In this week’s Dispatch, we tackle the often misunderstood phenomenon of SpecOps personnel wearing watches inside the wrist. Dating back to at least the 1960s, this practice has several legitimate benefits for military personnel, but we would argue “inside-wristing” is just as much about culture as anything else. If you want to LARP as a Navy SEAL and wearing a watch like this gets you there, LARP on. We don’t make the rules. Click here to read the complete Dispatch (Excerpt Below): https://lnkd.in/gTPbwr2t ___________________________________________________________________ Why SpecOps Wear Watches On The Inside Of The Wrist (And Why You Probably Shouldn’t) Look at photos from any conflict over the past 50 years and you are bound to see uniformed US military personnel wearing a wristwatch on the inside of their wrist. While it’s difficult to pinpoint when exactly this tradition began, Vietnam-era Green Beret and MACV-SOG operator John Stryker Meyer AKA “Tilt” told us it was a habit he picked up in Special Forces training in the 1960s. The practice of wearing a watch on the inside of the wrist has several functional benefits in a tactical environment, including protecting the glass/crystal from damage, preventing glare or reflections, and ensuring the watch is legible while operating a weapons system or lying prone. That said, I would argue today “inside-wristing” is just as much about culture as anything else. A watch is one of the few items customizable by uniformed personnel and for some it is a sign that you are a “gunfighter”, “operator” or play Call of Duty on the weekends. In this Dispatch, we explore both the utilitarian and culturally-motivated reasons SpecOps and normal people wear watches inside the wrist.
Stephen W.
3mo
a glint off a watch / mirror or metal surface can be seen and readily spotted for miles.
Stealth Mode | Resilience Startup | Frankfurt School | B.A. Security Management
3moin my old unit, we were commanded to wear watches inside of the wrist