RECCE ROOM

From a reader - "How do you justify the transition from teaching martial arts into teaching firearms?" Perhaps this question arose after the reader read this post .  Nevertheless, it is a good question, and one I am happy to answer.  My martial arts background: Started Judo in 1982, but did not attend anywhere near enough.  Started karate in 1985. Discontinued teaching it in 2021. Still practice to this day.  Started jiu-jitsu in 1987. Discontinued teaching it in 2020. Still practice it to this day.  Needless to say, my Senseis have been very impactful in my life. And it is from them that I draw the inspiration to teach what I teach. John Suarez taught the Wado-Shiho-Kai style of Wado-Ryu. The tenets of that style are Kata, Kihon, Kumite, and Koshin. Most karate styles stop with kata, kihon, and kumite. For clarity: Kata - traditional forms. Prearranged patterns to practice muscle memory.  Kihon - fundamentals. The building blocks of fighting technique. K...

As a firearms instructor, it is not uncommon for someone to reach out to me and ask for private instruction and / or coaching. In the past, I have been glad to do this as schedules allow. Moving forward, however, I have decided to only do so under very specific circumstances. Rationale to follow.  Circumstances: 1. It will be small - group.  Why? Simply put - the Billy Graham rule . Some also call this the Mike Pence principle (there may be a book of that title for sale). Not long ago, indirect allegations of impropriety were made, and I was happy there was a witness. Never without a witness. The small - group principle will enable me to hire an assistant for the time.  2. It will be small - group, for a minimum and maximum number of hours.  Why? Simply put, my time and effort is worth a minimum amount money. Why give all of the benefits of a class without making class-sized money? Many people are trying to do one of two things when avoiding a class: pay a certain am...

From social media, Reid Henrichs of Valor Ridge makes a post and states, "Ensuring students get a solid 100-yd zero here at the Ridge." Of course, there is some gun yahoo that showed up on the post and asks, "Why are you such an advocate for the 100 yd zero?" A good reply by one of the other followers is to be had - "take a class and find out." Of course, the yahoo replies: "thanks. I’ve taken many classes at other schools. None that mandate which zero you must have for the class." Here are the reasons this guy is a Gun Yahoo. 1. How does he know the shooter doesn't have a scope with a BDC that calls for a 100-yard zero? One cannot see the rifle in question from this angle. And many scopes call for it.  2. As one who has really taken many classes - often with current and former SEALS, Special Forces, MARSOC, and similar - never once have I met a top tier operator that suggested they could not learn something from taking a class. My mone...

The fundamentals of marksmanship are universal. Some different organizations put a different spin on them, but they are all inherently the same.  Appleseed: 1. Sight Alignment 2. Sight Picture 3. Respiratory pause 4. Focus eye / mind 5. Squeeze the trigger 6. Follow through Army: "BRASS" Breathe Relax Aim Sight  Squeeze NRA 1. Aiming 2. Breath Control 3. Hold Control 4. Trigger Control 5. Follow through When you take this Army Designated Marksmanship Instructor's statement into consideration, you realize that while breath control or respiratory pause is important, it might be the least important of the fundamentals. Paraphrased, he essentially said between the 1:00 mark and the 2:00 mark: Someone who tells you to fix your breathing to tighten up groups has demonstrated they have a thimble full of knowledge of marksmanship. And he is correct.  When it comes to pistol shooting for self defense applications, there are three main fundamentals that the shooter needs to conce...

This post from Knockoutlights on Instagram is a diamond: Fortunately there are solid instructors out there with both field experience and progressive firearms training. There are also firearm instructors with no field experience who can offer folks far more value than many of these instructors boasting about their backgrounds. Just because you’ve moved out of one career and into another doesn’t immediately qualify you as SME because you carried a gun for 20 plus years. Let your performance speak for It’s self not your credentials. If you don’t perceive yourself as a student of the craft than your shelf life as an instructor is expiring.

Found on social media.  The pertinence of what is shared is the motivation for this post. Bat Masterson on Deliberation… Any man who does not possess courage, proficiency in the use of firearms, and deliberation had better make up his mind at the beginning to settle his personal differences in some other manner than by an appeal to the pistol. I have known men in the West whose courage could not be questioned and whose expertness with the pistol was simply marvelous, who fell easy victims before men who added deliberation to the other two qualities. I will cite a few such instances that came under my own personal observation. Thirty-five years ago, Charlie Harrison was one of the best-known sporting men west of the Missouri River. He was of an impetuous temperament, quick of action, of unquestioned courage and the most expert man I ever saw with a pistol. He could shoot faster and straighter when shooting at a target than any man I ever knew; then add to that the fact that...

