Understand that the split-second decisions you make while driving affect not only you but everyone around you. The simple act of tailgating a teenage driver, as a form of retaliation for his cutting you off, could quickly compound into a mass-fatality accident. Inhale four seconds, exhale four seconds . . . let it go.
Defensive Driving: Expect the Worst
Let’s face it: There surely seem to be more bad drivers on the road than good ones, which only adds to the necessity of being an extra-diligent driver. Don’t forget that car accidents are the number one cause of accidental deaths in America. Defensive driving is the combination of situational awareness and utilizing a set of driving skills. You need to be aware of not only the environment and the road ahead, but what’s happening behind you and to your sides. In SEAL team we said that while driving you need to keep your head on a swivel. In addition, you must anticipate dangerous situations and be prepared to respond without hesitation to the carelessness or recklessness of others.
DEFENSIVE DRIVING CHECKLIST
Scan the road ahead and plan for the unexpected.
Have an eye on any and every vehicle’s signals, brake lights, and indicators of inattentive drivers, such as cars drifting from lanes.
Keep control of your speed. Don’t drive too fast or too slowly.
Expect other drivers to make mistakes, and be prepared to react.
Be aware of special road and weather conditions.
Avoid “car bunches.” That’s when moving cars are bottlenecked, although going at regular speed and occupying all lanes.
While driving behind larger vehicles, keep your line of sight clear.
Scan the road for any bicycles, motorcycles, pedestrians, potholes, and animals.
Always maintain an exit route by keeping at least a two-second gap from the vehicle in front of you and space on both sides of your vehicle. Never drive in someone’s blind spot.
The last tip above is the most important when it comes to defensive driving. By maintaining distance from other vehicles you give yourself time and options in avoiding and reacting to potentially hazardous situations and events.
Being the driver, or “wheelman,” was one of my favorite aspects of the work I did overseas. I learned how to drive when I was six years old and have loved it ever since, and I am a terrible passenger. Tactical driver training at several facilities in the U.S. was a requirement for my job. There is no better time than taking someone else’s car and driving the wheels off it, only to have another one waiting for you when it breaks. High-speed driving on the tarmac of an airfield or racetrack in a souped-up Ford Crown Victoria was a hell of a good time. It is a whole different deal when you are driving a ten-thousand-pound armored Mercedes in Indian country. Still fun, but different.
Evasive Driving
There could be a time when you need to implement aggressive and high-speed driving techniques because you are being purposefully pursued, and stopping is not an option. Taking flight in a vehicle is a risky scenario. You are attempting to drive a very heavy object at a high rate of speed, which doesn’t afford the same time to make decisions, yet each move has serious ramifications if you make the wrong choice. The foundation for evasive driving is to know the vehicle you are driving: how it handles, turns, brakes, and accelerates. Factors such as how the vehicle handles weight transfer, which means how the vehicle responds to a quick turn from left to right, must be known. In this case, will the car “understeer” (front end gives way or skids in a turn) or “oversteer,” meaning that the rear end gives way or spins out during a turn. The better you know your vehicle, the more effective you will be behind the wheel.
BASIC TECHNIQUES FOR A HIGH-SPEED CHASE
The one who survives a high-speed car chase isn’t usually the fastest; it’s the one who doesn’t crash. And action is often faster than reaction, so when someone is pursuing you, allow them to get close to you, and then make a last-second turn. This can also be performed on a highway by taking an exit in the same fashion.
Ocular driving: Your eyes need to be focused ahead on where you want to go—e.g., not on the turn you finished making, but instead aimed at the next one ahead. Remember that at high speeds, if you are looking at it, you will go there, be it the next turn or into the tree that caught your attention.
Hands need to be at four o’clock and eight o’clock, versus the standard two-and-ten hand position. Shuffle them; never cross.
Immediate avoidance: This is performed by quickly turning the steering wheel ninety degrees, followed by immediately returning it to its original position.
Use maximum effective braking, or what’s called “threshold braking.” Know how quickly your car will come to a straight-line stop without locking up the wheels. Practice this turn, or any of the above suggestions, in an isolated parking lot or in a safe clearing until you know how get the brakes to the point when they will not lock and you are able to still maintain control of the vehicle. If you have ABS (antilock brakes), this system will do all the work for you. Just keep the pedal pressed. (Don’t pump the brakes on an ABS vehicle!)
ADVANCED TECHNIQUES
The following advanced techniques require a very high level of skill. Seek professional instruction before performing any of these.
EMERGENCY BACKING: Y- AND J-TURNS
You have been cut off and have to reverse out. Get off the X.
Y-turn technique
1. With your left hand on the steering wheel at the twelve o’clock position and your right arm over the passenger seat, look over your right shoulder and begin accelerating in reverse.
