MIKE DROP PODCAST

15 years ago, if I had been face to face with this man, there’s a high probability we would have been trying to kill each other. The fact that we are sitting here now the way we are as brothers truly highlights how amazing this nation really is. This episode I sit down with Iraqi interpreter to U.S. Special Operations forces “Johnny Walker”.  We talk about his story growing up In Iraq and how he became so heavily involved helping SEALs and other SOF units until ultimately coming here and becoming a U.S. citizen. The insight and perspective gained in this episode is something all Americans should take advantage of.

It’s Mr. positivity on this episode folks, Dave Rutherford joins me to talk about all things motivation and a lot of good life lessons. There’s no shortage of meaningful and deep conversation in this one, and journey that Dave has undertaken is truly inspiring. Settle in and enjoy, this one showcases many good rules to live by!

What’s not intense about U.S. special operations battling it out with cartels? From executing counter narc tactics in central and South America, fighting in Panama and then turning it into one of the most successful shooting, consulting and training schools – this episode we sit down with former Navy SEAL and Trident concepts owner Jeff Gonzales to talk about all that and some serious fitness training as well. Packed episode as always and in true Mike Drop fashion.

What’s not intense about U.S. special operations battling it out with cartels? From executing counter narc tactics in central and South America, fighting in Panama and then turning it into one of the most successful shooting, consulting and training schools – this episode we sit down with former Navy SEAL and Trident concepts owner Jeff Gonzales to talk about all that and some serious fitness training as well. Packed episode as always and in true Mike Drop fashion.

Morning routine. I ask each Mike Drop guest what their morning routine is, and it’s spawned many listeners asking about mine. I’ve tried just about everything I’ve come across over the years with diets and exercise plans, many of which have been a bit off the wall or relatively extreme. In this episode I talk about not only my full morning routine, but the rest of the day during normal work days in terms of nutrition, exercise, sleep and recovery.

Post Independence Day Patriot rant…this episodes guest has pushed the boundaries of human performance in wingsuit flying and smashed world records in doing so, is a decorated combat veteran Navy SEAL and all around Patriot. Andy Stumpf and I talk about his experiences that have gotten him to where he is today, and also answer a lot of your questions regarding hot bed political and societal issues relevant in our country today. There’s no shortage of perspective and solutions in this episode.

https://www.andystumpf.com

This episode I sit down with Bryan Black @Bryanpblack owner and founder of ITS tactical (Imminent Threat Solutions. We cover a veritable smorgasbord of info in relation to home and personal security, fieldcraft and survival gear, and overall how to make yourself better prepared for a host of predicaments. Lots of good how-to and useful tips in this episode coupled with a number of gear reviews of different products out there.

I’m releasing a special Memorial Day Mike Drop episode. This episode means quite a lot to me for a number of reasons. I ask that everyone take a moment to listen, share with a friend and also with your children. I talk about my service, growing up in the SEAL teams, the importance of the next generation being able to carry on the true meaning of Memorial Day, and I also talk about something in this podcast that I have never publicly talked about before. Only a handful of friends know this, but I felt it was important to share with people as to fully grasp what Memorial Day means to me and how people shouldn’t take their freedom for granted.

Take a moment this weekend and on Memorial Day to honor all the men, women, K9’s who gave the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom. Until Valhalla gentlemen-

Glen Doherty

Ty Woods

Jason Freiwald

Dave Scott

Tom Retzer

Extortion 17

This episode, I welcome a former SEAL training classmate who I’ve not seen in over a decade, Clark Impastato. He has run the full gambit of Navy SEAL, overseas security contractor, and undercover cop with Phoenix PD. We delve into the journey that many of us veterans face when getting out of the military and trying find our way with our unique set of skills. There’s no shortage of jokes and ridiculousness with us catching up after all this time.

You can follow Clark on Instagram: @frogman2155

Welcome to Mike Drop, the podcast where relevancy is irrelevant and we don’t give a shit about your feelings. This is a raw, unfiltered platform where we say what we want and offer opinions without hiding behind anything.

After being an All Pac-10 wide receiver and not making the cut at the NFL combine, Jay Dobyns was on a new mission. That mission was a dangerous one of busting criminals as an undercover agent with the ATF. With a lightning-fast learning curve of being shot on his first operation, he spent the next 20+ years infiltrating all manner of criminal enterprises — including the notorious Hells Angels motorcycle club. In this episode I go deep into the psyche of what it takes to become one of the most highly-decorated undercover agents in ATF history, dissecting Jays New York Times bestseller “No Angel” chronicling his dangerous journey inside the Hells Angels.

Interview

6:10 – I’m going to pull out some excerpts from your book and we can talk about them. Sound good?

