It seems that recently I have been asked quite a bit about advanced shooting courses. My experience, however, is that some of those asking have a fundamental misunderstanding of the process and their idea of advanced shooting is different than mine. They are usually looking for that magic “operator course” or they’re more interested in an “entertrainment” style course than a solid skill building course, and some of them rely strictly on that next …shooting course to push them to the next level.
Advanced shooting is simply the fundamentals performed properly under stress. That stress can come in many forms both mental and physical, but consistent and proper training that integrates stress into the equation will ultimately increase our ability to stay focused in the moment without allowing the stress factors to detour us from our task at hand…..acceptable sight picture, trigger press.
Unfortunately there is no magic class or multi-day course that will instantly transform you into a highly skilled tactical shooter or grandmaster competitive shooter. This can only be obtained with significant time behind the gun, working proper repetitions of fundamental skills and weapon manipulations to increase efficiency and push your balance of speed and accuracy to a higher level. Quality training courses provide you with the proper knowledge to get you there, but it’s ultimately up to each individual to invest their time into the process.
Once an individual has a firm grasp of the fundamentals in a static environment, they should be introducing “stress” into the equation. Shooting skill building drills under time (owning a shot timer is a must), moving and shooting, target discrimination, physical stress drills, and force on force scenarios are just some examples of various types of stress factors that can and should be part of the process.
Finally, competitive shooting, whether an actual event such as IPSC or USPSA matches, or just you against your buddy and a shot timer will help you develop the ability to remain focused when it counts. This environment, from a pure shooting perspective, is really where you can evaluate your performance. Reality is that whether shooting competitively or during a lethal force encounter, it’s all a form of competition. Your goal is to be better than your opponent and to be the last man standing.
Mark Brinski
Force Concepts Group
