Safety First. Safety Always. No Compromise.

Safety is not a slogan to me, and it’s never been a passing thought. It is the foundation, the cornerstone, the one rule that I refuse to compromise on no matter where I stand or what I’m doing. Whether it’s standing on a firing line with students, climbing into the cab of a truck before dawn, or even walking into my own front door at the end of the day, the standard never changes: safety first. Safety always. No compromise.

I tell my students that when they come to me on the range, they will leave with the same number of holes in their body that they came in with. That isn’t a joke, and it isn’t entertainment — it’s the promise that frames everything I do as an instructor. Because the truth is simple: if it isn’t safe, I won’t do it. I won’t allow it. I’ll take my stick and my ball, and I’ll walk away. That might sound stubborn, but that stubbornness is exactly what keeps people alive.

Overconfidence is dangerous. Arrogance is dangerous. Thinking you know better is dangerous. But safety, practiced deliberately, isn’t fragile. It doesn’t depend on luck or chance. It depends on respect: respect for the tool in your hands, respect for the people around you, respect for the fact that accidents happen in the blink of an eye when shortcuts get taken. I know that firsthand. I’ve carried the sting of a near-miss mistake that almost cost me dearly. I still feel that reminder every time I handle a gun, and it fuels the discipline I bring to the range.

People sometimes roll their eyes when I hammer fundamentals again and again. Grip. Stance. Trigger. Follow-through. Safety rules. It feels repetitive to them, but I know what repetition builds. Repetition builds muscle memory. Repetition keeps your mind and your body aligned when the pressure is high. And repetition, combined with safety, builds trust. My students trust me because they know I will not compromise on that one thing. They know that if something isn’t right, I’ll call a halt. They know that their well-being comes before speed, before accuracy, before anything else.

It’s the same when I drive. Twenty-five years on the road have taught me that shortcuts lead to blood on the asphalt. Just like on the range, nobody else can be responsible for my safety but me. Nobody else is going to be there in the critical second when judgment matters most. And so, just as I check the truck before I roll, I check myself before I train. Safety isn’t third, or fifth, or optional. It’s first, it’s always, it’s forever.

At the end of the day, the goal is not applause, not speed, not a perfect scorecard. The goal is simple: go home. Go home in one piece. Go home with lessons learned and skills sharpened, but without injury, without regret. That is the philosophy I live by, the philosophy I teach by, and the philosophy that will not change. Safety first. Safety always. No compromise.