Patrick Van Horne - Left of Bang: How the Marine Corps Combat Hunter Program Can Save Your Life

Praise for LEFT OF BANG

In an age when Americas technological edge has eroded in military matters, Van Horne and Riley have written a compelling and detailed outline for continued American adaptation through improved tactical cunning. Using timeless and proven techniques that can put American troops above and beyond enemy capabilities, the tactical awareness they outline is stripped of mystery and presented in a compelling manner. Throughout history we have seen skilled warriors defeat enemies who are more numerous or less trained. At a time when we must adapt to the changing character of conflict, this is a serious book on a serious issue that can give us the edge we need.

General James Mattis, USMC, Ret.

Left of Bang offers a crisp lesson in survival in which Van Horne and Riley affirm a compelling truth: It's better to detect sinister intentions early than respond to violent actions late. Left of Bang helps readers avoid the bang.

Gavin de Becker,
bestselling author of The Gift of Fear

Rare is the book that is immediately practical and interesting. Left of Bang accomplishes this from start to finish. There is something here for everyone in the people business and we are all in the people business.

Joe Navarro,
bestselling author of What Every BODY is Saying

Left of Bang is a highly important and innovative book that offers a substantial contribution to answering the challenge of Fourth Generation War (4GW). In 4GW, once bang has happened, the state has failed and its legitimacy is further eroded. All first response is too late. The state's focus must be prevention, and Left of Bang suggests concrete ways bang can be prevented.

William S. Lind,
author of Maneuver Warfare Handbook

Left of Bang is born from the blood and fire lessons of Marines in combat. The learning curve is short in the fight and failure often means death. Seeing, recognizing, and acting on danger before the hammer falls is what Left of Bang is all about. To that end, Patrick Van Horne and Jason A. Riley have set forth lessons of human ability and conduct in conflict. These actions and concepts apply to each of us who fight the good fight against enemies who seek our destruction. Whether military, police, or citizen defender, to win the battle we must find a way to intercept the enemy and deter his plansa tough challenge against an enemy who is often hiding in plain sight. Left of Bang contains answers to detection, deterrence, and ultimate victory. This is a warrior's book. Get it, read it, live it.

Jeff Chudwin, Chief of Police Ret.,
President, Illinois Tactical Officers Association

An amazing book! Applying the lessons learned in the longest war in American history, and building on seminal works like The Gift of Fear and On Combat, this book provides a framework of knowledge that will bring military, law enforcement and individual citizens to new levels of survival mindset and performance in life-and-death situations. Left of Bang is an instant classic.

Lt. Colonel Dave Grossman, U.S. Army Ret.,
author of On Combat and On Killing

DISCLAIMER

The views expressed in this book are those of the authors and do not reflect the official policy or position of the United States Marine Corps, Department of Defense, or the U.S. Government.

BLACK IRISH ENTERTAINMENT LLC

ANSONIA STATION

P.O. BOX 237203

NEW YORK, NY 10023

COPYRIGHT 2014 BY PATRICK VAN HORNE AND JASON A. RILEY

BOOK DESIGN BY DERICK TSAI, MAGNUS REX

FOREWORD BY STEVEN PRESSFIELD

EDITED BY SHAWN COYNE

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

FIRST BLACK IRISH ENTERTAINMENT PAPERBACK EDITION JUNE 2014

FOR INFORMATION ABOUT SPECIAL DISCOUNTS OR BULK PURCHASES,
PLEASE VISIT WWW.BLACKIRISHBOOKS.COM OR
WWW.STEVENPRESSFIELD.COM

ISBN: 978-1-936891-30-6

EBOOK: 978-1-936891-18-4

2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

We dedicate this book to the Marines who have lost life and limb fighting for their fellow Marines and for us at home. May this increase future Marines understanding of human behavior, survivability, and lethality and decrease the enemys effectiveness.

A DAY AT CAMP PENDLETON

I first met Capt. Van Horne and Maj. Riley (he was a captain then) when they took me through a one-day mini-version of the Combat Hunter Course at Camp Pendleton in southern California. After three minutes I thought, This stuff has got to be made available to the wider public.

The Combat Hunter Course teaches Marines what their conventional training doesnt. Not only how to deal with the bad guysbut how to spot them in the first place, particularly when they look and act exactly like the good guys.

Left of Bang is not for combat warriors only. Its for you on the subway, you in a bad part of town, you with the sharks in the corporate boardroom. Its for your wife when shes home alone, or entering a dark parking structure, or walking with the kids on vacation overseas.

Right of bang, as Van Horne and Riley explain in these pages, means after the bomb has gone off, after the shots have been fired, after the damage has been done.

Left of bang means before the bad stuff happens. Thats where you want to bealert, ready, prepared to respond to protect yourself and your loved ones.

Im proud to be part of the team that is getting this material out, not just to soldiers and Marines in their training, but into the wider world that includes your family and mine.

Bang happens.

This book will teach you how to stay left of it.

Steven Pressfield

Los Angeles

2014

A s Malcolm Gladwell skillfully demonstrates in his book Outliers, most success stories should be understood as a combination of mutually supporting factors, two of which are hard work and opportunity. We have both put hundreds of hours into researching this material, refining and further developing course material for the Marine Corps, and training Marines. Although we are nowhere near the ten-thousand hour mark needed to claim expertise, our numerous deployments, experience, and research into these topics give us a unique insight into the type of behavioral analysis we are writing about. More important for both of us have been the opportunities we have been given: to become a part of the Combat Hunter program in the first place, to be able to build upon the work and successes of those who came before us, and to be able to work with tremendously professional and inspiring Marines within Mobile Training Company. Because we are building off of others works, we must take a few moments to give credit to whom credit is due and to thank them for what they have done.

First, we wish to thank the Marines who have themselves spent hundreds of hours training Marines and developing courses: Major Dane Hanson, Major Keith Montgomery, Major Paul Chase, Gunnery Sergeant Gonzalez, Gunnery Sergeant Tollett, Staff Sergeant Moose Morris, Staff Sergeant Hammer, Staff Sergeant Baldino, Staff Sergeant Valdez, Staff Sergeant Jerew, Sergeant Arnett, Sergeant Guzman, Sergeant Syvrud, Sergeant Giles, Sergeant Gibson, and the numerous Marines who came before us. We apologize for anyone weve forgotten to include.