Help me pick a class

[Roger Phillips]

Looking forward to the Point Shooting Progressions class this weekend! Gotta go load 1000 more 9mm for the wife.

I'll be seing you on the range.

[mikio]

Taran Butler was one of the 1st guys I tried to get in contact with to get some face time particularly because he does 3 gun. I tried emailing several times and using the web form for lessons request but hear nothing back on all attempts, so I gave up after a while because I didn't want to be a nuisance. I figured the top tier GM's who don't have teaching as a primary income stream don't have time for the little guy who's starting out, so I'd find someone who IS interested in showing me the ropes.

i posted taran yesterday and he emailed me today, and he even gave me his home number to call him after 6pm, here's the link i used to email him:

http://www.taranbutler.net/index.php?option=com_contact&task=view&contact_id=1&Itemid=5

also he knew i was a beginner, i stated it in my inquiry, along with wanting to learn the fundamentals in air pistol, which i don't even think he shoots.

i would try again, especially if you shoot the guns he specialises in, i think in my case he felt pity, i told him i couldn't find anyone to teach me in L.A.

he lives in simi valley, a far distance from me, but he shoots at the range i would practice at, so i'm hoping we can arrange a first lesson there, hm?

[futureExpat]

Hello,

I seem to take a trip out with the wife every year to take some sort of shooting course, and we've always had a bunch of fun in the process while always learning a ton. I'm looking for some recommendations or 1st hand reports of some of the feasible options.

We started out shortly after we got married taking a simple 4 day handgun course at that place near Vegas. . . this was coming from no firearms experience. . . then, the wife got to go to Babes with Bullets in Piru prior to the steel challenge with Lisa Munson and Kay Miculek. . . it was increadible. I was very jealous. She came back wanting to make things go "ding". Then, we went back to that place in Vegas because we had discovered this thing called OLL and needed to spend another 4 days learning how to shoot rifles. In the meantime, I've been meeting up with a local AMOK! group to learn knife fighting and have been fortunate enough to go to a couple of Bay Area seminars with Tom in the last couple of years. Much effort has been spent on knife because that is what I can carry almost all the time.

At any rate, we're thinking about taking another trip somewhere and I've come up with a few possibilities.

1. TFTT "Two Man Team Tactics" course in LA Aug. 18-21. I've not heard much about Tactical Firearms Training Team, and do not know much beyond what's written in the course description and recommendations on this forum, but practically speaking, this seems to be a very useful course for a couple to develop a more cohesive and effective tool set utilizing both pistol and rifle. ($650 x 2) + (600 x .223) + (900 x 9mm)

http://www.tftt.com/training/tmt/

2. Tactical Response - "Fighting Rifle" in Camden, TN June 21-22 w/ wife and then "High Risk Civilian Contractor" June 23-27 It seems there is a cross-pollination between tactical response and Suarez International's curriculum. .. which I kindof want to get a bit of. This class or courses would cost more though due to travel and tuition, but might be offset a bit because of the supplied "team housing".

3. Suarez International "Point Shooting Progressions" June 21-22 in LA. The curriculum looks outstanding. I have no idea how they're going to cram all that into 2 days. . . plus, 1800 rounds per person? Yee haww. . .. fire up the dillon. I'm gonna be crankin' 'til my arms fall off.

4. USSA "Competition Hangun 110" Aug 22-24 in Tulsa, OK. I've been poling around trying to figure out a way to get some face time w/ a M/GM level shooter to get me started on the right foot in IPSC, but haven't been able to get hooked up. This seems like a good way to go, and the facility seems absolutely fantastic. The course cost seems downright reasonable at $475 x2 but the flight/car rental/hotel will escalate the cost significantly.

I guess those are the front-runners I'm kindof thinking about. There are probably other options, and I'd love to hear about them along with experiences with any of these organizations listed above. Of particular concern to me is the avoidance of getting into a boot camp. Our experiences with AMOK! and Frontsight and of course Babes with Bullets has been very positive for the wife. Tactical Response lays out very clearly in their website that they intend to train everyone who can be safe and will work with you - even an 11 year old girl. If there are things we need to work on prior to the class, we can certainly work on them (ie., physical conditioning, shooting tune-up, equipment setup). What we don't need is to get into a class that caters only to "high speed" hardcore operators and frowns on everyone who doesn't look/act the part. I'm very lucky to have a wife who humors me enough to actually come out and play (although i did trick her into the last one w/ that pink OLL). Don't want to toss in a sour experience if I can help it. At the same time, we've learned some skills in our training adventures and want to continue to get pushed into higher levels of tactical functionality. . . which is why I'm looking at courses with a bit of challenging material that goes a little beyond static shooting.

1. civilian arms traning C.A.T. level 1 class then take T.F.T.T. class level one

from those 2 classes she will be golden. from there she will have enough knowledge to choose on her own

[gcrtkd]

Here's the scoop...

http://www.calguns.net/calgunforum/showthread.php?t=118170

(I am biased towards TFTT & their instructors)

Their Combat Arts Seminar is perfect if you want to find out what they're all about. Keep in mind that a number of their courses are marked "Active military and LE only" on their website, so 2-Man Team Tactics might be a no-go. I don't know what may have been changed or modified over time so you'll have to speak to the Director to get the current low down.