Introduction to USPSA: Administrivia

This is such a mundane topic, I hesitate to even mention it.

But it's important, because I'm running a one man show when I schedule students for my "Introduction to USPSA" class at ARPC, and the training is sometimes less complex than registering students.

"Professional" trainers (those people who get the Big Bucks for running a class) are probably aware that scheduling classes and registering students are activities which potentially take more time and effort than actually running the class.

I'm not a "Professional".  I'm an "Amateur".  I've taking courses in training in the business world, but there are few classes for Firearms Training outside of the NRA, which I can afford.  And nobody is going to pay me to take a NRA INSTRUCTOR class, so I fall back on my native ability and previous professional (including military) training.

Here's the deal!

I have a link from my home-club website to my personal email address, where people who wish to pre-register for my "INTRODUCTION TO USPSA" class can let me know that they plan to attend.  Sometimes they show up, sometimes they don't.  That's life.

But one thing I absolutely insist upon is that I know who is so determined to take the training, they will pre-register.  That performs two functions:  (1) I know who has already committed to the class, and (2) I know how many people I will be training.

That last part is important, and (2) supports (1).

If attendees just "show up" without pre-registering, I may have too many people in the class to allow sufficient time for each attendee to work through the Live Fire Exercise portion of the course.  That is the most important, because the 'Lecture' portion only tells the students what is expected of them.

The Live Fire portion of the course is where the students have the opportunity to demonstrate their (relative degrees of ) gun-handling expertise.

Realism Reveals Incompetence:

You may not believe it, but when I tell students that their score on a test depends on being able to perform basic functions of gun-handling under the pressure of time, they sometimes get so flustered that they are unable to perform even the simplest demonstration of gun-handling expertise.



I have seen participants who, when told that they must perform multiple functions and "the clock is running", they unable to perform even the simplest function.

I have had participants who, when told to perform an exercise which includes a mandatory reload ... they fumble the reload to the point where I am required to reach down and remove their firearm from their hands.  Those participants did not successfully complete the curriculum, and (thankfully) they never showed up at a USPSA/IPSC match.  They realized that this was not a competitive mileau for which they were well suited.

Sometimes, you have to flunk students.  They know they have flunked; nobody had to say anything to them.  I'm usually grateful that they recognized this fact.  It's embarrassing to tell someone: "You should not be shooting guns; you're not safe!"  Fortunately, I've never had to say this.

They know.

Nobody has to "pass" this training regimen to be allowed to compete.  My home gun club (Albany Rifle and Pistol club) offers the training free of charge to anyone who wishes to compete.  They don't pay me, I don't get paid, and I'm happy with that arrangement because (a) I want every one to have the opportunity to learn, and (b) I may have to be on their squad at a future match.

It's not a "winnowing out" process.  At least, it was not intended to be; but occasionally that's what it turns out to be.

POST-SCRIPT:

I've said almost all of this before.  And I'll be saying it again, from time to time.

It's important to note that there are some people who are just not competent to handle a gun.

I'll say that again.

There are some people who are just to competent to handle a gun.

And nobody who trains 'shooters' should be in denial about this fact.

We who shoot, have a duty to keep the company of shooters safe.
And the people who are around them, when they are in possession of a firearm?
We have an even higher duty to keep them safe from incompetent gun-owners.


And there a few of the out there ... not all of them are Law Enforcement Officers.