DT4EMS
Kip Teitsort, Founder
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R.A.C.E.- 2- R.E.A.C.T. ®
From DT4EMS, LLC
© 2006 Kip Teitsort
R.A.C.E. is an acronym that will help you understand what must happen in order for you to “react” to a given stimulus. In this section we will be discussing how R.A.C.E. applies to mental sharpness for self-defense as taught in DT4EMS. R.A.C.E. will occur very rapidly. The more you perform (practice) a skill and mental role play the faster you can R.A.C.E.
You may possess techniques like the jump spinning back kick, the splits and a multitude of Ninja style techniques but if caught unaware every technique is useless. In understanding how your mind processes information and transmits it into action you will stand a better chance at avoiding or defending against an actual assault.
You must first Recognize a threat exists. Something will usually present itself to you as a either a known threat (obvious) or a subtle cue (i.e. spoken words don’t match body language). This recognition is the first stage of “reaction” timing.
The second stage of your reaction process is to Analyze the situation. It may be processing the information of the person trying to grab with his right hand to your shirt, punching at you with the left hand or seeing a knife in the left hand.
Next your brain would begin to Calculate a plan of action. In a split second you would make a decision on “how” to move. It may be a subtle shift in position or a movement to stop the threat.
Once the decision has been made, the brain must transform the information into action and Execute the movement. Then the entire process repeats itself.
Example of R.A.C.E. in action:
You are driving back to base from the hospital where you just dropped off your patient. While approaching an intersection the green light turns yellow. You have plenty of time to make it through the intersection. Just as you enter the intersection a car runs the red light and begins to enter your path. You have Recognized a threat exists. As you Analyze you notice there is oncoming traffic to your left, a telephone pole to your right, your ambulance can’t stop in time and you don’t have enough horse power to outrun the car.
You decide (Calculate) stepping on the brake and taking the right in an attempt to miss the pole and minimize the damage. You depress the brake and turn the wheel to the right (Execute). Now the process of R.A.C.E. starts over -The car passes through the intersection in front of you, in turn you turn the wheel back into the driving lane and wipe the sweat from your brow.
You must have R.A.C.E. in order to R.E.A.C.T.
R.E.A.C.T. is an acronym DT4EMS teaches to apply to how to handle both verbal and physical attacks.
Once a person has entered your R.A.C.E. via verbal or physical means you must R.E.A.C.T.
The first action you may take would be to redirect. In the physical sense it would be to Redirect or apply the parry from the Double Tap Parry (DTP) taught in DT4EMS. It is a simple non-aggressive movement to keep you from absorbing the initial assault. In the verbal sense Redirect would mean to bring the patient back to the task or conversation at hand.
Next you would work to Evade the strike in a physical sense. Now with the DTP redirection and evasion happen together. IN a verbal attack, you would work to not become a part of an argument, simply “evading” the verbal assault.
Now you would move to Advance. Using the DTP in the physical realm would mean to advance into the angle of the physical attack. Advancing in an angle places you into a better position to escape. For the verbal assault, advance would mean to move toward finding the cause of the conflict and working to resolve it.
Moving into the Control aspect, using the DTP there is always a search for momentary elbow control. Even the slightest touch on a person’s elbow can help you find an escape route. For a verbal assault, being in control of your emotions can help you bring the patient back into a state of rational discussion.
The Tell portion of R.E.A.C.T. has several components. In the physical (self-defense) setting it is giving verbal commands (i.e. Let Go, Stop etc.) Tell also means to report the incident to your supervisor and Law Enforcement in the event of an assault.
Using Tell in the verbal setting would mean to explain all of your actions to the patient and the course of treatment needed to benefit all involved.
Whether practicing for defensive driving or for self-defense it is important to understand how the mind and body react to stimulus, particularly under stress. Having this simple understanding of R.A.C.E. and R.E.A.C.T. the EMS provider can conduct both physical and mental role plays to assist them in making split second decisions
Recognize
Analyze
Calculate
Execute
2
Redirect
Evade
Advance
Control
Tell
About the author: Kip Teitsort is an EMS Educator with a background as a paramedic, police officer and a defensive tactics instructor. He created a course specifically designed for EMS known as DT4EMS. More articles and video clips by Kip can be found at www.dt4ems.net
Kip can be reached by email at kip@dt4ems.net
From DT4EMS, LLC
© 2006 Kip Teitsort
R.A.C.E. is an acronym that will help you understand what must happen in order for you to “react” to a given stimulus. In this section we will be discussing how R.A.C.E. applies to mental sharpness for self-defense as taught in DT4EMS. R.A.C.E. will occur very rapidly. The more you perform (practice) a skill and mental role play the faster you can R.A.C.E.
