"You are not an operator"

[Mick-Boy]

This article touches on some stuff that's been discussed in this forum before. I disagree with some of the authors points but I think the overall message has merit.



http://www.gunnuts.net/2013/05/16/you-are-not-an-operator/

Operator-speak has become the lingua franca of the shooting community, and it’s annoying. Here’s the thing: Special Forces, Delta, Navy SEALs, etc are all super rad dudes – our nation is well served by this group of steely-eyed killing machines. I sleep quite well at night knowing that there are some truly scary people out there willing to kill our nation’s enemies.
http://www.gunnuts.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/dynamic-story-300x300.jpg
But we need to get over the notion that someone who has spent years kicking down doors is an expert on civilian concealed carry or home defense simply because they have combat experience. Yes, that person is quite likely an expert on how to effectively employ deadly force against a willing and determined foe, but the sort of tactics you’d use in Afghanistan may not be appropriate in Fishers, IN.


Of course, the civilian shooting community is ultimately responsible for feeding the frenzy. The concealed carry explosion has created a massive glut of students looking for someone to teach them how to use these new tool they’ve acquired, and to be perfectly frank, no one wants to go to a pistol class called “Effective Use of 911 while hiding behind your bed.” But if you call that same class “Dynamic Home Security Solutions” and pad the range time with room clearing drills and unorthodox shooting positions, it’ll fill right up. Especially if you get a sexy Youtube video of your students yelling “THREAT” and then pieing a corner while firing blindly into a room.


Of course, this causes a problem for me, because I want people to get training. I want everyone who makes the decision to carry a gun or who owns a gun for home defense to be well versed and skilled in its use. Because if you someday do need that gun, I want you to win the fight. No question in my mind that’s what I want. But I also want us to spend our time and money wisely, and stop using words that don’t make sense. Your Kel-Tec .32 ACP isn’t a “weapons system”, in fact in Kel-Tec’s case it’s barely a gun. Your holster and belt isn’t kit, and you probably don’t need to learn counter vehicle ambush techniques.


I’m not saying don’t do those thing, because Operator Fantasy Camps are totally rad and quite a bit of fun, but I don’t want someone to spend $1,000 on one of those courses learning to kick doors when he’d be better off taking a course that focuses on practical concealed carry applications. Hence my dilemma – if we accept that in general training is good, where do we draw the line between “good” and “bad?” Let me know your thoughts in the comments.

[Sticks]

I'm in agreement with you on your sentiments, and those of the article.

The three carbine training classes that I have taken have taught me how to operate the rifle, but I hold no delusions of being an operator. I now have some skills, and regrettably, a better understanding and ability to use the platform than a large number of our troops who are expected to do so on a 2 way range on foreign soil.

$1500 in tuition fees, and the realistic true benefit that I have received for my money is the ability to shoot a competition match a little better. The likelihood that I will ever need to apply those skills in a L&D situation are about as good as my winning the Powerball (one of two that I keep hoping twice a week will occur :) ).

I have not taken any pistol specific classes. My training and education for that came from my years of shooting IDPA, and picking up from others.

Should every person that gets a concealed carry permit take a shooting class? I think it would be prudent for them to do so. Some should take several as evident from my experience as an SO for the IDPA.

I believe that in all the info that gets poured into a person in a weekend course, about 10 minuets of it will actually apply to them for their needs on a day to day basis. More critical is for the student to be reality checked, that having taken the course they are not certified "Billy Bad Ass". They merely have a better understanding of the platform, and got some trigger time in.

[TheBelly]

I feel the need to respond to this, but I'll do that when the drugs wear off a bit.

[JM Ver. 2.0]

Can we apply this same thing to SOME military people as well?

There was a guy I used to work with.... He was a mechanic in the army.... Dude was all "I'm a badass with a rifle!!!" He never scored perfect on any qualifications. Ever. It wasn't a secret...

But damn it! He was in the army!!!!!!!!!

I love our military people. I just hate the overly confident and cocky ones....

Sent from my teepee using smoke signals.

[TheBelly]

Can we apply this same thing to SOME military people as well?

There was a guy I used to work with.... He was a mechanic in the army.... Dude was all "I'm a badass with a rifle!!!" He never scored perfect on any qualifications. Ever. It wasn't a secret...

But damn it! He was in the army!!!!!!!!!

