Todd Louis Green - Aim Fast, Hit Fast - Aug 9-10 Pittsburgh, PA - AAR

[Jay_Cunningham]

This is the AAR thread for the recent AFHF class ( http://www.m4carbine.net/showthread.php?t=15615 ) conducted by Todd Louis Green:

Please post comments, pics and/or links to video here. My thoughts in a bit...

[Jay_Cunningham]

We had two outstanding days of training in Pittsburgh, PA - some of the most beautiful weather that I've seen in a long time. The facilities were unique and with the exception of being able to shoot steel gave us everything we needed.

My personal take-aways were essentially reinforcement of what I have been learning from LAV all this time, just in compressed time frames.

My strengths were my accuracy which was very good. I will continue to do bullseye shooting but scale it back in order to practice the things that I suck at.

I *thought* that I had an efficient reload but now I realize that even though I am doing all the right movements they are distinct movements. If you watched single frames of my reload it would look great but when you play it as a video there are distinct pauses. I also learned that I need to work on my tempo when I SOM - I need to let my eyes take their feedback off the front sight and then feed that information to my legs and trigger finger.

Todd and LAV both teach very similar methods and compliment each other. That should be a clue.

This was my first class that I have ever hosted and it seemed to go very well. I want to thank every shooter in the class for their good attitudes and safety. I am working on bringing additional training to this facility again in the future and hope to see many return faces.

Finally thanks to Todd for putting on a great class. Todd is very structured and very focused and keeps the tempo changed up so as not to burn out the shooters. I *believe* we went around 1300 rounds for two days but we may get a more accurate count as guys sort through their gear. Todd also introduced us to a very fun and challenging drill simulating a charging pissed-off dog.

I would be thrilled to have Todd back next year (or whenever) for future training opportunities... for $265 this was an unbelievable value.

A couple of quick pics - more to follow.

[Jay_Cunningham]

I almost forgot to talk about gear.

I shot a gen three Glock 19 with Warren Tactical straight 8 lamp sights and a Vickers/TD mag release. On TD 2 I ran with a SF x200B light on the pistol. I shot CCI Blazer aluminum cased ammo exclusively.

I was very pleased with the performance of the pistol. I had one malfunction on TD1 which I had to perform remedial malfunction clearance on. I do not know the nature of the malfunction. I *may* make some additional modifications to my Glock based off the experience. I think I'll have underneath the trigger guard radiused and I may have the finger grooves on the front of the grip removed and 360 degree stippling, but not an actual grip reduction. I *may* experiment with a different trigger combo, probably 3.5#/NY Olive - it is easy enough to reverse if I don't like it. I have another Glock 19 with the factory extended slide release and I have a feeling that I'll be incorporating this part into both guns.

I ran with a Raven Concealment IWB holster which was great until the gun got hot and it started burning my hip (not the holster's fault). I then ran OWB with both a Sidearmor and a Bladetech and they were both fine. My emergency reload pouch was Ready Tactical and it is perfect for my needs. I also had a three cell Eagle pouch which was great as well.

Everybody had very reliable guns. One shooter ran a basically stock Browning Hi-Power which everybody commented on because it was so reliable. I can also officially say that I'm now a WeaponShield Kool-Aid drinker. For me it is the best lube around.

[Templar]

Excellent AAR.

Wish I could have been there.

[M4arc]

I wish I could have made the class too, sorry I missed it.

[Nathan_Bell]

Thoughts on the class.

Enjoyable class, as Katar stated well paced to avoid burning the shooter out. This was a high round count class and could have had us crispy by noon had Todd not paced it as he had.

Showed me that while some of the things I have been doing are functional and work well enough. There are a few that were deadend approaches, as they had several in-efficiencies in them.

Realized I need to practice weak hand shooting a good bit more.

Todd took the time to help me find a grip that works. Need to practice on it, because when I am doing it right, the lil M&P 9 doesn't move.

The Browning Hi Power really did impress me, IIRC he was lubing it before class and then at lunch and it never hiccupped. Think it was the only all metal that was used for the whole class.

Lubed the M&P once at lunch the first day and the only times it wasn't perfect was when I was trying to get my new grip under control.

The look at your gun drill was humorous.

The numbers drill was very illuminating on the fact that you do not have to get it perfect, to get it right.

Bowman needs to not step on ropes other people are pulling.

If you are a 3" dot, Jay will smoke your A$$ out to 15 yards, weak handed.

Last but not least, this is ToddG when the sun comes out.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J9N0xut2k88

[C4IGrant]

The name of the class was "Aim Fast, Hit Fast." It should have been called Aim Fast, Hit Fast (a small ass target)! I fully expected for this to be a high round count & throw rounds WILDLY down range. It was not. Todd's accuracy requirements were as strict as anyone else’s that I have seen.

