No Straight Lines Before June

 

It's time to get back on the bike again, as I haven't been in the saddle since I dismounted my Cervelo back in August during Ironman.  At that time I handed my bike off to a race volunteer and quietly bid it good riddance after spending so many long months it it. 

My yearly bike training always starts with the same routine; working through Troy Jacobson's Spinerval training DVDs.  I've found that there is nothing better to get you to come out crazy-strong in the Springtime than the Competition Spinerval series coupled with some work in the weight room. Of course the issue is that once I finally do get on the road my bike handling skills are rubbish.  I'm able to maintain some very high wattage but can't ride in a straight line until June.  Let the adventure begin.

My Head Hurts

I treat a lot of headaches. That seems to be the chief complaint of our local Iraqi staff, but they describe it in such debilitating terms that it often makes me suspicious. A a single aspirin or Tylenol later and they're good as new, generally within ten minutes, which is surprising as the absorption rate is closer to fifteen minutes.

Today was a sprained knee, so bad that the staff member said, wincing and moaning, that he couldn't walk. I told him to ice it; a half an hour later he's running around with no signs of injury. It's a miracle!!

The truth is that I found many Iraqis to be attention seeking. All they want is someone to listen to their near-death complaint, give them something that looks like medicine and they're merrily on their way. I'm not sure what the cultural reason is for this. If it were my 4-year old I'd say that he's trying to get out of school. At least it worked for me a time or two when I was younger. I don't believe the staff is trying to dodge work, because they're happily back at it again once they've been pulled back from the bright light and resuscitated. I think that I'm going to teach my Iraqi security operators how to initiate IV therapy. Ya got a headache? Ya need an IV!! At least my guys can get some good training out of it.

The Way Ahead In Executive Protection

An Iraqi physician peeks out from a treatment room. I've used this photo before so I apologize for my self-plagiarism.

If I had a dollar to spend on executive protection training, where would I spend it? There are a bevy of EP and EP-related schools and course out there, all vying for your hard-earned money, all promising to impart the skills necessary to become a world-class protector.

Let's assume for a moment that you've been to one of the more "legitimate" course and have learned a bit about surveillance detection, advance work, and maybe walking formations. Now what; a driving course, shooting school, how about Thai knife fighting? This is where many people get confused and often go astray.

If you didn't get any driving in your EP course than I contend that you went to the wrong course. That's a must have skill. Other than that, for most mere mortals, the next step should be medical certifications. You are much more likely to apply medical treatment than say the Woo Tan Dragon Tail technique. I know, Woo Tan can be a lot of fun, especially when compared to memorizing the bones in the hand, but for practicality purposes in EP there's no comparison.

Many perspective employers have under-lying medical issues, and often look for medical skills in their protectors. It gives them peace of mind, and when it gets right down to it, that's what we do for a living. The medical world is stratified, thus making it very easy for an informed employer to ascertain exactly what your medical qualifications are. Sometimes the military medical qualifications trip them up a bit, but for the most part anyone hiring an EMT-B qualified protector knows what he or she's getting.

I contend that anyone seriously working as an EP agent should have an EMT certification as a minimum. In the United States Fire and Police normally have this, so why shouldn't it be expected from a close protection agent? For you military guys and gals out there, Combat Lifesaver doesn't cut it. Why? Because it's just that, combat oriented. Someone with chronic asthma or COPD isn't going to need a tourniquet or a splint, they're going to need someone familiar with their affliction and to be able to assist with their medications.

So if you're if you're a protector and you're looking for some way to distinguish yourself from the heard, getting your EMT or foreign equivalent is, in my opinion the best way to do that. Gunslingers and Woo Tan knife fighters are a dime a dozen right now, qualified medics are rare and highly sought after by many companies employing protectors. This is the way ahead.

Doing What It Takes

Cameraman working hard to get "the shot", I think :)

I had a conversation with a friend of mine who is still working as a contractor on a PSD. He was recently involved in a major contact that killed one of his team and wounded several others. As the medic on the scene, he worked on the causalities for 90 minutes until a MEDEVAC finally arrived. In the end, he wondered what more he could have done. During the course of the discussion my friend lamented to me that many in this industry are under-trained, over-egoed, and far more concerned about looking like a miniaturized action figure than actually doing what it takes to become one.

The only thing that separates the real cool guys from the Wal-Mart ninjas of this world is.... training. There is nothing special about the SPECAT, "been-there-done-that", real-deal other than the fact that he's trained his ass off and continues to do so. It's like a professional athlete; those are the guys in the gym or on the field, all by themselves after the crowds have gone home and the lights have been extinguished, working over and over on basic skills. Do you think Tiger Woods got to where he is by putting on a Nike cap and and picking up the latest in carbon-fiber, high-tech clubs? Hell, Tiger could wipe the course with most people with just a Wal-Mart putter and a Putt-Putt golf ball. He's not on-line shopping for the latest cool sunglasses, or hanging out in the club house telling "there I was" stories, he's off by himself on the driving range hitting balls by the tens of thousands... boring stuff, but that's what it takes.

