BassCliff
Hellcat
Greetings and Salutations!
I was JAZZED today because Mrs. BassCliff rescheduled our moving sale and left Saturday open for me to attend the Skill Builder Workshop at Lytle Creek Firing Line. I've been taking this training class twice a month since October 2021 and it's been a blast. This morning was a little frustrating because CalTrans decided to shut down three lanes of the freeway right at the exit I usually take. I missed the previous exit so I had to grind it out and be patient. I usually leave myself some wiggle room for driving time so I wasn't late for class. Whew!
It was a small class today. We started with our usual discussion about current events and how they could affect us. It was a gorgeous morning at the range.
The class started with only four students and one instructor from the basic class. Because he had no students that morning, James came down to work out with us. For our first exercise Coach Chris said, "Here's your rock". We started at three yards. It was going to be close quarters for the first few drills.
Of course, we used our rocks to practice drawing and firing with one hand. We were practicing head shots on the paper plates. So far so good. We did a few with our strong hand and a few with our weak hand. Coach noticed that most of us were punching out all the way when it wasn't necessary. I tried a couple shots before full extension and did OK, got them on the plate. Then the instructor had us try a little experiment.
He would have us draw to low ready, then put that cardboard over our pistol. Then without using the sights, or even seeing our gun, we had to put a couple rounds on the plate. My first shot was low and right. I made a little adjustment for my second shot. You really had to think "point and shoot" because that's all you had to work with.
We were still at three yards here so there's no great need for exact marksmanship. It's CQB. Then we simulated trying to shoot after being knocked down. We sat down on the ground and leaned back on one hand like we were catching our fall.
We practiced strong hand and weak hand shooting while on the ground. I found out I need to practice my draw using my weak (left) hand. It's a bit fiddly getting my pistol out of my right handed holster.
Then we shot a couple rounds behind us. I asked Instructor Chris when this might come in handy. It could be a handy move if someone came up behind you as you entered your home. Instead of taking the time to turn around, just draw, bend a little at the waist, and shoot backwards.
For the next drill we backed up to seven yards and took a knee. Again, going for all head shots, draw, one shot with strong hand only, transition to weak hand only, one shot, re-holster. We did a few reps of this.
I was doing pretty well today. All but two of my shots were on the plate after all these drills.
Then we took a little break while Chris explained to us the strategy behind a security escort. He also asked if our family had a special code word for emergencies. Say the magic word and everyone knows there's a threat. Then you either have a plan or everyone knows to follow orders.
This is the chart Chris drew for us. One of the other students, Doug, said this is right out of the Marine Handbook. There's a guy on point, two on the flanks, one on your six. The "P" is the "principal", the one being guarded, i.e. Mrs. BassCliff, granddaughters, etc. I should be able to find that Marine Handbook online somewhere.
The square below is a car. Chris explained how the security people exit in proper order so as to protect the principal when they have to pull up to a curb. Interesting stuff. I just hope trying to get my family to safety is easier than herding cats.
Yes, it was a marvelous day up here on the range. There's just a little bit of snow left on top of the local foothills.
This is always a fun drill, a real "scoot and shoot". We start about forty yards away from the firing line, run up, take a left, and put one shot in all five targets. The exact procedure was left up to us, depending on what fine points we wanted to work on. We can hit the first two targets as we run by, stop at the mark, hit the remaining three. Or we can just run to the mark in the middle of the line and hit all five targets, two hands, strong hand only, weak hand, or any combination.
I did two runs of this drill, the first one I have on video. My second run was better. First run was 3/5 on the plates, second run was 5/5 on the plates using strong hand only as I moved by the first two targets.
Then Chris and a couple of the students started sharing some other toys they brought to the range this morning. I did not shoot the shotgun today. I shot a whole box of 00B shells just a couple of days ago and my shoulder was still a little bruised. I need to build up some callouses.
Kevin brought his 9mm PCC rifle to practice his transition to pistol. He let me shoot a magazine and then fumble through a transition. He had his red dot zeroed perfectly. I couldn't miss. But then I forgot to put to safety on when I transitioned to pistol.
Chris brought out his Kel-Tec RDB bullpup rifle. The "Hunter" model is legal here. Imagine that.
Tony and I shot just a few rounds. The optic was not zeroed properly so we just got a feel for it. It felt nice. The trigger was great and the .223 rounds were very light recoil. I would imagine the 5.56 rounds are not bad either.
We've got a little more fun left. I'll share the rest in the next post. Thanks for looking!
