This blog post was originally featured on Max Velocity Tactical, and is published here with permission from the author.
“Out of every one hundred men, ten shouldn’t even be there, eighty are just targets, nine are the real fighters, and we are lucky to have them, for they make the battle. Ah, but the one, one is a warrior, and he will bring the others back.” – Heraclitus
“Warrior Mindset is more than aggressiveness and determination, it is about over coming challenge and adversity. It’s about possessing, understanding, and being able to utilize a set of psychological and physical skills that allow someone to be effective, adaptive, and persistent. It also allows someone to use optimal decision-making, psychological techniques, physical and tactical skills learned in training and by experience.”
“The goal of a Warrior Mindset is to integrate the psychological with physical and tactical training to add a dimension that is often overlooked, but necessary to achieve maximal performance of a skill. If you only talk about mental toughness, but don’t actively train it, you haven’t developed into a complete warrior….regardless of what physical skills you have developed. You’ll find, with proper training, that you can possess the power to overcome any obstacle and change your outcomes if you train yourself mentally. This is the point in which you will truly bring out the Warrior Mindset within yourself.”
This post is about having the right warrior mindset, and how to action that in your life. It is also about all that is wrong out there in gun and ‘tactical’ training culture. These two things are opposites: on the one side you have those conducting training that will develop the warrior mindset, and on the other you have a world full of gun ‘derp.’
Firstly, to focus on the positive. If you consider yourself a self-reliant and capable individual, then you need to action the warrior mindset. By your thoughts, actions, training and capabilities, you are working to become an embodiment of the warrior mindset. This is not something that you need to be concerned about only if you are in a martial profession, because in the great American tradition of individual self-reliance, we should all be capable self-reliant individuals. Thus, you are a protector of yourself, your family and your children. However, what is mostly missed is the fact that the utility of developing the warrior mindset and associated tactical skills, is not simply tactical capability. No, development of an effective warrior mindset is a positive character building process and will filter across and benefit all areas of your professional and personal life.
If we dedicate ourselves to the pursuit of tactical training in order to develop a warrior mindset, then we are directly concerned with developing:
What is often missed, but is essential to a true warrior mindset, is talked about in the quotes at the top of the page:
These are the character building qualities that are essential to a warrior mindset and which will bleed across into your personal and professional life.
I am not writing this post to make you feel good. This is part of the problem – those who think they can develop these qualities by reading about them or watching videos. You are deluding yourself, You need to be actually pursuing these skills, training and qualities in order to invest in yourself. Those of us who developed these qualities by joining the military and serving had to do so by hard work. There are other professions that will also develop these qualities, perhaps in a less directly tactical method. If you have not had the benefit of training offered as part of a relevant profession, then you can still partake in it, but all I can offer you is hard work. Those of us in relevant professions may have been pushed to develop these qualities, but we will not maintain the mindset without continued hard work. No one can rest on their laurels. All I can offer you is training, hard work, and continual striving to do better by yourself and your family. Anything less than a commitment to that, and you are wasting your time.
This is where we get to the less than savory side. Most people are weak, want instant gratification, and are not prepared to do the work. They are sheep, and not worth the time. The internet is a horrible place full of idiots with unfounded opinions. We have a problem in the USA, and that problem is the fact that everyone has, or can have, a firearm and a stupid opinion, with no real experience or training to back it up. The result is a lot of people who are ‘gun owners’ but are less than a waste of time in terms of warrior mindset. Yes, that is fine, it is everyone’s right to be as much of a waste of oxygen as they want to be, it is not my job to fix that, and I will not attempt to. My job is to train those who are willing to do the work to invest in themselves.
So looking around out there we have a bunch of guys who constantly ‘build’ rifles which is a hobby much like adult lego, and has nothing to do with tactical training. We have collectors, which is also a non-tactical gun hobby. We have plinkers. We have all sorts of gun owning types, that have nothing to do with the warrior mindset. Many have fantasies of tactical ability, simply because they own a firearm. Most are obese, incompetent and weak minded.
