17 November 2008
TYB: Train Your Brain. My first thought when I got this DVD was, “You can’t teach pistolcraft without being on the range.” Well, you CAN teach knowledge and you can’t have a skill without having knowledge. So I tried to keep an open mind and watch the DVD to see what I could learn. The first lesson I learned is that having an open mind is a good thing. There were several other things I learned, and ultimately I discovered that a DVD about pistol handling is not as absurd as I thought. In fact, it’s a pretty good thing. Let me tell you a bit about the DVD and why I’ll be keeping it for future repeated watching and for assistance training student shooters.
When I got the DVD and first put it in my player, I was surprised to see the list of topics covered. Not only were the fundamentals of marksmanship there, but there was a host of other topics that are equally important in basic pistolcraft. The obvious and necessary (and well known) basics include:
- Grip
- Stance
- Sight Alignment
- Sight Picture
- Trigger Control
- Breathing
- Follow Through
Those topics are Basic Marksmanship at its most basic. They are the bare bones what-you-have-to-teach to get someone to be able to pick up a loaded weapon, aim it at a target and fire a round with some reasonable expectation of hitting the target. However, if you are teaching beginners there are a host of other topics that you need to cover FIRST. They would include:
- Weapon Safety Rules
- Weapon Types: revolver, pistol, rifle, shotgun
- Loading & Unloading
- Care & Maintenance
- Carry Options
- Presentation: drawing the weapon
The Blackwater DVD was no disappointment at all. With 21 chapters listed on the DVD only two did I really consider business specific. That is to say they aren't directly about Basic Pistolcraft. However, in today's world they are mandatory. One is an introduction to the company and the other is the disclaimer. These are sections any company distributing training videos is going to include - and they're silly if they don't.
After the introduction to Blackwater the training program kicks off with the Course Overview followed by the Disclaimer. From that point the following topics are covered before actually getting into basic marksmanship training:
Weapons Safety: this is a no-brainer. The first thing I taught all my kids were the four basic safety rules of all firearms. Any training program that doesn't cover weapon safety is simply negligent beyond any excuse.
Pistol Action Types: While this isn't the same as covering all the variety of weapons, the DVD isn't about all weapons; just pistols. The various actions available in contemporary firearms are reviewed. This is necessary information for the beginner who needs to know what (s)he does or doesn't like to make a purchase in the future.
Gear Selection: Seeing as how I've dedicated at least a portion of the last 5+ years of my life helping people pick out what's good gear and what's not, this is a section I appreciate. The beginner all too often only has input on this subject from television and movies. Heaven help us if every new pistoleer's only education on gear selection came from The Matrix or similar movie.
Gear Placement: Just as important as selection. Again, while veteran pistolmen don't need help with this topic - and most are very set in their ways about it - the beginner needs reasonable information based on proven protocols. Blackwater, just within its employee ranks, has more than sufficient real-world experience to develop and offer advice on gear placement.
From that point the Fundamentals of Marksmanship are introduced as listed above. Grip, Stance, Sight Alignment, Sight Picture, Trigger Control, Breathing, Follow Through. In my classes I've always put Breathing before Trigger Control but that really does only apply in competition circumstances. In real world shootings Breathing is going to an involuntarily controlled biological function that you're aware of when you realize you're breath is heaving in and out of your chest.
After the Basic Fundamentals of Marksmanship are covered the DVD goes on to discuss your work station, which - surprisingly - isn't about your maintenance station: it's about where the pistol is most commonly located during manipulation. The discussion about Work Station is followed by a section on Loading & Unloading (which is kind of important if you're going to actually shoot the weapon and then make it safe afterward). After that is Ready Positions (high and low), and the body movements that bring the weapon into action from both.
Before you can get into a Ready Position you first must draw your weapon and that's the next section: Drawing. In this DVD instructional program the draw is described as a three step process, but begins with a proper grip already achieved on the weapon. I know instructors who teach a five-step draw. I know others who don't delineate a counted step process at all. I think Blackwater's three-step description is sufficient for the new shooter.
After Drawing is discussed there is a section on Retention Devices. The focus of the discussion about retention devices is the importance of defeating them / manipulating them while simoultaneously securing a proper grip on the weapon. Given the popularity of the Safariland 6004, it's the holster used for the purposes of the DVD demonstration. Obviously there are plenty of other retention device types that a new shooter might encounter, however - if they focus on securing a proper grip while defeating / disengaging the retention device, then they'll be successful in completing their draw. Ultimately this is a topic where an instructor is better off teaching the principal rather than a specific mechanical skill.
The DVD ends with a Summary of the course and a fair amount of action sequences showing the high levels of skill that can be built based on these Fundamentals of Pistolcraft and LOTS of practice. Although I've certainly trained my wife and children (along with plenty of other folks) in the basics of marksmanship, this is a DVD I'll encourage them to watch to refresh the material. I recommend it for "newby" shooters and believe it will be a quality addition to my library as an instructor. The DVD is available online in the Blackwater ProShop for $25. For the content and material, that $25 is far better spent on this DVD then on the large majority of "entertainment" Hollywood is churning out today. Spend the dollars on this educational material and I don't believe you'll be disappointed.
Stay Safe!