I'm sorry if I sound too critical of security contractors, but the fact is that the vast majority of them working around the world are criminally under-trained, if at all. They spend their efforts trying to look and speak the part, and hoping like hell that nothing happens to them. Clients, for the most part can't tell the difference. In the end, it's the clients that pay the price for ignorance, putting their faith and safety in the hands of some kid that looks like a Blackhawk poster boy, but has no idea of the vehicle dynamics of the multi-ton SUV that he's driving.

More On Executive Protection Training

I’m involved in another email correspondence with a guy that is looking to get into the executive protection field. He asked me about the various courses and companies out there, and I responded with the email below, which has been slightly edited for privacy purposes
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Bob,

Any company that named itself "Special Operations Protection Services Ltd." is already suspect in my book. A word or caution of the “Special Operations Protection Services Ltd.” of the world. The U.S. is flooded with guys that signed on to one of the PSDs in Iraq or Afghanistan after an illustrious career at the county volunteer fire department or working the gun-counter at WalMart. They did one or two tours, had they pictures taken under Baghdad's Crossed Swords decked out in the best Gucci kit that money could buy, and then went home to open up Special Operations Bodyguard, Rendition, and Ninja Training. The United States does not regulate EP courses, so anyone with some cool pictures and an Iraq or Afghanistan stamp in their passport can open one. Caveat emptor.

In terms of course costs, I'll grant you that executive protection training is not cheap. I was lucky enough to get the Army to pick up the tab for a lot of the EP training I did. A lot of guys will tell you that it's an "investment" into your new career, and I guess that's true to an extent, but it's still expensive and hard to swallow. Having said that, it makes it all the more vital that you get the most for the money that you're laying down. I can assure you that “Special Operations Protection Services and Ninja Training Ltd.” would not be on that list.

One way to get the most from you money is to attend a course that has all of the facets of protection rolled into it, i.e. driving, combatives, medical, etc... One such course is given by the International Training Group, out of, I believe, California. This was my first EP course, and some of the best training I've ever gone through, even in the military.

Another thought on courses is that you're looking for name recognition. If you slap "Special Operations Bodyguard Services - Ninja-Bodyguard Course on your resume, no one is going to recognize it, and will pass right over it as if you never attended anything. You have to find courses that people in the industry are familiar with and that have a lot of alumni (networking opportunities). Since you asked about driving, I'll tell you that BSR and Tony Scotti are two of the industry standards. Anyone that is seriously doing this job has gone to one or both of these schools, and most active instructors can trace their linage back to them as well. Granted there are a ton of driving schools out there offering decent training, but again, it's about name recognition on your resume.

Driving schools. Lot's of schools will teach you how to spin a car around, but that's not protective driving. Look for schools that work in multi-car formations, so you know what a lead car does, or how to drive the client car, or how hectic life is in the follow-car. All of these are different and have different roles and responsibilities. Can you coordinate a four-car Reverse 180 on a narrow street in the dark under pressure? That's what you're looking for.

Finally, you need to decide on what type of protection you want to do. Many will tell you that the principles are the same for all threat levels, and that's true to an extent. However, if you know that you want to do corporate protection, there are courses that specialize in those skills (R L Oatman & Associates). If you know that you're more inclined to do high-risk PSD work than look to Blackwater-type courses. As an example, Bob Oatman, doesn't even use the word firearm in his entire one-week course, but has a couple blocks of instruction on dress and business etiquette. Blackwater USA, on the other hand, has you on the range within the first hour of the course working on shooting. Keep in mind that the vast majority of all Stateside details are unarmed. Get my point?

Anyway, that's probably more that you needed, but it will move you in the right direction.

Best,
eric

CrossFit

I’ve been an competitive athlete since I was 9 years-old; scholarship collegiate basketball player, Special Forces soldier, and later an Ironman triathlete. I’ve never seen anything like the CrossFit strength and conditioning program. It has me completely sold on its brand of high intensity, natural, multi-joint movements that combine Olympic Powerlifting, gymnastics, running, rowing, swimming and other sports. CrossFit is the current rage with people that require elite all-around fitness, such as military special operations units, competitive athletes, police and fire units, etc… Couple CrossFit with a diet that is high in protein, vegetables, nuts and fruit, and cut out starches and sugar and you have an eerily effective, dramatically life-changing fitness program.

Triathlon Challenges In A War Zone

The villa’s communication mast looking skyward in the morning light

Up at 5:30 this morning for a 6-mile hill workout on the treadmill. It’s the definition of boring; no TV, no iPod, no distractions, just the whir of the belt and the sound of foot strikes.

Working out in Baghdad has always been a challenge. It’s not like you can head out on a 10-mile run around the city or go biking on the outskirts of town. You have to be inventive with what you have available, which isn't much.

