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fourdeuce82d · November 19, 2002, 12:15 PM

The course started Firday evening with three hours of classtime. JF had us introduce ourselves, and tell what weapon we were going to be shooting. As we went around the room (~15 students) JF would discuss the pros/cons of each weapon mentioned, using examples from police departments around the country (and internationally)

He also provided some interesting statistics re: % of gunshot wounds that require more than a 24 hour hospital stay (<10%) hit ratios, etc. Main take away- handguns are wimpy. Fatal (hand)gun shots are unlikely- if you're hit, keep fighting, no matter what. The flip side is if you're shooting at someone, KEEP SHOOTING UNTIL THE THREAT IS GONE- don't expect your .45 ACP to knock the bad guy down.

We talked about how criminals select their prey, and what steps you can take to "deselect" yourself.

We spent two nine hour days on the line. I would estimate something like 325 rounds were "turned into noise" (nice phrase!)

This was *not* a marksmanship class- the emphasis was on tactical issues- JF is a HUGE believer in movement- good guys and bad buys both experience tunnel vision during high stress encounters- we lose peripheral vision. For a good guy, rapid lateral movement vastly complicates the bad guy's ability to target you- he mentioned a video which showed a goblin exchanging fire w/an LEO...and then freezing...and getting shot. When questioned later (he survived) he said something to the effect "I couldn't see him (the leo) he disapeared." The cop had moved 10' laterally, out of the goblin's reduced cone of vision.

We practiced going into an "interview" stance (body bladed toward threat, weak hand out and pointing toward goblin, strong hand grasping concealment garment) and verbalizations- "hey man you got a match" "SORRY, CAN'T HELP YOU" and movement- if the bad guy is approaching, step vigorously offline, and check six to make sure he doesn't have a buddy.

When you see a weapon, step and draw, and verbalize "POLICE- DROP THE WEAPON! DROP THE WEAPON"

The idea here is to have one or two stock phrases that you always use- nothing fancy, no Clint Eastwood- simple phrases that you won't forget under stress, but communicate clearly to the bad guy. (oh, and if you're not a cop? "I said POlease DROP YOUR WEAPON") Also, YOU are now setting the agenda for any witnesses.

On command, we started firing- four rounds- move. Four rounds, move. Slide lock- move and change mags, shoot, move again.

I would recomend pistol first- for me anyway, that's what I carry here in houston- that's the weapon I'm most likely to have with me when TSHTF. I completely understand your position- I've spent a fair amount of time (and money!) at the range- this past summer I burned through 4K rounds of .45 alone, and made some significant improvements in my MARKSMANSHIP- until I took this course I thought I had a pretty good set of skillls. I was very, very humbled.

None of this stuff is that complex, but it's hard to put it all together smoothly and automatically. The final test was seven rounds, with a dummy round in your mag for a stoppage clearance, and a mag change. As part of the test you were required to transition to interview stance, scan six, draw on the move, clear your stoppage on the move, change mags on the move. Out of 15 guys, all shooters, two passed on their first try, and one had taken the test before in another JF class)

The rest of us (including a Master ranked IDPA shoorter) took between three and seven tries. I now know I have a lot of work ahead of me to translate what I learned into smooth, automatic habits.

There is no substitue for professional coaching. Good luck, and tell us how it goes!

November 19, 2002, 12:15 PM	#11
fourdeuce82d Member Join Date: August 7, 2002 Location: houston tx. Posts: 29	The course started Firday evening with three hours of classtime. JF had us introduce ourselves, and tell what weapon we were going to be shooting. As we went around the room (~15 students) JF would discuss the pros/cons of each weapon mentioned, using examples from police departments around the country (and internationally) He also provided some interesting statistics re: % of gunshot wounds that require more than a 24 hour hospital stay (<10%) hit ratios, etc. Main take away- handguns are wimpy. Fatal (hand)gun shots are unlikely- if you're hit, keep fighting, no matter what. The flip side is if you're shooting at someone, KEEP SHOOTING UNTIL THE THREAT IS GONE- don't expect your .45 ACP to knock the bad guy down. We talked about how criminals select their prey, and what steps you can take to "deselect" yourself. We spent two nine hour days on the line. I would estimate something like 325 rounds were "turned into noise" (nice phrase!) This was not a marksmanship class- the emphasis was on tactical issues- JF is a HUGE believer in movement- good guys and bad buys both experience tunnel vision during high stress encounters- we lose peripheral vision. For a good guy, rapid lateral movement vastly complicates the bad guy's ability to target you- he mentioned a video which showed a goblin exchanging fire w/an LEO...and then freezing...and getting shot. When questioned later (he survived) he said something to the effect "I couldn't see him (the leo) he disapeared." The cop had moved 10' laterally, out of the goblin's reduced cone of vision. We practiced going into an "interview" stance (body bladed toward threat, weak hand out and pointing toward goblin, strong hand grasping concealment garment) and verbalizations- "hey man you got a match" "SORRY, CAN'T HELP YOU" and movement- if the bad guy is approaching, step vigorously offline, and check six to make sure he doesn't have a buddy. When you see a weapon, step and draw, and verbalize "POLICE- DROP THE WEAPON! DROP THE WEAPON" The idea here is to have one or two stock phrases that you always use- nothing fancy, no Clint Eastwood- simple phrases that you won't forget under stress, but communicate clearly to the bad guy. (oh, and if you're not a cop? "I said POlease DROP YOUR WEAPON") Also, YOU are now setting the agenda for any witnesses. On command, we started firing- four rounds- move. Four rounds, move. Slide lock- move and change mags, shoot, move again. I would recomend pistol first- for me anyway, that's what I carry here in houston- that's the weapon I'm most likely to have with me when TSHTF. I completely understand your position- I've spent a fair amount of time (and money!) at the range- this past summer I burned through 4K rounds of .45 alone, and made some significant improvements in my MARKSMANSHIP- until I took this course I thought I had a pretty good set of skillls. I was very, very humbled. None of this stuff is that complex, but it's hard to put it all together smoothly and automatically. The final test was seven rounds, with a dummy round in your mag for a stoppage clearance, and a mag change. As part of the test you were required to transition to interview stance, scan six, draw on the move, clear your stoppage on the move, change mags on the move. Out of 15 guys, all shooters, two passed on their first try, and one had taken the test before in another JF class) The rest of us (including a Master ranked IDPA shoorter) took between three and seven tries. I now know I have a lot of work ahead of me to translate what I learned into smooth, automatic habits. There is no substitue for professional coaching. Good luck, and tell us how it goes!