The next issue is one of ‘tactical training’ and the current trends in American ‘tactical’ instruction. There are many instructors out there with real training and operational experience who should know better. But much of the current trend in rapid firearms manipulation and gaming, if left at that, will get you killed in a real tactical scenario. Does it have training worth? Yes. Does competition have training worth? Yes, in context. But if you wish to progress to a full warrior mindset you must see firearms manipulation and ‘gaming’ as simply a progression to more complex tactical range training. In essence, most of these students are stuck in a training zone that is going to be detrimental to them, and also does not allow them to develop the skills and qualities mentioned as part of the warrior mindset.
But there is often an unwillingness to progress to true tactical training, due to misunderstanding / ignorance, and also a lack of willingness, skill or facility on the part of schools to teach it. There are many ‘prepper’ types out there who are not averse to tactical training, but that is full of its own issues. Why? The majority of ‘prepper’ types are motivated by fear and are looking for band-aids to make them feel less anxious about their worries. Fear is not a good basis to develop the warrior mindset. For example, at MVT we have a cadre of returning alumni who train not only to be prepared, but also because it is part of their character, they have a warrior mindset, and they are truly investing in themselves. These students, if you like, come from the ten that Heraclitus refers to, the nine fighters and one warrior. The rest are sheep. ‘Preppers’ have many motivations, and if it is fear rather than genuine self-reliance then it is a problem. These types of students are fair-weather (or foul weather, really) and will often attend tactical training much in the way they will purchase an item of gear and put it on the shelf. They think they are ticking a box. They will not invest in more than one or two training events, and they are not doing the ancillary personal and physical investment to become capable as a warrior (which is why we now have fitness prerequisites for tactical classes – many were deluding themselves). When it seems fair weather, these types will let it go; they live in the hope that it will ‘be alright on the day.’ They are deluded. You can see this phenomenon recently with the political-fear motivated types, after Trump was elected and their fears of Obama/Hillary went away – they have relaxed and let it all go. This is cyclical depending on how doomsday the news is. That is not the warrior mindset.
One of the huge problems, and why many instructors and flat range gamer types will not progress to real tactical training, is the ‘militia’ elephant in the room. These are the politically or ideologically motivated types who have given camouflage clothing and tactical training a really bad name. As has been told to some MVT students by other prospective students “why would I want militia training” – thus entirely missing the point of training to develop the warrior mindset. True development of the warrior mindset should not actually be politically motivated, other than having ideological roots in true American values of the self-reliant individual and individual liberty (which yes, I know are under attack). But you should not be attending tactical training because the guv’mint is coming to get you in black helicopters (they probably are, I can hear them approaching my house now LOL). In fact, despite pretensions to being a ‘militia’, many such self-described groups are in reality politically motivated groups who are in terrible physical shape and have either none or very little actual tactical training or competence. They are far from approaching the warrior mindset.
Thus, due to the prevalence of firearms, we have a lot of people who are involved in one way or another in the shooting sports. Sadly, the ability to shoot a firearm gives some the delusion that this will impart tactical competence. Speed shooting gamers for one. Another sub-set is precision long gun. This is an admirable skill and a great sport. But do not delude yourself that the ability to hit targets at long range imbues you with any martial qualities. They may well have those qualities from some other area of their life, or training, but long range shooting in itself does not make you a sniper. This is a common misapprehension. Granted, I know that if I went downrange and stood in front of any of the speed shooting gamers or the long range precision types, they could shoot me with a higher hit probability than a totally untrained person. I don’t plan to be stood downrange if I was ever in a gunfight with any of these people – and this is where the checkers versus chess approach of ‘YDKWYDK’ (You Don’t Know What You Don’t Know) applies. Granted, anyone could shoot anyone if they went and stood downrange, but that is missing the point of training progression to develop the qualities of the warrior mindset.
It is due to misunderstandings of the nature of the warrior mindset, its development, the true tactical training progression, along with issues such as the ever present ‘militia,’ that we developed the concept of ‘TacGun’ here at MVT. The TacGun concept has been to a large extent a hard sell, due to problems with getting people to understand the benefits of it in personal investment and the development of the positive qualities of the warrior mindset. Character building, with benefits in your day to day life now, not just in some potential disaster situation. TacGun is designed to help you persuade other potential team mates and training buddies of why you do this training, and divest it from any militia or black helicopter connotations. The hard sell is often related to the reason why students are here in the MVT Universe – what are their motivations and why are they here? Those here due to a pursuit of personal improvement and development of the warrior mindset get it. Those who are simply comfortable with tactical training don’t see the need for it, because they are already there – even though it would help them to bring in others. Some are here just to get the training they want and disappear.
