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Trust your instincts – A True Story

You Won’t Believe This…

Just heard a harrowing story from some close family members that I need to share. I’ve changed the names for the privacy of those involved in the incident. While enjoying a nice Easter Sunday barbecue with family, two relatives (we’ll call them Joe and Sarah) proceeded to tell me about a very scary encounter they had at a local shooting range a few days back.

This story gave me chills thinking about what might have happened if these two street savvy relatives hadn’t been there.

A Day At The Range

Their trip to the range started out normal. They showed up, picked an empty lane, put up a target—you know the drill. On this particular day, Sarah decided not to shoot (a life changing decision, although she didn’t know it yet). She normally enjoys shooting, but just wasn’t feeling too well and was just going to stand back and watch Joe shoot.

Being the observant and alert person she is, Sarah noticed something weird about the guy two lanes over. First off, after they’d been there 20 minutes (this other guys was there before them), he’d only fired 2 rounds. Very strange since he was standing right up at the bench and didn’t seam to be dealing with any sort of malfunction.

Sarah took notice of this and continued to watch Joe shoot, but her instincts told her to keep an eye on the other guy, something wasn’t quite right.

A few minutes later the guy picked his pistol up off the bench (this immediately grabbed Sarah’s attention). As he held the pistol he was visibly shaking. Sarah thought “Hmm… maybe he is disabled or something”. She certainly didn’t want to be rude or embarrass him by asking if everything was okay, but at this point she was on edge. She discretely brought it up to Joe and they both went to the range master.

After voicing their concern, the range master pointed out that he too had noticed the guy’s behavior as odd, but went on to say that “his shots are very on target” as if this somehow made up for all the odd behavior!!!

Shocked at this response, Joe and Sarah went back to their lane, still concerned, but wondering if they were just being paranoid. Paranoid or not, both Joe and Sarah kept a very close eye on the suspicious man 2 lanes down.

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The Disturbing Behavior Worsens

Minutes later, after having not fired a single additional round, the suspicious individual (gun in hand) turned his head around to look at Sarah.

It was the kind of look someone gives when they know they are being watched. As his face came into full view, Sarah described him as looking right through her with cold piercing eyes. It gave her chills. This was too much. She could no longer explain away this guy’s suspicious behavior. Way too many red flags at this point.

As the guy turned back around, Sarah grabbed Joe and signaled to him that they needed to talk to the staff again immediately.

Once again confronted with a reluctant and not very pro-active staff, they explained that the staff needed to intervene and talk to this man immediately. This time the staff could tell from their tone and sense of urgency that something was clearly going on.

Joe and Sarah decided to keep a safe distance while the staff casually but cautiously approached the man and engaged him in a distracting conversation to assess any issues.

A Frightening Discovery

At this point one staff member was able to see an odd looking hand-written note on the shooter’s bench, while another staff member was talking with the man.

After a closer look, the note revealed a list of emergency contacts and an ominous line that changed the whole situation. The line read, “I’ve left a note at home explaining why I did this.”

The range staff finally realized what Sarah and Joe had picked up on. This guy was going through a suicidal crisis and was an extreme danger to himself and everyone around him.

The Resolution

Joe and Sarah were happy to say that from this point on, the staff’s actions were professional. The authorities were called and the man did not put up a fight, but most importantly – the situation ended with nobody getting hurt.

An event that could have ended with a traumatic suicide (no doubt leaving everyone at the range and the man’s family with some serious sh*t to work through), or worse, an active shooter or murder suicide, was averted by the observations and actions of two regular people.

Joe and Sarah aren’t former special ops soldiers and they aren’t psychologists or mental health professionals either. They are regular folks who were simply smart enough to pay attention to their surroundings and who weren’t afraid to act preemptively when they noticed something suspicious. Sarah especially listened to her gut.

She saved that man’s life and potentially the lives of several others that day all because she had the courage to listen to her gut instincts, even when it went against what others thought.

What I found most shocking in this encounter was the range staff’s willingness to rationalize suspicious behavior (something that is all-too-common in the imagined cocoon of safety many people live in).

A range master’s job is to keep everyone on the firing line and any others in the area safe. To see something that looks suspicious and explain it away is gross negligence when it’s your job to keep people safe.

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Trust Your Gut!

Gut instincts exist for a reason. Have you ever had a gut instinct about something like this and been wrong? I know I haven’t.

When something bad is about to happen you almost always get that uneasy feeling. There is a lot of communication that goes on between the lines (body language, eye movements, and other non-verbal cues) that our subconscious mind is extremely good at identifying as “DANGEROUS.”

