CCW Habits: Good, Bad, & Ugly.

[twyacht]

I have had a CCW since 1996, taken SD, NRA, and other professional shooting and instruction courses.  Go to the range ALOT.

Try as many drills as the Range Rules let me, and am left-handed. (Righties got it made in the gun world),...another topic...

BUT In the "real world", i.e. going to the grocery store, I find I'll grab the bags with my dominant hand and go to walk out.

Often, I catch myself before the stroll across the parking lot and switch to my right hand. SOMETIMES I don't.

As I carry IWB, left side or left pocket when I have my P3AT,  a left hand full of grocery bags would delay a draw situation. (Yes, I would drop the bags if needed, but in a quick bum rush, in your face, 2 or more BG attack,.. time is of the essence,..Right?)

Questions: Am I the only one that does this? Anything I can do to change this habit consistently? In essence, change a habit?

There was a car jacking in a Ft. Lauderdale, Publix parking lot last week, and the BG was caught later, but as to my mental readiness and physical preparedness, I am closer in the former, but inconsistent with the latter.

As always, thanks to DRTV and the members who can help a lefty become more consistent.

Tom W.

[ericire12]

You could just throw the groceries at the bad guy and then draw.

When I was in high school, a friend of mine was almost mugged, but he hit him in the head with his subway sub and it was enough to make the guy run off. 

[alfsauve]

In the military, you learn to keep your right hand free when walking outside, because you never know when you will need to salute and officer.   Officers around boot camp and tech schools (especially new 2nd Lt's) just love to try and catch you off guard. So you develop the habit pretty quickly to keep the right had free.   Even to this day, I tend to carry things more in my left hand.

The point being, practice, practice, practice.    It might also help, when you forget, yell at yourself in a mirror for 5 minutes.  

But yes, you do have it harder since this is a right handed world.  

[Fatman]

Yeah, you can always just drop what you're carrying, staying alert to give you the heads up is more important. You may need two hands anyway - one sweeps the clothing, the other draws. As to new 2nd lts, pitas were dealt with the 'salute rotation'. Enlisted men would just continually walk by and salute. They saluted once each, officer got a rotator cuff issue and tennis elbow...

[ellis4538]

Started doing that myself until I made mayself pick up with the off hand.  Now it's second nature.

Richard

[Sponsor]

[Timothy]

Use the cart to get to the car or do what I do and let the wife carry the heavy stuff!   

Actually, even though I've been out of the military thirty years, as Alf said, I tend to walk with the right hand free regardless of what I'm doing.

[Robin]

You learn, you adapt. I always carried my wallet on my weak side so that wasn't an issue for me. Once I started pocket carry I learned to put spare change on my weak side as well. Now I carry change weak side regardless of pocket carry. Car keys I still carry strong side but they're easy to drop/throw if needed.

[twyacht]

The point being, practice, practice, practice.    It might also help, when you forget, yell at yourself in a mirror for 5 minutes. 

Thanks Alfsauve, I think this method will work for me the best.

That or become a deadly canned foods thrower.

I will also try changing wallet placement to my right side and put my keys in my left pocket to change things up. It will be a change of routine, hopefully the body does what the brain trains it to do, and I can be more consistent.

Thank you

Tom W.

[Michael Janich]

The fact that you are "catching" yourself and switching the bags to your off hand--even if it's late--is a step in the right direction. Two other suggestions:

1) Before you step out of the store, pause. Get your keys (only the car keys you need, on a separate ring from your house keys) in your off hand and put the grocery bags there as well. Then, once you've got everything situated, walk out the door. Taking that time forces you to think and prepare.

2) Actually practice "busy hands" drills on the range. If you have access to a range that allows moving and shooting, have a partner call the cue as you walk down the firing line with a bag or box and your keys in your off hand. He should NOT require you to drop the bags and shoot every time. Sometimes, he just lets you walk. That way, you learn to react to a stimulus, not just wait for the cue to do the drill.

Great discussion. Keep up the good work!

Stay safe,

Mike

[tombogan03884]

"Sometimes, he just lets you walk."
Nice touch.  When doing IAD drills a lot of instructors suggest having some one else load the mags and put dummies in, that's fine ,but you still know it's coming, in real life you don't.