Thank you for your indulgence,
BassCliff
I was JAZZED today because Mrs. BassCliff rescheduled our moving sale and left Saturday open for me to attend the Skill Builder Workshop at Lytle Creek Firing Line. I've been taking this training class twice a month since October 2021 and it's been a blast. This morning was a little frustrating because CalTrans decided to shut down three lanes of the freeway right at the exit I usually take. I missed the previous exit so I had to grind it out and be patient. I usually leave myself some wiggle room for driving time so I wasn't late for class. Whew!
It was a small class today. We started with our usual discussion about current events and how they could affect us. It was a gorgeous morning at the range.
The class started with only four students and one instructor from the basic class. Because he had no students that morning, James came down to work out with us. For our first exercise Coach Chris said, "Here's your rock". We started at three yards. It was going to be close quarters for the first few drills.
Of course, we used our rocks to practice drawing and firing with one hand. We were practicing head shots on the paper plates. So far so good. We did a few with our strong hand and a few with our weak hand. Coach noticed that most of us were punching out all the way when it wasn't necessary. I tried a couple shots before full extension and did OK, got them on the plate. Then the instructor had us try a little experiment.
He would have us draw to low ready, then put that cardboard over our pistol. Then without using the sights, or even seeing our gun, we had to put a couple rounds on the plate. My first shot was low and right. I made a little adjustment for my second shot. You really had to think "point and shoot" because that's all you had to work with.
We were still at three yards here so there's no great need for exact marksmanship. It's CQB. Then we simulated trying to shoot after being knocked down. We sat down on the ground and leaned back on one hand like we were catching our fall.
We practiced strong hand and weak hand shooting while on the ground. I found out I need to practice my draw using my weak (left) hand. It's a bit fiddly getting my pistol out of my right handed holster.
Then we shot a couple rounds behind us. I asked Instructor Chris when this might come in handy. It could be a handy move if someone came up behind you as you entered your home. Instead of taking the time to turn around, just draw, bend a little at the waist, and shoot backwards.
For the next drill we backed up to seven yards and took a knee. Again, going for all head shots, draw, one shot with strong hand only, transition to weak hand only, one shot, re-holster. We did a few reps of this.
I was doing pretty well today. All but two of my shots were on the plate after all these drills.
Then we took a little break while Chris explained to us the strategy behind a security escort. He also asked if our family had a special code word for emergencies. Say the magic word and everyone knows there's a threat. Then you either have a plan or everyone knows to follow orders.
This is the chart Chris drew for us. One of the other students, Doug, said this is right out of the Marine Handbook. There's a guy on point, two on the flanks, one on your six. The "P" is the "principal", the one being guarded, i.e. Mrs. BassCliff, granddaughters, etc. I should be able to find that Marine Handbook online somewhere.
The square below is a car. Chris explained how the security people exit in proper order so as to protect the principal when they have to pull up to a curb. Interesting stuff. I just hope trying to get my family to safety is easier than herding cats.
Yes, it was a marvelous day up here on the range. There's just a little bit of snow left on top of the local foothills.
This is always a fun drill, a real "scoot and shoot". We start about forty yards away from the firing line, run up, take a left, and put one shot in all five targets. The exact procedure was left up to us, depending on what fine points we wanted to work on. We can hit the first two targets as we run by, stop at the mark, hit the remaining three. Or we can just run to the mark in the middle of the line and hit all five targets, two hands, strong hand only, weak hand, or any combination.
I did two runs of this drill, the first one I have on video. My second run was better. First run was 3/5 on the plates, second run was 5/5 on the plates using strong hand only as I moved by the first two targets.
Then Chris and a couple of the students started sharing some other toys they brought to the range this morning. I did not shoot the shotgun today. I shot a whole box of 00B shells just a couple of days ago and my shoulder was still a little bruised. I need to build up some callouses.
Kevin brought his 9mm PCC rifle to practice his transition to pistol. He let me shoot a magazine and then fumble through a transition. He had his red dot zeroed perfectly. I couldn't miss. But then I forgot to put to safety on when I transitioned to pistol.
Chris brought out his Kel-Tec RDB bullpup rifle. The "Hunter" model is legal here. Imagine that.
Tony and I shot just a few rounds. The optic was not zeroed properly so we just got a feel for it. It felt nice. The trigger was great and the .223 rounds were very light recoil. I would imagine the 5.56 rounds are not bad either.
We've got a little more fun left. I'll share the rest in the next post. Thanks for looking!
Thank you for your indulgence,
BassCliff
It's been a great experience learning from Instructor Chris and the other accomplished shooters. If any of you are local to Southern California, I can't recommend this class enough. Great people, great instruction, great drills, great camaraderie, at a great price too.