The primary misunderstanding among those that ‘shoot’ is not realizing the ability to ‘shoot’ is necessary but not sufficient to develop the warrior mindset and real tactical ability. Shooting in itself is not hard to teach or learn; you can spend a lifetime getting better, but it does not take long to teach it well enough to be tactically competent. In very simple terms, what is really needed is to be able to shoot, move and communicate in a tactical environment. Those are very simple words to write, and are glibly thrown around on the internet, but they describe in essence the complexity of tactical training. When we put you in a live fire environment and have you shoot, move and communicate, it is not easy to do at first. When we put you in a force on force environment with UTM rounds zipping past, it is also not easy to do. That is why this training develops those qualities referred to above. To those internet readers, commentators, and perhaps those who were in some branch of the military some time a long time ago, these are glib words to refer to. People can read the Ranger Handbook (for example) and think they can execute it. This is all so much crap. To be able to even execute these skills effectively at a very basic level, with others, requires training and practice. The more, the better. It is a process. To think you ‘know’ how to do this by reading and theoretical study is the height of hubris. And if you are just reading and sitting in front of your computer screen, how are you developing those other essential, practical, skills that make up the entirety of the warrior mindset?
You may have noticed that comments are off for blog posts. That is because I have no wish to discus this with the entirety of the internet. This is why we have the MVT Forum, which has a deliberate $25 per year membership fee, which joyously keeps it sane, rational and free of trolls. If you wish to ask questions and partake of genuine professional tactical knowledge and discussion, I suggest you join.
Below are a couple of example videos of the type of training that is included in TacGun, from weapons manipulation all the way up to full Small Unit Tactics:
Max Velocity Tactical operates the Velocity Training Center (VTC) tactical and leadership training facility near to Romney, West Virginia, where we provide training for US Special Operations Forces and Responsible Citizens. We have established a reputation on the leading edge of tactical live fire and force on force training. At MVT we are dedicated to developing and training tactical excellence at the individual and team level.
maxvelocitytactical.com/2018/01/11/warrior-mindset-firearms-culture
Tags: Max Velocity Tactical
Bravo!
I’ll assume that any criticism will label this response as trolling, or have my “credentials” called into question, but allow me to dare to ask how this tactical/shooting training company differs from the dozens that are out there already? Many have lamented the growth of wannabe tacti-cool types and posers who think they are operators, but yet these companies seem to crop up every year from the masses of veterans returning from wars with a specialty in tactics and shooting. Finding a niche in the market is increasingly difficult, but companies stacked with cadre of former infantry/special ops guys all claim to have the recipe for tactical training, shooting skills, warrior mindset, etc… Despite the fact that terms like warrior, operator, and tactical get thrown around way too much, companies continue to market their training towards the very people who will never be in this kind of profession. This article calls out Youtube warriors and Internet fan boys, but maintains a Youtube channel and markets their training to the very types that they preach against. Not everyone learning skills and tactical training is expanding their knowledge so they can one day operate as a member of some elite unit.
If this company is predicated on teaching those who will actually use the “warrior” mindset, and not the masses of Americans simply wanting to shoot better, then what do they provide over other companies? Why should a combat veteran pay hundreds of dollars to attend a course that reiterates everything he has been taught, and practiced in real life? It seems impossible for the community of shooters and former whoevers to believe that training is possible on your own. Self reliance, as referenced above, can come in the form of training on my own. Or better yet, instead of paying hundreds of dollars for a weekend shooting course, I’ll watch the Youtube videos and repeat the same tactics and drills on my own. Or is self-taught training impossible? I have met so many people that spend hundreds or thousands of dollars on training courses because they teach X, or a former operator teaches the course, or because it must be legit due to the fact that agencies and special ops units train there. Some of those who have served in military units, police, and contractors have these skills instilled and they serve as a basis for the training, prepping, and shooting that they conduct on their own on a frequent basis.
