Ever since I got my most recent phone I have
fallen in love with podcasts again. I downloaded an app that
downloads and sorts podcasts and RSS feeds automatically at night so
that they are ready for me to listen to the next day as I drive. I
currently have between 6 and 8 hours of shows that download on Monday
through Friday and several on the weekend. If any of you are
interested in the app it is called BeyondPod, and is in the Android
Market.
One of the Podcasts that I have really
enjoyed listening to is The Roadgunner Podcast. It is put together by
Chaz (not giving his last name for reasons that soon will become
obvious). On the show he goes by the name “The Un-named Trucker”
You see there are trucking companies that could cause problems for a
driver or owner-operator as some carriers have a policy of no guns in
the truck. I detest these policies and will go into why in another
post.
If you have been reading my blog
recently you know that I wrote a piece a few weeks ago about security
around vehicles and in it touched briefly on firearms. I thought
Chaz, as a professional driver, podcaster, concealed weapons
permit holder, and handgun enthusiast would make a good interview. I asked and he agreed, and
what follows is the “interview” which was conducted over a few
emails.
Please
tell me a little about yourself. How long have you been a
professional driver and what brought you to the industry?
I
have been an over the road driver for 13 years now. I had been a cook
at The Grand Floridian Resort at Walt Disney World in Orlando,
Florida. My pay there wasn't great and I was going through a divorce.
My wife took our 3 year old to Georgia with her when she left. My job
was very stressful, with long hours, a varied schedule and little
reward. Two of the cooks that had worked with me in the restaurant I
was working in left to become truck drivers. They returned to visit
the kitchen a few months later and made truck driving seem like a
worker's paradise. With a career in cooking seeming to get me nowhere
and my son so far away from Orlando, I decided that I would go to
truck driving school. About a year later I was driving for a now
defunct company, Dick Simon Trucking out of Salt Lake City.
Fast
forward ten years past a second failed marriage to a crazy lady who
let a drug pusher move into our house and we get to my experience
with guns.
How
long have you been a firearms owner?
In
December of 2008 my current wife got me a $100 gift card to use at a
gun range in Hot Springs, AR called On Target Firing Range. I had
expressed to my wife an interest in firearms and she obliged my
interest by getting me that gift card. That first 100 bucks led to
many thousands more spent in the following months. I got around to
using the card in February of 2009 and I was hooked from the moment I
fired my first handgun, a rented Ruger Mk II in .22LR. That wonderful
day in February I also fired a Springfield XD's in 9mm, .40 S&W,
and .45 ACP. A few months later I took The Arkansas Concealed Handgun
Carry License and received my permit in October of 2009 followed by
my Utah Concealed Firearms Permit in November of 2009.
What
types of firearms training have you had?
I
felt empowered by having the legal ability to protect myself with a
gun, but I felt like I needed more than just the right to carry. I
felt like I needed training in the proper techniques, tactics and
legal repercussions of the use of the handgun I had chosen to carry:
a Springfield XD45 service model.
When
an indoor range opened closer to where I live, I became a member and
enrolled in their Defensive Pistol class, which the instructor bases
on the training methods used in Rob Pincus' Combat Focus Shooting. I
am a member of that range, Shoothouse USA in Conway, AR and have
taken at least 2 refresher courses for the Defensive Pistol class as
well as Low Light/No Light shooting and a beginner's Krav Maga class.
In
addition to the Defensive Shooting class I have twice attended and
graduated from the Massad Ayoob Group's MAG-40 class which combines
20 hours of classroom time on 'citizens judicious use of deadly force
and 20 hours of marksmanship on a range.
In
your opinion how necessary is weapons training?
I
believe that any citizen responsible enough to obtain deadly weapons
to protect him/herself and family would naturally want to get the
training necessary to use that deadly weapon safely and effectively.
You could hand me a chainsaw, but that wouldn't make me a lumberjack.
I have no clue as to how to operate a chainsaw, and if I were shown
how to turn the thing on, I still couldn't safely fell a tree with
it. I have the right to go into any Husqvarna dealer and buy a
chainsaw without a permit or training. I believe the same should be
true of firearms. No permit or training should be required. The
Second Amendment makes no mention of permits or training being
needed. That said, you are a fool if you believe that a CCW class
constitutes training and you are a danger to yourself and family if
you don't get at least some minimal training. Going to a basic pistol
class will prove that to you.
