![]() ![]() So I dug through my suitcase one last time to pull out my dress shoes, tie and new Italian suit. You see, there are multiple shooting glasses to choose from when you’re heading to the range, and even more to select from when heading out on the town, but these are the only glasses to choose from when you might be doing both. It was at this point of the trip that I think I appreciated the glasses the most. Embassy duty, intelligence work, corporate briefs and a bevy of other requirements have thrusted the modern day operator into the world of style and presentation. Okay… so I know it’s still odd to talk about fashion on a Special Operations site, but times have changed. It was time to keep up with the Italian elite. The conditions and threat level were much more mild, but the need to perform was still obligatory. On the second stage of the trip, I landed on the Southern coast of Italy in a plush Villa on top of a cliff. So as my life goes I find myself in some amazing places with some amazing people. Later, I found myself, now in full PSD (personal security detachment) mode, in a very crowded local market with my two young children, and I thought, “Why would I ever walk out the door, range or no range, without protecting one of my greatest resources?” Italian Suits and Italy’s Elite I had sunglasses to keep the bright sun out and look good, but now I also had a certified pair of ballistic lenses to keep me safe. To be honest, I hadn’t even considered using the Crosshairs at the range because I thought of them as “dress glasses.” It wasn’t until I was heading out the door for the range that I remembered that they were ballistic.Īs I reached for the Crosshairs, this time for their ballistic protection and not their looks, the importance of everything serving more than one purpose struck me. It wasn’t until I witnessed the testing process in the Oakley labs that I realized how dangerous some of these shades really are. I’ll admit that I’ve worn a ton of eye protection while shooting that was not close to ANSI standards. ![]() I immediately said “yes” and then instantly thought, “Man, I need to get some good “Eyes & Ears.” I wasn’t going to risk anything so far away from medical care. It was on my third day in Sudan when I got an offer to go shooting. ![]() I hadn’t planned on wearing them that much. ![]() I had actually brought the Crosshairs on the trip with me because I was hoping to get some unique shots of them for a simple gear review. I Didn’t Expect to be Shooting Assault Rifles in SudanĪs with any trip, the unexpected occurs. Why a pair of sunglasses? Because this particular pair is a rare breed – ballistic vintage aviators that both protect (ballistic standards) and look good in a suit (my standards). Oddly enough, it was a pair of sunglasses that I got from Oakley’s SI division that really brought the principle home. I’ve always understood the notion of being efficient while traveling, but it was this trip that brought it all together for me. In Sudan, my priority was personal security, shooting and exploration, whereas Italy required a lot of foot movement, photography and the attendance of multiple formal events. Each trip challenged me to be a different person, but the responsibility to heft my gear around reminded me that I was peerless. I had just returned from a flawless trip that pulled me through the hot deserts of Africa and then lobbed me onto the Southern coast of Italy. Traveling light is a requisite for sustainable adventure. Deploying with the SEAL teams, I always had as much space as I wanted, but now, when I head out the door to places like Ethiopia and Sudan, I’m restricted to bringing only what I can easily carry. The principle is obvious but the personal exploitation of it is not. Two Trips to Africa Before This Occurred To Me Everything carried must pull more than its own weight. The responsibility for remaining both agile and quick leaves no room for any gear which only serves a single purpose or can only function in a certain environment. Limited only by the constraints of physics and his own humanity, the professional operator carefully chooses every piece of gear he carries. Surgical, precise, fluid, dynamic, tough and always ready describes the professional operator, executive, or adventurer. ![]()
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