You may possess techniques like the jump spinning back kick, the splits and a multitude of Ninja style techniques but if caught unaware every technique is useless. In understanding how your mind processes information and transmits it into action you will stand a better chance at avoiding or defending against an actual assault.
You must first Recognize a threat exists. Something will usually present itself to you as a either a known threat (obvious) or a subtle cue (i.e. spoken words don’t match body language). This recognition is the first stage of “reaction” timing.
The second stage of your reaction process is to Analyze the situation. It may be processing the information of the person trying to grab with his right hand to your shirt, punching at you with the left hand or seeing a knife in the left hand.
Next your brain would begin to Calculate a plan of action. In a split second you would make a decision on “how” to move. It may be a subtle shift in position or a movement to stop the threat.
Once the decision has been made, the brain must transform the information into action and Execute the movement. Then the entire process repeats itself.
Example of R.A.C.E. in action:
You are driving back to base from the hospital where you just dropped off your patient. While approaching an intersection the green light turns yellow. You have plenty of time to make it through the intersection. Just as you enter the intersection a car runs the red light and begins to enter your path. You have Recognized a threat exists. As you Analyze you notice there is oncoming traffic to your left, a telephone pole to your right, your ambulance can’t stop in time and you don’t have enough horse power to outrun the car.
You decide (Calculate) stepping on the brake and taking the right in an attempt to miss the pole and minimize the damage. You depress the brake and turn the wheel to the right (Execute). Now the process of R.A.C.E. starts over -The car passes through the intersection in front of you, in turn you turn the wheel back into the driving lane and wipe the sweat from your brow.
You must have R.A.C.E. in order to R.E.A.C.T.
R.E.A.C.T. is an acronym DT4EMS teaches to apply to how to handle both verbal and physical attacks.
Once a person has entered your R.A.C.E. via verbal or physical means you must R.E.A.C.T.
The first action you may take would be to redirect. In the physical sense it would be to Redirect or apply the parry from the Double Tap Parry (DTP) taught in DT4EMS. It is a simple non-aggressive movement to keep you from absorbing the initial assault. In the verbal sense Redirect would mean to bring the patient back to the task or conversation at hand.
Next you would work to Evade the strike in a physical sense. Now with the DTP redirection and evasion happen together. IN a verbal attack, you would work to not become a part of an argument, simply “evading” the verbal assault.
Now you would move to Advance. Using the DTP in the physical realm would mean to advance into the angle of the physical attack. Advancing in an angle places you into a better position to escape. For the verbal assault, advance would mean to move toward finding the cause of the conflict and working to resolve it.
Moving into the Control aspect, using the DTP there is always a search for momentary elbow control. Even the slightest touch on a person’s elbow can help you find an escape route. For a verbal assault, being in control of your emotions can help you bring the patient back into a state of rational discussion.
The Tell portion of R.E.A.C.T. has several components. In the physical (self-defense) setting it is giving verbal commands (i.e. Let Go, Stop etc.) Tell also means to report the incident to your supervisor and Law Enforcement in the event of an assault.
Using Tell in the verbal setting would mean to explain all of your actions to the patient and the course of treatment needed to benefit all involved.
Whether practicing for defensive driving or for self-defense it is important to understand how the mind and body react to stimulus, particularly under stress. Having this simple understanding of R.A.C.E. and R.E.A.C.T. the EMS provider can conduct both physical and mental role plays to assist them in making split second decisions
Recognize
Analyze
Calculate
Execute
2
Redirect
Evade
Advance
Control
Tell
About the author: Kip Teitsort is an EMS Educator with a background as a paramedic, police officer and a defensive tactics instructor. He created a course specifically designed for EMS known as DT4EMS. More articles and video clips by Kip can be found at www.dt4ems.net
Kip can be reached by email at kip@dt4ems.net
