Modern Samurai Ft Payne Alabama 2/11-12/23

[Randy Harris]

I spent this past weekend in Fort Payne Alabama at the Modern Samurai Project, LLC Red Dot Pistol Fundamentals class . Scott and his assistant Hunter are the most skilled lead and AI combo I have seen in a pistol class. They can both shoot ….as it should be.

As you can tell from the group picture the weather was….less than optimal. The rain was never really heavy but combined with the cold temps ( in the high 30s to high 40s) it was enough to make things more difficult. I was really wishing I’d brought an outside the waistband duty type holster and a parka by the end. The 3 shirts and long Johns under my pants and a waterproof jacket made it tolerable but taking off the jacket to shoot was not ideal.

For me personally it was a bit of an adjustment to do things the way Scott does them. His techniques obviously work but it is hard to break 25+ years of habit in 2 days. I just need some more reps to burn it all in.

I had some ups ( winning 2 of the 3 class competitions - the Bill Drill and the King of the Hill 25 yard shoot out) and some downs ( not stopping to take the mulligan on my fouled draw on the 1st string on the test ) . We preach “keep fighting even if you screw up” so when it happened I just fought through the bad draw even when I could’ve just stopped , reset, and done it over. Hard to break habits . Oh well some days you eat the bear and sometimes the bear eats you . Such is life. I did however hit the Black Belt time on the 25 yard draw and shoot (1.43). But in all honesty by that point I was pretty miserable from the cold and the wet weather and looking forward to firing up the heater in my car.

My friend Juan Aponte also attended and had it not been for him giving me some “hot hands” I’d have been even more miserable than I was . Thanks again Juan!

So enough of my whining about the weather. Bottom line? The class was excellent, Scott and Hunter are both super fast and accurate and the material works. Scott is an entertaining instructor that doesn’t take himself too seriously. Funny thing about that , a lot of the higher skilled dudes are pretty easy going….because they KNOW they have the skills and don’t have to prove it.

[Randy Harris]

If you want to see some videos from the class they can be seen on my FB page at https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100083096239602

[Dave Williams]

It certainly is a pressure cooker doing these drills in front of the class, and also the man vs man shoot off during the class wouldn’t you say? I’ve taken the class from one of his his certified instructors. You have some fast hands.

[HCM]

It certainly is a pressure cooker doing these drills in front of the class, and also the man vs man shoot off during the class wouldn’t you say? I’ve taken the class from one of his his certified instructors. You have some fast hands.

You are spot on. I won the 25 yard man vs man shoot off in the last MSP class I attended - mostly via consistency and what Steve Fisher calls “emotional control” rather than being THE fastest shooter. That doesn’t mean you can be slow.

PS: I highly recommend MSP and I would like to highlight Hunter Freeland, who has progressed from an MSP AI to one of a Scott’s “staff instructors” (meaning he can teach MSP classes in his own for Scott). Hunter is an excellent shooter and up and coming instructor you will be hearing more from on the future.

[GJM]

For me personally it was a bit of an adjustment to do things the way Scott does them. His techniques obviously work but it is hard to break 25+ years of habit in 2 days. I just need some more reps to burn it all in.

What were the things that you changed?

[vcdgrips]

Sounds like much learning occurred. Great Job.

FWIW. The belts below were configured for the primary purpose of training in inclement weather.
The FDE one is for Glock and was put together w stuff just I had about.

The Blk one is for 1911and was put together in the same colorway based on what worked on the FDE one.

They are sized big enough to go around we wearing a shell and a few layers.

FWIW

[Randy Harris]

What were the things that you changed?

Tried to change?

In his stance, the feet are more separated front to back than I normally do. He suggests toes of shooting foot perpendicular to HEEL of the support foot instead of the instep of the support foot.

His grip is slightly different than mine. Thumbs not quite as forward .

He suggest standing straight up with no forward bend or lean at the waist. Those are all just different enough that I was constantly thinking about whether I was doing the techniques right vs just shooting.