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Archive for the ‘Media’ Category

Patrick Vuong New Breach-Bang-Clear Consulting Editor

Tuesday, January 9th, 2018

Greetings, salutations, and felicitations!

We beg your indulgence and a moment of your time to announce that Patrick Vuong has accepted a position as Consulting Editor with BreachBangClear.com. Patrick is a longtime journalist, the only known Asian Saurdaukar, and a writer, editor, photographer, and videographer of no small repute.

Beginning as a newspaper reporter at the tender age of 18, Vuong went on to become variously the Senior, Managing, and Chief Editor for several award-winning international publications. He is also an accomplished instructor in multiple combative arts. You will likely remember him from his yeoman work on The Enthusiast Network’s RECOIL and OFFGRID magazines; you may also recall he recently left TEN’s full-time employ to become an independent, world-conquering littérateur.

Now he is working with us.

Not full time, alas. Despite our every entreaty and supplication, he would not leave his other freelance endeavors and burgeoning script work for the movie and TV industry to work with us full time. Nor was he willing to abandon stunt work in allegedly non-porn indie flicks, or the numerous Baritsu, Pekiti-Tirsia Kali, and other martial arts classes he continues to teach.

Part-time is acceptable for now, and anyway, we haven’t given up on persuading him.

Vuong’s first full-time journalism job was with The Orange County Register in SOCAL. There he worked various beats, including police and fire news, continued his hoplological studies, and continued writing for other, more niche publications. For instance, he’s interviewed celebrities for Wizard Magazine and worked as a contributing editor for Black Belt Magazine for over a decade and a half.

After completing his service to the 81st Padishah Emperor, Vuong was the subject of an award-winning documentary. He was then accepted for an editorial position with The Enthusiast Network.

The trade from intense daily duties to monthly obligations clearly suited him, if the success of the automotive magazines Off-Road and 4 Wheel Drive & Sport Utility is any judge. He was the Managing Editor of both publications until 2012, when he was hired as the Senior Editor for the nascent gun lifestyle publication RECOIL, driving left seat for Iain Harrison when that straight shooting, funny-talking gentleman took over as his editor-in-chief. A year later he took the helm of RECOIL OFFGRID Magazine as Chief Editor – as an additional duty.

In just three years the two grew RECOIL from an unknown brand to the No. 1 firearms magazine in stores across nine continents – no mean feat at a time when the print journalism industry was hemorrhaging from significant contraction. OFFGRID similarly became the best-selling survival magazine on newsstands.

Grunts: nascent.

He didn’t just write, shoot photos, and edit, for those two publications, mind you. He also served as Senior Editor of CONCEALMENT and CARNIVORE, and directed and co-hosted episodes of RECOIL TV.

He’s just as busy now that he’s hurled himself full-Wuxia style feet first into the freelancing world while simultaneously increasing his instruction tempo. See, in addition to all that belletristic badassery, Vuong has an extensive background as a combatives instructor (two decades or more of it, in fact).

A veteran student of Pentjak Silat Serak, he holds a first-degree black belt in Kenpo Karate, a second-degree black belt in Lai Chung Chuan Fa kung fu, and is a 13th level Planar Monk with Axiomatic Soul. Vuong is a certified instructor in Pekiti-Tirsia Kali and a student of Muay Thai, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, boxing, Jeet Kune Do, Déjà-fu, and historical European swordfighting (as you might find in HEMA). These are just some of the reasons he is consistently the most highly paid bodyguard in Hondo City.

PV is still providing content and editorial assistance to RECOIL, OFFGRID, and the others, but now is doing so for other media outlets as well.

We are chuffed beyond measure to announce that he has accepted the position of Consulting Editor for Breach-Bang-Clear.

Can’t wait to see the awesomeness he cannot help but deliver.

You can reach him at patrick@fluidfighting.com, should you be so inclined. You can follow him on Instagram as well, @calmbatives.

Many assorted expressions of gratitude to you.

Now have a fine, nay epic, American day.