No training course can make you have physical fitness, moral or personal courage, or a will to survive in a situation that has yet to be experienced in America. I am not refuting the fact that there are plenty of worthless shits out there that think they are way cooler than actuality. But lets not pretend that shooting excellence and mastering of tactical skill only comes from spending money at companies with guys who used to be someone back in the day. This can be achieved on your own; without the bullshit pretext of Greek philosophers and tough guy platitudes about warrior mindset.
The dangers of training on your own? If you’re doing it wrong, you’ll never know.
In large part I would agree with you, as it applies to people with basic skills and lack a background in tactics and shooting. I would never suggest a new shooter train on their own and just make it up as they go. But that is my point, most people that frequent SSD for example probably have a military or LE background with a good basis in tactics, shootings, moving, etc… Most of us could probably take a new drill, replicate it, and after a few iterations, improve and gain some level of new skill. You could improve and correct yourself because you have the fundamentals down. I would assume you could watch a Youtube video of some instructor teaching a new drill or shooting skill, go out and try it for yourself, and replicate it correct? I don’t remember every shooting drill, so before I shoot, I look through some drills online, watch a video or two, and write down the stages. Does this mean that I am failing myself or will perform sub par because there is not someone standing there with the same background as me telling me what to do, someone I have paid $500+ to spend a weekend with and hear their version of how they trained? A lot of people have been there and done that and have an opinion on how things should be done. Just because someone calls themselves a subject matter expert, and are recognized in their field, doesn’t mean that it is a prerequisite to attaining superior skill. Too many people flock to these companies offering shooting courses because they think the cadre are superhumans who have attained some God like level of shooting ability, when in actuality it is just another adaptation and interpretation of a skill probably taught to them by some military school or agency instructor.
Most pro athletes still use coaches.
Sounds to me like someone has some sort of complex. 🙂
But not little league coaches. Check out the dudes resume, foreign service does not automatically equate tier1
I see aspects of truth in both points of view, the Warrior Mindset detailed by Max Velocity and the comment by Tank. There’s not a single way to do things. The quote from Heracles from the article used to stream on the Magpul website a few years ago. There was another quote that was apt to this argument, after the War, “Ten year’s from now, no one will remember your training, what gear you wore, or even the tactics you used. Only who lived and who died.”
I think the basic point here is that the ultimate goal is to win,whether you are in combat, on the range, in the Office, or just protecting your family and your way of life; one needs to develop the skills and “Warrior mindset” to succeed in life whatever you do. The true warrior’s path is a lonely one, as is emblematic in the rift between the combat veteran and the average American citizen. Bear Bryant said there’s three types of people in the world, those that make things happen, those that watch things, and those that say “What the hell just happened.” But, the Warrior will always be required to go into the breach when Hell just happened, and “There is no greater love than one who will give his life for his friends.” We’re all American’s, we should all be friends, and realize that to be blessed being born an American makes you a winner to some degree.
Having trained with Max Velocity, I can attest that it is unique and quality training. I served in the American Infantry, and thought our TTPS were Ironclad. The owner is a former British officer from the Paras, and proved to me to that there are other ways of doing things, outside the vacuum of US doctrine. The British way of fire and maneuver is nearly the exact same, but different and nuanced in subtle ways. I learned a lot, (particularly fieldcraft) and highly recommend training there.
What I get from Tanks comment amounts to this, if you will never get to fly an FA 18 why bother to learn to fly a Cessna 150.
Thomas, your analogy is a little off. My comments amount to: if you’re a private pilot and only fly Cessna’s and will never serve in a fighter pilot position, why learn to fly FA18’s or train on their simulators.
To get back to the real discussion, my point is that a majority of civilian shooters looking for training will never serve in some elite special ops unit, and therefore have no need to learn team communication, warrior leadership, combat patrolling, etc… Even if we are going to delve into the SHTF scenarios, how many people are going to wonder around post-apocalyptic America in fire teams, operating like a small unit? Anybody who has had this training, such as LE or former military, will likely revert back to this mindset unless they have completely lost it due to lack of training or apathy. A former “operator” doesn’t need a class to teach him about combat mindset, warrior ethos, communication, etc.. because it is instilled and readily available for action as needed. Shooting is arguably a much more perishable skill than fortitude, conviction, and mindset.