In polite society and the comfort of a relatively safe first world country (depending on where you live in the US), there is a strong tendency to explain away strange behavior. We’ve been trained to suppress our instincts by rationalizing strange things we notice. Sometimes this is good, but often it can be really bad. For example, it’s politically incorrect to cross to the other side of the street when you see a guy walking toward you who “looks a bit off“.

But having that uneasy feeling about an individual is almost always based on the body’s intuitive ability to pick up on non-verbal communication, signals the worrisome individual probably doesn’t even know he or she is sending. You may not even be able to describe what was worrisome. You just know that you’ve got an uneasy feeling.

You Aren’t Always Just Being Paranoid

Listening to those feelings is not paranoia, it’s street smarts. Ignore these feelings at your own peril.

Talk to people who’ve been mugged, attacked, beaten, robbed, raped, or kidnapped and I bet 9 out of 10 (if they weren’t taken completely by surprise) had some uneasy feeling right before the SHTF. It’s universal. I’ve certainly had that feeling before every dangerous situation I’ve been in.

Paying attention to those primal instincts is something you can’t afford to learn the hard way. In fact, tapping into those instincts is something you should actively cultivate.

Final Thoughts

I hope this story can be a reminder that gut instincts are there for a reason, and maybe someone out there reading this can avoid a dangerous situation because of it.

And I hope it also serves as a reminder that even in places where there are designated safety personnel, you can’t afford to totally let your guard down or ignore a gut feeling because “nobody else seems worried.” Our safety and the safety of those around us is our responsibility.

Let me know your thoughts…

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327 thoughts on “Trust your instincts – A True Story”

  1. I had that moment while in Vietnam when a local walked past me and gave me the side-eye look. The hairs on the back of my neck stood up. I felt something was wrong because those folks would look you in the eye and then turn their look back downward. A side-eye look is normal. I turned around just in time to see that local pulling a Russian weapon from under their clothing. Gut feelings are real. Trust them. I did and it saved my life.

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  2. Gut instincts are cruical in any situation. If the guy did end up committing suicide, it would have effected everyone in the shooting range in one way or another. It would have effect Joe and Sara the most even though the didn’t even know the guy. They had gut instincts that told them that something was not right. By listening to them they saved many people not just the man. There are side effects to tramatic events and Joe and Sara would probable be facing them if they decided to do nothing. This story is very important.

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  3. Suicide at a Gun Range actually happened 2 times several years apart at a shooting range in Adelaide Australia. The owners are my friends and I have gone there for shooting practice several times. Appalling! Dr. Michael Lim The Travelling Gourmet TM

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  4. Gut feelings saved a buddy of mine. Back in high school he also tried to take his own life, if I hadn’t been​ there and thought it felt off, he may have overdosed that night. Because I was there and had that gut feeling he might not be here today.

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  5. Good thing Sarah followed her instinct and they didn’t take the matter at hand themselves. AND they stayed back some, while range Master rechecked the situation.

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  6. This is the one true story
    Suicide at a Gun Range actually happened 2 times several years apart at a shooting range in Adelaide Australia

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  7. Thank you. I have shared this article with people close to me.

    One time this happened to me, the odd, gut feeling that something was wrong.
    I was in a supermarket standing in line behind a woman who was paying her bill.
    She had a baby about 5 to 6 months old in the grocery cart next to her. As she turned to pay the
    cashier her back was to the baby.

    A man came over just bold as brass and picked up the baby and started walking away. My first thought
    was that he was the father. But, I had the strangest feeling about him. I had seen her as I went through
    the store doing my own shopping and there had been no man with her that I had seen. There was just her
    and the baby. As I watched him walking away I just felt more and more urgency!!

    I touched the woman on the arm and she turned to me and I said, “Is that your husband?” She said,”No.” as
    she turned towards where I was pointing and then started screaming! “My Baby!! He’s taking my baby!”
    Every man in the place started running after him and he never made it out the doors of the store.

    The man was held for the police, and the baby went back to her mom. It was a very scary time, that ended well.
    But if I hadn’t listened to my “inner voice” ,known in my world as the Holy Spirit, it might have had a very different
    outcome!

