Mission

Accelerate pipeline-ready performance through cadre-grade coaching, honest mentorship, and a community that protects standards—and people.

Our Goal for OTS

• Deliver former-cadre instruction that fixes technique and builds decision-making under stress.

• Standardize preparation so candidates stop wasting cycles on junk volume and misinformation.

• Provide continuity of coaching before, during, and after each summit.

• Protect safety & standards with deliberate oversight and tight coach-to-athlete ratios.

The Team

Guardian Grit

Guardian Grit is led by MSgt Kris Tomes, an active-duty PJ and former Instructor Supervisor at AFSW’s Assessment & Selection (A&S). Kris sets the blueprint for OTS: movement progressions, water-confidence protocols, leadership lanes, and the uncompromising standards that keep training real—and candidates safe.

Ones Ready

We are Pararescuemen, Combat Controllers, and Special Reconnaissance operators with 20+ years each and 70+ years combined of combat experience. Our mission is to inspire and build the next generation of special operations leaders—a community of warriors with work ethic and a never-quit mentality. We work tirelessly to provide the best tools and the most accurate guidance so that when an instructor yells “Ones ready,” you execute—physically and mentally.

Taylor Starch

A Colorado native who found elite sport early, Taylor Starch trained and raced with USA Cycling at the Olympic Training Center, earned a B.S. in Exercise Science (Colorado State University), and interned at the Western Australian Institute of Sport. He rose to Master Trainer after coaching 15,000+ clients, opened his own gym, then moved into military prep—coaching at the Special Warfare Preparatory Course in San Antonio and serving as a Subject Matter Expert alongside the military. Taylor’s obsession: movement quality, efficient running, and progressions that transfer to selection.

What We Built: Operator Training Summits (OTS)

A two-day, small-group experience blending land work (run/ruck/calisthenics/mobility), full water-confidence blocks, and targeted mentorship. Candidates get precise coaching, objective feedback, and continuity via a private prep chat and post-event guidance.

Programs

• Level 1 (Beginner): Fundamentals, technique-first, full intro to water confidence, mindset & recovery basics.

Why We’re Different

• Former-cadre standards: Train to what’s actually expected.

• Technique > volume: Small groups, constant feedback, intelligent progressions.

• Water confidence done right: Safety-managed, progression-based, standards-driven.

• Continuity & community: Coaching starts before you arrive and continues after you leave.

Safety & Standards

Every evolution is planned with layered safety, explicit abort criteria, and clear coaching intent. Technique quality beats rep quantity—always.