Redback One has shared an overview of their new Redback Shooting System with us. It is a total system that relies on measurable standards to ensure that students attain the knowledge, skills and attitude to safely and confidently carry, control, handle, and operate weapon systems. They offer competency based training at four levels from entry up to CQB and Home Defense proficiency. Additionally, RB1 will offer instructor level training.
This AAR was provided to SSD by a talented young lady who recently attended a Haley Strategic Partners Adaptive Carbine 01 in Victoria, TX – Oct 2-4, 2013. It’s great to hear things from her point of view.
A few weeks ago I attended Haley Strategic Partner’s Adaptive Carbine One course at Arrowhead Firearms Training in Victoria, Texas. The amount of information I received over the duration of three days was extremely valuable. It was applicable not only just to carbine manipulation, but also to other weapon systems and even my perspective on everyday life as an armed citizen. I thought it would be helpful to evaluate the course in the context of my personal background and training experiences thus far.
As a woman, I often find myself surrounded by men at gun ranges who tend to be very aggressive and condescending towards me. I’ve had experiences where men have told me that I “can’t handle” a .45 caliber handgun, or assume that because I’m a woman, they automatically know more than me. There are many women out there who feel exactly the same and have had to battle this relentless “good old boys” attitude. Thankfully, at the beginning of this year I joined the Sure Shots, a women’s pistol league based in Austin, TX where women just like me can come together and learn how to shoot without the pressure of their boyfriends, husbands, or any other men who try to limit us.
It is when I joined the Sure Shots that I began to take shooting more seriously than just a fun hobby or practice to become a better hunter. I began to seek out training programs that would expand my capabilities as a shooter. The first class I took was a carbine class for the Sure Shots administered by Legion Firearms. I had never shot an AR-15 before (actually, I had never shot a rifle that wasn’t some type of bolt action hunting rifle). The class pushed me passed my physical limits, but I came out the other side more familiar and proficient with the weapon system.
A few months later a fellow Sure Shot and I took the Magpul Dynamics Handgun One course conducted by Steve Fisher, who happens to be an excellent instructor and just an awesome person to be around in general (even if he called me “Rihanna” for 3 days straight). Despite the fact that we were the only girls in a class of experienced shooters, we held our own. If I had one word to describe the three days of the course, it would be “intense.” While the class focused on technique, handgun manipulation, and accuracy, the most important thing I got out of it was discovering and experiencing my personal physical and mental breaking points. I broke bad habits and began to learn new ones. I came out a completely different shooter.
During the first day of the HSP Adaptive Carbine class I immediately began to realize that the teaching style was completely different than anything I had taken before. First of all, Travis Haley and Brannon LeBouef were very personable and welcoming. The course itself was extremely cognitive and internally focused. I began to concentrate on my mental awareness and focus. We didn’t even shoot that many rounds the first day. Yet, somehow the fewer rounds I put through the barrel, the more I was learning and improving. Their goal for the course was for us to become “thinkers before shooters.” Each day consisted of multiple stories and lessons that they shared with the class.
While the Magpul Dynamics class made me a completely different pistol shooter, the Haley Strategic class made me a completely different thinker. Both classes provided extensive training in fundamentals, which are universal to all weapon systems. The things I learned about “feel, eyes, finger” in the HSP carbine class have already made me a better handgun shooter. Likewise, the intensity and fast pace I learned in the Magpul Dynamics handgun class have helped me to be aggressive and proficient with carbine techniques.
If I were to provide advice for women looking for training, I would recommend taking a Haley Strategic Partner’s class first. It would have been interesting for me to see how my acquired mental awareness would have helped me in Steve Fisher’s class. Furthermore, don’t resist taking a class because you are intimidated, scared, or don’t want to be “yelled at.” I think it is vitally important to be pushed in that way. You need to be able to face your barriers so you can cross them. It is important to diversify your training to discover which techniques works best for you. Also, you will discover that the firearms community consists of some of the most welcoming and friendly people you will ever meet. Everyone wants to share their gear, stories, and learned lessons with each other, especially with women who are taking the initiative to make themselves better. They want to be part of that. Just remember, stay open to all types of training and don’t be afraid to try something new.
Times are tough and with so many spending their money on guns and magazines, items like target systems are being ignored. TacStrike builds a great target and decided to come up with a way to help shooters get ahold of their systems. They established a relationship with GunFinancing.com which is essentially the “lending tree” of the firearms industry, matching banks with customers to provide the best options for financing.
Tacstrike is offering target sets of their 1/4 scale steel targets which feature a AR 500 (brinell hardness of at least 495) plate which floats inside of the carrier allowing it to absorb the impact without the need to swing to the rear or rock in the carrier to absorb the bullet impact. The Upright mounts into the base plates center 2×2 pocket and has an armor plate attached to the front of the post to keep those low rounds from damaging the post.
