Learn Watch and Create

8/13/2019 Learn Watch and Create

1/6

department| PHYSICAL FITNESS

78 The Tactical Edge | Winter 2010

Shooter squat

To assist the tactical athlete in becom-

ing efficient in the stressful ready posi-

tion, the use of the shooter squat and

variants are deemed necessary. Feet are

shoulder-width apart and staggered, just

like the ready position in HRT. Start themovement at the hips by pressing the hips

back into a staggered squat position at 90

degrees, focusing on keeping the weight

back on the heels. The core must remain

strong to keep the torso upright and not

hunched forward. It is important to train

the dominant shooting side as well as the

non-dominant side, which can be done by

alternating the lead foot and rear shoulder.

Traditional weights can be added for

resistance in the form of a barbell, dumb-bell, medicine ball or weighted vest. Non-

traditional implements that may be used

to substitute holding a weapon include a

fake rubber weapon, a standard curl bar

with light weights added to the far end

as needed, or a standard 18-inch bum-

per plate (starting around 5 kg). While

maintaining the ready position with the

substitute weapon, be sure not to let the

barrel of your weapon drop at the bottom

of the squat.

Strength coaches often watch sports prac-

tices to come up with training ideas or

find weaknesses that need to be developed

in strength and conditioning. The same

thing should be done with tactical athletes.

Sit back and watch tactical athletes in their

respective environments (fire rescue, law

enforcement, military, etc.). For example,

during hostage rescue training (HRT) the

tactical athlete will be in the high or low-

ready position for extended periods of time,

depending on the mission. In this position,

the operators feet will be shoulder-width

apart and staggered (no more than toe to

heel), the knees are slightly bent and the

weapon is in the firing position (high or low

depending on standard operating proce-

dures and situation). This position will put a

lot of stress on the shoulders, core, quadri-

ceps, hamstrings and calves. Thus, it is ideal

to train these areas with specificity in mind.

Learn, watch and create tactical athlete trainingBy Tyler Christiansen

Learn the past,

watch the present,

and create the future.

Jesse Conrad


2/6

The Tactical Edge | Winter 2010 79

Shooter squat and sweep

The shooter squat and sweep will

overemphasize the ready position and

includes sweeping for hostile targets in

the tactical athletes sector of fire. With

this exercise, the same techniques from

the shooter squat will be applied but the

tactical athlete will be sweeping the room

in the down-squat position. To sweep the

room, pause in the down position and

shift the hips from a neutral position to

the left and right.

Barbells are not recommended as a

training aid in this exercise, but using a

weighted vest with substitute weaponry

can be an effective training method.

Forward and rear lunge

The purpose of this exercise is to

strengthen and reinforce the proper form

for kneeling behind cover or taking a

knee in a supported firing position dur-

ing tactical operations. A rear or forward

lunge will prepare the tactical athlete formissions during which he will have to

stand and kneel multiple times.

To do a forward lunge, the tactical

athlete will step forward with most of his

weight on the heel of the forward foot and

kneel to a double L position with toes

pointing forward at all times. The double

L refers to the front leg being at 90

degrees with the foot flat on the ground,

and the rear leg being at 90 degrees with

knee on the ground. While in the down

position, make sure that the forward knee

stays behind the toes and in front of the

heel and that the torso is upright, not

hunched forward. At this point, the athlete

can return to the starting position or

continue forward into another lunge while

utilizing the opposite leg. When stepping

forward into another lunge, it is important

not to stutter step. Once again, the athlete

will want to ensure that his weight is on

the heel of the forward foot at all times.

To do a reverse lunge, take the same

stance, except execute the first step to the

rear while the weight stays on the heel

of the forward foot. To add resistance to

this exercise, add a 40-pound weighted

vest to simulate the tactical athletes kit.

Other implements would be a barbell or

dumbbell.


3/6

PHYSICAL FITNESS, continued


Shooters circuit

The purpose of the shooters circuit

is to fatigue the shoulders beforeholding

a weapon. This gives the tactical athlete

an exhausted feeling from holding and

maintaining the high-ready position

for an extended period of time. Aftercompleting ten repetitions each of a front

raise, lateral raise, upright row, scarecrow

and reverse fly, have the tactical athlete

maintain a high-ready position for 30 to

60 seconds while completing the shooter

squat with a 40-pound vest and a heavier-

than-usual substitute weapon.

This exercise can be done at the

shooting range, with the consent of the

safety personnel on the range, to have a

stress shoot experience. This would also

be a great tool for the tactical athlete to

experience a fatigued shooting sensation

and visualize where the rounds end up

downrange on the target.


4/6

The Tactical Edge | Winter 2010 81

Summary

Training ideas are developed by watch-

ing practice and learning from observa-

tions. When weaknesses are exposed, they

must be corrected and developed so the tac-

tical athlete may continue to improve. The

exercises described in this article will assist

the tactical athlete in job-specific tasks. Take

time to learn from the past, as it will provide

the base foundation; watch the present to

make the necessary corrections; then, create

the future.7

About the author

Tyler Christiansenis the National Strength

and Conditioning Associations (NSCA) Tacti-

cal Strength and Conditioning (TSAC) Program

Coordinator. He coaches a variety of tacticalathletes in the NSCA Human Performance Cen-

ter. Tyler received his bachelors in Exercise Sport

Science from Iowa State University and served

in the Army National Guard for 6 years and is a

veteran of Operation Enduring Freedom.