Do
you treat security with an 18 wheeler differently than security with
a personal vehicle?
Now
that I carry a gun, I carry it everywhere and all the time, where the
law allows. I do not travel to States where my gun is not allowed to
at least be taken with me unloaded in a case. I do not travel to
Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey or Maryland for legal reasons.
Not traveling to New York blocks off Northern New England where my
Arkansas permit is honored but so be it. I do not go to Canada.
I
treat vehicle security exactly the same whether the vehicle is car or
a semi truck. I carry a gun. Period. When I am permitted to carry
concealed with my Arkansas, Utah or Florida permits I wear a
Concealment Solutions CE IWB holster containing either a Glock 26 or
a Sig Sauer 1911 C3 dependeing on my mood. I wear the holster at the
3:30 position on my body and conceal the holster with an untucked
shirt.
I
like having more room to move around in my semi and the higher
vantage point to view my surroundings, and the seat position grants
me better access to my sidearm. That said, I don't do anything
differently in my car as far as security goes. I pay attention to my
surroundings,and I don't go to stupid places with stupid people to do
stupid things.
You
referred to the 3:30 position, I am assuming that that means the
holster is slightly behind your right hip?
By
3:30 I do indeed mean slightly behind my right hip. I use this
position for driving any vehicle. If I lose some girth I will try
carrying in the appendix position for ease and speed of draw. I find
that 4:00 or farther back cocks my elbow into an awkward and slightly
uncomfortable angle when drawing my gun. But to each his/her own.
Are
there any types of firearms that you would specifically recommend for
vehicle security?
A
firearm is the great equalizer. It eliminates disparity of force of
numbers, gender, or disability. It is an essential piece of your
security kit.
Any
simple to use, reliable, polymer framed semiautomatic pistol in a
major caliber (9mm, .357 sig, 40 S&W, .45 ACP, 10mm) is to me, an
ideal vehicle security weapon. The pistol is mobile, and handheld. A
revolver would also do well at the "point and shoot"
distances you would expect to engage an attacker assaulting you in
your vehicle. If you aren't at very close range from an attacker,
your primary weapon should be the vehicle itself. If it isn't
mechanically disabled, DRIVE AWAY! Curbs, fire hydrants, other
vehicles be damned. The only exception to that is you must never hit
an innocent bystander with your vehicle. That goes for bullets too,
obviously; but that's why you need training.
As
a driver of a vehicle you are in a seated position, what is your
opinion of using an ankle holster, or in the winter months a shoulder
holster under a jacket or coat?
I
think ankle carry for vehicle use us a good idea with 9mm or up. In
the winter, I think a shoulder holster would be an excellent option
but I don't have a shoulder rig...yet.
What
about using the vehicle itself as a weapon? Can you envision a
circumstance where this would be justified?
I
think that using the vehicle itself as a weapon should be considered
before using a firearm. If your vehicle is not disabled, attempt to
drive away from an attacker, avoid hitting innocents, but a 3000 lb
car or 80000 lb semi tractor trailer has a hell of a lot more
stopping power than a 9 gram bullet. And the car is a guided freaking
missile! I believe most road rage killings happen because both
parties stop on the side of the road and present stationary targets.
If your vehicle can move than you need to move it. Car jackings occur
because the driver is in condition white, and car jackers spot that.
Victims get jacked because they aren't willing to drive over
sidewalks, curbs, road signs or other vehicles. Create a huge scene
with noise and chaos and I bet the jacker will move on unless he
REALLY wants your car. You also have to be ready to give up the car
if you do get caught unaware and you are alone. If you have a wife
and kids in the car, I'm fighting no matter what.
Final
Question, have you encountered problems carrying your weapon in
regards to weigh stations and contact with DOT in the various states
that we as truckers travel through?
I
have not had any problems with DOT at weigh stations. I don't travel
to the four fascist states of NJ, NY, MD, or MA and if I get pulled
around for inspection I lock the gun up before I report inside.
I
really want to thank Chaz for agreeing to the interview and for
offering his
insights. I encourage everyone to
check out his podcast at http://roadgunnerpodcast.com/
.
Thanks again for reading everyone! Stay
safe and I hope do see you down the road!
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