I love our military people. I just hate the overly confident and cocky ones....

Sent from my teepee using smoke signals.



From my experience, those who have to talk about what a badass they are....aren't. EVERYBODY in the military I've met falls into one of the following four categories:

1. Legacy: dad/uncle/sister/etc. was in, so I need to be.
2. Patriot: truly serves the people.
3, Job: hey, the army's always hiring, right?
4. Tough guy: reminds you how tough he is.

[MarkCO]

^Sad, but probably true.

One of my students who truly made me nervous was an ex-army SF guy. He provided me with his DD214 and I read it in awe. Then I asked him, why on earth are you taking a CCW course from me? The answer has stuck with me as foundational to my approach. With tact, he explained that he was trained to attack under orders and that was far different than defending innocent life...even if the result is the same. He claimed that he needed to reformulate his approach and thought process from professional military to armed citizen. I respect him for that immensely.

But, let's face the issue that "Tactical Timmeys" are what is driving the marketplace. It is mostly about $ mixed with testosterone, fear and inferiority complexes. Trained teams, MIL/LE, are the ones that are more than welcome to go "in" and root out bad people, I want NO part of it at this point in my life. However, I do think that understanding some tactics that cross over, as well as attempting to understand what makes one a target and how to dissuade those who may target you from even looking at you is of huge benefit. No group has all the answers for the armed citizen, but drawing education from any available source on weapon manipulation, tactics, psychology, shooting skills, evasion, detection, driving, determination of the will, etc. may help you survive if the bad does happen to you or an adjacent innocent.

[Mick-Boy]

I feel the need to respond to this, but I'll do that when the drugs wear off a bit.

I've got some caveats and addendums for it too. Just need to write it up after I get back to the house.



Can we apply this same thing to SOME military people as well?

There was a guy I used to work with.... He was a mechanic in the army.... Dude was all "I'm a badass with a rifle!!!" He never scored perfect on any qualifications. Ever. It wasn't a secret...

But damn it! He was in the army!!!!!!!!!

I love our military people. I just hate the overly confident and cocky ones....

Sent from my teepee using smoke signals.

Everyone knows its a scientific fact that a pair of testicles means you can drive like Mario Andretti, lay pipe like Peter North and shoot like Rob Leatham... until you learn you can't.

It's all about your frame of reference.

[MarkCO]

I might use that as my new quote if you don't mind. That is awesome!

[Mick-Boy]

No worries. I probably stole it from somewhere anyway. [Beer]

[275RLTW]

You mean I shouldn't walk around Walmart with my velcro and patch covered vest/hat/shoelaces either? How will anyone know I'm an operator if they don't see me in my RMGO/MagPul/DTOM flag/Glock stickered truck with molle webbing and pouches on the seats?

[cysoto]

"lay pipe like Peter North"

^^^That's freaking funny!^^^ [Score]

[MarkCO]

"lay pipe like Peter North"

^^^That's freaking funny!^^^ [Score]

I did have to look him up, the other two I knew. :)

[cysoto]

I did have to look him up, the other two I knew. :)

I made the wild assumption that we were talking about a very famous plumber. :D [dig]

[275RLTW]

I did have to look him up, the other two I knew. :)
May have to delete your history after that

[dan512]

I do see some holes in the training available to the average guy. I have taken some amazing classes from some fantastic trainers but they only cover a specific niche. As much fun as carbine training with Pat Rogers is for me, the class is designed for military, for guys who carry a carbine for a living.
Along the same lines, training bjj is a blast and potentially useful. However, if I wind up getting into a street fight I'm not planning to try to tap a guy out. Realistically I'll create enough space to either shoot the dude or run away.
All that to say, like the original article stated, fantasy camp is fun, but I would like to see civilian training that incorporates threat assessment, calling 911, and removing yourself from a bad situation.
If only there was someone who did personal protection for a living who was willing to incorporate the how not to get in a fight aspect with the winning a fight skills. Mick I'm looking at you.

[TheBelly]

Yeah, no pressure, Mick.

[dan512]

There are plenty of other guys out there as well who have the experience and resume to teach. I just happen to know Mick.

[TheBelly]

I was considering taking a carbine course a while ago. the carbine course was meant for those going into harms way. I had never heard of the instructor, so I asked if he could send me his professional résumé. What I saw shocked me, and not in a comforting way.