This video gives you an idea of how the targets stand up to carbine fire.
tacstrike.com/Targets-With-Financing
Invictus Alliance Group, LLC and Northern Red Inc have announced a “Joining of Forces” but have not disclosed what this actually means. My take is that there is no formal business arrangement such as a joint venture or merger, but rather that the two companies tend to complement one another so they will share clients based on the task at hand. Both are great companies and I’d say, based on the current environment, they’d be in a better position working together, rather than competing.
Raleigh, NC – January 1, 2013 – The elite combat-proven training, high-risk security and intelligence capabilities of two leading companies have been brought together to deliver critical services to the private and government industries.
Invictus Alliance Group Founders and former 1st SFOD-D (Delta Force) members Tom and Scot Spooner started the company in 2010 and have since successfully delivered tactical training and experiential leadership courses to elite organizations making Invictus a sought-after brand and delivery partner.
“Our integrity as a company is our most valuable asset, it’s something we are unwilling to throw away for short-term monetary gains. We are only interested in attracting the right members to our team and in turn, attracting the right kind of customers for our services. We’re not a transactional service provider, we’re focused on the mutual benefit of long-term relationships with our customers. We are their trusted advisors,” said Scot Spooner.
In early 2012 Invictus Alliance Group began a collaborative relationship with Northern Red Inc., a specialized training and high-risk security company based in Philadelphia, PA, co-founded by former Special Forces Green Beret J.D. Potynsky, CEO, and business consultant, Heath Durrans.
The two companies soon realized their shared vision, values and incessant strive for quality that has resulted in this formal “joining of forces” that will increase delivery capability and subject matter expertise in the following areas:
– Government Support Services
– Special Operations Training
– Crisis Management
– High-Risk Security
– Intelligence Operations
Tom Spooner observed, “The industry is full of very talented one-man shows who are all making a good living and providing a great product, but no single person posses the influential power to affect the necessary change and training standardization in the industry. However, by integrating Northern Red’s Special Operations experience together with Invictus’s, I strongly believe we have the ability to make significant positive change in the way Military and Law Enforcement units and private clients perform their training.”
J.D.. Potynsky points out, “Invictus is in the business of challenging the training status quo, asking the hard questions, doing what they say can’t be done, and establishing updated and relevant standards in every aspect of the industries we operate in. I’m excited to be part of this success story and to take on the responsibility to drive the strategic vision of making Invictus a world-class training services leader and innovator.”
Invictus Alliance Group, LLC is a Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business based in Raleigh, NC, and provides Special Operations Training and Critical Infrastructure Consulting Services to private and government sector clients.
Northern Red Inc., is a Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business based in Philadelphia, PA, and provides tactical training, high-risk security and intelligence operations to private and government sector clients.
Mike describes what you are watching-
I came out of box A before shooting the steel and had to back up and came off the second to last steel before I broke the shot and had to re-address it but other than that I was happy with the run. That BCM lightweight 16″ mid-length with FSC556, A5 buffer and Geissele S3GE is an awesome speed gun. It’s just downright fast. Almost zero recoil and shot-to-shot and tgt-to-tgt splits are phenomenal.
This is a great ‘hot topic’ debate issue. I’ve been in the middle of this one several times as have you. I like to debunk myths and research gimmicks. Through discovery learning, much can be learned.
The question of whether a zeroed rifle equals a zeroed rifle is one that I ask in nearly every course I run.
“Is a rifle that is zeroed for one shooter, zeroed for another shooter?”
You may have a very strong opinion here. So do I. My opinion is backed up by empirical data. I have vetted this question by having shooters in every one of my courses check the data by firing someone else’s rifle,…after it is zeroed. The data is the same 100% of the time.
The problem is, and the reason for the ‘Gray Area’, is understanding when a rifle is zeroed. I’d say a rifle is zeroed when the shooter can achieve consistent center mass 10 round, sub two minute (or even three minute) groups at a SR-1 target from 100 yards. Fair? If the shooter is consistent, say…, is achieving a score in the high ‘nineties’ with each group, this is not accidental. Fair? The shooter is consistently applying the fundamentals. The shooter’s cheek stock weld, eye relief, firing hand position, cyclic rate of breathing and trigger control remains the same with each round fired and from group to group. If the shooter is achieving all of these, I am pretty sure that the rifle is zeroed. I am also pretty sure that if I apply the same fundamentals, I can achieve similar results with that shooter’s rifle. If the shooter is using a red dot sight, I will use the sight as intended. If the shooter is using iron sights or a chevron as seen through some ACOG sights, I will need to ask the shooter where his point of aim is.
Patrick McNamara
SGM, US Army (Ret)
Patrick McNamara spent twenty-two years in the United States Army in a myriad of special operations units. When he worked in the premier special missions unit, he became an impeccable marksman, shooting with accurate, lethal results and tactical effectiveness. McNamara has trained tactical applications of shooting to people of all levels of marksmanship, from varsity level soldiers, and police officers who work the streets to civilians with little to no time behind the trigger.