I am not saying MVT isn’t world class training, and their cadre aren’t adept at shooting and tactics. My point is that the list of half-committed shooters that they labeled off in the original post are the very people who stand to benefit the most from their training. However, a prepared citizen with no military or LE background doesn’t need to train to Delta or SEAL Team 6 standards, because they will never operate in that level or have the resources and team to back it up. So, to borrow from your analogy, learn to fly a Cessna like a master, but don’t fly it like fighter jet in combat if you’re only sight seeing around your hometown.
But needs isn’t the same as wants. I served but was a Naval aviation anti-submarine operator because eye sight prevented me from even trying to enter spec-ops. If someone has the time and money to and wants to do the training I don’t understand why you seem to have a problem with it, it’s not your time or money..
This is spot on. However, the people that would pay for a course like the one shown in the ambush video are paying for more than just shooting instruction. The market for “commando for a day” or “commando for a week” classes is huge. I huge portion of the draw for something like that is the fun/entertainment. For your average person a bit of physical hardship and training stress will give them some experience that may make them a better manager at Applebees or whatever their day job is as well. Is that a textbook ambush? No, but it’s close enough that someone who hasn’t done the same training in Ranger school, SUT, etc 100 times wouldn’t know the difference.
I do think that these types of companies are walking a pretty fine line with their marketing though. You don’t pay your way into being a “warrior” with dollars.
I’ll give my 2 cents on this. I am a civie and I take not only my gear but my training as serious as I can afford, both time and money wise.
I really enjoyed reading the above article and watched the provided videos. I would really like to take some in-depth training like this BUT I also understand that I have limits as a civie in regards to just how I would apply this training. I mean short of total civil collapse I am most likely never going to be engaged in these types of situations where I can use and apply this training.
That said I still want to KNOW this stuff. I still want the knowledge because it can never hurt to know it. I am not going to the local grocery store in full kit but rather in my daily clothes so I need to drill mainly on how to clear a shirt and/or jacket in order to draw my weapon. I need to train in a cognitive manner also.
In regards to planes, while you may not fly an F-18 but only a Cessna, if you had the ability to learn the controls of an F-18 why not? It would possibly enhance or at least contribute to your Cessna flying. It’s not going to harm or impede your cessna flying, correct?
Likewise, I carry mainly a Glock19 but why not know and train in other weapon platforms? It can in no way hamper what you already know. I took basic first aide but being around ranges more and more often and helping with people training others (going for NRA instructor) I figured it best to advance that knowledge. Odds are not high that I will ever need to apply an airway but I should know how and not just have it sit in my kit cause I wanna look cool.
Ah, the voice of reason. As an American citizen, why not take your gear and training serious? Are we not independent men ultimately responsible for the safety and security of our families and communities? Correct me if I’m wrong, but is it not our duty as men to be physically and tactically ready in the event of some chaotic event? Is there anything wrong with studying and learning basic infantry tactics? The pursuit of tactical competence, is that not a great avenue for personal growth? Is it wrong for American citizens to strive for excellence or to be elite citizen soldiers? It seems to me our country would benefit greatly if every man (and woman) would strive for such.
I don’t doubt MVT and other folks teach some great classes, but the reality is that most folks have zero need to train like they are stacking to crash a room in Fallujah, despite everything being “tactical” for use by “operators”. The reality is the choice is NOT binary, and yes there IS value to lesser levels of knowledge on the way to greater understanding.
Do I care that MV looks down on folks that don’t feel the need to be the overhyped second coming of Ghengis Kahn? No, because I’m not stacking getting ready to smash a room in Fallujah, I’m working to gain the skills to defend my house from home invasion thieves or generic packs of crackheads as I have time, as are thousands, if not millions of other folks. And there IS obvious value to that level of knowledge. MVT discounts this at their financial peril.
I’d love to spend enormous portions of my free time and cash on tactical training, but the reality is they are shared with daycare and other needs, like most families. I’d LOVE to take these classes, and I’m happy for anybody that can, but enough of this bullsh*t chest thumping that only “true warriors” matter in life, and “if you act now my class will teach you how to have the skills and mentality to climb Everest with no legs and your guts hanging out”. The overreach in marketing these days is eye-watering.