7:20 – A lot of law enforcement guys have similar upbringings – middle class, from the mid-west, nothing crazy in their background. Did you find that same thing and why you think there’s such a similarity in terms of these guys?

12:40 – It seems like, from reading this book, your draw to the adrenaline is tough to get over once it’s gone. Was that what drew you to the ATF after football?

18:45 – Your style on the field directly related to how you worked as an undercover agent – you got after it.

21:00 – So ultimately you end up with the ATF as a special agent and you’re on your first real-world operation and you get shot.

24:25 – For any agent in that position, that’d be a really defining moment one way or the other. You had an unexpected response, what’re your thoughts?

28:45 – After the shooting, your job wasn’t glamorous. Even after 14 years on the job, it was still never enough and you had to keep pushing the envelope.

32:28 – Were there ever times there were legit people that [Hells Angels] thought were snitches and they ended up doing shitty things to them cause they just assumed?

33:22 – This was leading up to you getting into lower level stuff – affiliates of Hells Angels. Your experience made it seem easy.  I’d love to get a synopsis of how easily criminals will trust you based solely on the commonalty you have with them.

37:40 – You struck a really good balance of being just nonchalant enough. It was almost like a reverse psychology thing.

40:11 – For some historical context on biker gangs, I want to run through something so folks understand the hierarchy of it. Can you give us a quick synopsis on the breakdown of biker gangs and the 1%er?

44:20 – Can you put a number on it? How many 1%ers in the United States?

45:37 – I loved Sons of Anarchy. But one thing I didn’t know – the nomad breakdown. What’s the point of having these floating nomad charters?

50:40 – Was one region more violent than the rest?

52:00 – You mentioned a guy named Smitty a lot in the book. Most people assume all these guys are like bike mechanics. But to find out there’s this loveable goof ball who’s a school nurse – that flips a lot of the stereotype of who these guys are.

52:20 – You talk about how, historically, there are two main barriers that prevent police investigating into motorcycle gangs.

58:55 – Trying to delve further into the why – what do you suppose it is about it? Is there a sexiness that draws cops in?

1:01:44 – You mentioned Sons of Anarchy. What was your take?

1:03:40 – The ATF says they’re going full tilt on this thing. The week before, you have a send off party. That seems weird to me, like you could know things you shouldn’t know. Did anyone ever bring that up?

1:06:50 – I have a few other operation security questions. One, did you have any protocols in place to augment that you Tucson isn’t far from Phoenix? If I were running it, if you lived in Tucson you’d go undercover in New York.

1:11:05 – So is there a division within the ATF where all they do is buffer people’s backgrounds?

1:11:55 – We talked it a little already, but the essence of ‘peacock feathers’. It’s brought up over and over again in the book – the importance of confidence. What’s that like to have to constantly be in that state of mind?

1:16:03 – One thing I noticed is the focus on the brotherhood. I was surprised at the lengths by which the culture trumped everything else.

1:19:50 – So are there manuals?

1:21:50 – The stuff with the psyche that you had to deal with – you’re doing what you’re doing for the greater good, but now you have to make decisions about what you’re doing. It’s tough to process sometimes. How do you deal with that?

1:28:15 – You describe a situation where you come home from New York and your daughter is throwing a pool party. You’re going deeper and deeper into the character but still it strikes you to say something to your daughter. How was it seeing the shit you were dealing with and trying to apply it to your kids?

1:32:00 – One of the things I know people want to hear about is the ‘love interest’. You talk about being in the minority of opinion about the role women are able to play. How was it bringing a female in and what challenges did it present?

1:37:20 – Are there times where, for the cover story, you have to do things to make it work? Did you and Jenna have to show each other affection?

1:41:41 – Stemming from that, did you guys ever do anything funny like go in the next room and bang on shit?

1:44:09 – As things progress and get more and more tumultuous with your wife – it’s got to be hard on a marriage.

1:49:55 – For whatever reason, there’s a big October celebration for the clubs. The song Freebird plays and you start to self realize that you’re going further and further into your character.

1:55:42 – As the transformation progresses and you get inked up, you talk about being good but having to do evil. What can you tell me about in terms of the tattoos and what that meant to you at the time?

1:58:55 – Some of the elements of your personality in terms of the patterns and making sure things are balance is almost an OCD thing.

1:59:20 – One of the things that really fascinated me was the depth you guys would go with the cover story. But your fucking life depends on the acting of you and the others on your team. How does it feel to watch Hollywood and know if you mess up your acting it’s your life?

2:06:50 – Throughout the book you’re getting more and more infiltrated into the Angels. You’re on your way to your first ‘church’ service to be invited into the circle. Describe that experience.