During a recent training, several new persons were present. One of them was assigned the middle spot on the right side of the wedge formation seen below: Also present was another participant who was also new, but also had experience as a US Army veteran. The veteran rightly took it upon himself to offer advice to the first participant. The vet suggested that the participant patrol with the rifle in the left hand, so as to present more quickly, should the team receive contact from the right.  After awaiting for the advice to end, the author added to the thought, and this is the essence of that conversation. Direct questioning revealed that the participant in question did not train often using the left hand. Truth be told, most right handed soldiers do not, either - including infantry and most other combat roles. Therefore, the question was asked: "in an effort to present more quickly, is the purpose to suppress, or to make a hit?" It is assumed that in either instance, the end...

Recent conversations relayed to the author: Q - What distance will we be shooting at this tactical carbine class? A - From 3 - 300 yards.  "Great! I'll bring my Savage 110 bolt action rifle!" Participant in a recent class did not hit as often at 300 as he wanted to. Participant changed ammo types twice in class (losing zero each time) and became understandably frustrated. Friend of participant says about his AR15 carbine equipped with a red dot: "Your instructor should have advised you that you were ill-equipped for the task at hand." Prospective participant asks about bringing multiple rifles to a carbine class: "Can I bring my bolt action with a scope for the long range portions?"  (the "long range" portions are 100, 200, and 300 yards.) Both of these statements proceed from a point of absolute ignorance. Sadly, this ignorance is widespread in and among the gun community. Mention shooting past 50 yards, and people start assuming one needs a...

Clint Smith of Thunder Ranch explains why not to shoot.  Here are some additions this author would add: 1. I don't have time.  It is all about priorities. A person will make time for the things he thinks are important. So, a more honest statement would be: "I do not think this is a top priority." 2. Money (I don't have enough to train) Again, this is a priority. What is funny is seeing people who vape or smoke, drink heavily on most weekends, then "don't have the money." Once, this author even saw that excuse, then the same person went to the beach the following weekend.  3. Weather If only all self defense situations were in perfect environments. Also, some of the best reviews come from classes held in the worst weather. 4. Safe Princesses Why have a gun if you cannot shoot it? And if you collect some guns, why not pick up a few to train with? The good training guns are usually cheaper than collector guns.  5. I already know how to shoot.  If you say t...

In the past, this blog has made recommendations on optics for your AR15 rifle. Specifically, the red dot, the Low Power Variable Optic (LPVO), and the low power fixed optics have been suggested for use on your rifle.  Moving forward, the suggestion for a low power fixed optic will be removed.  If you already have a low power fixed optic, train with it. In addition to marksmanship, work really hard on the up close material. Get used to using the Bindon Aiming Concept. Work hard on the up close - you will be at a disadvantage here, so over come it.  And that is reason #1 why the low power fixed is no longer on the suggestions list - most people will not train on it nearly enough to fight with it at urban distances.  Reason number 2 - the low power fixed optic does nothing that the LPVO cannot do. In many cases, the LPVO can have higher magnification. And the LPVO is vastly superior up close.  So here are the suggestions: 1. RED DOT You may want a flip to the side ...

Saturday, July 25, 2020.  Class: American Rifleman 25 paid participants. 22 came to class.  1 audited the class (heat concerns with health). Of the 22 participants: 5 ladies, 1 youth (age 10, male), 7 prior military (1 combat role - Army Cav Scout), 15 first rifle class, 15 first training class. Drills performed - marksmanship, zero the rifle, steel at 100 / 200 / 300 yards, Fundamental Marksmanship Evaluation. The Fundamental Marksmanship Evaluation is 10 shots on two 300 yard simulated targets (actual distance this day was 50 yards) performed in 90 seconds or less. "Expert Rifleman" is awarded for 9 or 10 hits. There is a mag change after 5 shots.  Given the distance and time, this evaluation is more difficult than the US Army marksmanship qualification. Note: the US Army reports an average of 27% of soldiers qualify as "Expert Rifleman." Their Marksmanship training is 2 weeks in length.  This class is a single day.  15 of the 22 participants scored ...

This was too long to post on the Facebook page, and it also needed a blog post. In Star Trek fiction, the Kobayashi Maru test was the  no-win scenario. This same no-win scenario most certainly exist in the gun culture. Specifically, when people ask the credentials of an instructor. The no-win scenario comes in because there is no way to make everyone happy with the instructor's credential. If the instructor was a Navy SEAL, then the person asking will say they wanted an Army Ranger. If the instructor was an Army Ranger, then the person asking will say they wanted a Navy SEAL. If the instructors were a Navy SEAL and an Army Ranger, then the person asking will say they wanted Marine Force Recon. If the instructor was former military, then the person asking will say they wanted former law enforcement. If the person was former law enforcement, then the person asking will say they wanted former military. There's no way to win. Furthermore, even if the instructor matches wha...

