“Theory and practice sometimes clash, And when that happens, theory loses. Every single time.” –Linus Torvalds
We recently presented a Cold Weather Carry Class in Michigan, where much was learned by all in attendance, including myself!
Temperature was between 28 and 34 degrees throughout the day, perfect for creating cold hands and bodies, as well as requiring layers to stay warm. The bulky clothing created mass difficulty in access to carry guns carried in conventional holsters on the waist. More than once a pistol was drawn and fired from retention while a shirt hem or jacket tail was draped over the rear of the slide, causing an immediate stoppage.
We required students to operate the majority of the drills wearing gloves, as this is how most agreed they would be wearing when shoveling snow, changing a tire, or working outside at such temperatures (or lower). The gloves presented additional challenges to the draw, as well as gripping, firing, reloading, and re-holstering. All of us devolved into fumbling messes! A problem that visited almost every attendee was the fabric of the glove around their thumbs causing interference with the slide stop lever while shooting. The lever would be held down by their gloves when the last shot was fired, the pistol then failing to go into slide lock.
My own struggle revolved around the specific glove I was wearing adding enough length to my trigger finger that it became entangled on the front of my trigger guard whether reaching for or coming off the trigger out of the register position. It completely threw off my timing and divided my focus, resulting in many more than one missed shot!
None of it got any better once gloves were eliminated, as hands instantly became numb, losing dexterity and strength, adding seconds of precious time to reloads and stoppage reductions. Access to spare magazines on belt carriers was also slow and awkward. One student opted to switch the carry of their spare magazine to a coat pocket, which is most certainly acceptable. However, during the day and empty case made its way into the same pocket, resulting the issue illustrated in the below photo.
The student discovered it while trying to reload. It had nothing to do with the weather, but it does confirm Murphy’s Law! And, it was a new one on me.
Much discussion and reevaluation regarding wintertime carry methods was had throughout the day. All present were given opportunity to fire a snub-nosed revolver from ( and through) a jacket pocket, as well as draw and fire from a few samples of container (off-body) carry methods. Both the pocket revolver and container carry proved superior in speed opposed to any style of waistband carry.
One criticism of purse or shoulder bag carry is that it requires two hands to draw the pistol – well, so can adding a zipped-up coat and sweatshirt over your appendix carry pistol. And for those working construction or snowmobiling, the addition of snowsuits, overalls, or Carhartts will render such pistols completely inaccessible.
Those who live in El Paso year-round may not have to worry about rearranging their carry choices due to seasonal weather changes. For those of us in the country located where winter means business, it needs to be not only considered, but trained on!
All fights are about time, and the longer it takes us to bring our defensive pistol to bear, the higher the probability of our own demise. When was the last time you attempted to draw your gun from under your winter coat?
“I am always ready to learn, although I do not always like being taught.” –Winston Churchill
