DDPatriot
Newbie
Class AAR and Key Observations: The class started with a brief introduction by Matt, where he outlined his previous military, law enforcement, and industry professional experience. He then asked for everyone to briefly introduce themselves, and to share a little bit about themselves and their prior experience. During the introduction I knew this was going to be an awesome class just from the diversity of people and variety of experience levels. There were several current and former military, LEO, gun industry professionals, computer people, and trainers in the group. All just regular people. The safety brief was next. He told us what is expected from each of us in regards to weapon handling, the 4 gun safety rules, weapon safety's, what is expected from each of us when someone yells "cease fire", and a few general dos and don'ts. Also at that time he established who had medical training, key information for what to do if someone went down, and the leadership structure, should he be the one who went down.
We then were broken down into 2 groups that would alternate shooting for the remainder of the day. First order of the day was going prone at 50 yards to confirm our rifles zeroes. Most everyone's rifle was good to go so it only took a few 3 shot groups to square us away. Then we were shooting offhand and from varying distances between 10 and 75 yards to learn about the relationship between the height of our iron sights/optics, the barrel of our rifle and how that elevation translates to the point of impact.
The day progressed into a number of different drills, each drill building on the previous one. Various rifle presentations were covered along with when and why you would use them. How it may relate to use in everyday life. Along with drills to hammer home what was just taught and reinforce the previously learned lessons.
Then we shot a few timed drills that unlike previous classes, I wasn't as worried/nervous about the scary little blue box. A shot timer is nothing more than a tool that measures the truth. And the "truth" being, can you perform the drill in the allotted time or do you have some things to work on. If I remember correctly the timed drills were one shot, low ready < 1.25 seconds, one shot high, ready <1.25 seconds, three shots, combat reload, three more shots <8 seconds, and finally modified El Presidente <13 seconds. And they were shot at like 10 to 15 yards so you also had to take holdover into account. I didn't set any records, but I learned a bunch in the process, and I am happy with my results. With a few exceptions I shot pretty clean runs and very close to the target times. As a noob with a carbine, I'm good with that.
After lunch we duplicated rifle malfunctions and then practiced clearing them. After seeing the group hesitate when the gun stopped, Matt stressed the importance of performing immediate action without hesitation and getting your gun back in the fight. Work through the malfunction. Overall it was very helpful and informative, and the actual first hand practical experience was invaluable but rifle malfunctions fucking suck. One member of the class had to field strip his SCAR, twice to clear the jam (according to the FN rep in the class, they have fixed what causes that malfunction in recent SCAR models).
The part of the day I thought was the most fun was shooting around barricades. At 50 yards on steel you had to have two hits to proceed. The drill was two shots kneeling to the right of the barricade, two shots standing on the right side of the "window", two shots standing on the left side of the "window", transition to your non-dominant hand and two shots.
The culmination drill at the end of the day (Tap Out drill) using the 5 barricades from earlier in the day was outstanding. There were 5 barricades with three "stations" at each barricade. Five shooters with coaches started at each barricade. You were to get two hits on steel at 50 yards, to the right, center, and then transition to the non-dominant side and shoot on the left side of the barricade. You could not move until you hit the target. You were to shoot each station, at each barricade then move to the barricade to the left. If you reach station 1 at the first barricade (barricade 1) you then run to barricade 5 to start all over. The rules were you were to engage the safety between each station/barricade, if you did not mind your muzzle awareness, or if too much of your body was revealed Matt would tap you on the shoulder, you were done. If the shooter behind you caught up and tapped you on the shoulder you were done. Even though I did not move past the first round, and being a noob, I think I did outstanding on this drill. In retrospect the drill was a complete blur, I remember starting the drill, and the finish, but the in between, not so much. I couldn't tell you if I caught up to anyone or not. Pretty sure I did, but not sure. I remember focusing on getting good hits, minding my safety, muzzle awareness, and hauling ass when I could. When the shooter behind me caught up to me, I remember that I was struggling, my legs felt like jello, my heart was pounding, and my rail was so hot I couldn't touch it. I started with five, thirty round mags and had only one left in reserve with about 15 left in the gun. So I finished second in my group, but still satisfied with the result. Going from no training or practical experience with a carbine, to this drill, and doing well.
Speaking for only myself, but I'm certain that many of his other students would agree. Matt is an amazing instructor, and I feel very fortunate to have taken two classes from him. Even though he is the only instructor out there, you always get one on one instruction from him. He seems to not miss anything. He is very personable, and able train/teach/explain information from a real world, practical use perspective. For this class specifically it was hot, and after this class I think I have a pretty good idea what a turkey feels like in the oven, but I was impressed that throughout the class, he constantly focused on his students well being. Every break he would always tell us to "Drink water"
Class Trouble Spots: Initially struggled with combat reloads. Trouble clearing malfunctions. Not properly applying holdover.
Class Wins: I adapted quickly to shooting a carbine. Great mindset. I come away thinking I can do this, I can shoot. Shooting offhand at 75 yards through an Aimpoint I put 4 of 5 shots on the target which I think was a 6 inch circle.
Areas to continue to work on: Malfunction drills. Reloading. Holdover - learn it, know it. Presentations from high and low ready.
Take always for future training/Lessons Learned:
Hydration along with proper nutrition in the heat is no joke. Start hydrating a few days before the class, bring the amount of water that you think will be enough, and then double it, and bring snacks that hydrate you. Eating clean and proper hydration will carry you through.
Rifle malfunctions absolutely suck! There were times that my rifle was locked up so badly I didn't think I would get it unstuck without field striping it. But with Matt being right there with me, and his expert instruction I was able to clear the jams. It's critical to know how to respond in the event it happens. Each malfunction has a process to clear, each hand has a job in that process. Practice.