2. When able, reduce speed and turn the vehicle 90 degrees as you come to a full stop.
3. Turn the steering wheel in the opposite direction and drive forward.
J-turn technique
1. Maintain speed in reverse, but do not exceed 35 mph. With your left hand at the twelve o’clock position on the steering wheel, quickly turn the wheel so your hand moves to the six o’clock position.
2. Just before the car has rotated 180 degrees, turn the steering wheel back to its original position.
3. Immediately put the car in Drive or another forward gear and hit the accelerator.
4. If this is done properly the vehicle will, in a fairly smooth transition, have gone from reverse to forward on the same track.
Barricade Breaching
If you are approaching a vehicle barricade consisting of a car or a truck parked broadside to block your path, and reversing out is not an option, then employ this technique:
1. Slowly approach the vehicle barricade. Once you are within fifteen feet, hit the accelerator.
2. Strike the barricade vehicle at the wheels (front or rear). This is where the axles are. Hitting the barricading vehicle at these spots will cause the vehicle to move and not fold toward you to potentially trap you. Even if you are in a compact car and a truck is barricading you, your 3,500-pound smaller car doing 30 mph and aimed at the wheels will be forceful enough to pivot the truck out of the way.
3. Continue to accelerate, and the vehicle you hit will clear your path to the left or right, depending on which axle you struck.
4. Understand that your air bags may deploy as a result of this technique, so keep your hands at four o’clock and eight o’clock and your head back against the headrest.
Being Rammed
If you find yourself in a situation where you are being struck by a vehicle, understand the most vulnerable place on a car is the side doors. This provides the least amount of protection for driver and passenger. The goal is to keep your car moving longer than that of the person who is chasing or ramming you. Ideally the rear of your car will take the brunt of the impact.
1. Maneuver to try to keep your pursuer directly in the middle of your rearview mirror.
2. Slam on the brakes occasionally to disrupt their attempts at passing you, and thereby getting to your vulnerable driver or passenger doors.
3. Be aware that the pursuer may attempt a PIT ma
neuver, which is used to spin a car by impacting the quarter panel just behind the rear wheels. Don’t let them. If they attempt this, steer in the opposite direction and accelerate.
Passenger-side Driving: “Driver down”
There may be a situation in which you are the passenger in a car, and the driver has for whatever reason become incapacitated and unable to drive. Use the following technique when stopping is not an option.
1. Immediately slide over and take control of the steering wheel and accelerator.
2. Position yourself on the lap of the driver and use your left arm to make yourself stable while steering with the right.
3. If you are in the backseat, the same can be done from over their shoulders. You will, however, need something like a bat, golf club, stick, or rifle to control the accelerator and brake.
SEARCH AND RESCUE
If a major earthquake strikes, it could be three to five days before you see any help. First responders are going to be totally overwhelmed, and it will be up to you and those who survived to do whatever is possible to help.
You may be safe, but there will be people out there fighting for their lives. The clock is ticking, and you have a duty to render aid. Gather as many people as you can. This is a clear-cut case of strength in numbers, and your mission is to save lives. Organize the group and tackle one challenge at a time. Don’t forget to do a continuous scene size-up. You are operating in a very hazardous and constantly changing environment.
STEP UP!
I have spent most of my life surrounded by excellence, by a group of guys I trust with my life. I have been spoiled by high standards of bravery among men who race into danger whenever they find it. When I see a general lack of courage among bystanders in emergency situations, I have to continuously remind myself of the training and background I come from. That said, you don’t have to be a SEAL to have the courage to do the right thing and help those in need.
Gear Up
Wear sturdy, closed-toed shoes to protect your feet from broken glass, and if you have a hard hat or any kind of helmet, put it on. You may think you look ridiculous wearing a football helmet, but if that’s all you have, use it. Keep yourself safe from falling rubble and other hazards. Your mission is to save lives, not add to the fatalities.
Search: Going In
As I’ve mentioned, you should not reenter a structure unless it has been cleared by an engineer, but if there are no professionals of this caliber and you hear survivors trapped, you must take action. Never go in with fewer than two people in your rescue party, following the buddy system used by SEALs.
1. Ensure the gas and power sources to any building you need to search have been turned off.
2. Establish a search pattern: Start right and go counterclockwise. If there are multiple search teams, then direct each group or buddy pair to start at opposite ends, so as to meet in the middle.
3. Use caution while moving through the structure, remembering not to move any weight-bearing material. Watch your step; you could go right through the floor.
4. Search six sides to every room—four walls, the floor, and the ceiling, all of which could be places where someone is trapped.
5. Call out and then remain silent. Someone could be wedged in a very small space, or it could take them time to hear you and muster the energy to respond. When you call out, don’t merely ask, “Is anyone here?” If there are survivors in the search area, chances are they are dazed. Instruct them in how to respond. Tell them to tap something if they are unable to speak.