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  9. I completely agree with you. I know a few police officers that will tell you that as they patrol they rely on their gut to let them know something is going on. I have never been caught off guard after my time in the service. I am always surveying my surroundings taking notice of any peculiarities. I managed a convenient store in the heart of gang land and trained my people to be observant. My store was never robbed other than occasional “beer run.” The one a few blocks away was a different story. One particular evening the store called and said they were extremely busy so I came in to work. We sold money orders and at the first of the month it was not unusual to sell 10-15 k during that shift. When I arrived there was way too much money in the till so I just started dropping it in the safe. Didn’t even count or keep track. A few minutes after I cleaned the excess cash out that muggy June evening in East Texas. A couple of guys wearing long jackets came in and went to the back of the store. My gut and inner alarm was ringing louder than ever. They began “shopping” and it was then I noticed they were only using one hand and their other arm was down and stiff. I knew we were in trouble. Eventually I made eye contact with the one closest to me. I did not break eye contact until he did. They eventually drifted towards the door still keeping one arm to their side and left. 90% of men in prison for armed robbery said they would not rob a store if the person behind the counter made some kind of contact with them. I and my crew practiced this daily and who knows what we averted by doing so!!!

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  11. Several years ago I noticed a man simply “off” walking down the other side of the street. I reversed direction and paced him, trying to see what bothered me so much. I finally was so concerned I stepped out in front of a police car coming toward me at 30 plus mph, and pointed him out to the officer, who took a long look and called for backup.
    It turned out the man was carrying 20k’s of plastic, intending to set them off in the lobby of a new building that, “blocked his morning sun,” hopefully taking many of the office workers with him.
    I’ve played it through my mind many times, trying to see what caught my attention. All I can say is he was too “intense.”
    There’s nothing wrong with being “intense.” There is something wrong with taking it too far.

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  12. This story does give chills and shows the need to be in situational awareness code yellow. We also need to not be afraid we might be wrong.

    I have to say I have been wrong on a few occasions. One was the time I saw someone walking up toward town in a deliberate manner. The person was wearing a hooded sweatshirt so I couldn’t see who it was. The person was carrying something the size of a carbine. I couldn’t tell what that was as I was driving at the time. I pulled over and reported what I saw, that I could be wrong about it, but I wasn’t sure. It turned out to be a lady carrying an umbrella. I have seen her many times since and she does walk in a somewhat determined manner and it is just the way she walks.

    Once when I was in Reno with three friends, we were walking up from where we parked. On the other side of the street was one guy who was keeping up with us and looking at us. I know this is a technique a couple of guys will use to rob someone. One guy on the other side of the street signaling another guy who is hiding. I watched the guy and he went on. As we came up the sidewalk, there was a door to the casino that was indented from the sidewalk. A perfect place for a goon to hide. No one was there. I was preparing myself just in case. I still think the guy on the other side of the street was working in tandem with someone else who maybe walked away before we got there and realized he was hiding in that doorway.

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  13. Way to true. When living on the streets I’ve used gut instincts to survive, espescially at night after businesses have closed down and the street people come out. I had a couple of people aprouch me and in a simple conversation informed them that I wasn’t someone they wanted to harm. I did this without bragging or bolstering skills I didn’t have. Crossing the street did me no good. They crossed too. I’m a thin guy, not much in the way of muscle or marshall arts training. I just let them know that they didn’t want to stand against me. It worked. Now I’m married, have a wonderful wife, a wonderful life. I live where there is no trouble but still read people with my gut instinct, especially for my wifes safety. Gut instinct is something to listen to. I highly recomend it for all. Thank you.

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  14. I have had so many instances of listening to that small still voice to know not to ignore it. Whether you call it intuition, a small still voice or gut feeling, listen! On just one of these occasions, I was about to accompany my Dad across a four lane one way street with him being quite intent on getting something from a shop there and was completely unaware of the cars that were approaching him. he was only half way across the street with myself a ways behind him when something just told me to run and tackle him onto the sidewalk or he’d have been hit so I did as the cars zoomed by. He looked at me bewildered brushed himself off as he got up and proceeded into the store. Never said a word but I was grateful I listened!

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  15. I am constantly aware of what is going on around me. I am very good at reading other people and what they are thinking or going to do. I served 16 years on a volunteer fire department and Rescue Squad so I know the ramifications of the aftermath of the possible outcome of what these two people were able to prevent .( Hats off to them for preventing what could have happened). The range master should consider a different job,because he is not good at what he does. His job is to protect everyone at the range at all times.

