ChrisL VSM Basic Pistol - 4/2/11
ChrisL VSM Basic Pistol- 4/2/11
My History:
Prior training for me is US Coast Guard and VSM Basic Pistol 2/19/11. I'm new to the firearms training environment and have along way go before I reach my personal goals.
I had arranged for one of my buddies to take this class with me but he was unable too due to a freak illness and is currently still in the hospital. Chris was completely understanding about my buddy not being able to make the class and left it up to him on if he wanted a credit towards future class or refund.
Trainer/Class Info:
Trainer was ChrisL he is an active and busy LEO in Arizona that has attended classes from a large variety of known trainers. The class tuition was $125 and was held at the Casa Grande Police Range. Chris is a super nice guy and passionate about helping people improve their shooting ability.
Class:
The class ran from 0900 to 1800 with approximately 400 rds shot. Chris started us off with a safety brief and introductions. There were 5 students with 2 of us being from the previous 2/19 basic pistol class. Chris mentioned he is going to keep his class sizes around this number in the future. The last class had more students and was a good class but I really liked the smaller class size. This class was a lot of fun as everyone was encouraging each other, talking smack and helping each other out when they could.
Like the last class Chris worked on building us up 1 skill at a time till we had the whole picture. He would do a drill to work on one skill this would include huddling us up to explain what we were to do, why he like the method of doing it that way, answer questions about what we were going to do and then we would execute the drill. It seemed like the smaller class size encouraged more questions as a whole which is probably the reason we shot less rounds this class. With that said I felt like I got more out of the class from this and didn't even notice we shot less until someone mentioned how many rounds he shot total that day.
First we worked on fundamentals a short range (10yds and in) like trigger, staying on the front sight, grip, reloads etc. During this time we worked with partners setting up each others pistols either with a round or with out to diagnose any issues. After that we went over pistol zero. Pistol zero portion was something that was going to be covered in the first class but think due to weather was passed over. I really liked it's addition and think it helped me later on when we moved out to further distances.
After lunch we had a unplanned break when someone came to the range seeking help for a roll over accident a short distance away. Chris left to help until someone else got on scene. We didn't really lose much time considering the circumstances and later on in the class a gentleman that was at the accident stopped by to thank Chris for his help.
Second half we worked on different drills like holster to threat, multiple bulls eye drills at different times between drills and ranges, half & half drill, SHO & WHO drills, malfunction drills, etc. I know I'm missing a few of the drills as I wrote down the actual drill to use in the future but somehow forgot to put the names in. We also used a lot of different targets (photo realistic, IDPA, bulls eye, dots, etc) which I personally liked as it kept me on my toes.
Couple of photos before my camera battery puked.
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At the end of the class Chris had us do the walk back drill on steel which I thought all of us students did well on with most people staying in till we reached 50 & 75 yards. The last drill was a man vs man competition involving two students having to diagnose a malfunction and then getting a first hit on steel at 25 yards. This competition was a good time with Mr. ASU winning in the end.
Conclusion:
Guns in the class were varied from glock, sig, xd, m&p and 1911's. No issues other then the Sig having issues with after market magazines and 1 worn out 1911 magazine that was disposed of promptly.
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With the smaller class size we were able to watch each other shoot more and was inspiring to see everyone's progress through out the day. Once again Chris was right on at diagnosing my issues as when I applied his advice it always resulted in a quality hit or better time.
Once again the class was a bargain at $125 in my eyes to see what I need to work on and where I've improved. I personally think these VSM classes have been a great introduction to firearms training while seeing gains in my performance tracking numbers in my own practice. In the future I plan on attending more of Chris's classes while also attending classes from other instructors when possible.
