Behind The Shield

Kory Pearn is a veteran firefighter and the man behind Crackyl Magazine. We discuss his journey into the fire service, mentoring future firefighters, overcoming a near fatal cardiac condition, mental and physical health, the origin story of Crackyl and much more.

Tom McLay has spent his career in corrections, working his way up to the Superintendent of Powder River Correctional Facility. We discuss his journey into corrections, recidivism, addiction, drug prohibition, adopting the Norwegian Prison model, the wildland firefighter program and so much more.

Debbie Lee is an author, public speaker, political activist and the mother of fallen Navy SEAL Marc Lee. We discuss her early life, domestic abuse, suicide, grief, forging resilience through loss, the SEAL brotherhood, her non profit America's Mighty Warriors, the importance of gratitude and so much more.

Marc Polymeropoulos is a retired Senior CIA officer and the author of "Clarity in Crisis". We discuss his adventurous childhood, entering the CIA, the importance of professionalism, grooming agents, leadership, humility and much more.

Paul Combs is a retired firefighter and world renowned cartoonist. Frank Viscuso is a retired firefighter and best selling author. We discuss their new children's book, retirement, mental health, internet trolls, leadership and so much more.

Robert Ingram is a lifelong martial artist, instructor and the man behind McDojo Life. We discuss bulling, assault, his journey into the martial arts, the importance of humility, fraudulent schools, sexual predators, and much more.

Alex Vazquez is a veteran firefighter, comedian and Dive Rescue team member. We discuss his traumatic early life, comedy, his mental health struggle, the healing power of altruism, the IAFF Center of Excellence, OCD and much more.

Tom Beaver is an elite endurance athlete, welder and the founder of BeaverFit. We discuss farm life, bridge building, SAS selection, creating strength and conditioning equipment elite tactical athletes, bringing solutions to strength and conditioning space challenges, his incredible endurance feats, rhinos and so much more.

Nick Norris is a Navy SEAL veteran, elite endurance athlete and the executive director of the C4 Foundation. We discuss his journey into special operations, TBIs, losing his brother, his own mental health journey, the power of Ibogaine therapy, drug prohibition and so much more.

Kathy, Madison, Sarah and Tracy share a common bond of being firefighter spouses. They started the organization "Fire Wife Life" to forge a community in first responder families. We discuss volunteer firefighter families, shift work, the unseen toll of mandatory overtime, mental health and much more.

Steve Brown is a veteran of the British Army's revered "Pathfinders", survival instructor and author. We discuss his challenging childhood, the importance of mentorship, training in global theatres, the impact of losing soldiers, his powerful mental health journey and much more.

Benjamin Martin is a veteran firefighter and the man behind "Embrace the Resistance". We discuss his journey into the fire service, shift work, sleep deprivation, leadership mistakes, the importance of humility, tactical fitness and much more.

Matt Domyancic is a former powerlifter, strength and conditioning coach and a law enforcement veteran. We discuss military service, sports vs tactical athletics, fitness standards, getting comfortable being uncomfortable, peer support and much more.

Nick Koumalatsos is a Marine Recon veteran, entrepreneur, author and founder of The Raider Project. We discuss his journey into the military, training the tactical athlete, transitioning out, mental health, altruism, gym ownership during the pandemic and much more.

Craig Davidson is a Hawaiian lifeguard, waterman and stuntman. We discuss his journey into lifeguarding, rescues and losses, the importance of humility, fitness, entering the stunt world, set safety, rigging and much more.

Richard Rice spent three decades in the US armed forces and was one of the founding members of what would become the revered Delta Force. We discuss his journey into the military, being hunted in Vietnam, compassion in combat, Mogadishu, transitioning into education, innovating veterans' education, GORUCK and so much more.

Frank Babinec is the former City of Coral Springs Fire Chief and current City Manager . Chris Bator is a Battalion Chief and Health and Safety Officer. We discuss their journeys into the fire service, trauma medicine, mental health, responding to the Marjory Stoneman Douglas massacre, MCI, triage, clean cab, compassion, humility and so much more.