TSAC ConferenceMarch 9 11, 2010 The M Resort Las Vegas, NV

Tactical Strength and Conditioning Conference

Discover the latest research-based physical training informationand techniques geared toward tactical operators.

sponsored byinformation / registration 800-815-6826

www.nsca-lift.org/TSAC2010


5/6

department| EXPLOSIVES/EOD


One of the most difficult situations

a SWAT team can face is a hostage

rescue, which can become even more

complicated if there are multiple hostages

in a confined space, such as on a school bus.

SWAT teams train for this very scenario

and are certainly aware that if the situa-

tion cannot be negotiated to a resolution,

an entry onto the bus is the least favorable

option. A long rifleman or designated cover

officers outside the bus offer the best op-

tion, but they may not be a viable solution

in certain circumstances. In those cases, adynamic entry onto the bus may be the only

option, but may be hampered by the special

safety standards of the school bus intended

to keep our children safe.

Federal motor vehicle safety standards

require the hinged side door-locking

mechanisms on school buses to withstand

substantial loads as a safety feature to

prevent children from being thrown from

the bus and to protect against unauthorized

forced entry. Unfortunately, it stops autho-

rized forced entry tactics of SWAT teams

as well. In the past, teams have tried many

options to defeat the door-locking mecha-

nism, from pry bars to chain pulls, but the

most efficient alternative seemed to be to

force a window (front or side) to gain access

to the door control lever to open the door

from the inside. Depending on the difficulty

encountered, the team may lose the speed

and surprise element of their entry, which

could seriously impair the mission.

At a recent training, the explosive

breaching element of the Central Montgom-

ery (PA) County SWAT team attempted a

new solution to this problem. Rather thanworking on defeating the door, the team

identified and attacked the weakest com-

ponent of the system, which turned out to

be the bracket which fastened the 5/8-inch

locking bar to the door. In most models, this

bracket is fastened to the door with four #10

one-inch self-tapping bolts. The bolts are

fastened to the sheet metal on the interior

of the door. By using a push charge on the

Explosive breaching on a school bus

is it an option?By Michael McGuire, Jr.

By using a push charge on the

exterior of the door, we were

able to drive the bolts out of

the sheet metal, causing the

bracket to fall off the door and

releasing the locking bar. The

force of the explosion will most

likely cause the doors to fold

back to the open position, but

if not, they can easily be pulled

open by hand.

3Charge being placed on outside crossbar

of the bus.

6Charge detonating


6/6

EXPLOSIVES/EOD , continued


exterior of the door, we were able to drive

the bolts out of the sheet metal, causing the

bracket to fall off the door and releasing the

locking bar. The force of the explosion will

most likely cause the doors to fold back to

the open position, but if not, they can easily

be pulled open by hand.

The specific type of charge we used was

a push charge, which is designed to push

force in a specific direction. In our case, the

direction of the force was focused on the

bracket holding the school bus door locking

arm. Specifically, it was intended to force

the bracket off the interior of the door so

the door could be easily opened. The charge

was constructed with a piece of -inch-

thick rubber conveyor belt, duct tape and

detonating cord as the explosive charge.Breachers tape was used to secure the

charge to the specific target location. The

charge was placed on the outside crossbar

on the main bus door (right side), which is

the opposing side of the crossbar where the

locking bar hinge is located. This charge

can be pre-staged and quickly placed on the

outside crossbar by a breacher on a stealth

approach from the front of the bus.

Having the bolts become projectiles

inside the bus is a concern. Based on our

testing, it did not appear to be a major issue.

During one test we placed 1/8-inch thick

piece of cardboard along the drivers seat,

5'5" from the inside of the door. After the

breach, one of the bolts penetrated the first

piece of cardboard, but failed to penetrate

the second one behind it. A hostage-taker

would not allow the bus driver to remain

in his or her seat with access to the controls

and the radio. If the driver were moved

away from the drivers seat, the potential

projectiles would not be an issue.

One issue that the hostage rescue team

must plan for is to clear the half door rod

from their entry path. In testing, we found

that the rod was either floating dangerously

at the eye level of the first entering operator

or had drifted across the aisle of the bus. In

either situation, it can easily be cleared by

the first operator with a simple hand swipe.

As stated in the 1991 NTOA conference

manual, No tactical solution is without

risk of failure. The decision to implement

a tactical solution is never an easy or safe

one. Training and rehearsal are a necessity.

Nowhere is this more apparent than while

conducting an explosive breach to initi-

ate a hostage rescue on a school bus full of

children. If a hostage rescue is needed, being

unable to board the bus in a timely fashionis not an option: the risk of failing to gain

entry will be greater than the risk of the ex-

plosive breach. Teams with properly trained

explosive breachers will need to conduct

testing, training and rehearsals to ensure

that their team is prepared to implement

this tactic if the situation requires it.7

About the author

Michael McGuire Jr.has been

a police officer in Montgomery

County, Penna. since 1997.

He is a member of the Central

Montgomery County SWAT

team and is certified in tactical

explosive breaching. He also served 10 years with

the U.S. Army as an infantry soldier.

Note: This breaching tactic should only

be attempted by operators who are certified

and properly trained in explosive breaching.

Explosive breaching operators will need to

conduct their own testing to determine what

charge to use for this breaching tactic.

Photos courtesy of Rick Birkenmeier1 - 55 locking door-bar used to open/closeand secure the front hinged door

2 - View of the door bracket attached to the

inside of the hinged door

3 - Results of the breach - interior

4 - Results of the breach - exterior

1

2

3

4

Learn Watch and Create

Documents