RTT Defensive Handgun 01 - After Action report

Going all the way back to my post You Don't Know Jack, I have discussed the importance of taking professional training if you plan to own and especially carry a firearm. I believe the 2nd Amendment allows all free men (and women) to own a firearm but I think its the individual's responsibility to learn to effectively, safely and proficiently use those firearms.

As part of my Apocalypse list and a birthday gift to myself, I decided to take the Defensive Handgun 1 class from Range Time Tactical (Cory07ink on Youtube). If you read some of my other posts you will see why I chose RTT, especially since they are almost 800 miles away from me. In this post, I want to give my impressions of RTT, both staff and class, as well as "is it worth it?" The class covered many things from the 7 fundamentals of shooting all the way to dynamic shooting while moving. The staff did tell us that every class is different, as it is tailored around the students and what they believe they need. There was a gentleman in our class who had taken it before and stated that our class was vastly different, albeit better, than his first class.

First, let me talk about the range itself. It is positioned between the towns of Lewis and Blackhawk Indiana and is nothing more than cleared farming land with a large berm built up about 300 yards from the road. There are a few homemade tables and benches off to side for students and gear. And that's pretty much it, Don't let this fool you, RTT did not need some fancy tactical range to produce a quality class. They offered a top quality training in what is basically a cow pasture. As a matter of fact, there were cows in the field next door.

The staff at RTT was very helpful, courteous, and knowledgeable. We were lucky enough to have Cory, Sam, Steve and Kyle for the class, so it was nice to get a chance to meet each of these guys and see what they each brought to the RTT family. While everyone was very professional, it was a group of all guys, so there was some good-natured ribbing going on which helped keep the class light and jovial. The instructors were all very competent and were willing to answer any question or even take extra time to help someone on a drill. Safety was also a key factor, as each day started with a safety briefing.

As for the drills themselves, I will say we did a lot more than I thought they could squeeze into two days. Some of the topics covered were:

• 7 fundamentals of shooting (Sight picture, sight alignment, grip, stance, breathing, trigger control and follow through; as it has now been thorough ingrained in my head)
• One handed shooting both strong and weak hands
• Reloads both two handed and one handed
• Clearing Malfunctions two handed and one handed
• Shooting from standing, kneeling, back, prone and urban prone positions as well as transitioning to/from each position
• Shooting while moving including moving around obstacles while maintaining focus and fire on a target
• Use of cover and concealment
• Buddy shooting (providing cover fire)
• IDPA style shooting (moving/running between multiple targets)

There is probably more that I am forgetting, but you get the idea. Now, I have been watching Cory on YouTube for about a year before taking this class, so I felt confident I had learned a lot from their videos. Well my friends, I will tell you what I saw on YouTube didn't even scratch the surface of what I learned in class. Watching the videos online then trying to mimic what you saw does not compare to having the instructor in front of you demonstrating then critiquing your technique. To add to this, I
will say Cory and his crew are far more impressive in person with their shooting skills.I remember watching Cory drill holes through other holes effortlessly, thinking "Well, fuck..."

All in all I really have nothing bad to say about my experience. If I had to provide some tips, I would say brings lots of magazines and a speed loader. The website says to bring 5 mags, I only had four (my buddy only 3)so I emailed Cory in advance to ask if that was alright. While he said that was fine, I found out quickly that a good bit of time was spent reloading and Cory did gave us a little slack for only having 3 or 4 mags.

While successful completion of Defensive Handgun 1 allows me to take Defensive Handgun 2, I don't think my skill level is up to par. At the end of our class, Cory and Sam recommended we retake this class or a similar class at a different training facility. I would want to go into DH2 having master the skills of DH1 to make sure I got the most out of the class. 

So the big question, "Was it worth it?" Was it worth the time off work? The 13 hour drive each way? The almost $1000 spent between extra gear, ammo, class, hotels, food and gas? Yes. Absolutely it was, every penny and I would do it again. I went in thinking I was a solid range shooter and left realizing I didn't know jack. While I didn't leave RTT a tactical, Chuck Norris, ninja bad ass; I learned a lot. I learned what I needed to be practicing and how to practice. I learned what is real and what is just hype, I can take the skills and practices I learned at RTT to the range to continue to work on my skills level to hopefully, one day, be as good as the guys that taught me.   So this class wasn't the the crux of my firearm training, but instead the beginning of my training. I must take it upon myself to master the skills presented to me.

My class was lucky enough to be video taped for one of their YouTube videos, so you can see first hand what we did. I will post it below . If you have any questions about the class, gear, instructors, etc. Please feel free to ask below. I highly recommend taking a class like this,and if possible taking it with Range Time.