VMI-MO
03-08-11, 08:07
Instructor: Southnarc is an incredibly talented instructor and also a very good guy. There is no doubt in my mind that he knows this material cold. More importantly not only does he have it down cold, but he can teach and coach students with an amazing ability on it. He has the ability to explain or demonstrate a technique in multiple ways to ensure each student grasps the concept that is being taught. He also has a very keen eye for detail to ensure students are getting it right. Another very important aspect Southnarc always covered was the “why” behind every technique caught. This is a big deal for me personally because it allows me to see a wide range of application for a technique. Southnarc was able to give the why behind everything because of his huge experience base he draws from.
Next I want to discuss the material specifically. Not the exact things covered but rather the overall scheme to the material presented. There are three important things to the system Southnarc has created. It makes sense, it is grounded in reality and it is applicable. The skills taught at this class are not something I might dream of using some random day in a government overthrow. The skills are applicable (for me at least) from hanging out in town on a Friday night in a civilian capacity or drinking chi with a village elder OCONUS. The material also followed a very logical progression that was presented at a very good pace.
Southnarc had a very important point, that I think isn’t done enough by many, is that when training for a fight you should be trying to test your skills in the most realistic environment possible. This is done at the ECQC course. You are taught the material, test it in a semi consensual environment, then ultimately put it to the test in a straight up fight environment. This quickly shows what gear works, what doesn’t and most importantly what you are capable of. A lot of people love to say they would rise to the level needed for a fight, however they never test themselves.
Course outline: I am not going to go into a lot of exacting details as to not confuse any readers (doing this stuff is the easiest way to learn it) and because I know I will not do the material justice.
TD1: We began with discussing the problem of initiative deficit and managing unknown contacts. Southnarc explained the reactionary states victims of crime can find themselves in and what we must do in order to press the attack. Under the MUC portion of the course the use of “tactical dialogue” was explained to give a possible victim the tools he needed to stay on his toes and be capable of doing what was necessary to ensure survival. We moved into a variety of drills and techniques to allow students to learn how to use their weight and body to maneuver around an opponent to gain the advantage.
TD2: Started out on the range. We worked primarily on the draw which was demonstrated and explained to be the most important part of handgun employment. We worked on the draw until lunch. A lot of dry and live reps were done to ensure each shooter had a very firm understanding of what he needed to accomplish with the pistol during the presentation. After lunch we moved back to the man on man (no homo) stuff. Working primarily on methods of allowing yourself the ability to draw your weapon while tied up with another guy. Weapons were then introduced to demonstrate the need to control the hands. We did some work on the ground fight, then went into our first evolution where a sim gun was introduced. Everyone got the chance to run through this as the gun bearer and the non gun bearer
TD3: Started on the range again. We worked on snapping in our draw stroke then moved into a variety of drills showing the importance of why you must be able to draw in confined spaces, and how various levels of extension must be used given the proximity of the threat and other situational details. WE broke for lunch then went right into sims evolutions. The first was the 2:1, I will address some of my lessons learned from this later on. After that we moved in weapons retention, disarms and finally into the car evolutions and the 1:1 with 2 guns evolution. After that we had an internal AAR, and were on our separate ways.
Lessons Learned:
Space/timing: Going into this course a lot of my friends were dicking on me saying how I was just gonna get my ass beat (I am not a big person). I largely expected this too (and yes it did happen) and started to preplan in my head that to counter this I just needed to be quick on getting my gun out. I WAS SO WRONG. Guns are cool and all, but when tied up with a guy, you have to set the conditions before you can employ it. You must ensure that you have the necessary space to get your weapon out, without him tying your gun hand up. Also you need to know how to time it right. In the sims evolutions, I noticed that there never seemed to be a really clear, “draw gun here” moment, so deploying the pistol all came down to the timing of the shooter. Some guys did really well with knowing when to get the pistol out. I had a huge mistake on getting mine out which allowed me to get taken down really quickly on a 2:1.
Holster attachment: I will be changing the method I attach my holster to my belt. Seeing several holsters get torn out of pants, then those guns used against their owners showed the need to have a substantial amount of material connecting the holster to the belt. This seems common sense, put actually viewing it happen is a real eye opener.
The draw: Is the most important part of fighting with a pistol. If you can not get your shit out of the holster, you do not get to use it. Shooters did not have a problem with trigger control, sight picture, they encountered problems with getting the gun out.
One handed manipulations: These showed to be pretty vital. A lot of times guns would get discharged with the slide being held and preventing the slide from cycling. The need to be able to conduct a single hand tap rack became very apparent.
Learn from mistakes: I made a lot of mistakes and got shot/beat a lot. Do not go into this course thinking this is a state wrestling tournament and count the fights as wins/losses. Look at each evo you do and what you did good/bad/ugly a train to improve where you messed up at.
What this course is not: This is not a shooting course, I think I fired 300rds (have not counted yet) over the 2 days. The shooting portion is very small and simple, but at the same time unbelievably important for figuring out the draw stroke. If you want to blaze through 1000rds this is not the course for that.
Essential gear: A cup and good clear eye pro will go a long way for this class. Note taking gear will also help a lot.
Grey Group: Thanks to these guys. They handle all the logistical, not sexy, boring, head banging computer board stuff so that students only need to worry about learning. These guys do a hell of a job and I look forward to training through them down the road.
