The RedMan XP
For law enforcement officers, the more realistic and demanding the training, the greater the value. Realistic training that places officers into situations that simulate the stress and risk of the job — while also trying to avoid training injuries as much as possible — is optimal. I’m talking about training in which officers deliver full force blows, shoot real ammunition, and occasionally sustain blows that cause some pain. This type of training should be incremental, habitual, and task-focused. It should augment other types of training, including walk-through, paper drills, and multi-echelon events. Anything less will not equip our officers for the current trends of punctuated criminal acts against officers we are currently experiencing.
The RedMan XP suit is a form-fitted exoskeleton made of closed cell foam with a slick finish. The suit is deigned to protect the wearer from blunt trauma when training. It is composed of sections that wrap around a specific body part, like a forearm, thigh or chest protector, connected to that part by Velcro and elastic straps. The body sections overlap at the joints and vital areas and articulate where the real human joints do.
The RedMan XP suit has a head protector assembly which is only designed for accidental blows to the head. When properly worn, the user wears eye protective wear under a wire mesh screen, which is connected to a thick closed cell foam helmet and a throat guard.
An individual wearer can suit up in less than five minutes but it’s even faster and easier if they have help from their training partner. There is an instructor suit, which has fuller coverage and is more complicated than the student suit.(See other Redman items) In practice, the student generally uses the less lethal tool, like a RedMan Training Baton, to subdue the person in the Instructor Suit. The instructor can rotate students quickly through each scenario because the Student Suit which has fewer components and is therefore faster to don.
The Student Suit can also be used for training sessions which focus heavily on grappling.
In RedMan training gear, an officer can strike, grab, kick, wrestle, and hold a weapon. Both users are protected from common striking surfaces like knuckles, ridge of the hand, knee, and elbow. With this equipment, we found the officer is only limited in his ability to wrist grab and handcuff, which is usually simulated.
Redman have been around for more than 20 years. Your first introduction to these products, when facing a guy in a RedMan suit will be an unforgettable ordeal.
Many companies offered padded suits for training. The RedMan Suit has three features that, to this day, set it apart. Foremost, it can be washed and sanitized so it won’t smell like the last guy who wore it after cleaning. Second, all versions are lightweight and articulate with the wearer, in a one-size-fits-most way. Third, the wearer can do almost anything one can do without the protective products with a greatly diminished chance of injury.
There are only a handful of products designed for full contact training. Most of them come from a martial arts pedigree and are not oriented to police training. Others are components, not integrated suits
Really, there is only one RedMan!!!