What the VAST majority of people need is a limited-focus understanding of tactics to be able to deal with REALISTIC threats (aside from what military and ME deal with). THIS IS A MASSIVE MARKET. So for the life of me, I don’t know why MV, the author of a number of training books (at least one of which I own, which is excellent), would go out and insult folks that are trying their best to improve their skills any way they can, when they can, and minimizing products that he himself makes???
But just my two cents, and I’ll go back to being a “target” (eyes rolling).
In case you didn’t know, MVT also offers a Defensive Concealed Handgun course and nonlethal Force on Force training that includes attacking and defending a couple small buildings. For those training against home invasions, that’s pretty invaluable stuff as it exposes all the ‘gotchas’ that you didn’t take into account, all the things that will get you killed in real life.
It comes down to where you draw the line as to what kind of training is enough. The more realistic and informed you are, the higher you’ll draw the line. Think about the progressives who say that owning guns is unnecessary since the cops are just a phone call away. They think they have enough (a phone nearby) to protect themselves.
But they have huge blind spots, as you know, since you’re aware that home invasions happen and crack heads and thieves exist and average police response time is in the 10+ minute range. So you’re training toward that threat, and if you’re lucky, a lone crackhead or bumbling pair of thieves is all you’ll ever face. If the progressives are lucky, the cops will come in time.
The mistake would be in thinking you can successfully overextend a limited skillset to tackle more extreme scenarios by simply shooting faster, reloading faster, running harder. If your home were attacked by even just two guys who know how to shoot, move, communicate, and suppress then you’re toast. In fact, if you think you can defend a home from the inside against a team of organized invaders then you’re toast.
Anyway, point being that there’s a lot of false assumption, wishful thinking, fantasy, etc. out there and if you deny yourself potentially necessary knowledge and skills due to a false sense of security, or a wrong assessment of probability, then you do so at your own peril.
That said, defense is only part of what MVT offers. Some who go there are in it for the personal character building, communication and leadership skills, teamwork, or simply the sheer fun of it.
I know some Hornet pilots, they are probably really good at flying Cessnas. Of I get okay at shooting moving and communicating in the woods of WV, I bet I will be pretty good at more “realistic” scenarios that involve less “operator” level skills.
If foreign service does not count, I guess we should tell all our allies to piss off. Only ‘Mericans know how to fight it seems. To bad we did not do that from the start, it would have saved some flag draped boxes from being flown home to places that are not America.
I wonder if people would advocate using
the internet to learn boxing? Can YouTube make me a good ground fighting? What about rock climbing or skydiving?
Online resources are a wonderful thing, but in the end you get what you pay for.
I’m going to ignore the pilot analogy because that has been covered in ad nauseam. But yes, the Internet can teach you rock climbing, that’s how I learned. I self taught by reading climbing magazines and watching videos, mainly because I live in an area nowhere near instructional climbing. And guess what, I’m a pretty proficient climber, top rope and lead, and have not suffered an injury or equipment failure. I taught myself, that’s why they call it self-reliance. The same goes for working on my house, building guns, plumbing, etc… I didn’t need to attend training, pay people, and travel to learn a skill. Am I perfect? no, but that’s the whole point in continual training.
Perhaps self taught skills aren’t for everyone, maybe you can’t watch a video and learn, I guess everyone is different, but some people can. I have nothing against people who seek out and pay for training, I have a problem with elitists and their tough guy platitudes acting like they are at a level above the average citizen and can enlighten everyone. There are a lot of overpriced classes taught by half assed people who think they are more tacticool than they really are.
I work with a guy who was only ever into AR’s, but decided he wanted to shoot long range. He started out on his own with a modest rifle, started working his way up to farther ranges, and eventually got a high quality rifle. Now he is one of the best long range shots I know and took a deer at 2080 yards. He watched videos and studied online articles and forums until he mastered reloading, ballistics, range estimation, etc… He never once paid a former SEAL sniper for training, or attended a course taught by SWAT members. He had a desire to learn a skill, taught himself, and attained mastery level skill. So, are you going to tell me he is shorting himself or possibly unaware of his failure because he never paid for training with a renowned company?
