TDSA Rifle Class April 11/12

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Crusader8207

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4-11/4-12 2015 I took the "Urban Patrol Rifle" course offered by TDSA. Not having had any rifle training in the past, I was looking for a class that would help build my foundation and skill set in becoming proficient in understanding the operation and manipulation of the AR platform. I wanted to know how to properly use the rifle as a home defense/urban defense tool, I was (and am) not interested in becoming an "Operator". I'm not strapping on a full set of body armor and kicking in doors. I want to protect my family and myself. I'm not going looking for problems, I'm looking to eliminate them if they arise.

From reading the description, it appeared that the "Urban Patrol Rifle" class would fill my needs.

Being a two day class they packed a ton of useful information into 16 hours. Day one was worth the price of admission all by itself. We spent most of the day in the class room disassembling and cleaning our rifles as well as learning their nuances. They even had us take the bolt carrier group apart and clean it completely.

They showed and discussed the benefits and features of different rail set ups, fore end grips, weapon mounted lights, triggers, sights, stocks, and slings. They brought a bunch of rifles set up in many different configurations with different sights and optics allowing us the the opportunity to see how they differ. The instructors (Marshall and Jeremy) both had a ton of valuable information as to "what works and what doesn't" for the home defense application.I guarantee they saved me a ton of money and time trying to see what was the best set up for me.

That afternoon we went out to the range and had the opportunity to properly sight in our rifles. They went over the different distances of where to sight the rifles in from and what the pros and cons were. Once we decided where we wanted our zero to be we went to work. We sighted our irons first, then went back and sighted our optics independently. Even though the class was scheduled the be over at 6PM, we were still out on the range until 7:30 getting everyone dialed in. Oh and by the way we were doing this all in the rain and neither Marshall or Jeremy skipped a beat. They were making sure that we were going to get it right before we went home.

Day two started out on the range at 0900 hrs. We went through a few drills to help us "wake up". Then the fun began. Early in the day, it was determined that there was a problem with my optic and Marshall suggested that I do the class strictly with my iron sights. Even though I was determined to try to get my optic zeroed Marshall didn't push me to stay on the iron sights. I then had my "ah ha" moment and decided to stop trying to chase the squirrel and focus on the fundamentals. He came over and said "You will be a better rifle shooter if you learn with you irons, then slapping an optic on there will be child's play".

I have absolutely zero regrets using my iron sights. I feel I was able to perform at similar levels with the other students with optics. In fact when we took the Marine Corps CQB test I scored a 340/400.

Another reason to take a class with TDSA is the quality of instructors and their level of professionalism. One of the biggest things is these guys leave their egos at the door. The class is about their students and it shows. From watching and listening to both Jeremy and Marshall it is quite evident that they are both amazing shooters and full of information from personal experience. They could get up in front of the class and puff out their chest and say "Look how awesome I am" but they don't. They make sure the students are learning, in a safe environment, yet still keeping it fun. This was billed as an entry level class (i.e. a pre cursor to the Urban Rifle 2). What I truly appreciate is that the instructors identified the fact that the quality of shooters and their skill level was higher than that of an an entry level shooter and they felt comfortable enough to introduce some more advanced techniques and let the students kind of determine the direction the course was taking.

I highly recommend taking a class from TDSA. I personally will be back to take more.
 

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