6. Be thorough! Do it right the first time.
Mark It
A very important aspect of search and rescue is to mark doors, indicating that the area was already searched or that it is being searched. You don’t want to have another team wasting time going over the same areas when they could be searching for survivors in other structures. You can mark the front door or a visible part of the building using anything—spray paint, Magic Markers, chalk, crayons, or even a bottle of mustard.
1. Before entering a room or building, make one diagonal line across the door. This will let anyone know that someone is inside searching.
2. If you don’t find anyone inside, place another diagonal line on the door to form an X.
3. At the top of the X write the time and date. At the bottom of the X place a “0.” This will let everyone know that the house has been searched and there are no people inside. “0” reaffirms, during a time of major unrest, that the structure has been searched with zero dead. They can move on to the next area and save valuable time.
Extracting Survivors
More than likely you will find someone who is buried under quite a lot of weight. Since there will be no backhoes or cranes available for some time, you must devise ways to get the person out safely. The person could be under rubble that cannot be moved with bare hands. There are two primary methods to use when trying to get them out.
LEVER
Use the longest and sturdiest piece of wood available, such as a long two-by-four or four-by-four, and place one end under the rubble. Then put another object under the lever a few feet from the end. This will serve as a fulcrum. The longer the lever, the more weight it will lift. Choose a place to apply the lever at a portion of the debris closest to where you believe the trapped person to be.
CRIBBING AND SHORING
The second technique you can use is what search-and-rescue crews call cribbing and shoring. This works well if you have a car jack available.
1. Place the jack on top of several pieces of wood to distribute the weight at the base. The width of the wood should be greater than the base of the jack to prevent slippage.
2. Place another piece of wood between the top of the jack and the object to be lifted.
3. Slowly start jacking up the object to a height of about four inches.
4. Place pieces of wood that form a box, or “cribbing,” under the object you are lifting. This will shore it up and keep it from dropping back down.
5. Then continue lifting the object another four inches and repeat the cribbing process until the object is high enough that you can pull the victim out.
STALKER AND SURVEILLANCE DETECTION
A person can be stalked or under surveillance for any number of reasons—everything from a spouse wanting to know if their husband or wife is cheating to a criminal preparing to kidnap a wealthy banker, or a would-be robber wishing to learn of your routine prior to committing their crime. In addition, every forty seconds someone is reported missing. Many are found, but a great number end up kidnapped and ultimately as fatality statistics. Learn to detect surveillance and thwart it to help you avoid becoming a victim. Those wishing to do harm follow the rules that all predators do: They watch before they attack and wait for the opportunity to get you alone.
Eight percent of American women will be stalked in their lifetime—that’s 1.4 million American stalking victims every year. The majority of stalkers have been in relationships with their victims. Women who are separated from their husbands are three times more likely to be stalked than women who are divorced outright—and twenty-five times more likely than married women to be murdered as a result. According the FBI statistics, during a period of marital separation, stalking and crimes of passion, including homicide, occur more frequently.
Situational Awareness
We all know what looks normal for a neighborhood. Perhaps we see the same cars go by, or people walking their dogs, or certain landscaping trucks, or the same well-marked service vans serving an area. Without realizing it, what we have done by observing these normal details is establish a baseline. Every place, whether it is an urban, suburban, or rural setting, has its baseline of regular activity. The first step in surveillance detection (SD) is to be alert to changes in this baseline. These can come in many guises. Sometimes, it could be a person pretending that his car is broken or someone knocking on your door who just doesn’t seem right, perhaps pretending to try to sell you something. In the c
ity, someone might be loitering in a doorway, seemingly drinking a cup of coffee, but they still have the same cup in their hand two hours later. Whenever someone seems out of place, let them know that you see them. One of the best tools available now is your cell phone camera. Take the person’s picture. Those doing the surveillance don’t want to be caught in the act, or “rolled up.”
What to Do If You Are Being Followed
If you are alert and practicing situational awareness, you may see a car in your rearview mirror that seems to be taking the same route as you. If walking, you may notice that same person you saw ten blocks ago is still behind you. Most times, predators, especially if setting up for a kidnapping or robbery, repeat their observations for days or for weeks.
When I was a SEAL, many of our missions required us to conduct reconnaissance or surveillance. It enables us to collect intelligence on possible targets and plan for follow-up missions. Once, when in the Balkans, my team occupied an abandoned house as our observation point for the surveillance of a particular neighborhood of interest. In that instance, we got rolled because the locals sent in five kids, making believe they came into the house to play hide-and-seek. They immediately reported their findings, and we hauled ass. It was a very effective form of countersurveillance.
Seal Survival Guide Page 24