I believe it is called “don’t know what you don’t know” or dick y dick.
Here is something to ponder: an emergency happens at work or your neighborhood. Do you want a responder that has been trained or a YouTube junkie?
And since when is being trained by professionals a bad thing?
Tank, I get what you’re saying about “self-taught”, but it REALLY helps to train with others regardless of the discipline. Two activities, which have been near and dear to my heart, whitewater kayaking and XC mountain biking, have been partially self-taught by studying video of experts performing the skills and video of myself during practice. However, the biggest boost to my performance has been going out and paddling/riding with experts, and I have been truly blessed to have had the opportunity to follow some accomplished individuals down creeks/rivers and mountainous trails. It’s all about feedback and constructive criticism, I think. Self-reliance is awesome! You’re the kind of guy I would love to have on my team, but I believe you’re doing yourself a disservice by thinking you have nothing to gain by training with others. Although I was never a “Tier-1 operator”, I was a cavalry scout having served in Operations Desert Shield/Storm, so I have trained for warfare and I have a pretty good eye for bullshit I’ve trained with Max, and I can attest to the quality of the training, the clientele, and the good time. There is no “problem with elitists and their tough guy platitudes acting like they are at a level above the average citizen…” Although Max does provide training opportunities for SOF, on occasion, his primary mission is to develop competent citizens. Let’s go train sometime! I’m a bit on the cantankerous side, so maybe we could be battle buddies? 🙂
From my class notes:
“There is no such thing a secret-squirrel-shit…there just isn’t. There are only tactics, and anyone who tells you otherwise is full of shit.” — Max Velocity
I think the point was about rising above the status quo, not wet dreams about being “tier 1” whatever TH that means.
Rising above denotes pushing yourself in training. Just duplicating what some schmuck does on youtube isn’t doing that. On the analogy of ground fighting via Youtube- I see this regularly and suffice to say it NEVER works out well for the person.
This is a niche market (training), going further seeking people who want to get off the stand in place and play “pew pew” feel good so you don’t feel uncomfortable training is another niche market with an even smaller crowd.
Some people will never understand the need to pressure test their training. Some will never realize that their “skills” will fall apart under pressure. MOST will never want to get outside the “comfortable” status they have found in their watching of youtube or stand in place no pressure feel good about yourself “pew pew” classes.
1. Did everyone read the article from beginning to end?
2. Did you understand it?
3. Did it make any impact?
4. Did it cause you to examine your mindset a bit?
It’s a swift kick in the butt type of article.
Read it, understood, signed up for TacGun Challenge at Velocity Training Center, in June. Because I need a swift kick in my ass, from time to time. 🙂
@Tank
-Your associate who took a 2K shot at an animal is an unethical hunter. That is irresponsible and maybe not the best example to make your point there.
A couple have touched on the real point. There are a lot of I’s and Me’s in the world today. Max’s classes de-emphasize the “I” because no one person can do it. It is about how to do those things you can learn a bit on your own and do it with others safely and with coordination. The extra detail of having a dedicated facility with challenging terrain and having to work together to complete the task/drill reinforces the training objective.
Article is pretty pretentious. Guy spends his time telling everyone how his way is the only way. Also talks about PT all the time and is clearly out of shape.
MVT is basically a joke. Save your training dollars for real training. Or just get and infantry manual and do it yourself.
What’s your experience with them?
I just watched his stuff and read his blog. What a narcissist. Which you ha e to be when you’re just making up your persona as an elite trainer.
What I got from his content.
1. Writes extreme right wing novels.
2. Is more fit than everyone else.
3. All other trainers are flat range ninjas. Only MVT trains real stuff.
You can get the majority of his information out of a 7-8
Did you read nate’s comment?
Max is known for being whiney and his strong overbearing opinions. These traits do not obstruct the training. He is on point, safe, and professional as can be when it comes to training. No one can say the Brits are not a top army. Look at the pedigree of the his usa cadre.
Ignore “Max” and his banter. The dude recommended Alice gear after all (it was not in 1990s either).
If one thinks that type training would benefit you, take his class. Dollar for dollar his curriculum is equal or greater value than any other similar type training.