Todd did a good job keeping things moving in an orderly fashion with little to no time wasted trying to figure what drill to do next. This is good as I get annoyed if an instructor takes 10 minutes to figure out what they want to do.

IMHO, this class is NOT for the new shooter. There were a lot of assumptions made about the shooters ability to make mag changes, clear malfunctions, how to aim properly, how to shoot strong and weak hand, etc. I would suggest that before anyone attends this class, they FIRST go through a good pistol class (like Vickers or Hackathorn).

Some lessons learned from the class. First, do not run a 45 when everyone eles is running 9mm. You will get eaten alive on the timed drills. Bring 10-15 mags with you. Shoot a lot more strong and weak hand. Shoot the same type of ammo throughout the class! I had some Speer Gold Dot HP's that I needed to burn up and so I was loading them in with my UMC 230gr FMJ. On one of the walk back drills, I thru a round a good 2 inches below my nice tight 4 round group. When I pulled the mag out, I realized that the first 4rds were FMJ and the next 4 were Speer. Totally different POI from each other. This of course ended my chances of winning (or having a chance to win) the walk back drill.

Todd had a lot of good drills (some of which I had never seen before). The "pit bull" drill was interesting to say the least. It was hard to kill the "pit bull" AKA milk jug while standing still with one shot and was even harder to do it while moving.
We did some moving and shooting drills (which are my favorite). I once again proved to myself that I shoot MUCH better while moving than I do standing still. Figure that one out.

One last thing that Todd did a fantastic job on was the certificates (as seen below). They are some of the nicest I have seen to date. Students really appreciate this I think.

I would highly recommend this class that once to become a faster AND more accurate pistol shooter.


C4

[M4arc]

"Lance"

BBBBWWWWWHHHHAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHAAAAAAAHHHHHAAAAHAAA!!!!

I was bummed I couldn't make it before but now that I know "Lance" attended I'm even more disappointed. I would have loved nothing more than to hear the name "Lance" called out through the two days of training.

[C4IGrant]

Originally Posted by M4arc

"Lance"

BBBBWWWWWHHHHAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHAAAAAAAHHHHHAAAAHAAA!!!!

I was bummed I couldn't make it before but now that I know "Lance" attended I'm even more disappointed. I would have loved nothing more than to hear the name "Lance" called out through the two days of training.

Yes, the good ole "Lance" name again. Not only only was I called Lance, but was also called "Blake" (not sure where that one came from).


C4

[Jay_Cunningham]

Grant's run on the final FAST test was really very smooth. I dropped one of my head shots but Grant, er, "Lance" made all of his hits in a very good time.

One thing I'd like to add: when I first started my formal training I heard a lot of grumbling about "gamers" and "gamer mentality" and it biased me a bit toward competitive shooting.

Well, several years into my formal training I now know better. Competition shooter, i.e. "gamers" are some of the consistently best shooters in training classes. And since shooting is a pretty important aspect of fighting with a gun, I'd call that a clue.

I personally am still wary of gun games myself simply due to some bad tactics etc. I definitely recognize their value and am very close to participating in IDPA myself.

[Jay_Cunningham]

Originally Posted by C4IGrant

Yes, the good ole "Lance" name again. Not only only was I called Lance, but was also called "Blake" (not sure where that one came from).


C4

Don't forget "GrantHawk"...

[Dave Williams]

LOL Nate.

Great class. Highly recommended for shooters looking to upgrade their high speed pistol skill. This is some of the best money I have spent on training.

Thanks Todd for your efforts, learned a bunch.

Thanks Jay for putting it on.

I really enjoyed meeting everyone, great group of guys. It's one of the reasons I enjoy going to training classes.

Thanks Bowman and Copperfield for putting up with my mouth all weekend.

I shot a G17 w/ a TLR1 from a 6365 Safariland. I shot 1100rds of WWB and had 1 double feed malf, I think mag related but who knows. The G17 I used had 360 stippling from Bowie, no fingergrooves, a Prezine magwell, 3.5#/NY Olive trigger setup, and Warren 3dot night sites. It's my buddies gun, thanks dude for letting me borrow it. I think it's a great gun.

I will post some video on my youtube page later tonight and post links on this thread.

Dave Williams

[VA_Dinger]

Sounds like a great class.

I wish I could have attended.

[ToddG]

Thanks for the great feedback, guys!

All of the students did a great job. Everyone worked hard, everyone improved. There were no safety problems, no drama, and no rain.

Special thanks to Jay for putting on the course. As I told him privately, I did nothing but teach, eat, bullshit at the bar, and sleep. Every single aspect of the class was handled by Jay. To any other trainer thinking about a place to teach, I'd highly recommend Jay and the Forest Grove Sportsmen's Association. Plus, the view is quite nice.