Never been on a two-way range. Included the US Army Range Safety Officer course as part of his qualifications. Two big giant red flags to me.

i asked the question: have you ever served in the military, and if so, when were you deployed, who'd you serve with (unit-wise), etc. pretty standard questions. He was honest and said he had no military experience.

I did not sign up for the class, needless to say. If it was just a basic carbine course, then I got it, but I'll take lessons about combat from folks that have been active participants on a two-way range.

[275RLTW]

I was considering taking a carbine course a while ago. the carbine course was meant for those going into harms way. I had never heard of the instructor, so I asked if he could send me his professional résumé. What I saw shocked me, and not in a comforting way.

Never been on a two-way range. Included the US Army Range Safety Officer course as part of his qualifications. Two big giant red flags to me.

i asked the question: have you ever served in the military, and if so, when were you deployed, who'd you serve with (unit-wise), etc. pretty standard questions. He was honest and said he had no military experience.

I did not sign up for the class, needless to say. If it was just a basic carbine course, then I got it, but I'll take lessons about combat from folks that have been active participants on a two-way range.

There's a lot of that going around lately...

[cysoto]

Carbine is not my game so I cannot say for certain in that arena but, when it comes to shooting pistols, some of the better instructors have never served in the Military or Law Enforcement. Yes, you certainly have great instructors who also happen to be ex-LE (Ron Avery is a good example) but for the most part it is safe to say that a good coach was not necessarily a good player.

[Mick-Boy]

Alright I want to throw in my $.02 before I hit the rack.

I agree with the author when it comes to finding training that is applicable to your life. If you look at the "Being a good student (https://www.ar-15.co/threads/112503-Being-a-Good-Student-Selecting-and-attending-training)" I talk about finding training that is actually useful to you as the first step. If the only thing your rifles do is sit in the safe, you'd be better off in a pistol class than a carbine class. Additionally, YammyMonkey did a great job articulating some of the points about people failing to pursue proficiency incorporating a gun into their overall fighting skillset in the thread about standards (https://www.ar-15.co/threads/116253-Standards). Finally I agree that you don't need to pay a 20 year SOF veteran to teach you basic marksmanship or weapons safety.

Now that all that is said, I'm going to disagree with some of the author's message on a couple of points.

There are the basics (where most people need to spend most of their time), and those can be taught by most anyone with skill, patience and a desire to make other people better. If you haven't gotten a yet handle on basic safety, marksmanship and gun handling then you shouldn't be in a big rush to move on.

Once you *do* get the basics down it's a natural progression to seek training on the tactics of using a firearm. For most people, that means deploying the firearm in defense of their home.

If I'm going to pay someone to teach me CQB tactics, they are *going* to have a tactical background.

I know this is a touchy subject for some here so I'll keep this brief: Before I train with someone who is teaching an advanced skill like CQB, I will vet the instructor. I would expect them to have received formal instruction as a member of a MIL or LEO unit, trained for (and hopefully conducted) operations with that unit, and finally instructed students within the framework of an organization that has established and successful SOPs. If they can't (or won't) supply their background info, I look elsewhere.

All of the true gunfighters I know ALSO carry at home aside from deployments. Deploying a pistol from concealment isn't that complicated. Sometimes fighting with a gun is. If I'm going to pay someone to teach me to be a better gunfighter, they are going to have a been (or be) a gunfighter. I won't pay to hear theory from some guy who is just regurgitating someone else's information. I want someone who's walked the walk.

[cysoto]

If I'm going to pay someone to teach me to be a better gunfighter, they are going to have a been (or be) a gunfighter. I won't pay to hear theory from some guy who is just regurgitating someone else's information. I want someone who's walked the walk.

I partly agree with your statement. The flip side of that argument is that, though I admit that playing "gunfighter" by shooting one another with Simunition is a certainly fun, the vast majority of the civilians who choose to carry a gun for personal protection, would be better served training topics such as situational awareness, conflict avoidance and moral/legal implications associated with the use of deadly force; topics not always covered in Military or LE training.

[cstone]

I like to learn. It reminds me how little I know.

I was in the bleacher seats once getting a class from a certified Operator. Great training and he certainly walked the walk. It was an LE class and he was working on the concept of safety shots. I admit that I didn't have the time or the intestinal fortitude to speak to him afterwards about what I believe concerning the inappropriate use of safety shots by civilian LE. I believe he was used to giving training to a different group of students who were preparing for a different work environment. This was one of those classes that was just sipping from a full on fire hose. We got to see and practice a whole lot of great concepts, but it was good that most of us in the class had street experience and we could discern the useful from the wiz bang.