Tori Gonzalez was a student at Marjory Stoneman Douglas when a former student murdered 17 schoolchildren and staff in 2018, including her boyfriend Joaquin Oliver. Anthony Gonzalez is Tori's father and was one of the responding firefighters to the attack. We discuss their early lives, Tori and Joaquin's romance, the aftermath of the massacre, grief, tactical medicine, the media, mental health and so much more.

Jeff McGreevy is a Marine veteran and retired law enforcement officer, serving in both gang and SWAT units. We discuss his journey into the military, entering law enforcement, his officer involved shooting, training under stress, mental health, Echelon Front, 911 at Ease and much more.

Anthony ‘Harry’ Moffitt spent almost three decades in the Australian Defense Force most of which in the Special Air Service (SAS). We discuss his journey into the military, rock music, cricket, mental health, writing his new book "Eleven Bats", psychology and so much more.

Dustin Hawkins is a veteran firefighter, the creator of Red Line Rescue and co-founder of Safer Straps. Dustin told his powerful story on Episode 39 and he now walks us through the last four years to bringing Red Line Rescue to our profession. We discuss mental health, suicide, creating culturally competent clinicians, connecting peer support and so much more.

Sebastian Junger is the filmmaker behind Restrepo and the New York Times best selling author of Tribe, War and his new book Freedom. We discuss becoming a father, his near death experience, the last patrol, leadership, unions, the concept of freedom and so much more.

Aubrey Lehman is a firefighter/EMT in Pennsylvania. She is currently the only interior qualified deaf female firefighter/EMT in the Mid-Atlantic region. We discuss her challenging childhood, the incredible innovation in medical technology, her journey into the fire service, challenging the status quo, mentorship, harassment, training, growth and so much more.

Nick Merrick is a member of 10th Special Forces Group and the Executive Director of Green Beret Racing. We discuss his journey into the military, the exorbitant casualty rate in his community, mental health, addiction, adrenaline sports, helping veterans transition out of the military and so much more.

Jason Wolfe was a civilian contractor for the DOD and is now a counter terrorism and security contracting expert. We discuss tracking down bomb makers, edged weapons training, the FAST rescue board and much more.

Emily McCarthy is a former CIA case officer and co-founder of GORUCK. We discuss collegiate athletics, her journey into the agency, mediating African warlords, the power of language, transitioning out, the importance of tribe and so much more.

Greg Kelley was a promising high school football player when he was falsely accused of sexual abuse of a child and wrongfully imprisoned. He spent the next six years proving his innocence, three of which in prison. We discuss his early life, his parent's medical issues that led to him staying with a friend, the outcry, the horrendous cascade of unethical practices in both the investigation and trial, overturning the decision, the power of love, reclaiming his football career and so much more.

Mike Taylor and Alex Roodhouse are Navy Riverine Veterans and co-founders of BeaverFit USA. We discuss their journeys into the military, standing up an elite unit from scratch, training for the unknown, equipping the tactical athlete, training under stress and so much more.

Luc Roberts is an Australian Rural Fire Service firefighter and mental health advocate. We discuss moving to Australia from the UK, his journey into firefighting, the "Black Summer" fires, PTSD and so much more.

Rich Graham is a Navy SEAL veteran and the creator of the Full Spectrum Warrior (FSW) System. We discuss his challenging childhood, martial arts, hunting war criminals in Europe, transitioning out of the military, weapons and combatives training, government overreach and so much more.

Dr. John Delony is a bestselling author, mental health expert and host of The Dr. John Delony Show. We discuss mental health in our schools and colleges, addiction, his own mental health journey, his book "Redefining Anxiety" and much more.

Casey is a law enforcement veteran, canine handler and SWAT operator. We discuss her journey into law enforcement, canine training, training the tactical athlete, sexual harassment, forging a new path, losing a law enforcement brother and so much more.

Roger Sparks has spent over 25 years in both Marine Recon and Pararescue. We discuss his military journey, the importance of training under stress, having to save his own son, mental health, the catharsis of tattooing and so much more.

