The TTPOA Podcast

Erica Gaines is the President and CEO of TacMobility: Controlling the Mind + the Machine, a training program whose vision is to heal the racial divide between people of color (POC) and police officers through law enforcement wellness and community dialogue. Having met over 100,000 officers since 2013, “The Knife Girl'' has gained wide acceptance into the LEO community. While an unlikely candidate to advocate for police, this dark-skinned, multi-racial woman from Phoenix, AZ, continues to use her voice to talk about trauma recovery, self-awareness, and Suicide: the #1 Cop Killer in America.Her research began in 2016 when incidents of police involved shootings with unarmed black males were becoming frequent, prompting the onset of large protests. Feeling that the media portrayal of officers was inconsistent with her unique, personal experience but also wanting to get answers to questions like, “why can’t you shoot people in the leg?”or “if officers are innocent, why the payouts?”, Erica embarked on a four-year journey of conducting candid interviews with police officers at training conferences. In 2017, she participated in the VirTra Use of Force Simulated Training at a FBI National Academy Associate (FBINAA) Conference. Forever changed by the physical experience of a shoot, Erica wondered if ‘police bias’ had more to do with a physiological stress response than racism. With inadequate clinical research to pull from, in 2019, Erica created the world’s most extensive ongoing study of Law Enforcement Officers and Cumulative Stress. Armed with data, in 2020, Erica created a 4-hour Peace Officer Standards & Training (POST) training course accredited through the National Certification Program (NCP) , developed by the International Association of Directors of Law Enforcement Standards and Training (IADLEST). The training program and fiscally sponsored non-profit, TacMobility: Controlling the Mind and the Machine, offers stress and trauma awareness, rehabilitative stretching, and self-awareness to police officers in the United States. With her straightforward approach, Erica uses TacMobility to heal traumatized officers in an effort to bring communities closer. She believes that supporting the mental and physical health of officers ultimately brings support back to the community; Enabling them to balance compassion and courage, empathy and protection, creating space for positive community engagement. Her organization recognizes that this is a vital component in developing trust between communities of color and law enforcement.For more information, contact info@tacmobility.net

On this episode we sit down with Chuck Pressburg from Presscheck Consulting.  During our conversation Chuck gets serious about his own demons and life changing events..... SGM(R) Pressburg retired from the US Army on January 1, 2017 after 26 years of active service, mostly in Special Operations and Special Missions Units. After Infantry and Airborne Training in 1990, Chuck completed the Ranger Indoctrination Program and was assigned to the 1st Bn, 75th Ranger Regiment.  

In this episode we sit down with Brittany Mae of Point Firearms Instruction and discuss life experiences, teaching, training and things we shouldn't say....  Brittany has a passion for people and training. After completing her Bachelors of Science degree in Outdoor Adventure Recreation and Wilderness Leadership she went on organizing team building, growth through risk, and leadership experiences around the world.  She has also taught children and adults the English language through experience-based programs.  She has instructed private firearms courses, facilitated range operations, and organized range events. Brittany has served as a protective services agent, providing access control to exclusive events, secure transportation, and security surveillance with Progressive Force Concepts Safeguards, Team Zebra and Pinkerton Security.

In this episode of the TTPOA Podcast we sit down with Robert Vogel, 24-time National Champion and 3-time World Champion to discuss firearms training.  Robert is truly serious about real-world practical shooting.  Whether your forte is Competition, LE / Military or personal defense, if your goal is to be a "better shooter" then he will help you with that.  

On this episode we sit down with Matt Little of GreyBeard Actual.  Matt Little, is a US Army Special Forces combat veteran who has extensive law enforcement experience, including serving as training coordinator and an operational supervisor on a major metropolitan SWAT team, and has worked as a government contractor in non-permissive environments. Additionally, Matt is a lifelong martial artist and former national level competitor. He is also ranked as a master class shooter with pistol and carbine by both the US Practical Shooting Association and the International Defensive Pistol Association

On this episode we sit down with Greg "Gravy" Coker.  Greg served 22 years in the U.S. Army, 15 years as an AH-6 “Little Bird” attack helicopter instructor pilot who was specially recruited, assessed, and selected in the Army’s only Special Operations Helicopter unit, 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment. He was one of the senior Lead Instructor Pilots and planner responsible for planning and executing special operations missions in support of our nation’s most elite special operations units, 75th Ranger Regiment and 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta. Achieved 7400 hours of accident free flying, over 6200 hours of Night Vision Goggles and 1500 hours of Combat time.  Supervised and directed teams of up to 300 soldiers in the planning and execution of numerous complex combat operations at the Joint Task Force level. Responsible for leading and planning scores of real-world combat missions with significant tactical, operational, and strategic value during Operation Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom with 100% success in support of the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT) conducting 11 combat tours 2001-2008. “Gravy” recently finished writing a book, Death Waits in the Dark — Six Guns Don’t Miss, the story of a special operations attack helicopter pilot who flew with the renowned 160th Special Operations Regiment (Airborne), and the incredible friendships Greg Coker and his fellow compatriots forged in the heat of combat.

In this late night episode after a couple drinks we sit down with Dale and Brennan from the 2008 smash hit Step Brothers.... Well not exactly, we are actually sitting down with Dan Brokos and Jared Reston but they did remind us a lot of Dale and Brennan especially the hair.  We discuss a number of topics covering training, mindset and leadership with two of the most down to earth guys you'll ever meet.

This episode we sit down with Mike Pannone and discuss training and mindset in the LE world.  Mike is a former operational member of U.S. Marine Reconnaissance, Army Special Forces (Green Beret) and 1st SFOD-D (Delta Force) as well as a competition USPSA pistol shooter holding a Master class ranking in Limited, Limited-10 and Production divisions. He has participated in stabilization, combat and high-risk protection operations in support of U.S. policies throughout the world as both an active duty military member, and a civilian contractor.  

Thank you for tuning into the first episode of the “TTPOA Podcast”.  For those that don’t know, TTPOA stands for Texas Tactical Police Officer Association and we are a nonprofit organization that provides affordable training to Law Enforcement in the State of Texas.  This episode is an introduction of our host and all about the TTPOA, who we are and how we got started.  Our main goal is to inform our listeners and make sure they truly understand what we are about.  We hope you enjoy listening and please subscribe to our podcast so you can get updates on new show releases.  You can find us at ttpoa.org, ttpoastore.org and on Instagram (@TTPOA).