His military experience quickly taught him that there is more to tactical marksmanship than merely squeezing the trigger. Utilizing his years of experience, McNamara developed a training methodology that is safe, effective and combat relevant and encourages a continuous thought process. This methodology teaches how to maintain safety at all times and choose targets that force accountability, as well as provides courses covering several categories, including individual, collective, on line and standards.
While serving as his Unit’s Marksmanship NCO, he developed his own marksmanship club with NRA, CMP, and USPSA affiliations. Mac ran monthly IPSC matches and ran semi annual military marksmanship championships to encourage marksmanship fundamentals and competitiveness throughout the Army.
He retired from the Army’s premier hostage rescue unit as a Sergeant Major and is the author of T.A.P.S. (Tactical Application of Practical Shooting).
Gunfighter Moment is a weekly feature brought to you by Alias Training & Security Services. Each week Alias brings us a different Trainer and in turn they offer some words of wisdom.
“New Year’s resolutions are a tradition and here’s mine. I’m going to pick a pistol and master it to new highs of personal proficiency. Come January 1 there will be only one in my hands all year albeit in various sizes and for various purposes. Do the same and refine your skill. You’ll be glad come next January!”
-Mike Pannone
Mike Pannone retired from the Army’s premier assault force (1st SFOD-D) after an explosive breaching injury. A year after his retirement America was attacked on 9/11 and he returned to help serve his country as the head marksmanship instructor at the Federal Air Marshals training course and then moved to help stand up the FAMS Seattle field office. In 2003 he left the FAMS to serve as a PSD detail member and then a detail leader for the State Department during 2003 and 2004 in Baghdad and Tikrit.
In 2005 he served as a ground combat advisor of the Joint Counter IED Task Force and participated on combat operations with various units in Al Anbar province. Upon returning he gave IED awareness briefings to departing units and helped stand up a pre-Iraq surge rifle course with the Asymmetric Warfare Group as a lead instructor. With that experience as well as a career of special operations service in Marine Reconnaissance, Army Special Forces and JSOC to draw from he moved to the private sector teaching planning, leadership, marksmanship and tactics as well as authoring and co-authoring several books such as The M4 Handbook, AK Handbook and Tactical Pistol shooting. Mike also consults for several major rifle and accessory manufacturers to help them field the best possible equipment to the warfighter, law enforcement officer and upstanding civilian end user. He is considered a subject matter expert on the AR based Stoner platform in all its derivatives.
Gunfighter Moment is a weekly feature brought to you by Alias Training & Security Services. Each week Alias brings us a different Trainer and in turn they offer some words of wisdom.
Normally around this time of year my monthly fitness column focuses in the challenges of trying to maintain your exercise program and diet during the holiday season. However, this year the mass shooting at the Sandy Hook elementary school in Newtown, Conn took my thoughts a long way from running and eating, it took me back to a nearby place some 11 years ago. In August of 2001 I was on leave between duty stations at my parent’s home in upstate NY. One day my wife and I took our two young boys on a day trip to NYC, a few hours south. It was a beautiful summer day, and we took in all the normal sights, to include World Trade Center. We spent about an hour on the South Tower observation deck, a great view, you could see for miles. A few weeks later I was checking in at my new duty station, and someone came in and told us that an airplane had just crashed into the WTC, huh? I was just there? We all went down to the duty hut and were watching the live news broadcast when the second plane slammed into the South Tower. That was Sept 11, 2001. We all know the national tragedy of that day, and the history changing events that followed with Iraq and Afghanistan. I had more than one nightmare about that day, and specifically the thought of what would have happened if the terrorists had attacked the day my family was there. How could I have saved my family if the planes hit while we were on the roof? My stubborn Marine mindset said that I would have gotten it done, somehow, someway. It was the only way to get the bad dream to end with us surviving. In any case for me to have actually done it would have required an extraordinary physical effort, God’s help and some luck.
Pic of the WTC from the ferry. The pic says August 1st, but i think it was more toward the middle of the month
Now we have another terrible event that’s rocked our nation. The thought of 20 innocent children being gunned down is beyond comprehension. It gives me the same sick feeling that I got watching people fall from the WTC. How could this happen? What is the fix to prevent this? Better school security? Better mental health screening? Banning certain weapons from all but those who have advanced training and through background checks? Maybe all of the above, I don’t know, that’s all above my pay grade. I do know that if I was in that school that day, and if I didn’t have my own CCW on hand, I would have put every second of physical training that I’ve ever done in my life, into a single life or death focus to get my hands on the shooter. Now I’m not stupid, I’ve see what a 5.56 round can do to a human body. I know that one hit in a vital area, and it wouldn’t matter what level of physical condition I’m in, it’s over for me and anyone else for that matter. However, I like to think that just maybe, because I’m in good condition that I could have weathered it, at least to let me survive till I could do something. Could there ever be a better reason to keep yourself in top condition? To maybe save the life of a innocent child? I think not. In any case have Merry Christmas and a safe and happy New Year.
Semper Fi
MGunz
www.corpsstrength.com
