with marksmanship and gun handling. Ultimately, though, your

In case you aren’t familiar with the late Col. John Dean “Jeff” Cooper—which probably means you’re new to defensive shooting—allow me to introduce you. Born in 1920, Cooper earned a political science degree from Stanford before receiving a commission from the United States Marine Corps, and he fought in the Pacific in World War II and later in Korea before retiring as a lieutenant colonel. Cooper went on to earn his master’s degree and taught high school and college classes before he opened American Pistol Institute (API), now known as Gunsite, one of the nation’s top training destinations for civilian shooters as well as law enforcement and military professionals.

Cooper4Col. Cooper changed the way shooters handled their guns, how they engaged enemies and, perhaps most importantly, how they managed to develop a mindset that prepared them to face a lethal threat at any time and place. In his written works and his teachings, Col. Cooper made it clear that technical skills—how to load and fire your weapon—were of little value without being mentally prepared to win a gunfight. Today, 39 years after the doors opened, the instructors at Gunsite still prepare shooters to face the …read more

Source:: Guns and Ammo

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.