The villa has a tiny 15’x15’ pool, not much bigger than a hot tub. I have a tether that I can swim with that holds me in-place stroke after stroke. It’s sort of like the swimmer’s version of a treadmill. The problem is that the tethered belt around my waist dramatically changes my center of gravity and completely alters my technique. I’m not sure that I want to practice bad swimming technique, so I’ve resigned myself to using stretch cords anchored on my bedroom door.

Biking; forget it. I’m doing strength and muscular endurance work with weights and isometrics trying to keep my biking muscles in some semblance of condition. We have a stationary recumbent bike here, but it’s pretty beat on and not of much use. I’ve found that walking backwards on a heavily inclined treadmill will give the quads a pretty good endurance stressing. It looks funny, but seems to work.

The goal is to maintain condition until I can get back to Atlanta in five weeks and continue a normal training regime. My 10 year-old son is getting pretty fast, so I better keep to it.

Week of Woes

Some yahoo who thinks that he looks good in Oakleys and DeSoto tri-shorts.

One of my great passions in life is triathlon. I spend an obscene amount of time and effort at it. If you ask my wife, she’ll lump “money” into that last statement as well. Nevertheless, it’s been a week of training woes. The following is an except from an email I wrote a friend of mine in Miami.

Went for my weekly long run; 10 miles up the parkway against morning commuting traffic. Some fat guy gave me the finger from his speeding mini-van because I guess he thought that running five feet off the side of the road was impinging on his right to the road.

I was sporting a new pair of DeSoto running shorts that started to chafe at about mile 3. By the time I got back home my new Asics were bright pink from sweat and blood, and I had streams of blood running down both of my legs. Michelle looked at me like I was a blooming idiot. Can you blame her?

Now I'm limping around with what is effectively road-rash between my legs. There is NOTHING more painful than road-rash in the shower.

I've decided to stick with the DeSoto compression tri-shorts for long runs. These have been stand-bys for years.

I went for a long bike ride through the hills of southern Atlanta the other day. I got hopelessly lost, and kept passing the same dead dog lying on the side of the road. I took that as a bad omen and called Michelle for directions. Ended up doing an ass-load of “bonus miles”.

Also went to the tri-store yesterday to stock up on Accelerade (“Biker Crack”). The guy looked at me like I was crazy. I'm getting a lot of that lately. He told me the stuff was junk and the latest version of "go-faster" drink was something called Perpetium (orange-vanilla). I tried it yesterday. I'm not sure if it helped at all, but it tasted great.

The Speedo polyester swimsuits are great. Good advice there. They don't come in leopard pattern though.

I was in the pool the other day swimming an unbroken 1600 and the guy next to me was floating 25 yd intervals on his back. He saw me in the shower and commented, "you're a beast in the water". I'm thinking, "Yea, you should see me bench press 80 lbs!!"

All from my tales of woe. How's it with you?

Training for Close Protection

The one thing that sets military special operations forces apart from conventional forces is training. Special Forces personnel are constantly training and learning new tasks while continuing to hone old skills. This is the one great lesson I learned while serving as a Special Forces officer in the Army; that the training and preparation never end.

With several weeks off before I travel again for my next security assignment I'm taking advantage of the time to continue my personal training program. Here is a list of things that security professionals can do to increase or augment their skills while they are between jobs.

- Learn a new language. You don't have to become fluent, but try to learn some useful phrases. There are plenty of Internet sites dedicated to teaching various languages. I'm currently using JapanesePod101.

- Augment your medical skills. If you have the three weeks, get your Basic EMT certification. At a minimum get certified in CPR and AED.

- Stay on top of you physical workouts. You should endeavor to do something every day. That doesn't mean you have to thrash yourself into oblivion day-in and day-out. Be sensible and have a plan. Incorporate the basics of strength, flexibility and endurance. For me it's triathlon training coupled with yoga.

- Combatives. Try to learn the basics of a martial art that appeals to you. A lot of security professionals are practicing mixed martial arts, taking techniques from various arts that make sense and have applicability. I've been a bit of a traditionalist here and have focused on Aikido; so much so that I married my Aikido instructor. Now that's dedication!

- Shoot. Way too many close protection guys get wrapped around this. It's fun, and people tend to practice those skills that are fun. Don't just go to the range and blast away. Have a program that works on specific skills. Make every shot count and have a purpose. Practice with a variety of different weapons, not just your favorites. Dry fire... a lot.

- Hang out in Barnes and Noble and browse books on business dress and etiquette, foreign cultures, the world's religions, geography, and photography.

- Stay on top of technical skills. Understand the basics or wireless communication, radio theory, multimedia presentations. Become familiar with emerging technologies and applications.

In short, take an inventory of yourself. Identify those areas that you are weak in and develop a training plan for those. Don't just head off to the range a few times a week and blast away, thinking that you're now a well-trained, close protection agent. Balance in all things.