No one who has met me would buy my Tactical Timmey imitation anyway [ROFL2]

[OtterbatHellcat]

Myself and a buddy at work are interested in some type of pistol class, and we're not wanting flash bang bullshit....and we don't need basic handgun safety stuff either.


If I'm going to pay someone to teach me CQB tactics, they are *going* to have a tactical background.

I know this is a touchy subject for some here so I'll keep this brief: Before I train with someone who is teaching an advanced skill like CQB, I will vet the instructor. I would expect them to have received formal instruction as a member of a MIL or LEO unit, trained for (and hopefully conducted) operations with that unit, and finally instructed students within the framework of an organization that has established and successful SOPs. If they can't (or won't) supply their background info, I look elsewhere.

All of the true gunfighters I know ALSO carry at home aside from deployments. Deploying a pistol from concealment isn't that complicated. Sometimes fighting with a gun is. If I'm going to pay someone to teach me to be a better gunfighter, they are going to have a been (or be) a gunfighter. I won't pay to hear theory from some guy who is just regurgitating someone else's information. I want someone who's walked the walk.

I'm not just interested in home defense, but also street -real world threat.

the vast majority of the civilians who choose to carry a gun for personal protection, would be better served training topics such as situational awareness, conflict avoidance and moral/legal implications associated with the use of deadly force; topics not always covered in Military or LE training.

This is important also. Where do we go?

[Mick-Boy]

I partly agree with your statement. The flip side of that argument is that, though I admit that playing "gunfighter" by shooting one another with Simunition is a certainly fun, the vast majority of the civilians who choose to carry a gun for personal protection, would be better served training topics such as situational awareness, conflict avoidance and moral/legal implications associated with the use of deadly force; topics not always covered in Military or LE training.

Properly executed Sims/UTM training shouldn't be about "playing gunfighter". It should be scenario based and involve role-players that are professional enough to understand that they are not there to win. They are there to die gloriously while providing learning opportunities. If at any time the "training" represents a paintball game, you're getting ripped off. This is where a background as a member of and trainer within a respected organization is evident.

As to the second half of your statement, you're right, a lot of units and organizations don't train situational awareness or conflict avoidance. Some do. More importantly, some trainers have spent their lives studying those topics in the school of hard knocks. Southnarc is one that springs to mind. His ECQC class covers exactly that.

As for moral/legal impliations... I'd be hesitant to take legal advice from a firearms instructor unless that person was also my lawyer. The morality of violence and it's place in your life is something only you can decide on. No one but you is going to have to live with your choices. And I'd recommend you make those choices before you ever strap on a pistol.

[CHA-LEE]

The main issue I see is that when there is a glutton on students for any kind of training, you are going to get a significant amount of unqualified or under qualified trainers trying to take advantage of the situation to make an easy buck. Especially when some of these trainers think they can quit their "Day Job" and do training full time.

I guess I am different because I don't care that there are unqualified or under qualified trainers out there trying to pitch their wares to the masses. Its a free market and just like everything else, you need to be a smart consumer or someone is going to take advantage of your ignorance or laziness. Some lessons are harder to learn than others. That is how life goes.

As a trainer myself, I limit my training to what I know does or does not work from personal experience. I only do competition pistol training classes because that is what I am into and excel at. I have lost count of how many times people have suggested I present CCW or "Tactical" Training classes. But every time I have to remind them that doing that kind of training is far outside my base of skills or even desire to do. I honestly don't know how some of these trainers deal with a boat load of new shooter CCW classes where they are constantly battling basic safety issues from the students the whole time. But there seems to be plenty of trainers out there willing to do it.

[Mick-Boy]

Kyle Defoor posted a video in Jan where he mentions training priorities and a few other topics. It's worth a watch. He's on my short list of people to train with.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KT0fUZ8Z0c4

[YammyMonkey]

To me, the biggest downfall I see with the community overall is that the consumer doesn't know what's important. To a large degree, the training consumer wants the Ferrari, damn the kids and the gas mileage and the snow driving. They'd be better off with a SUV or (God forbid) a minivan, but those aren't sexy, don't sell, and that's why we have this huge gap between the NRA level training courses and the big-name professional circuit trainers with very few in between to close the gap. War stories about the Mog or This one time, in Baghdad..." sell more seats than "Let me tell you how I managed to carry a gun, every day, in a non-permissive environment for over 9 years without ever being made."