Peter Conroy is an Irish firefighter, surfer, lifeguard and waterman. We discuss Dublin's pioneering Fire/EMS system, water rescue, physical fitness, staffing, water immobilisation, paramedicine, travelling and much more.

Major James Capers is one of the most decorated Marine Recon veterans who operated on over 50 classified missions in Vietnam. We discuss his challenging childhood, racism in the South, his indominable marriage, the impact of losing men, coming home, PTSD and so much more.

Dr Ryan Stanton is an Emergency Medicine Physician and the travelling physician for NASCAR. We discuss childhood obesity, fitness in racing, 911 abuse, trauma, COVID and much more.

Troy Warshel is a Marine Veteran serving in a host of positions including F/A - 18 fighter pilot and forward air controller. Troy is also the president of the non-profit Operation Enduring Warrior. We discuss his journey into the military, mental and physical lessons from aviation, the proximity of combat, mental health, nuclear power, OEW's incredible work and so much more.

Robb Wolf is a former EMT, biochemist and the award winning author of multiple nutrition books. We discuss his journey into emergency medicine, the obesity epidemic, the importance of sleep, nutritional philosophies, hydration, gut biome and much more.

Ben Strahan is a veteran wildland Hotshot, human performance coach and athlete. We discuss his journey into the fire service, the physical demands of wildland firefighting, the inmate crew program, staffing, mental health, why fires are getting bigger and so much more.

Mark Ormrod is a Royal Marine veteran, triple amputee, Invictus Games athlete and author. We discuss jiujitsu, the lockdowns, overcoming recent injuries, the incredible work REORG is doing, fundraising, tribalism, mental health and so much more.

Lt Col Steve Burgess is a BJJ Black Belt and Combatives Instructor in the Canadian Armed Forces. We discuss his journey into the martial arts, sport vs combat, strength and conditioning, defensive tactics in law enforcement, community through competition and so much more.

Danny McLaughlin is a retired firefighter and member of the MD Ally team. In this important episode, we discuss the multiple elements that strain emergency medicine resources, how Telemedicine is bringing a powerful solution to this problem, the vulnerability of fire departments to unethical business practices and much more.

Shelton Stevens is a veteran collegiate, Olympic and tactical athlete strength and conditioning coach. We discuss his athletic journey, the injury that changed his career path, what makes the elite athletes excel, nutrition, mobility, supplementation and much more.

Dr Chris Colvin is an emergency physician, Medical Director and author. In this second conversation, we discuss encouraging progress with COVID-19 treatments, dispelling vaccine myths, improving outcomes with fitness and nutrition, responding during the Texas ice storm, advances in HIV treatment and so much more.

Mandy Horvath is a chef, climber, artist and double amputee. We discuss her journey into the culinary arts, losing her legs, her physical and mental health struggles, childhood trauma, discovering climbing, addiction, post traumatic growth, the healing power of plants and so much more.

Jason Bitzer is a professional bodyboarder, author and Oahu lifeguard. We discuss the New Jersey surf, his journey to becoming a Hawaiian lifeguard, fitness standards, shark attacks, watermen, stunts, his non profit Never Off Duty and so much more.

Laurence Gonzales is a pilot, teacher and award winning author of multiple books including Deep Survival. We discuss his father's incredible survival story, training under stress, complacency, dark humour, overcoming trauma and so much more.

Jason McCarthy is a Green Beret veteran, author and co-founder of GORUCK. We discuss his journey into the military, the trials of a military marriage, the weight of war, transitioning out, entrepreneurship, overcoming hurdles, the healing power of dogs and so much more.

Kevin Berthia is a a suicide survivor, mental health advocate and founder of the Kevin Berthia Foundation. We discuss the strain of the adopted child, graduation anxiety, his mental health journey, the role CHP officer Kevin Briggs played in his survival on the Golden Gate Bridge, the rocky road to post traumatic growth, becoming a prevention advocate and so much more.

Jim Moss is a veteran firefighter, speaker and author. We discuss the impact of the pandemic on his department, mental health, firefighter fitness, leadership, ownership, his new book "Firefighter Success" and much more.