Fellow students: Very good crowd who were all eager to learn. Students went hard, but there was no ego involved.
Trigger Time: This was my second time here and I have nothing but good things to say about it. Solid ranges, a lot of available assets for shooters to use, and owners that care about putting out a good product.
This course covered a lot, and my notes got a little wet so if I screwed the pooch on something let me know and I will fix it.
PJ
Next I want to discuss the material specifically. Not the exact things covered but rather the overall scheme to the material presented. There are three important things to the system Southnarc has created. It makes sense, it is grounded in reality and it is applicable. The skills taught at this class are not something I might dream of using some random day in a government overthrow. The skills are applicable (for me at least) from hanging out in town on a Friday night in a civilian capacity or drinking chi with a village elder OCONUS. The material also followed a very logical progression that was presented at a very good pace.
Southnarc had a very important point, that I think isn’t done enough by many, is that when training for a fight you should be trying to test your skills in the most realistic environment possible. This is done at the ECQC course. You are taught the material, test it in a semi consensual environment, then ultimately put it to the test in a straight up fight environment. This quickly shows what gear works, what doesn’t and most importantly what you are capable of. A lot of people love to say they would rise to the level needed for a fight, however they never test themselves.
Course outline: I am not going to go into a lot of exacting details as to not confuse any readers (doing this stuff is the easiest way to learn it) and because I know I will not do the material justice.
TD1: We began with discussing the problem of initiative deficit and managing unknown contacts. Southnarc explained the reactionary states victims of crime can find themselves in and what we must do in order to press the attack. Under the MUC portion of the course the use of “tactical dialogue” was explained to give a possible victim the tools he needed to stay on his toes and be capable of doing what was necessary to ensure survival. We moved into a variety of drills and techniques to allow students to learn how to use their weight and body to maneuver around an opponent to gain the advantage.
TD2: Started out on the range. We worked primarily on the draw which was demonstrated and explained to be the most important part of handgun employment. We worked on the draw until lunch. A lot of dry and live reps were done to ensure each shooter had a very firm understanding of what he needed to accomplish with the pistol during the presentation. After lunch we moved back to the man on man (no homo) stuff. Working primarily on methods of allowing yourself the ability to draw your weapon while tied up with another guy. Weapons were then introduced to demonstrate the need to control the hands. We did some work on the ground fight, then went into our first evolution where a sim gun was introduced. Everyone got the chance to run through this as the gun bearer and the non gun bearer
TD3: Started on the range again. We worked on snapping in our draw stroke then moved into a variety of drills showing the importance of why you must be able to draw in confined spaces, and how various levels of extension must be used given the proximity of the threat and other situational details. WE broke for lunch then went right into sims evolutions. The first was the 2:1, I will address some of my lessons learned from this later on. After that we moved in weapons retention, disarms and finally into the car evolutions and the 1:1 with 2 guns evolution. After that we had an internal AAR, and were on our separate ways.
Lessons Learned:
Space/timing: Going into this course a lot of my friends were dicking on me saying how I was just gonna get my ass beat (I am not a big person). I largely expected this too (and yes it did happen) and started to preplan in my head that to counter this I just needed to be quick on getting my gun out. I WAS SO WRONG. Guns are cool and all, but when tied up with a guy, you have to set the conditions before you can employ it. You must ensure that you have the necessary space to get your weapon out, without him tying your gun hand up. Also you need to know how to time it right. In the sims evolutions, I noticed that there never seemed to be a really clear, “draw gun here” moment, so deploying the pistol all came down to the timing of the shooter. Some guys did really well with knowing when to get the pistol out. I had a huge mistake on getting mine out which allowed me to get taken down really quickly on a 2:1.
Holster attachment: I will be changing the method I attach my holster to my belt. Seeing several holsters get torn out of pants, then those guns used against their owners showed the need to have a substantial amount of material connecting the holster to the belt. This seems common sense, put actually viewing it happen is a real eye opener.
The draw: Is the most important part of fighting with a pistol. If you can not get your shit out of the holster, you do not get to use it. Shooters did not have a problem with trigger control, sight picture, they encountered problems with getting the gun out.
One handed manipulations: These showed to be pretty vital. A lot of times guns would get discharged with the slide being held and preventing the slide from cycling. The need to be able to conduct a single hand tap rack became very apparent.
Learn from mistakes: I made a lot of mistakes and got shot/beat a lot. Do not go into this course thinking this is a state wrestling tournament and count the fights as wins/losses. Look at each evo you do and what you did good/bad/ugly a train to improve where you messed up at.
What this course is not: This is not a shooting course, I think I fired 300rds (have not counted yet) over the 2 days. The shooting portion is very small and simple, but at the same time unbelievably important for figuring out the draw stroke. If you want to blaze through 1000rds this is not the course for that.
Essential gear: A cup and good clear eye pro will go a long way for this class. Note taking gear will also help a lot.
Grey Group: Thanks to these guys. They handle all the logistical, not sexy, boring, head banging computer board stuff so that students only need to worry about learning. These guys do a hell of a job and I look forward to training through them down the road.
Fellow students: Very good crowd who were all eager to learn. Students went hard, but there was no ego involved.
Trigger Time: This was my second time here and I have nothing but good things to say about it. Solid ranges, a lot of available assets for shooters to use, and owners that care about putting out a good product.
This course covered a lot, and my notes got a little wet so if I screwed the pooch on something let me know and I will fix it.
PJ