Physical fitness matters to longevity in class and drills.
Get good gear, made by quality companies, don't get the garbage. This is the second class that I have seen a student use cheap mags and have problems with them.
Bring any gear, tools, kit that you think you may even remotely need. Having my tool/parts kit on me saved the day when I lost my firing pin retaining pin. I also believe the knee pads helped me on the culmination drill.
We then were broken down into 2 groups that would alternate shooting for the remainder of the day. First order of the day was going prone at 50 yards to confirm our rifles zeroes. Most everyone's rifle was good to go so it only took a few 3 shot groups to square us away. Then we were shooting offhand and from varying distances between 10 and 75 yards to learn about the relationship between the height of our iron sights/optics, the barrel of our rifle and how that elevation translates to the point of impact.
The day progressed into a number of different drills, each drill building on the previous one. Various rifle presentations were covered along with when and why you would use them. How it may relate to use in everyday life. Along with drills to hammer home what was just taught and reinforce the previously learned lessons.
Then we shot a few timed drills that unlike previous classes, I wasn't as worried/nervous about the scary little blue box. A shot timer is nothing more than a tool that measures the truth. And the "truth" being, can you perform the drill in the allotted time or do you have some things to work on. If I remember correctly the timed drills were one shot, low ready < 1.25 seconds, one shot high, ready <1.25 seconds, three shots, combat reload, three more shots <8 seconds, and finally modified El Presidente <13 seconds. And they were shot at like 10 to 15 yards so you also had to take holdover into account. I didn't set any records, but I learned a bunch in the process, and I am happy with my results. With a few exceptions I shot pretty clean runs and very close to the target times. As a noob with a carbine, I'm good with that.
After lunch we duplicated rifle malfunctions and then practiced clearing them. After seeing the group hesitate when the gun stopped, Matt stressed the importance of performing immediate action without hesitation and getting your gun back in the fight. Work through the malfunction. Overall it was very helpful and informative, and the actual first hand practical experience was invaluable but rifle malfunctions fucking suck. One member of the class had to field strip his SCAR, twice to clear the jam (according to the FN rep in the class, they have fixed what causes that malfunction in recent SCAR models).
The part of the day I thought was the most fun was shooting around barricades. At 50 yards on steel you had to have two hits to proceed. The drill was two shots kneeling to the right of the barricade, two shots standing on the right side of the "window", two shots standing on the left side of the "window", transition to your non-dominant hand and two shots.
The culmination drill at the end of the day (Tap Out drill) using the 5 barricades from earlier in the day was outstanding. There were 5 barricades with three "stations" at each barricade. Five shooters with coaches started at each barricade. You were to get two hits on steel at 50 yards, to the right, center, and then transition to the non-dominant side and shoot on the left side of the barricade. You could not move until you hit the target. You were to shoot each station, at each barricade then move to the barricade to the left. If you reach station 1 at the first barricade (barricade 1) you then run to barricade 5 to start all over. The rules were you were to engage the safety between each station/barricade, if you did not mind your muzzle awareness, or if too much of your body was revealed Matt would tap you on the shoulder, you were done. If the shooter behind you caught up and tapped you on the shoulder you were done. Even though I did not move past the first round, and being a noob, I think I did outstanding on this drill. In retrospect the drill was a complete blur, I remember starting the drill, and the finish, but the in between, not so much. I couldn't tell you if I caught up to anyone or not. Pretty sure I did, but not sure. I remember focusing on getting good hits, minding my safety, muzzle awareness, and hauling ass when I could. When the shooter behind me caught up to me, I remember that I was struggling, my legs felt like jello, my heart was pounding, and my rail was so hot I couldn't touch it. I started with five, thirty round mags and had only one left in reserve with about 15 left in the gun. So I finished second in my group, but still satisfied with the result. Going from no training or practical experience with a carbine, to this drill, and doing well.
Speaking for only myself, but I'm certain that many of his other students would agree. Matt is an amazing instructor, and I feel very fortunate to have taken two classes from him. Even though he is the only instructor out there, you always get one on one instruction from him. He seems to not miss anything. He is very personable, and able train/teach/explain information from a real world, practical use perspective. For this class specifically it was hot, and after this class I think I have a pretty good idea what a turkey feels like in the oven, but I was impressed that throughout the class, he constantly focused on his students well being. Every break he would always tell us to "Drink water"
Class Trouble Spots: Initially struggled with combat reloads. Trouble clearing malfunctions. Not properly applying holdover.
Class Wins: I adapted quickly to shooting a carbine. Great mindset. I come away thinking I can do this, I can shoot. Shooting offhand at 75 yards through an Aimpoint I put 4 of 5 shots on the target which I think was a 6 inch circle.
Areas to continue to work on: Malfunction drills. Reloading. Holdover - learn it, know it. Presentations from high and low ready.
Take always for future training/Lessons Learned:
Hydration along with proper nutrition in the heat is no joke. Start hydrating a few days before the class, bring the amount of water that you think will be enough, and then double it, and bring snacks that hydrate you. Eating clean and proper hydration will carry you through.
Rifle malfunctions absolutely suck! There were times that my rifle was locked up so badly I didn't think I would get it unstuck without field striping it. But with Matt being right there with me, and his expert instruction I was able to clear the jams. It's critical to know how to respond in the event it happens. Each malfunction has a process to clear, each hand has a job in that process. Practice.
Physical fitness matters to longevity in class and drills.
Get good gear, made by quality companies, don't get the garbage. This is the second class that I have seen a student use cheap mags and have problems with them.
Bring any gear, tools, kit that you think you may even remotely need. Having my tool/parts kit on me saved the day when I lost my firing pin retaining pin. I also believe the knee pads helped me on the culmination drill.