2:10:05 – Was there part of you that wanted to not only prove the ATF wrong, but also be one of them? Did you develop sympathy with them?

2:11:25 – Did they take advantage of any military people for their knowledge?

2:14:25 – After you become a hang-around and you’re being considered, your daughter called you and you blew her off. How fuckin difficult it must be as a father to put your kids through that. That shit didn’t happen overnight, but you’re starting to do things on behalf of the organization you despised.

2:17:55 – Looking back at it now that you’ve been out for a number of years, it sounds like the relationship with your family is restored. Is that right? Is there any framework in your mind where you could have done what you did but balance your family life any better?

2:21:20 – Your son started handing you a rock every time you left. I’ve been through similar things where my kids humbled me in such a sweet way. That’s a shit sandwich if I’ve ever seen one.

2:27:00 – As we wrap up these two passage, this is the crux of the story and you realize they’re the ones who’ve brainwashed you. What was it like having to deal with that?

2:30:40 – The aftermath of coming to the stark realizing of what you had become – was there an element that was almost suicidal or that you’d ruined your life?

2:33:10 – The legalities of being undercover – a lot of people assume that you killed people and snorted coke. You have to be able to justify that your life was on the line, right? That has to be a tough line.

2:37:55 – One of the logistic questions I have – is there a standard protocol for the de-confliction process? Like if you roll up in Vegas, do you have to let someone know? Or does it totally depend and sometimes it works out and sometimes you get fucked?

2:40:45 – A number of times you answer your personal cell phone. I was surprised there wasn’t some sort of protocol. Was that an oversight? And you were wired?

2:46:30 – Can you quickly describe the mud checks?

2:49:00 – Did you get any ‘what the fuck’ or pushback on the book?

2:51:30 – Were you a smoker before this? Do you smoke since then?

2:52:50 – The two things I found ironic – you talk about loving Starbucks and you don’t really like riding motorcycles right?

2:53:40 – Where are you now in terms of your career?

2:57:55 – Is the threat from the Angels as high as it was years ago?

“He who fights with monsters should be careful, lest he thereby become a monster. And if thou gaze long enough into the abyss, the abyss will also gaze into thee” – Nietzsche

Books

No Angel: My Harrowing Undercover Journey to the Inner Circle of the Hells Angels

Links

Jay Dobyns:

• Website
• Facebook
• No Angel

Mike Ritland:

• Website
• Facebook

Welcome to Mike Drop, the podcast where relevancy is irrelevant and we don’t give a shit about your feelings. This is a raw, unfiltered platform where we say what we want and offer opinions without hiding behind anything.

Today we have a distinguished guest with us. He is a retired Navy Seal, a New York Times best selling author and an overall covert operative bad ass.

Welcome to Clint Emerson.

Clint was raised in Saudi Arabia, hazed in the SEAL teams and ultimately became one of the most accomplished spies this country has ever had. He wrote 100 Deadly Skills, is a world-class secret squirrel and patriot. Today we’ll learn a number of useful lifesaving skills to deal with real world threats, and also get to know what it’s like to be a real life Jason Bourne!

Interview

What does your morning routine look like?

I usually get up at 5 and eat/drink something that gives me energy for my workouts. I go to boxing for an hour and half, shower and then still have a full workday. The rest of my day is in hour segments and I dedicate days – like Monday is 100 Deadly Skills book related stuff, etc.

What can you break down for your average listener in terms of getting ‘bang for buck’ in your fitness?

The Violent Nomad concept is about being more self-reliant and the first step is fitness. I break down these workouts into push, pull, rotation/strike and sprints. You basically rotate this up to 5 times and I do this in the afternoons every other day. So it’s two-a-day workouts every other day.

Any tips for doing this injury free?

People underestimate the power of a warm up. Spend some time on the stretching and the warm up.

Any overall tips for your average household to stay secure/aware?

One of the skills in book 2 lays out how to set up a perimeter. You want to create an ‘onion’ around your home. We need to start talking to our neighbors again and get to know them and start looking out for one another. That pushes your ‘fence line’ way out. Then you move to closer to your house – make it appear you have animals and/or kids. You should have locks and security systems, as well as make your door less able to be kicked in.

What about tips for driving or out in town?

It’s become more difficult to be preemptive because of technology. But a big one is playing out scenarios – look for places where someone could ambush you and get used to paying attention to that. That’ll form a good habit of being aware.

Another big one is cyber security. What can you tell us?

It’s far easier to be on the offense when it comes to cyber security. A big one is your laptop – they get exploited all the time. Don’t leave them in a hotel room – keep your devices with you or leave them at home. Make sure the security updates are truly updated, and use good passwords. Treat your usernames like passwords.