The Breach-Bang-Clear Tribe

Think and be dangerous.

breachbangclear.com
instagram.com/breachbangclear
facebook.com/BreachBangClear

Two unmarked photos courtesy of Firelance Media.

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Sunday, December 31st, 2017

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UN12 Now Available For Order

Saturday, December 16th, 2017

Rainier Arms has opened orders for the new firearms magazine “UN12”.

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Firearm Features:
– Battle Arms Development Woody
– Nighthawk Custom Agent1
– Custom Remington 700 300BLK

Customization Features:
– Danger Close Armament
– Nevada Cerakote

Product Reviews:
– Fortis Mfg LA Stock
– Tactical Walls MOD Wall System
– SureFire M600DF

Buyer’s Guides:
– Night Vision Helmet Set-ups
– Pistol Caliber AR Parts Guide

Other Features:
– Shooting Drill with Frank Proctor – DIY: Cut, Thread, Crown a Barrel with Hand Tools – Plus more!

It also comes with a morale patch from TNVC. Get your copy at un12.rainierarms.com/un12-magazine.

Black Powder Red Earth

Saturday, December 16th, 2017

Lego Brick stop motion animation based on the Black Powder Red Earth illustrated novel series.

Patrick Vuong Now Freelance Editor/Author-at-Large

Wednesday, December 13th, 2017

Patrick Vuong, former Editor-in-Chief of The Enthusiast Network’s RECOIL OFFGRID Magazine and Senior Editor of TEN’s flagship lifestyle publication RECOIL, has stepped out on his own.

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RECOIL OFFGRID Issue 23 went on sale December 1. This will be the last issue with Vuong at the helm. As the Southern California-based journalist announced in his final letter from the editor, he has resigned his position to become a freelance writer and consultant, and to spend more time with his family.

Vuong, who holds instructor ranks in multiple fighting systems, including Pekiti-Tirsia Kali, will also now be able to devote more time teaching. He will be spending more time with students and also consulting on matters of edged and contact distance weapons and self-defense – though he says this does not mean he will be abandoning his journalistic career.

A lifelong journalist, Vuong left a Managing Editor’s billet for a previous publication to join RECOIL in mid 2012 as Senior Editor. Working directly under Editor-in-Chief Iain Harrison, Vuong helped grow the nascent magazine from a dark horse brand in a dying print market to the No. 1 best-selling firearms lifestyle book on newsstands. In late 2013, Vuong took on an additional assignment as editor of RECOIL OFFGRID, a spin-off publication that focuses on emergency preparedness and urban survival. Under his tenure, that brand climbed to become the No. 1 best-selling survival magazine on newsstands.

During his five years at the RECOIL Network, both RECOIL and RECOIL OFFGRID were awarded numerous industry acknowledgements, including several Maggie Awards. Vuong wrote and photographed feature articles, directed and co-hosted segments on RECOILtv.com, and helped edit two successful, successive publications: CONCEALMENT and CARNIVORE.

Though no longer a staff editor, Vuong will continue to contribute to RECOIL, RECOIL OFFGRID, their sister publications, publishing companies, and other media outlets.

Vuong can be contacted directly via e-mail, Patrick@fluidfighting.com. Follow him on Instagram, @calmbatives.

TNVC Featured In Premiere Issue Of UN12 Magazine

Wednesday, December 13th, 2017

TNVC is excited to be included in the premier issue of UN12, a new publication focusing on the customization of guns and gear. The UN12 creative team is responsible for launching one of the most successful industry publications to date and is bringing their A Game to this new venture. UN12 is the shipping code for “Dangerous Goods,” most notably – firearms and munitions. Their goal is to talk about customizing products to improve function and increase the warrior’s capabilities. You will not find straight up reviews of stock production items here. UN12 is all about how professional warriors, competitive shooters, and everyday freedom-loving folks use and adapt gear to achieve success.

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UN12 will run a very limited number of collectible morale patches for each issue. They will team up with a specific industry partner to create these patches and include them with specially marked copies of the magazine. The industry partner will also get a number of them to sell in case you miss the issue. TNVC is excited to be the first industry partner for UN12’s patch series. The patch is an exclusive version of the legendary TNVC “Lights Out MotherF**ker” design.

