AAR: Ernest Langdon's Tactical Pistol Skills Course - Iowa - June 2018

R. Schoening

Amateur
After Action Report: Tactical Pistol Skills Course with Ernest Langdon

5W's and 1H
  • Who: Ernest Langdon or Langdon Tactical
  • What: Tactical Pistol Skills Course
  • When: June 9 and 10, 2018.
  • Where: Council Bluffs, IA @ LHGK.
  • Why: Pistol Course
  • How: Lecture, Demonstration and Hands On.
Instructor
  • Ernest Langdon, Langdon Tactical. For more information check out www.langdontactical.com.
  • Firearms Industry Experience: 30 years - Business Professional, Firearms Instructor, Gunsmith.
  • Military Experience: 12 years in the United States Marine Corps.
  • Competition Experience: 25 years - USPSA Grand Master, IDPA Distinguished Master.
  • Numerous Firearms National Championships and World Titles.
Students
  • Numbers: 13 (12 Male, 1 Female).
  • States Represented: Iowa, Nebraska, Missouri, Kansas, Texas
  • Backgrounds: Civilians and Former / Current DotMIL.
  • Ages: Mid 20's - Late 60's.
Weather
  • TD1: Hot and Sunny...some breeze.
  • TD2: Rain in the morning, Warm and Sunny the rest of the Day.
Tactical Pistol Skills - Lecture

We started off TD1 with a lecture block covering a variety of items listed below. This was one of the few firearms courses that I've attended that had a formal lecture such as this, this one was roughly 2 hours long and if I could describe it in a nutshell, I would call it a "catch all" as Ernest hit wide variety of topics that covered many of the questions that come up in classes throughout shooting blocks and at breaks.

Lecture Topics:
  • Instructor and Student Introductions
  • Instructor Biography.
  • Course Content, Background, Development.
  • Firearms and Range Safety Brief.
  • Firearms / Ammunition / Support Equipment - Holsters, ETC.
  • Experiences and Training - Combat / Competition / Training Classes.
  • Instructor and Students "Tips" - Teaching Styles, Targets Paper and Steel, ETC.
Tactical Pistol Skills - Practical Skills

Following Ernest's lecture we jumped in the practical portions of the class, TD1 and TD2 looked very similar as far as layout. We started slow and built speed from there. Ernest would introduce a topic, discuss it further if we had questions, demonstrate said topic, then we would begin working on the topic ourselves. Reps and Targets started slow and large in size and got faster and smaller in size as we progressed. Ernest worked the line providing feedback throughout both Training Days and we were pushed from start to finish to improve accuracy, manipulations and speed.

Practical Skills Topics:
  • Dry Fire, Single Shots, Multiple Shots - Lots of Accuracy Focused work.
  • Working from the Ready Position.
  • Working from the Holster.
  • Emergency Reloads.
  • Shooting with One Hand - Both Strong Side and Weak Side.
  • Multiple Targets.
  • Movement - Forward / Backward.
  • Movement - Laterally.
  • Movement - Asymmetrical.
  • Cover / Concealment - Right / Left / Horizontal, Shooting From / Over / Around.
Personal Thoughts

AWESOME Course! This was my first time linking up with and meeting Ernest, had high hopes for this course as I really wanted to see his content and the way he worked a class based on both his military and competition experience...was not disappointed in the least.

Class size for this one was smaller than most that I've attended which allowed for more personal attention to fine tune our skills.

Content wise, SOLID. Not a TON of topics, but TONS of reps that continued to build throughout the weekend. I enjoyed the lecture block as it covered many of the questions that come up in courses and have a tendency to slow down a classes forward momentum. One of the biggest things that I walked away with was an improvement in my multiple target "game". Ernest has a great stair stepped approach to attacking the multiple target skill set and I pulled lots from all of them. In addition to the multiple target work, the movement blocks were great and again covered some things I hadn't seen before.

While I saw several drills in class I had seen before, I had never shot the FAST Test, great drill and super challenging. I was STOKED to pull a FAST Hat Pin out of the Course, no easy task and I squeaked by when it mattered!

All that said, I enjoyed not only taking this one, but also hosting it! I enjoy hosting classes and really try to make the entire class experience a good one for not only the locals, but also for folks travelling in! Ernest's Advanced Pistol Skills Course is in my future and I'll definitely have him back for another course! If he is in your neck of the woods, check him out as he's professional, has no attitude or arrogance, discusses what he wants from you in detail and can perform to the standard...regardless of what your skill level is, you'll pull something from this one!

V/r - Rob
 

Attachments

  • Langdon Tactical  - LHGK 2018.jpg
    Langdon Tactical - LHGK 2018.jpg
    537.3 KB · Views: 22
Top