One reason I feel so good about teaching the Blauer Tactical SPEAR ® personal protection system is that SPEAR lessons are applicable way beyond what’s traditionally considered self-defense. I divide my time between Patagonia, Chile, and Montana, USA. In both countries, I spend a lot of time hiking, biking, skiing, and boating. On a recent hike on Glaciar Exploradores in Patagonia, my team and I practiced applying WIN (What’s Important Now), which is a crucial self-defense strategy.
If you are worrying what the bad guy (or falling into a crevice) will do to you (future) or that you should have tied your crampons more carefully (past) or any other past or future issues, you are not in the present and less able to protect yourself. For effective self-defense as well as for glacier safety, you need to be present. You need to pay attention to what’s important now (WIN). Rumination about the future or the past, distractions, and expectations of failure will all increase your chances of getting hurt.
In his book, “Spotting Danger Before it Spots You,” Gary Quesenberry starts off his pointers for minimizing distractions with these three:
1. Get a good night’s sleep. Don’t leave the house fatigued.
2. Iron out any pressing personal issues before you leave home.
3. Keep your cell phone in your pocket and only use it when you’re in an area you’ve determined to be safe.
These principles regarding inter-personal safety apply on glaciers too, especially putting your cell phone away —even though one spectacular image follows another in the turquoise world of glaciers. On our recent hike, as we were entering the active ice fields with their deep crevices left and right, our guide wisely told us, “No más. Now put your cell phones away and don’t take them out again until we stop in a safe place.”
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