And I still don't know anything about the Lance/Grant thing. Jay told me Grant prefers to go by Lance. That's my story ...

edited to add: Clearly the camera had too much to drink Saturday night ...

[Nathan_Bell]

Originally Posted by ToddG

Thanks for the great feedback, guys!

All of the students did a great job. Everyone worked hard, everyone improved. There were no safety problems, no drama, and no rain.

Special thanks to Jay for putting on the course. As I told him privately, I did nothing but teach, eat, bullshit at the bar, and sleep. Every single aspect of the class was handled by Jay. To any other trainer thinking about a place to teach, I'd highly recommend Jay and the Forest Grove Sportsmen's Association. Plus, the view is quite nice.

And I still don't know anything about the Lance/Grant thing. Jay told me Grant prefers to go by Lance. That's my story ...

edited to add: Clearly the camera had too much to drink Saturday night ...

I forgot, Todd has a neat watch!

[Dave.O]

For all of you that wish you could of attended, you should have, YOU missed a great chance to learn something from an instructor that has alot to offer..

Todd is a class act.. He keeps the class moving at a pace that will get you through the day pretty quick. and in the end, it's not at a pace that you get burnt out.

In my opinion, The drills that Todd put us through made everyone of us better shooters by the end of TD2.. And he has the proof.. Todd uses a test to guage progress. If I remember correctly, we were tested 4 times. each time most, if not all of us improved... (Todd, I want one of those coins)

There is alot of Todds training that is still sinking in to my brain.. You all know how that happens after you take a class and process it for days to come..

Kudo's to Todd... Job well done!

As far as equiptment for me, I am a M&P shooter, I can't shoot a G-lock.. I ran a pretty basic slick rig with a blade-tech holster with a Eagle triple mag pouch on a Blackhawk belt... I had zero malfunctions with my gear, which is a plus with this kind of round count. no time to waist doing immediate action drills..
My accuracy was good, I was able to hang with Jay on the walkback drills right up to the point the trigger control went away... Nice job Jay....

Grant, You forgot to mention that once you found an extra M&P from Copperfield, that your trusty 1911 went right into the range bag with all of that expensive .45 ammo....

Nate, Dude, sorry about the rope... If we do that drill again, gloves should be in order for ya...

Dave.W, It was our pleasure to have you travel with Copperfield and Myself...


Who is going to host Todd next?

Stay safe Bowman

[subzero]

Sounds like a good challenging course. I'll have to make it out to the next one.

[Nathan_Bell]

Originally Posted by Dave.O

For all of you that wish you could of attended, you should have, YOU missed a great chance to learn something from an instructor that has alot to offer..

Todd is a class act.. He keeps the class moving at a pace that will get you through the day pretty quick. and in the end, it's not at a pace that you get burnt out.

In my opinion, The drills that Todd put us through made everyone of us better shooters by the end of TD2.. And he has the proof.. Todd uses a test to guage progress. If I remember correctly, we were tested 4 times. each time most, if not all of us improved... (Todd, I want one of those coins)

There is alot of Todds training that is still sinking in to my brain.. You all know how that happens after you take a class and process it for days to come..

Kudo's to Todd... Job well done!

As far as equiptment for me, I am a M&P shooter, I can't shoot a G-lock.. I ran a pretty basic slick rig with a blade-tech holster with a Eagle triple mag pouch on a Blackhawk belt... I had zero malfunctions with my gear, which is a plus with this kind of round count. no time to waist doing immediate action drills..
My accuracy was good, I was able to hang with Jay on the walkback drills right up to the point the trigger control went away... Nice job Jay....

Grant, You forgot to mention that once you found an extra M&P from Copperfield, that your trusty 1911 went right into the range bag with all of that expensive .45 ammo....

Nate, Dude, sorry about the rope... If we do that drill again, gloves should be in order for ya...

Dave.W, It was our pleasure to have you travel with Copperfield and Myself...


Who is going to host Todd next?

Stay safe Bowman

Dave, my forearm from working on the new grip is more aching than my rope burnt finger, no worries.

Did you get the light bulb moment on Todd's approach during the number drill? That was when the little voice said "Oooh, I see."

[gotm4]

Originally Posted by Thekatar

One thing I'd like to add: when I first started my formal training I heard a lot of grumbling about "gamers" and "gamer mentality" and it biased me a bit toward competitive shooting.

Well, several years into my formal training I now know better. Competition shooter, i.e. "gamers" are some of the consistently best shooters in training classes. And since shooting is a pretty important aspect of fighting with a gun, I'd call that a clue.

I'm glad you're coming around Jay!

[Dave.O]

Did you get the light bulb moment on Todd's approach during the number drill? That was when the little voice said "Oooh, I see."[/quote]


Yep, That kind of sunk in just when he called the time....