Fireman's Carry Playbook

Mat Manual companion guide to "The Fireman's Carry." Print it. The article stages the carry control-first: entry off the arm, a safe shoulder load, the defense taught before any finish, and finishes that are placements, not spikes. This book trains that order with gates: entry cards by tie-up, load cards with safety checks printed on them, defense cards in the article's order, and finishes locked until control and defense pass.

Name: ______________________________ Dojo: ______________________________ Current grade: ______________ Dominant side (left / right: train both): ______________

BEFORE ANYTHING: SCOPE AND SAFETY ☐ Partner agreements in Part 25 are signed before any partner work in this book. No signature, no loading. ☐ No load rests on anyone's head or neck, at any stage, at any speed. A rep where a neck takes weight stops and fails, and the pair resets from the tie-up. ☐ The partner being loaded posts a hand on every load rep in this book. A partner who cannot post does not get loaded that day. ☐ Finishes are placements, never spikes. Any rep that drives a partner's head, neck, or shoulder into the mat ends finish work for the pair that day. ☐ Sharp pain in the neck, shoulder, or back ends grappling work for the day. Muscle effort is training; joint pain is information. Report it to your instructor. ☐ Crash mats are mandatory for all finish work until Part 16's gates move a finish to the regular surface, and a coach makes that call, not the pair.

Part 1: The Carry Card

The card states the book's argument in one row: staging order. Students who learn the stages in order own a load they can freeze, a defense they passed before they needed it, and finishes that feel almost plain when they arrive.

Train both sides in equal dose in every part. A carry that only exists on one side is a party piece, not a takedown.