08-19-2017, 02:40 PM
Guys:
Klem and Bowhntr have concisely presented the variables involved. Let me offer the following when it comes you guys putting out a lot of money for training. Just understand that my training style is very intuitive. I am not very dogmatic about things I don't think have any meaning. If a shooter / team meets the success criteria we have established for their goals, it doesn't matter how they communicated, got into position, what support was used, what finger was used to pull the trigger, what eye was dominant, etc. Success trumps all dogma and lessons learned.
First -- be certain that the course being offered meets your goals. I have read dozens of course outlines and they are all basically boiler plate with huge lists of tasks that you will do. Not necessarily do well, or become proficient with doing, or that meet your goals. Any course should have a clearly written end state or goal(s) that have achievable standards and that you know can be done within the time allotted. A sanity check is to see how many primary training objectives you will be expected to do in one day and how they will be evaluated for success. Generally speaking, in one training day of about 8 hours, a decent cadre can accomplish two major training objectives. With very experienced shooters who do not need coaching anymore, three. For a new shooter or team, they will be smoked after about four hours but a decent cadre can continue to get performance from them if they do the right things, for another couple hours.
Second -- ensure you are bringing the right gear to the course. LRRP52 is one of the very few I have seen who will tell you that you do not need a 1/2 minute blaster for his course because of the target sizes, mid range or closer distances, and his intent which is something more akin to tactical training for SDM's. So a 16" blaster that holds a minute at 600 is more than sufficient. When I run training I have some questions in the entry form. I ask about the experience level of the shooter / team, their equipment, ammo, optics (scope and spotting scope), and their goals. If I see something that I know will be a problem, I contact them and we go over the potential problem. Much stems from them not being able to articulate their goals so we end up working on that as well. So, it pays you to contact the instructor and go over your goals, and equipment to ensure you get the type of training you want and that your gear is capable of allowing you to meet your goals.
Third -- you really need to be in decent physical condition for many if not all marksmanship courses you will be paying for. I have seen people so obese that they can hardly fit into a shooting bench, let alone go prone or anything else. And for those who are in decent shape, if you are going from sea level to LRRP52's stuff in Utah, you best get there a couple days early to acclimatize.
Forth -- know how your optic works and what the increments of elevation and windage mean, and how the reticle works. This doesn't mean you read the instructions but rather you have thoroughly tested the optic out on a range. You can do this at a 100 yard distance easily using box drills and holds with the reticle pattern. You will not learn your optic unless you shoot bullets on paper at a known distance.
Fifth -- I have never seen anyone succeed unless their attention was focused on their shooting and the environment. This means their five senses were completely focused on very specific cues being taken in from their environment and that the shooter and observer were focused on one thing when the shot was taken. Very few courses emphasize the cues a team needs to take in and fewer emphasize where the attention of the shooter and observer need to be at various stages of the engagement. If you see these sorts of things in a course outline, it probably means a decent course will be presented.
Anyway -- those are some of my lessons learned.
LR1955
Klem and Bowhntr have concisely presented the variables involved. Let me offer the following when it comes you guys putting out a lot of money for training. Just understand that my training style is very intuitive. I am not very dogmatic about things I don't think have any meaning. If a shooter / team meets the success criteria we have established for their goals, it doesn't matter how they communicated, got into position, what support was used, what finger was used to pull the trigger, what eye was dominant, etc. Success trumps all dogma and lessons learned.
First -- be certain that the course being offered meets your goals. I have read dozens of course outlines and they are all basically boiler plate with huge lists of tasks that you will do. Not necessarily do well, or become proficient with doing, or that meet your goals. Any course should have a clearly written end state or goal(s) that have achievable standards and that you know can be done within the time allotted. A sanity check is to see how many primary training objectives you will be expected to do in one day and how they will be evaluated for success. Generally speaking, in one training day of about 8 hours, a decent cadre can accomplish two major training objectives. With very experienced shooters who do not need coaching anymore, three. For a new shooter or team, they will be smoked after about four hours but a decent cadre can continue to get performance from them if they do the right things, for another couple hours.
Second -- ensure you are bringing the right gear to the course. LRRP52 is one of the very few I have seen who will tell you that you do not need a 1/2 minute blaster for his course because of the target sizes, mid range or closer distances, and his intent which is something more akin to tactical training for SDM's. So a 16" blaster that holds a minute at 600 is more than sufficient. When I run training I have some questions in the entry form. I ask about the experience level of the shooter / team, their equipment, ammo, optics (scope and spotting scope), and their goals. If I see something that I know will be a problem, I contact them and we go over the potential problem. Much stems from them not being able to articulate their goals so we end up working on that as well. So, it pays you to contact the instructor and go over your goals, and equipment to ensure you get the type of training you want and that your gear is capable of allowing you to meet your goals.
Third -- you really need to be in decent physical condition for many if not all marksmanship courses you will be paying for. I have seen people so obese that they can hardly fit into a shooting bench, let alone go prone or anything else. And for those who are in decent shape, if you are going from sea level to LRRP52's stuff in Utah, you best get there a couple days early to acclimatize.
Forth -- know how your optic works and what the increments of elevation and windage mean, and how the reticle works. This doesn't mean you read the instructions but rather you have thoroughly tested the optic out on a range. You can do this at a 100 yard distance easily using box drills and holds with the reticle pattern. You will not learn your optic unless you shoot bullets on paper at a known distance.
Fifth -- I have never seen anyone succeed unless their attention was focused on their shooting and the environment. This means their five senses were completely focused on very specific cues being taken in from their environment and that the shooter and observer were focused on one thing when the shot was taken. Very few courses emphasize the cues a team needs to take in and fewer emphasize where the attention of the shooter and observer need to be at various stages of the engagement. If you see these sorts of things in a course outline, it probably means a decent course will be presented.
Anyway -- those are some of my lessons learned.
LR1955