It seems like a lot of the special Mil/LEO units do a lot of proactive work, vice the reactive work that a lot of the civilian market classes should be catering to. Even if you spot the meth monkey coming and MUC the hell out of him, it is still a reactive encounter on your part until he either fucks off or the fight's on.

That's not to say that there aren't units out there that have to deal with a civ-like reactive fight, but that those guys aren't sought out for that aspect of what they do. Again, the "This one time, on a rooftop in Falluja" is going to sell more seats than "This one time, in an unnamed Eastern European country, I had to pretend to be deaf to get away from the Police."

I don't think the consumer is falling prey to the snake oil salesman of old, only because I think the industry is decent at vetting those guys out and, with the power of the internet, getting the word out. That said, I think that it sometimes goes overboard and discounts the people with applicable skills and teaching ability who weren't "special."

[kejam]

My thought is this .... If a guy wants to spend the money to go out and get bad-ass operator training I could care less, its fun, its cool, and whatever. But yea is it applicable to everyday Joes existence??? Probably not, but who am I to judge. If your a civilian CCW carrier you might be better served attending a weapons retention class than a AR operator class but that is not as sexy. And .... I train professional door kickers who know nothing about certain LE tactics and have never worked as a single or two man operator. Its a different world with different ROE and a different skill set. Clearing a house in Afghanistan with your team is a bit different than clearing a house, as lets say a single officer with a handgun and a flashlight. So you need to be objective and honest with yourself when choosing your training cadre. I agree with an earlier poster ... if I am lookin to get trained on small unit tactics in combat or the like, I want someone who has been there done that. If I am a CCW holder who wants to know how to clear his house by himself with his handgun, I may not need to dish out major cash for a Spec Ops guy. .... Just sayin.

[Mick-Boy]

Hilton Yam posted some thoughts on the topic today.



Stay In Your Lane (http://modernserviceweapons.com/?p=6456)
BY Hilton Yam | Posted on 02/17/2014 by Hilton Yam | IN

Training

The firearms training industry is absolutely brimming with personalities of all types, and as a student it can be very difficult to filter through the noise and find quality instruction and guidance which pertains to one’s specific needs.

So many people in the industry seem desperate to spread themselves into areas where they have no business venturing. The flip side to that is that we have plenty of folks in the industry with great resumes in their respective lanes, and if you seek what they have to offer, then absolutely go to them.

In my travels, I find that there are a few cookie cutter formats of folks who are getting way out of their lanes, and consumers should be wary of these personalities. Here are a few which seem to be quite prolific:

The “Bro, my ops were so black…” Ninja Guy: Part of smart shopping is the instructor vetting process. I would offer that instructors are vague about their operational backgrounds for several reasons: 1) still active duty and limited on disclosure or 2) there is nothing relevant to disclose so subterfuge rules the day. It can be hard to discern between the two….so buyers need to dig around a bit. Why is the background so important? If your SWAT team is looking for some specialized tactical instruction, you may want your instructor to have done what you do, so that you are getting relevant information from someone with experience. If your team gets involved in a shooting, the ensuing court case(s) will surely dig up this instructor’s background, so it may be best to get any uncomfortable discoveries out of the way before hiring that person.

The “Wow look the interwebz lets me have fans who care what I have to say even though they wouldn’t if they saw me shoot in person” pundit: Anyone with internet access now has (theoretically) equal footing with industry professionals who have been at this for years. There are a plethora of personalities who spread their gospel, yet have nothing truly of value to offer, yet either through the miracle of glossy Youtube videos, tight shirts and a nice smile (applies to either gender), they gather a legion of fans. Just because someone has those amusing videos or a lot of followers, don’t let that be the end of your vetting process. If the individual truly has something of value to offer, it will be evident beyond their promotional materials. If you want sound advice, go to an experienced shooter/instructor, not someone who throws themselves out for attention and free wares.

“I took a few classes, so I am now as ninja as the dudes teaching that class!” I encourage everyone to get out and take as much training as they can afford, it grows the industry and it is a good thing to do as responsible firearms owners. However, just because you have had a few classes, do not mistake what you have learned about as having done the same.