If you haven’t attended this training I don’t see how you can honestly critique anything about it. Why don’t you attend so you can have a relevant viewpoint of whether the training is worth it or not. Also regarding PT, if it bothers you that someone is reinforcing the need for it, you probably aren’t doing it. I have done a lot of square range training and have trained with Max. His curriculum is definitely worth the time and expense.
For what it’s worth, I’ve been to a four day class at his facility. I’ve also been to square range only training with other trainers. I’m also a prior .mil instructor and now do it professionally on the private side (albeit, not for light infantry tactics, but I know quality training when I see it).
It’s good training. It provides much more context than you get from a square range. Learning how to manipulate a weapon quickly and shoot accurately is a great skills, but the real benefit of MVT’s stuff was in seeing how those skills get applied within the context of shoot, move, and communicate.
I, too, am a fan of learning from FMs, TCs, and YouTube…but there really is a lot to be gained by doing it. Actually experiencing the challenge of locating, communicating, and moving [safely] while shooting targets accurately is humbling. That’s where the PT portion of his post comes in.
The hills of WV are no joke. I kept a heart rate monitor on my wrist while running the courses, and it routinely hit 170 (and no, I’m not out of shape). Not having your gear sorted out, and your fitness be crap will become glaringly obvious while F&M’ing up a long steep hill. You don’t get that from a square range practicing minutiae of weapons manipulations.
Anyway, I’m glad SSD posted this article. Max may be “intense” but his curriculum is solid and facilities are awesome.
Are the students in the ambush video civilians? If so why? What I mean to ask is why are civilians being trained to conduct a “military style” ambush…I won’t even bother to discuss the TTP’s demonstrated…
One very good reason is by learning how an ambush is run, you might just be able to recognize an ambush and not walk into one. If you think criminals wont orient themselves on you in an L shape. Or hijack your car on a curve or S turn, then you need to wake up.
“A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State”
I would assume the students in the video are civilians. Because they can! Why shouldn’t they?
Concerning Max’s ongoing struggle to get people to do PT. His training facilities are in the mountains of WV. You will suffer if you don’t do PT regularly. I heard one of the ODA teams training there, this past fall, jokingly say, “West Virginia, the cardio state.” So if an active duty ODA team from Ft Bragg thinks Max’s training school is no joke. And the CO of the SF battalion from Ft Bragg thinks that MVT is good to go. Yes I personally spoke with him.
I would say that means all you wingnuts making ignorant comments on this thread must be Tier One ninja warriors. You are full of shit.
Originally found here https://jimwendler.com/blogs/jimwendler-com/what-is-the-reason-for-me-to-do-this But thought it was relevant to the ongoing discussion.
What is the reason for me to do this?”
For physical and mental health.
For self-improvement.
To challenge yourself physically and mentally.
To develop the bite that may help you through difficult times.
To honor all the men who have fought before you; it is part of your DNA to fight.
To show/prove to yourself that you can change through will.
In a world of “easy”, it keeps your teeth sharp.
Because we don’t have to chop wood anymore.
Being stronger is ALWAYS better.
To understand that there is cause and effect to action; and inaction.
A stronger body can equal a stronger mind can equal a stronger body.
There is zero negative consequence to being a stronger man.
To be a great example to your children; fat, weak and ignorant is not a good role model.
To exhaust your body and mind so as to suffer/put up with weak fools and ignorant beggars who demand what you have earned.
To learn self-reliance.
To understand that compassion and empathy is noble but not given lightly.
Because a mentally and physically dangerous man will always be needed.
That is why. Thank you for your question and for your support. – Jim
Specific and valid content.
I do have to take issue with some of the articles derogatory comments on militia’s and politics as a motivating factor for the American Warrior. For one, America was basically founded by militia, and the recent divulgence of the FBI and the DOJ being used as one political party’s secret police and domestic intelligence agency, shows why we need Liberty minded individuals and a broad interpretation of the 2nd Amendment. “War is politics by other means.” “A people who don’t take an interest in politics are destined to ruled by wicked and inferior men.” And in regards to Fear, “Fear no man; only the Lord.” America’s big problem, and why the services of tactical trainer’, former military members, and patriotic LE will be greatly needed, is that most Americans do not fear God anymore, and the results are evident in societal decay.