AAR: OpSpec Mother of All Classes (MOAC), Paducah KY October 2017

[Poplin]

This AAR was written the day after this five-day event.

Class Structure

We shot in relays of ten each. The non-shooting relay coached the shooting relay one-on-one. There were three instructors walking the line. Each round fired was therefore observed by about 1.3 people.

The first day concentrated on basics, like the draw and presentation. The second day is based on the Bill Drill, done at different speeds and distances. The third concentrated on target transitions. The fourth concentrated on strong- and weak- hand shooting. The fifth day was a day to work on speed as well as a review of everything.

Each day had a shooting standard that was shot in the beginning and end of the day. The par times were reasonable. For instance, the Bill Drill at 7 yards was three seconds. The standards were all done again on the last day. The score on all standard runs were recorded.

Total round count per person: 3700.


Places, People and Equipment

There was good weather—sunny and high in the 70’s all week. The location was a regular old 70 yard shooting range with a berm behind a gun shop. Unfortunately, the gun shop itself took extensive damage in a recent fire, and was not open. The steel targets were all new. There was a comfortable, plumbed building with a classroom nearby. Paducah has plenty of restaurants, hotels, and a Wal-Mart.

There were twenty students. Shooting experience among everyone was varied, but everyone had the appropriate baseline skill. I think everyone started out with the prerequisite skill of “draw and hit a target in 1.5 seconds.” Everyone in the class showed significant improvement throughout the week. Several students have taken the MOAC class every year. I think this shows that there is good repeat value in this class.

More than half of the students shot Sigs, either a P320 or a classic P-series. Other guns in attendance included M&Ps, an H&K P30 LEM, a Tanfoglio Stock II, and a Wilson 9mm 1911. Remarkably, there was only one or two Glocks. There were two or three red dot sighted guns. Some students used different guns throughout the week. The instructors used Sig exclusively. All guns worked well, and there were few stoppages. Holsters were plastic, and most major manufacturers were represented. Almost everyone used 9mm, although there was one or two .40S&W.

A student brought a lot of foreign 9mm factory ammo that appeared to be bad. Two rounds caused two plastic gun kaBooms within a few minutes of each other. Inspection of the cracked guns and fired casings showed convincing evidence of high pressure. The ammo was taken off the line, and more investigation is pending. There were no injuries noted at the time.


Points to Ponder

Process-oriented learning is the goal.

Looking over the gun causes one to shoot high. In real life, one can’t see results of the shot on, say, a person. Therefore, one has to call the shot and watch the sights lift. Staying behind the gun requires discipline.

In a high round count class situation, one should oil the gun differently than for carry. The gun gets very hot in class—the situation is very different than the carry gun. An appendix holster would be too hot too. One should use plenty of oil, and consider grease that stays in place.

With adult learning, one shoots and one coaches. The coach may do more watching the shooter and not the target. Often, the coach learns more.

Safety: Loaded-Muzzle-Finger-Target rules apply. The most frequent explanation after a gun accident: “I didn’t know it was loaded!” The safety brief occurs every morning and every time everyone returns from lunch.

“Train like you fight” doesn’t work. A football team might watch film and analyze the game on Monday. On Tuesday, the various positions do their own thing. Wednesday is perhaps a scrimmage and gym work. Thursday is a hard practice… and so on before the next game on Sunday. Gotta work on things separately. The team can’t play a football game every day.

When learning to do an oil change, one can do it sufficiently by simply opening the cap, unscrewing the nut, draining the oil, swapping out the filter, and so forth. After a little bit of experience, one might know to warm up the car first. Then, one would lube the filter to make a better seal. Then, the proper tools can be laid out for a neat job… and so forth. The same goes for shooting—teach the basics first, and add layers on top.

One can get on the trigger when only three conditions are met:

• The target is safe and available.
• The shot is legal and moral.
• The conscious decision to shoot has been made.

The whole game is to work the trigger without disturbing the gun. Prep the trigger, then roll through. When we start, perhaps we can prep the trigger 50%. As we get better, 70% and perhaps 95%. With sufficient skill, we can just roll right through, but we’re actually prepping the trigger as we do it. This is not “staging.” This is the basis behind the bump drill as well.

Dry fire is of utmost importance.


Range Shooting Tips

• Set the shoulders back like doing a deadlift. The tactical turtle disengages the shoulder joints and makes it more difficult. The tactical turtle causes a head dip, and gets my eye to the less optimum top part of the lenses of my glasses.
• Use the middle finger up the back of the holster to index onto the grip.
• Draw fast, but decelerate at the end of extension. Make sure to avoid the diving board effect. Prep the trigger on the way to extension. This is easier to see with a DA gun. Avoid the Quickdraw-Stop-Whack method.

The Takeaway Message

Work the trigger without disturbing the gun. Prep the trigger, then roll through. This is the entire game.


Conclusion

This was an excellent class. There was good learning, good takeaway messages, and a good pathway for self-improvement. I appreciated the high round count, but I also appreciated that every round that went downrange was coached, timed, and/or scored. There was no mindless shooting into the berm. Five days is a long time to commit to shooting, and I’m glad the time was used well.

[Mr Pink]

Sounds like a fun course. It's interesting that you mention "Several students have taken the MOAC class every year". With the price of the course, ammo, and lodging, this would tend to be a very expensive course. Returning students is a good indicator of the real value of the class.