Presscheck Consulting No-Fail Pistol for LE, modified for the 'Rona

[paherne]

Where: Field Sports Park, 200 yard range, Santa Clara, CA
When: Sunday, Dec 6, 2020
This class was supposed to occur on 12/5-12/6 at the SMCO Sheriff's Range at Coyote Point. The recent clampdown of Covid 19 restrictions in CA put that plan in the shitter, thanks Gavin. The course host, Troy Garr, did some superhuman stuff and got us the 200 yard range at the Santa Clara County Field Sports Park on Sunday, 12/6 because that was all that was available. Troy returned half of our money, in cash, to everyone who attended. I was prepared to accept a check or wait for a paypal or other refund. Nope. Troy had hookers and blow money, on tap. The SMCO Rangemaster was in attendance. He could not countermand the county Health Officer's orders, and he's a good dude that I am proud to know and work with, regularly. Troy's work to get this range and Chuck Pressburg's willingness to roll with the punches and adjust his 20 hour POI program to 10 hours of instruction was fantastic in this time of uncertainty.

Synopsis: Chuck Pressburg is a fanatical instructor. Fanatical in that he is a student of conflict and he is extremely passionate about the subject. He is not a "This is the way" guy; he would be a shitty Mandalorian, while also being the best Mandalorian. Results are all that matter. He steals and credits stuff from EVERYBODY(not really), as long as it works. He explains why he does what he does. Most importantly, he understands that letting a student fail and have a significant emotional event is the start of the learning process. Chuck understands adult learning processes better than any other instructor I have ever taken instruction from.

Full Review to follow, but I'm too tired and it would not do this class justice if I finished this tonight.

Bottom Line: If you are a cop and you do not take a Chuck Pressburg class, you are wrong. If you're an honest, earth-person citizen and there is a Chuck Pressburg class in your area, take it.

[Mark D]

Field Sports Park is a good range. I've trained there several times. And Troy Garr is a solid dude, hosting a lot of classes for the Bay Area/Norcal crew. Glad you got some good training in, despite the 'rona.

[FNFAN]

I agree with everything paherne said about the NoFail class. Son and I took it when Chuck was in Colorado last fall and it is exceptional instruction with a very well thought out rationale behind every step of the training. It's a class I will take again, especially if I transition to using a dot sight.

[BJJ]

I am looking forward to the full report.

[LittleLebowski]

Earlier this year, Chuck did me a real solid (personally) and I really look forward to taking his class sooner rather than later.

[LittleLebowski]

Really looking forward to the full AAR.

[paherne]

Temp: it was in the low 40's with about a 5 mph wind and blowing fog. Everyone froze their butts off.
Round count: about 500

We started out with safety brief and administrative tasks. Chuck tells you his theory of why he is teaching the class. Long story short, good flat-range shooters were suffering failures in shoothouse or F on F scenarios. He explains his rationale for his preferred target area which is the human heart, not the upper thoracic cavity. He talked about using range sessions as a selection tool and also as a training evaluation. Chuck made it very clear that he was not there to teach us how to shoot. WHAT?

Most of the rounds we fired in this course were at 25 yards on B-8 targets. More to follow.

[paherne]

So, the class followed a format of 3-4 iterations of 25 yard, 10 rounds in 10 minutes with an 80% accuracy standard. In other words, Chuck doesn't put pressure on you, you shoot as fast as you can keep 80% of your rounds in the black of a B-8 repair center. You find your own limits. Chuck explains why you can only do this 3-4 times before you fry your brain concentrating and it is unproductive. We zeroed at the same time, and he explained his theory about clicks and zeroing. Clicks are free, see if that shit works. Take the class if you want to understand his target diagnostics for zeroing. It is extensive, and it makes sense.

Most folk's scores improved or plateaued until the fourth run. Chuck told us we were all going to fall into shit and screw up. We did. He let us learn that lesson by doing. You cannot maintain concentration that long and achieve good results. Having an instructor tell you something is one thing. And, in a class of alpha-male SWAT cops, firearms instructors, K9 handlers, UC guys, etc. and just general ego-centric dicks, it doesn't work. All of us have been shot at, pointed guns at the bad man and been in fights for our lives and come out the far side. I say that not to stroke my own ego, nor tout the bad-assery of the guys present; it's just a fact. It's the little lie we tell ourselves that allows us to saddle up every day and do our jobs. It's what enables us to bury our friends and colleagues, point out their failures and say, "But that wouldn't happen to me," and continue doing the job. Even as large a personality as Kool-Aid Man Chuck Pressburg is not going to impress us. Until we fail, miserably. Our own targets convict us: those of you Christians understand why I used that word. And that is the genius of No-Fail Pistol and Chuck Pressburg. His system shows you your weaknesses and they are exposed in the cold light of day. He does not yell at you, nor berate you. You are never called out for your failure. There is no need to. The target tells the tale. I can look up and down the line and see, by the pattern of holes on everyone's target, where I stand. I am not happy. I would rate my performance at the bottom 50% of the class.

Two rapid transit cops are on my left and those SOB's groups look like Federal Flite Control at 25 yards, about 6". The guy next to me on the right is range staff at a large SO, a Marine who is shooting a G45, and he is sucking, hard. I'm shooting my RMR-equipped, 2019 Staccato P Duo and the gun is perfect, more accurate than I deserve. And I suck. Bad. My best score is 92, 4X.

[paherne]

Even though Pressburg says he is not there to teach you how to shoot, between each evolution, he gathers us up and notes some of the problems he sees in our shooting. There is a pattern to this; he starts off with a story or movie reference, etc. that has a point to the lesson he is trying to impart. His presentation is often funny and profane, which is appropriate given the nature of the audience. Then he switches gears after making everyone laugh and lowering the tension. He explains an issue, in my case it was porpoising as I was searching for the dot because of a bad presentation. He tells us how to correct the issue, then he shoots a demonstration of the mistake and shows the results on target, followed by a correct technique and the rounds hitting the black.

This is the adult learning stuff I talked about earlier. While his stories and anecdotes are loud, raucous vignettes, his behavior to individual shooters is completely the opposite. He made one comment during a test to congratulate my efforts during a weak-hand only timed drill. I did not see him make individual corrections while moving up and down the line. He walks back and forth, up and down the line and simply observes. Chuck never pointed out I was porpoising. He simply explained the issue to the whole class and pointed out why you should never make fun of a student for doing it. He then provided ways to correct it during his demo and instruction phase.

All of the issues he identified were handled the same way. The student learns to identify their own issues and attempt the correct technique. The target shows the results.

His language and affect are very specifically chosen. He does not say, "You're holding that pistol like a little bitch and the dot is wobbling all over the target, " he says, "I'm holding my pistol like a little bitch and the dot is is wobbling all over the target." This self-deprecation is funny and avoids singling out any student.

[Mark D]

Chuck tells you his theory of why he is teaching the class. Long story short, good flat-range shooters were suffering failures in shoothouse or F on F scenarios. ...Most of the rounds we fired in this course were at 25 yards on B-8 targets..

I'd like to hear more about Chuck's theory. I enjoy B-8 targets at 25, it's one of my better skills with a pistol. But I have a hard time understanding how that slow-fire flat-range accuracy helps in dynamic FoF. I know a number of people who really struggle with 25 yard B-8's, but they do just as good as me in FoF. Which made me think that slow fire accuracy at 25 yards was of little importance for FoF or most *real* gunfights. So I'd appreciate any of Chuck's rationale you can share, or your own thoughts on the matter.