“Wow I am an A class shooter and I took a tactical class, why do all these tactical guys suck?!” This could be a whole other series, but suffice to say that while the average cop would not do very well at an IDPA or USPSA match, the necessary skill sets to succeed in each discipline diverge after you leave the firing line. Know the difference as both a student and as an instructor, but don’t let one side sell you the line that the other side is of no value. There are plenty of tactical instructors who are high level technical shooters, if you want a one stop shop.

“I watched all the episodes of Miami Vice and sent away for a badge, let me teach your team how to do cop stuff!” If you are representing yourself has having LE creds, please have real LE creds and experience. If I told you I had trained Gracie Juijitsu for only 2 yrs part time, you would not hire me to train you to fight in the UFC. Enough said.

I could go on, but you get the idea. Here are some thoughts for shopping for industry professionals, and also serves for a bit of introspection for budding industry personalities.

If you are in need of relevant training for LE applications, look for someone with a true depth of experience in your field. For LE, everything you do could eventually become a matter of court record, so be smart and train with instructors who are experienced with policy constraints and use of force as applicable. That instructor who was only in for 1-2 years in a small PD may lack the depth to really understand all the issues at hand if you are bringing them in to teach arrest tactics. This does not mean you have to only train with LE or former LE, but be prepared to reframe your new learning into the context of your employment.

If you are a CCW or home defense minded shooter, consider that getting kitted up with a plate carrier, chest rig, and battle belt might not apply so well to your applications. If you want to go to adventure camp, then enjoy. But don’t let someone sell you a bill of goods that won’t be relevant if you are seeking specific defensive skills.

If you want technical skills, find someone with excellent technical skills who is able to pass them on to shooters of all skill levels. Anyone who tells you that you don’t need technical skills because you are being “tactical” and “skills” will get you killed…..is telling you to shop elsewhere because they have no technical skills to teach you. If you do not see your instructor shoot one round during the class, begin to question what you are being taught.

I will offer an important caveat to all of this. As industry professionals, we all need to start somewhere. If you are becoming an instructor, internet personality, blogger, etc., be up front with who you are and what you have to offer. Are you an avid competition shooter? Then teach competition classes or offer skills classes commensurate with your experience level. Are you a hobby shooter who has a great passion for the industry and want to share it? Then embrace that, be that, and people will respect your honesty. You don’t have to be a ninja or world champion, and you will go farther in the industry being yourself.

As a consumer, recognize who has what to offer, and go to the correct people for it. Know exactly what you are looking to receive, and be a smart shopper. If you were offended by this article, then perhaps you need to do some introspection.

[kejam]

Well thought out Mick.

[Mick-Boy]

Well thought out Mick.

Just for clarity, that article was written by Hilton Yam (of 10-8 fame). All I did was repost it.

[TAG]

You mean I shouldn't walk around Walmart with my velcro and patch covered vest/hat/shoelaces either? How will anyone know I'm an operator if they don't see me in my RMGO/MagPul/DTOM flag/Glock stickered truck with molle webbing and pouches on the seats?

Funny!

[stevenc23]

Everyone knows its a scientific fact that a pair of testicles means you can drive like Mario Andretti, lay pipe like Peter North and shoot like Rob Leatham... until you learn you can't.

It's all about your frame of reference.

Hilarious, but you forgot to mention play cards like Doyle Brunson.

[RonMexico]

You mean I shouldn't walk around Walmart with my velcro and patch covered vest/hat/shoelaces either? How will anyone know I'm an operator if they don't see me in my RMGO/MagPul/DTOM flag/Glock stickered truck with molle webbing and pouches on the seats?
I once meet a member form this forum wearing some shit like this. Next, Go to just about any guns shop in town and some joker is wearing shit just like that.

[68Guy]

Got me thinking about why I take carbine courses. No desires to be a Mall Ninja and I dont travel with a rifle in my car nor am I expecting to get called back to the theater. I DO however want to retain my sharpness as best I can and augment skills that I may already have so why not? Likewise I took advanced medic training for trauma and I have no plans to be a paramedic or look like one. I carry a decent kit with me in my vehicle and on my motorcycle as well for the "what if" and feel better knowing I can possibly save myself, my loved ones or a stranger in various scenarios. Can one ever have TOO much training?