Stand and deliver shooting is insufficient
While stand and deliver shooting is important for building foundational skills in your training, it is insufficient in developing your overall skill set.
From the pool of students I’ve had come through my classes, many have never been exposed to training beyond the static range. And many have an inflated sense of their skills. So running a cold drill at the start of class is usually an eye-opening and humbling experience, exposing weaknesses such as distance, deterioration in performance under the pressure of a time constraint, and shining a light on their true level of skill.
There are many skills important to concealed carry, from getting your gun out fast, shooting at speed with accountability, engaging multiple targets with different levels of risk at various distances, shooting on the move and running longer courses of fire that go beyond one round.
My Concealed Performance Pistol class gives students the opportunity to work these specific skills and get exposure running their guns in a dynamic environment.
Putting skills to the test running USPSA classifier 24-08, “And Now for Something Completely Different,” as part of 1ST IN Concealed Performance Pistol class held on July 12th.
We run outlaw USPSA classifier stages as a way to pressure test on-demand EDC skills using many variables — all on a timer. My students get a chance to shake out gear and get an objective measure of skill. And it allows them to isolate and test shooting skills in an environment that’s meant to allow them to make mistakes so they can fix them.
The gun isn’t a magic talisman. Training must be pushed beyond stand and deliver shooting and reflect real-world use. And then put to the test using objective standards to guide and inform practice and training.