Key Learnings
I am still digesting many of the lessons and realizations from the weekend. Training was fast and furious, and Jeff himself stated that we wouldn't really internalize everything for some time afterward.
The first photo below shows Jeff in what he terms the Universal Fighting Stance. In short, his preference is for using a single, slightly bladed stance for all fighting, whether it be with carbine, handgun, edged weapon or hard hands. This stance was the same as what I learned at CSAT, although Jeff advocates running the weapon with the stock almost fully collapsed and the butt mounted closer in toward the shooter's center line. While I was reluctant at first to alter my stock position, I found that it did not adversely affect my accuracy while stationary and actually improved accuracy and follow-though considerably while moving.
Fighting from the familiar Low Ready position was offered as an option, but we were encouraged to also experiment with the High Ready position during the course. This was a real revelation for me. The High Ready offers better leverage during a weapon grab scenario, provides the non-lethal option of muzzle jabbing the opponent, is less tiring to maintain during a long training session involving hundreds of mounts, and offers a mount that is just as fast (or faster) than Low Ready. I made the switch half way through the first day and never looked back. Photos two and three show Jeff in both ready positions.
Manipulation of the weapon after a failure, whether a jam or an empty magazine, was addressed with what Jeff terms his "power stroke". Essentially, he is attempting to limit the number of movements for which the shooter must develop muscle memory, eliminating the use of the bolt release. In the event of a failure, the shooter taps, tugs, rolls and racks (using the charging handle) with the weak hand. It took me awhile to catch onto this approach, especially rolling the weapon and working the charging handle with my left hand, but it does have a certain logic to it.
Another key learning involved transitioning to a secondary weapon. While I was previously trained to let my carbine drop straight down and draw, Jeff points out that a weapon dangling near our center line can make it difficult to move if the need arises (i.e., to move to cover or go hands-on with a prisoner). The solution offered was to sweep the weapon to our weak side with the weak hand so that it hangs with the mag well facing rearward. Whether using a single point or two point sling, this prevents the weapon from swinging or twisting and is a simple, effective solution.
The SMC module was also a great learning experience. Like many people, I have often been warned to stop and take my shots, and the corresponding logic has usually had to do with accuracy. Jeff offered some statistics about the number of gunfights involving either a moving shooter or target, and it became clear that this is a non-solution. Our toolkit simply must include the ability to make solid hits while in motion.
The approach in getting us to that point was crawl-walk-run. We began by simply taking a specific number of steps in the direction called before taking our shots, then progressed on to more complex drills involving movement in multiple random directions during a course of fire, box drills, and closing with the target from a variety of distances and at a variety of speeds.
It will come as no surprise to those of you who have previously developed this skill, but shooting on the move is hard work. Jeff teased me mercilessly for moving like a "tactical ballerina", which stemmed from my anxiety about tripping with a hot weapon, telling me that "you look great but might try moving like a normal person".
(Feel free to chuckle, I'm not perfect.)
Equally surprising, though, was the progress possible in just one day. About half of the students were still throwing at least one wild shot out of twenty (an automatic DQ under Jeff's scoring scheme), but I and the other half were able to achieve hit rates on the standard kill zone of 75-95%. End result, this is definitely something that requires more practice, but success is possible and it is a valuable tool for anyone that expects to fight with a rifle.
Finally, a couple quick notes on equipment issues. I was using my 14.5" POF for the course, and had the dissatisfaction of seeing it go TU on day one. The op rod sheared in two after fewer than 400 rds, preventing the gun from returning to full battery and the upper from being removed. After some fiddling, I finally got the op rod out and removed the upper, which I replaced with a 16" LMT of Jeff's. This upper had a new Aimpoint M4 mounted and functioned flawlessly for the rest of the course (not counting a few malfunctions caused by cheap reloads).
However, I am cross-eye dominant so shooting an Aimpoint with both eyes open causes me double vision and a POI shift regardless of mounting position. I do not have this problem with the Eotech (hence my purchase of the 553), but the end result was that I had to close one eye for all of my shots during the course. This didn't really slow my split times down, but could negatively affect SA in a more dynamic environment.
In closing, this was an intense, productive class and I learned an awful lot. I'd encourage anyone to train with TRICON if they have the chance, but remember that the courses are not for beginners and you'd better bring your A game to class. Fire away if you have any questions!
