Bad weather flying and a tight schedule sucks. One delayed flight and everything down the toilet.
Let’s hope it works out better for the December Vickers class.
So did you guys do the course today? I just saw this thread, or I would have signed up. It may have been just as well since it’s raining about 1/2" an hour in Richmond right now and I know enough about the location to know this much rain + clay = :eek: I’m hoping you reschedule, as I’d like to attend…
The class went off as planned.
I talked to Yrac tonight. Everything is going well, even the rain held off for the most part. I cannot wait till we hear back from everybody else.
We got pretty lucky when it came to the weather. While the ground turned into a nice red slush from the targets to the 7 yard line, we were able to stay relatively dry through the weekend. We fired in the neighborhood of 1400 rounds. I was very pleased to see that the skills from classes earlier this year were holding up quite well.
Paul, you are the man. Without your initiative and hard work, I’d still be where I was at the beginning of the year. Dave, Simon, Larry and Tom have all helped tremendously, but I never would have met any of them if you didn’t put these classes together. I can’t thank you enough.
Thanks Tom, I’m just glad the class went well.
Trust me, it was killing me being at work and missing the class.
Pure torture.
I cannot wait to read some reviews. Did anybody take any pictures?
Paul
As Tom said, we all owe you a tremendous debt of gratitude for serving as the Virginia “unofficial” firearms training coordinator.
The instruction was superb with lots of one on one coaching from Simon and Dave. The quality of the students was high (without exception), which served as a powerful motivator for me, but without a lot of huge ego’s. It was a great training environment without pressure or fear of embarassment.
The weather held for us, without a lot of rain. However, I think everything I own is coated with orange South Hill mud.
It’s great to be shooting with a lot of the same guys at each class, well over half of the class was either at the Blackwater Class (May 2005) and the Mar 2006,10-8 Class (with David).
There were a couple of “duh!!” moments for me regarding targets. One money saving tip, I have never thought about using paper plates and index cards, instead of paying $.50 apiece for targets.
You were missed.
Paul
Because of the high round count (loading magazines) and the fast pace, there wasn’t a lot of time for photograpy. I normally get at least a dozen or so at classes, but didn’t take a single photo this time. I think one of Simon’s colleagues took a lot of photo’s the first day, but I didn’t see anyone taking pictures yesterday.
hi paul,
real shame i never got to meet you this past weekend, but i’d be remiss for not thanking you for coordinating a great training class. there is always next class!
it was great meeting the other guys and was an honor + pleasure to train with them; as stated before, the caliber of student was extremely high- as one of the few “noobs,” i had to run twice as fast to keep up with the class [i definitely had the least amount of training and was the farthest behind the curve compared to my fellow classmates].
however, i’d have to say that although challenging and at times almost discouraging [in my own abilities, NOT the training], it was extremely rewarding. simon and dave are outstanding instructors; they are what everyone hopes firearms instructors should be: superbly professional, honest + [of course] highly skilled. on top of that, they were fantastic teachers, not just “good shooters.” you can’t put a price on that quality. they were generous with their time, giving each student honest feedback + individualized attention that was useful and garnered poistive results. i felt that they took ample time during the course to coach each student, even giving extra time to students [like me] that needed a bit of extra assistance. most importantly, they were able to analyze problems and address them, so i would know what to NOT do.
in my opinion, this was an outstanding class coupled by excellent instruction and excellent students. safety was never really an issue and i felt comfortable with the way all firearms were handled on the range [this goes without saying, as it was an advanced course].
the fact that it was basically a marksmanship practice session was all the more valuable to me. the fundamentals [trigger control, in particular] emphasized that were not only vital to following each evolution in the class, but were principles that are paramount to good shooting in any environment: be it competition, tactical situations, self-defense, etc. since i have never been formally instructed in trigger manipulation, it was an eye-opening and sobering experience. fortunately, those basic concepts will carry over to my individual training and practice and will eventually lead to better, more consistent shooting [after much practice!].
another aspect that made the class such a rewarding experience is the fact that it brought me out of my “comfort zone.” much of the techniques reinforced and taught this weekend were very new to me, thus required unyielding concentration and thought on my part. some of it was almost overwhelming, but the structure of the class and simon/dave’s expertise and “building block” approach made the lessons easier to assimilate. my hat is off to them, because my approach to practice and training has certainly been changed for the better.
i guess i’ve rambled on long enough. suffice to say, i was so impressed with the level of instruction that i approached simon + dave about coming to charlottesville to teach a similar class at my local rifle club. hopefully, we can work something out and they will be able to impart their knowledge to some of our own members.
thanks again for organizing a great class and i hope to meet you at another training session in the near future. maybe the weather will agree this time, eh?
ron
Paul, we all owe you. If it were not for your efforts we would all be sitting around thinking that we were doing things the “right” way instead of being introduced to fine instructors like Dave, Simon, Tom, and Larry. The class was typical of a Dave class. Excellent instruction with no bull. I would like to thank everyone who participated in the class. I had a great time shooting with all the old standbys and the new guys as well. I can’t wait for the next one. My mag loading thumb is still sore though. I think for the next one I will shoot from the 33rnd mags. Less time spent loading mags.
Paul,
Thank you for setting up the class! You were definitely missed. As always, the instruction was excellent.
I found the class very helpful and am interested in future instruction from the team. One of our classmates took some pics, I was hoping to see them. Maybe he could post them. Thanks
Email me the photos.
I will post them for you.