ABSOLUTES AND THE USE OF COVER

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"NEVER CROWD YOUR COVER". The popular thinking is that one should never get too close, or crowd, their cover. In my experience, which may vary from yours, the person saying this is most often parroting what they have heard in the past from another one-dimensional instructor. One who also thinks that there will always be room to maneuver and back away from cover. Their perspective on gun fighting is often limited to a folding barricade in the highly controlled and artificially safe environment of a shooting booth, where stand and deliver shooting is the only possibility.

By contrast, in the dynamic and fluid world of the reactive gunfight "crowding your cover", or not, is but one of many decisions that we will make based on the situation we are in. Through training we strive to condition ourselves to make the best decision(s) we can, based on the information available to us about the task at hand. This training should be developed from analysis of past violent encounters, reality based force on force training, and experience. It should not be developed strictly within the limits of a flat range. Back away from your cover to open your field of view when possible. My issue is with "Never", and its partner, "Always".

First it may be best to modify how we look at "Cover" or what we think of as cover. In many cases, cover often isn't. Cover can simply be defined as a physical barrier that will stop bullets from hitting their intended mark.  As advancements in ammunition continue, and the things in our daily lives get lighter and cheaper, less and less things will stop bullets. For instance, let’s consider fighting around vehicles, which is a popular training topic. I'm sure that the heavy construction of an old model Chevy Caprice or Ford Crown Vic was more likely to stop a lead nosed .38 Special fired into the body than a more advanced bullet design.

The information that I received in the police academy 25 plus years ago about using cover was limited to these vehicles and the folding barricade in a booth on the range. Cops were in the process of changing to different calibers and bullet designs, although the tactics had not evolved to keep up with these changes. In many ways they still haven't. Compare that to firing a modern jacketed handgun round into our newer lighter weight vehicles. An adversary can crowd it, or back away from it a suitable (?) distance, and in many cases our bullets will punch through the vehicle and fly straight and true thru the other side. That works both ways. With rifle calibers the issue is either better or worse, depending on who gets more violent the fastest.

On a side note, our academy also taught us how to conceal ourselves behind a telephone pole or similarly sized object by backing away from it. It worked as long as both parties were stationary and you had enough room to back away from the pole. I recall deciding at the time that the other guy would never hold still if I started shooting at him. This is similar logic to using a "B" pillar of a car for cover. It will stop many types of bullets. It will work as cover for you as long as the person shooting at you is a really good shot and only hits the "B" pillar.  If they miss to either side you may be in trouble.

I am all for putting something between you and the hurt. I don't want you to think otherwise. However, the mere presence of something in front of us or in our field of fire does not mean its cover that will stop a bullet. Often these items are simply obstructions. They may provide concealment or simply obstruct our view. Legalities and policy aside, I don't have to see the adversary to potentially hit them. Whether it will stop bullets or not, I want you to use everything around you to your advantage. In many cases if you are static behind cover, or potential cover, you are defensive. Get fixed in that position and its only a matter of time until a committed foe gets you. Use it for what its worth and move on to the next tactical problem or opportunity.

Here are some situations where you may be forced to get closer to cover.. It is not all-inclusive. It will change as my experience and understanding of tactics changes. View this through your lens.

First, if your opponent has the high ground. Not necessarily the top of a mountain but simply a balcony or the like. It’s all about angles. Exposing yourself further than needed to appease non-existent range safety concerns may get you killed. Conversely, if you have the high ground you may be forced to crowd your cover to see and our shoot your adversary.

In a reactive situation against more than one attacker you may be forced to get closer to your cover than you would like for it to do any good.

 Self-application of a tourniquet; In an effort to keep the TQ from spinning as you attempt to tighten it, it is often beneficial to splint or pin the limb in question against the floor, a wall, side of a vehicle, etc. Your potential cover may assist you in this life saving measure. If you truly have an arterial bleed your life is spinning down the drain and you only have a small window of opportunity to work within. Be quick about it, and remember to be a gunfighter first. Just because you got close enough to the cover to apply your TQ does not mean that you are now stuck there.

Corralling or otherwise shielding loved ones. They cannot be expected to move in concert with you while you vie for position against your attacker. In a reactive context, it may be prudent to get them to something that provides some protection while you decide on a course of action.

Getting in our out of your vehicle in a parking lot. This is when people are off balance, have things in their hands, are preoccupied and their mobility is confined. In a reactive situation you could find yourself in a similar situation in a crowded parking lot where other vehicles are limiting your ability to back away from cover.

When it makes more sense to use the cover to support an accurate shot than backing away from it. To my thinking, this thought process is similar to the decision to transition to a second weapon after a stoppage of your primary or fixing the primary; it is distance and threat dependent. Also, if several of us are using the same cover we may tend to crowd

Learn to function in confined spaces in case you have to later. Or, repeat suspect phrases like "never crowd cover" and suffer the consequences when circumstances restrict your movement. In closing, vary your sources, test your theories and don’t be a slave to “never” and “always”.