Going to the Motörhead show last night, I had to decide what I was going to do in terms of self-defense.

The reality is, every show and venue is different. Some venues I just walk into with no problems. Some venues might have “no weapon” policies but they’re there more because of their lawyers. Some venues might have 51% signs or true 30.06 signs to prohibit concealed carry. But then they’ll have no frisking. Or I’ve been to some shows where I’ve been frisked heavily and wanded down. It’s always a crap shoot.

I don’t expect to have problems. Most people go to concerts to have a good time. But the reality is, there’s lots of people, lots of testosterone, lots of alcohol (and probably other drug use, tho I don’t worry much about the stoners), and there’s always a chance for something to happen. Fights do break out from time to time. I’ve read news stories of people being knifed at shows. And we cannot forget about what happened to Dimebag Darrell. In my younger years I probably wouldn’t have thought twice about my safety at shows, but I’m older, wiser, more conservative, and so now I think about these things.

So last night having no idea how Stubb’s ran their show, I mostly disarmed. But I did what I could. Steel toed boots, not only good because drunks stumble and inevitably step on your toes but they’re useful for kicking. I wore a belt with a large buckle… no knife or anything hidden there, just would suck to get hit with it being swung around. And, I took my cane.

But the biggest thing? Mentality.

It’s about keeping aware of things (e.g. I stood with my back against a railing so it’d be difficult for someone to come up behind me, plus it was useful for leaning against when I got tired of standing for so long). It’s about watching the people. It’s about being aware of your surroundings, where are the exits, where’s cover, and so on.

And it’s about Always Being Cool.

However, I wish there was a way to know what I would be up against. Am I going to be frisked? It’d be nice to know that before I left the house. It’d be nice to know if a venue had particular policies, be it their own policy or something like 30.06 or 51% notification. It’d be nice to be able to be properly prepared. Granted, the mindset is you have to be cooler about things than usual because there are lots of people and you know a lot of people are just going to be alcohol-fueled so it’s even more reason to just be cool. And should someone get stupid, to just keep your cool and don’t take it personally and find other ways to deal with it.

Still, I can’t help but think about situations at shows where it did turn truly ugly. I just hope to not be around when that happens again.