One of the products your company sells is the Zero Trace. Tell us about that.

I put this together when I was deployed at the end of my career. Cell phones are track able and I didn’t want the host nation to know where I was going. I created a sleeve that would give me the ability to call for help but not be emitting everything about me. It’s a double layer metal box but it looks like a pouch for your phone, laptop, etc. Data is far more secure than wifi, so if you want to reduce the likelihood use data whenever possible.

Let’s get into active shootings. I want to get your take on what a listener should do if they find themselves in this situation.

It’s very scenario driven. The mantra that has become more and more popular is ‘run-hide-fight’. It’s not in any particular order, it’s all situational. Violence is not limited to the bad guys; you can unleash violence as a good person. So fight, fight, fight. Control the gun first, then control the body by getting ahold of the spine (the head, hips). If you can run, run zig-zag and crazy. If you’re going to hide, hide behind things that stop bullets.  If you see something, say something then do something. The FBI can’t be everywhere all the time, so don’t just report it once. Become a squeaky wheel.

The first skill in your books is rectal concealment. Tell us about this one.

Criminals, spies, you name it – they’ve employed it. The modern day rectal concealment is the cigar tube. It’s a creative way to have means of escape readily available in case you’re stripped down butt-naked.

The next one is to detect tampering of personal effects. I’m curious to get your take on it.

There’s the physical way of determine if someone is tampering with your effects – it’s setting traps. The important takeaway is that you don’t want them to know you’re setting traps, so these things are discreet and natural to the environment.

Tell us about the app that helps

You used to just have to take pictures from the same spot in the room. I took it one step further and created an app called Photo Trap. You take the picture and it creates a shadow image. You come back and you line up all the permanent features in the room, and it animates anything that has moved.

The last tip I picked to talk about is how to get passed a guard dog.  I’m interested in your tips there.

One of the things you can do is freeze the dogs’ nose. You take a keyboard air spray can and turn it upside down, then hit the dog in the nose. It freezes their nose.

The next tip is from the Survival Edition and it’s building a fire with damp wood – tell us about that.

When it comes to fire, we’ve lost a lot of our more primitive skills. Wood is damp on the outside, but when you take a knife to it, it may be dry on the inside. Use what’s on the ground first versus what is alive.

The next one is building a tactical nightstand – what do you have here.

This is to increase your readiness while you’re at home asleep. Your environment needs to have tools that would be beneficial if someone comes through the doors. I’ve got guns on the list, but also hornet spray and oven cleaner. My first choice is a gun, but if you’re not comfortable with them or live in a state where it’s difficult to get guns, the hornet spray or oven cleaner will work. A tourniquet, a good flashlight… but be careful with lighting – you know your blueprint better than the person who broke in. Let them trip and fall while they’re trying to get around.

Escape a car jacking – Talk to us about that.

More times than not, bad guys are following the money. If you have an option, always go inside to get money from an ATM. But if someone is coming to your window – always have your doors locked. Maintain your awareness around you. Leave it in drive with the foot on the brake if you can. If you’re out on common roads and someone comes up with a weapon, one of the techniques is slamming – push the weapon against the dash or steering wheel and then hit the gas or put it in reverse. The vehicle becomes the weapon.

Last one – treating gunshot wounds. What would you tell us here?

You have to choose if you’re going to stop the bad guy or stop the bleeding. If you are going to help the victim, tourniquet is the last option, not the first. Only use one after you’ve tried direct pressure, a pressure dressing, etc. First, you have to identify where the blood is coming from. Second, use direct pressure with the palm of your hand to slow down the bleeding. Elevate the area. If you’ve tried all that and it’s still bright red blood then use the tourniquet. Tampons are also great to be used in the situation of a gun wound – and they can usually be found easily if there are women in the area.

The goal is to make everyone out there more self-reliant and self-rescue oriented and bridge the gap between crisis and the unknown.

Books

 100 Deadly Skills

 100 Deadly Skills: Survival Edition

Escape the Wolf

Deadly Skills 2018 Day-to-Day Calendar

Links

• Mike Ritland:
  • Website
  • Facebook
• Clint Emerson:
  • Escape the Wolf
  • 100 Deadly Skills
  • Violent Nomad
  • Instagram
  • YouTube Channel
  • Facebook

ion

• • Photo Trap App

Books

 100 Deadly Skills

 100 Deadly Skills: Survival Edition

 Escape the Wolf

 Deadly Skills 2018 Day-to-Day Calendar

Links

• Mike Ritland:
  • Website
  • Facebook
• Clint Emerson:
  • Escape the Wolf
  • 100 Deadly Skills
  • Violent Nomad
  • Instagram
  • YouTube Channel
  • Facebook

ion

• • Photo Trap App