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  16. Very interesting article
    Too many people are not willing to get involved in case of causing offense or confrontation
    I am and ex limey pat living in Cyprus ,belong to the Limmersol gun club,we are only allowed .177 air weapons and shotguns but our range disapline is very strict
    The Cypriot people are very laid back until you put them behind the wheel of a car then they think they own the world .i suspect they would be the same with guns in fact I know they are ,reservists keep weapons and ammunition at home and have been know to fire off a rew rouds in the air on religious occasions
    Guns don’t kill it is the people who pull the trigger

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  17. This happened quite a bit through out my life!! I ordered the Hoffman Rikter tactical pen!! It happened the same day that the pen arrived, I am 60 and like you am ex military; I am a ex Texas Us Army national guardsmen, I walked to the store near wear I live!! This tall teenage kid started runnig up behind me, I also use a walking cane my cane also has a 23and 3/4 sword blade init!! I did not use it I used the tactical pen instead; I drove the point of the pen intohis hip joint as hard as my 236 pound body would allow there was a satisfying pop he screamed and hobbled off as fast as his injured hip would allowed him to; these to police officer’s.stopped to make sure I was okay and stayed with me to make sure I was alright!! And radio for back up to search for the kid. They found him 4 and a half blocks up the street and around the corner laying on the ground crying and holding his hip! Believe it or not the 2 polic officer’s had seen th whole thing!! And after I gave my statement! We heard sirens in the back ground. An ambulance was called to take the kid to the hospital. That kid also tried to file charges against me for injuring him but I had 2 of the best wittiness anyone could ever have!! The point of the tactical pen had sunk deep into his hip joint causing fractures in both side of the joint. I am happy I used the pen instead of the sword cane. Just goes to show the pen was the better choice.

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  20. Great article! In this day and age, everyone needs to think like this. Your last line says it all. “Our safety and the safety of those around is our responsibility.”

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  21. I’ve learned after getting CCL to always pay attention to your surroundings. There is alot of people giving advice about guns and protection. I’ve been a reader of several articles on gun safety, protection, and to always be aware of your surroundings. When I first got Concealed Carry license my granddaughter asked why I carry? I told her to protct her and my family. Thats all she ever asked after that. With the world the way it is, we better be ware of all things around us. Great story of being aware of your surroundings.

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  22. I believe you are correct. Most of us have become too involved in our own life’s that we miss what’s going on right next to us. This is obviously a dangerous habit! As soon as we leave the cocoon of our own home, we should immediately go on alert. Not paranoid, just observant. With all of us watching our space, it would be much harder to conduct bad behavior! Again, I’m not asking for a bunch of citizen police, only a vigilant society!

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  23. Great information! And you are correct in every point! Take it from an “Old Vietnam Veteran and a former cop”. Keep doing what you’re doing! And thanks!

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  25. ALWAYS pay some attention to your surroundings, and to the people around you in any situation; their “tells” and the clues they display could very well save lives (YOURS and someone elses…)

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  26. Very interesting. After 33 years in government service, I still find myself observing especially faces. Observation is often the key to survival. I still tend to ask for a table near the front of restaurants, preferably on left side of the opening door. I’ve been out of the business for 11 years now, but habits come from training.

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  27. I was once in a very heavy bn.-sized firefight, in Vietnam, in the marines. As I entered the clearing where Hdqtrs. was to be, I moved toward a shallow fighting hole the enemy had just retreated from. While there was a lot of firing going on, nothing was zipping close to me . . . suddenly there appeared a giant spiderweb, strands dead white and thicker than my fingers, all across that clearing. on my side of the web, there was color and movement, and beyond it, everything was grey and dead. I flinched my face away from the thing, and that was when a couple of 9mm rounds tore across my helmet cover on that side . . . my subconscious had used an instinctive-level flinch to make up for my not having focused on the machine gun an NVA guy was swiveling while firing. Some line company folks took him out, and I never saw them or him during that action. . . but the line guys told me later he’d been using an old Czech 9 on a permanent frame, something I’d never heard fire before. Of course the web was totally imaginary. Instinct helps!!

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  28. Great article. Appreciate taking time (we all share & is so precious) to share. It may save someone’s life.

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  29. Unfortunately we have become a nation of “politically correct” ignorance. While police and other gov. entities want citizens to “report” such oddities, sadly more often than not, those attempting to report are either put off as a crank, verbally admonished, or just plain ignored. The result? Few are comfortable reporting anything. This has to change.

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  31. I agree with this. Everywhere I go I watch everything/everyone at all times. Yes I have been accused of being paranoid myself but refuse to be a victim. There would be a lot less victims if everyone done this. I have tought my kids to do the same thing. This comes from my up bringing and USMC

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  32. I have been in a situation like this one time. I won’t go into details cause it involved my Daughter. She wanted to go some where one evening with some other girls. I can’t explain it but I just didn’t feel right about it. But after some discussion and arguing I made her stay home. That night those girls were in a very bad car wreck.