Recently, I asked several military veteran friends how they thought I might attract more former combat military to my classes. They were very gracious in their responses. The one subject line that kept coming up was ego - on the part of combat vets. The questions still remained though - how to get past that ego. I asked five different men: and I got five different answers (not surprisingly). I did not expect going in that any of them would have the answer to the question. I did expect they would provide insight from different points of view. I was not wrong in my expectations. For the sake of clarity - vets who did not serve in combat roles and are honest about that will be lumped into the same group as most civilians - they have minimal training, and they have almost identical buying habits to civilians when it comes to gun classes.  The purpose of these questions was to attract combat vets. Based on the responses I got, here are the discoveries made: Not all civilians adverti...

Several years back, I was able to play witness to a small number of US Military Veterans really give a civilian a hard time about gun and tactical training that was being taught. The irony was that the civilian was actually teaching at the behest of most of these individuals just a few months prior. There had been some drama, and the vets couldn't seem to drop it. This was what really changed my mind as to whom can instruct firearms and tactics classes. Hence, this blog post - which was written shortly after the drama, edited over time, and was way back in the day set to post on the last business day of April this year. Over the years, my perspective matured and refined. Of course, during that time, I took multiple classes myself - and that helped mold my current opinion, as well. When I take a class and take notes, some of the notes are of what the instructor does well. Some of the notes are about relevant material. And some of the notes are about presentation of the material...

NRA Rifle Instructor certified. Pistol coming next...

Because the firearms instruction industry does not have national standards (thank God!), a common question is "who is qualified to teach and who is not?" Many people have many opinions on who is and who is not qualified to teach. Indeed, there are many qualifications - formal and informal. But how do you sort it out? Furthermore, what experience and training makes a good teacher? “Qualifications” that are NOT qualifications to teach firearms: · Military service. EVEN Combat related and experience. · Police background. · Whether the person has been shot at. · Whether the person has had to shoot someone. Qualifications that are recognized: · NRA Certifications · USCCA Certifications · Here are some individual schools of good reputation, that issue teaching certifications (including, but not limited to): * Rangemaster USA * Gunsite * Mas Ayoob * Ken Hackathorn Understand that even the recognized qualifications will have detra...

This question was seen on social media. Below is the answer I gave. Question: When it comes to firearm training, would you chose someone with combat experience or someone that knows it but never been there? Answer:  The traits that make a good infantryman and the traits that make a good teacher are not mutually exclusive, but are rarely possessed by the same individual. Beware the individual who has been in a single gunfight, as they often try to want to win *that* fight, rather than the most common situations. Basics win fights. An individual who doesn't teach the basics is to be avoided. Even in the military, combat skills instructors do not always have combat experience. Just because the military does something a certain way does not make that method the most effective. Because of these facts, combat experience is toward the bottom of the list of things I would like to see in a teacher. Not irrelevant, but certainly not necessary. And for the record - those wh...

People often have mistaken ideas about what good gun training is. Some think it involves a "safety class." Others believe it is all about the handgun carry permit. And still others think it is about how to shoot at the most fundamentally mundane level ever. One thing people will say, when they hear you teach firearms classes, is something along the lines of "like a handgun safety class." Look, there's a reason that virtually nobody takes the NRA safety classes. 8 hours - 6 of it in a classroom, then only two hours and 50 rounds fired??? Not my idea of fun. Not to mention that the NRA shoots itself in the foot each time they help N egotiate our R ights A way. Every class I teach has a heavy emphasis on safety - but there is also (safe) fun, as well! Possibly the most common reply people make when they find out I teach gun classes is something along the lines of needing to take the carry permit class. I agree with them that they should, and add that they shoul...

By the numbers. 10 classes. 74 students. 2 family members. 8 comps. 15,000+ rounds. The first full course schedule year for Patriot Training was definitely a success. Every rifle shooter hit targets all the way out to 300 yards. Every handgun shooter hit targets at 25 yards. Find identity Financially, I learned that the break-even point is between four and five students for each class. We did not have a single class with fewer than 5 participants. Two classes had only 5 participants, but two other classes had 10+. Strategically, I learned how to advertise correctly on Facebook to maximize revenues. One thing I did not expect in this column was that I will have to keep careful watch, as about once per week on the Facebook ad there is an asinine post by somebody. It's best just to remove those quickly instead of trying to correct people, or correct opinion. Great year and I expect more in 2020.

  Here is an article  that details why you should not use a Serpa holster.