Diving to the Right....

[Wildalaska]

You write that like it's a bad thing!

WildthreadcomingAlaska TM

[BluesBear]

Do your own tests.






Personally I step left. Any right handed person coming at me with a weapon will have to track me to their right. It's much easier for them to swing a gun of knife across their body to their left that it is to swing it to their right. That requires them to turn their entire body.

I know it sounds like leaning into a punch but unless you can create safety by moving backwards you're better off by closing in where they lose their range of motion. This applies ONLY to an armed opponent!
If the threat is using unarmed tactics or a strike force weapon then you do just the opposite and move backwards and away.

[JoeBlackSpade]

Nice graphic!

Diagnose your own shooting deficiencies.

[mikejonestkd]

Followup:


Spent some time with two students that are fairly talented with the MA's and handy with firearms. none of us are firearms experts but most of us shoot handguns fairly well.

We used a few simple squirt guns, my son refused to give up his supersoaker 9000xlt death ray.

Range: 4-6 feet, anything farther away and almost anyone could avoid the stream of water due to the low velocity.
air temp: room temp
water temp: as cold as we could get out of the drinking fountain
Wind: we were inside, not a factor...
shooters were right handed
roughly facing the intended victim squarely, arm extended.


rules: the assailant tried to shoot the victim as soon as he could AFTER the victim started to move, the victim could move to their left or right and did not tell the shooter before hand which direction they were could to move to.


For the victim; in every trial if you move to your left ( the assailant's right ) you were less likely to get a full blast of water. moving to the right was much better than just standing there but they still caught more of the water stream from the squirt gun than if they moved to their left.

For the shooter: all mentioned that it was harder to track to the right than to the left and accurately get the shot on target.


Clearly it is apparent that any movement is MUCH better than standing there and getting shot, but there seems to be some truth to move to the outside of the assailant's gun hand.


I guess it is time to buy a few airsoft guns and do some more testing.

my students are going to love it!!!

[03Shadowbob]

Wild,
One of my Police Academy instructors (years ago) told us this also. It makes some sense.

[DeathRodent]

It seems to me that it is easier/faster for a right handed person to fall to their right (the BG's left) just because you are right handed and thats your dominant side.

I do think the going low and left would be better but not if its slower.

[oldbillthundercheif]

"Too little trigger finger"? What does that even mean? (no offense to the USAMU, those guys were the best instructors I ever had)

The far left slot on that target belongs to "The Claw". It's what happens when your fine "press the trigger" routine degenerates into a crude caveman squash where your finger pivots over as it would when making a fist instead of going straight back.

[hottbarrell]

Most rapid shots,or not concentrating-low and left,with a pistol.
If not concentraining with a rifle high and to right,Im right handed,so too move to the left would be effective,mr obvious says-a moving target is harder to hit.

[BluesBear]

Quick question...

What do you do if your best friend's dog jumps up on you and you don't want it's muddy paws all over your clean shirt?


Think quick now. What should your first move be?

[BluesBear]

Answer...


You take two or three steps FORWARD.

This makes the dog move backwards, putting it off balance and forcing it to move down to all fours.

The natural instinct to move backwards away from the dog enables the dog to just take another step or two to stay upright and try to "dance" with you.


Even though it's against instinct, sometimes it's better to "lean into the punch" than to move back.

The key is to move in such a way/direction that inconveniences your opponent. Even if that motion is not the most convenient for you.
Remember that action is faster than reaction.

[Tanzer]

I know the post regards moving & shooting, but part of the OP hits home.
I love to talk to my uncle. Retired and now makes hand carved rocking horses.
The men in my family tend to get white hair around age 45 (not me yet), so he got the name "Seargent Whitey". The older cops I know around here tell me stories of how he hated training them by today's standards.
He'd say things like; "After they kiss the the hood of the squad car a few times, they tend to settle down", or "If they look under 30, 'ya just bring 'em home to their momma". Of course, everyone knew each other back then.
My brother was a cop in a VERY backwoods town in VA. Thet had an old black man they called "Big Sam". He was the epitome of the drunk on the Andy Griffith show. When he got drunk, he'd go down to the station and ask to be let into a cell to sleep it off. He didn't have his own key though.
Not to throw off the thread, just relating.

[saskuach]

I honestly don't know which side would be better for avoiding shots, but it seems to me that with a weaver stance it would be easier to move to your strong side (right if righty). See, with your off-hand side facing the BG, if you move 'left' you're basically going backwards, whereas 'right' is more or less forward. Right just seems easier/quicker

[BluesBear]

it seems to me that with a weaver stance it would be easier to move to your strong side (right if righty).

Yes that's easier for you. But you need to consider which is easier for the bad guy. If the bad guy is also a righty then it's easier for him to track you since you are moving to his left.

So practice moving left. Even if you have to practice backing up a little.
When the balloon goes up you want to make it as difficult as possible for your opponent. That's why we sometimes must practice doing something harder.