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  33. I don’t exactly feel suicidal
    I don’t even have a hint of doing it
    But I just wish all the people who feel that way can get help first and sort it out, you know. I have known a lot of people who have done this deed and just wished they had got help. Maybe turn to religion and feel wanted no matter how bad it is that makes you feel that way (maybe you had stolen or killed etc) you have to tell someone because we all have a purpose in life.

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  34. Yeah, I have been there ,3 guys tried to have a go at me for any money I might have had on me. My Dad always said if you have to fight do it on ground of your choosing, So I did, a few yards from where we were was one of those old fashioned inch square vertical solid steel bar fences that you find in what used to be one of the better parts of town, I turned and faced them, the biggest of them took a step closer and said hand over your money and no one gets hurt, I laughed, well he was just the right distance away from me, so I kicked him right under the chin, I could do this with out my other foot leaving the ground, I then grabbed the fence with both hands swung my feet up and gave him them both full in the chest, he flew back and knocked down both of his mates, I quickly stepped forward and banged their heads together, and that knocked them out, to my amazement I could hear some one clapping and cheering, when I looked around the Lady whose fence it was, was the person doing it, I asked her to please call the Police, and she said already done……They arrived picked up the 3 guys, I said to the sergeant that the big guy will have some broken ribs, and he should take him to the Hospital, to which he replied serves him right let him have some pain I know he has handed out plenty so we will let him have some of it back……..When it came to Court the Police said their Lawyer made them plead Guilty, he told them the evidence was so strong that they would lose and the Judge was a tough one who would double their sentence if found Guilty……..They got three years, with no remission because of their previous convictions…………………………..

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  36. Once in a Grocery Parking lot, My then New Wife and I were Getting near our Car, I had been Watching the area, A Big Guy noticed us and was Making a Bee line to us, I opened my door with key and unlocked her door with the electric lock, I told wife To, Get in the car, She shot me a look, like Don’t talk to me that way, I said sternly Now! She got in Mad, by then I was in car, When The Guy arrived on my side, and blocked me from Closing my door, Wanting money. I showed him the little end of My .45 and Calmly explained, We were on the way out, Whether or not He was Bleeding out in the Parking lot, Was up to Him. He walked away Rapidly. I’d like to think, I talked Him out of Suicide. as we left My new wife asked me, How did You Know He was Going to do That? Trust Your Gut, But Stay Alert. He showed Tells When he noticed us.

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  38. Thank you for sharing this. We need to be in yellow at all times. They did a good job. Lesson here for me is: let those in authority deal with the problem. Unfortunately as a former psych nurse, my instinct would have been to engage the person. I am in process and am slowly learning I am not to fix the world, but where applicable allow those in proper position do their job and stand by as prayerful , alert support.

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  39. Excellent story. It’s a lesson that no one can insure your safety better than yourself. Someone can have your back but if they don’t see it in time then it still falls upon your own ability to know your surroundings. I taught my wife and daughter both this philosophy and it has served them well. Thanks for this blog. It is both interesting and informative.

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  41. I was at a shooting range, several years ago, while standing in line there was an Asian man in front of me he wanted to rent a gun but had only his passport on him. I asked him hoe he got there, he said he was dropped off. I had a funny feeling about this guy because he paid for a year just to rent a gun, I was well known as I have been a member for 5 years. I told them something was very wrong with the guy. I went into the high power rifle range and sure enough the guy shot himself in the head died instantly. Always follow your gut.

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  42. To me i thought they were gonna shoot him but it ended with no one hurt and he got help.very satisfying story.

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  43. Thanks for sharind this story. Its good to always have that instinct even in places that may seem to be totally secure.

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  45. I live in the ghetto and there are a lot of drugs in this neighborhood. Knowing how to protect yourself and knowing what to avoid are vital to living safely. I can’t go around protecting people. Knowing when and what is safe are key.

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  46. I know that I often have an over-active imagination, and perhaps am a bit paranoid, but I have found that if something attracts my attention it is always worth paying attention to. 9 times out of 10 I figure out what’s really going on, and it’s okay, but sometimes there really is something wrong going on. Always good to “follow up” on your gut. -D.L.

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  48. Hi Bob,
    I bought my 1st gun a couple months ago
    and have been putting off going to firing range.(it’s social anxiety)nice story tho,it’s not going to stop me from going.I would hope that I could be as vidgilent as that lady because I always tell people to.

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  49. Trust your gut instincts. There are many mentally ill people around in our communities. A shooting range is not a place you want to encounter someone who is unstable. No place to suppress your instincts.

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