TNVC’s Director of Operations, Chip Lasky, has contributed a feature article to the premier issue of UN12. It focuses on night vision helmet setups for various applications and end-users. Chip will continue to contribute to UN12 with articles about gear setup for professionals.

The first issue will be available shortly through Rainier Arms, with wider distribution coming to a newsstand near you. Congrats to the UN12 creative team on an awesome new product.

Adventure Not War

Saturday, November 11th, 2017

Adventure Not War from Nimia on Vimeo.

Adventure Not War is the story of three U.S. veterans traveling back into the mountains of Iraq on a mission to heal wounds and experience the country and its culture without the shadow of war.

This film reveals a seldom seen beautiful underbelly in a place of devastation and creates space for healing wounds deeper than flesh and bones. Adventure Not War follows National Geographic Adventurer of the Year Stacy Bare and two other veterans Robin Brown and Matthew Griffin. The film follows the three US Military Captains on an unexpected journey to revisit Iraq, a country that has threatened their sanity since their time of service. This heartfelt film takes a new approach to war, empowering veterans to reclaim their lives and rewrite their histories in places where they served. We hope this film will help promote peace and a universal understanding that beauty can replace hatred if we strive for adventure, not war.

During their 2 week stay Stacy, Robin and Matthew traveled to Kurdistan to work alongside the non-profit Tent Ed, providing educational resources to children displaced by war and do the first ski ascent and decent of Mount Halgurd, the tallest peak within Iraqi boarders.

More info on Tent Ed here: tented.org/

ABOUT ADVENTURE NOT WAR:

Adventure Not War is an initiative founded by Stacy Bare that brings veterans back to the places they served. Adventure Not War aims to promote world peace & understanding through adventure.

More info on Adventure Not War here: www.adventurenotwar.com/what-is-anw

FROM STACY BARE:

“I came home from war. War never really left me.

Some of my friends came back in boxes. Others filled those boxes Stateside. Climbing and skiing kept me out of the grave.

In order to come all the way home and to leave war behind, I’m going back to ski and climb with a few friends.

More importantly, I want to show America places and people missed in normal war reporting. My goal is to highlight the shared humanity between those of us who fight wars and the people who live in the places where we’ve been. Responsible, global adventure is a key part of achieving global peace and understanding.

As part of this mission in partnership with friends and fellow veterans Robin Brown and Matthew ‘Griff’ Griffin, I went back to Iraq to visit Zack Bazzi and his work promoting education in refugee camps and to make a first ski ascent and descent of Mt. Halgurd, the highest mountain fully in Iraq.”

Osprey Elite 220 – European Counter-Terrorist Units 1972-2017

Friday, November 3rd, 2017

I’ve collected Osprey books for over 30 years. They remain some of my best historical reference material, in particular because of the excellent artist plates in each volume.

One of their latest releases is “Elite 220: European Counter-Terrorist Units 1972-2017” which examines the evolution and growth of both Mil and LE organizations devoted specifically with the CT mission.

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At only 64-pages, the volume doesn’t go into great detail but it does offer the highlights. Beginning with 1972’s tragedy at the Olympic Village in Munich, author Leigh Neville then examines how the threat has changed. Next, he discusses technical innovations such as the use of specialized vehicles and then he delves into the units themselves. By country, Neville basic order of battle and highlights specific operations. These are accompanied by photographs as well as some top notch work by illustrator Adam Hook.

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The artist plates are very well researched. Take for instance the image above which showcases (l-r) British 22 SAS, French GIGN and London Metropolitan Police SCO19. The image is so up-to-date with 2017 that it has the GIGN member in Arc’teryx coveralls, a recent acquisition of that team’s kit bag.

Not only do I highly recommend the Osprey series, but in particular those works by Leigh Neville. His dedication to accuracy is admirable.

Via Amazon, www.amazon.com/European-Counter-Terrorist-Units-1972-2017-Elite.