Something I learned today
Black and white is always gray
— from Hüsker Dü’s album Zen Arcade

Never pass up the opportunity to drop a Hüsker Dü reference. At least that’s my hard and fast rule.

Another hard and fast rule I subscribe to is that the higher the volume of rounds shot in a shooting class, the better the class is. I can remember somebody telling me once that “you will shoot 1,200 to 1,500 in so-and-so’s two-day class.” Immediately I thought that’s the kind of class where you get your money’s worth.

Well, that’s not actually true. And, something I learned today, shooting no rounds can be more valuable than you can imagine.

I realize this is really hard to wrap one’s brain around, and I wouldn’t have bought this ‘line of crap’ if it weren’t for the fact that, a) I’m older now and a lot more open-minded about such concepts, and, b) I took part in a two-hour class where we didn’t shoot a single round but learned a ton.

A couple weeks ago – so, not really today, but it is when I learned something – I, along with my friend Yamil Sued, took part in a two-hour range session hosted by Freddie Blish that featured local instructor Cecil Burch from from Immediate Action Combatives.

Cecil Burch (center right) had the full and undivided attention of the class, without ever having fired a single round, as he broke down concepts and practical applications in a close contact engagement that take place in your personal space. Photo: P. Erhardt

This ‘mini class’ was just a small taste of a longer one-day class Cecil teaches. In it he touched on maintaining the spatial relationship, functional footwork, presenting the pistol through an appropriate line of extension and compression, and retention shooting. Though, we didn’t do any actual shooting.

All our range work was done using inert red guns. This was because we were working in teams of two where we’d be drawing and pointing the red gun at our partner as they advanced on us. And I don’t know about you, but if I’m going to do this sort of drill I’d prefer to do it with a piece of plastic rather than a, well, you get it.

The drill Cecil had us do was a slow-paced retreating drill while our partner advanced, also slowly, with their arms extended…kinda like Frankenstein. Actually, Cecil referred to it as the Frankenstein Drill.

The Frankenstein Drill is about maintaining distance and firearm control with an advancing potential threat. Below, Cecil Burch demonstrates the problem with an off angle approach and always working from a full extension instead of compression and pulling the firearm in to keep it within your control. Photos: P. Erhardt

The idea is to watch your footwork as you change the angle of retreat while keeping your gun extended but also out of reach of the approaching ‘Frankenstein’ with his/her hands reaching for your pistol.

Afterwards, as we sought shade and a slight reprieve from the Arizona sun on what was a 100 degree morning, Cecil broke down the components of the drill and explained why we would not simply draw and blast at the first sign of a potential aggressor breaking the 21 foot barrier.

Not every encounter will play out the way you train and drill in a shooting class. Sometimes your encounter can begin within striking distance and how you react, move, avoid, retain your firearm, and ultimately shoot does’t play out like it does on a static shooting range.

The last two parts, firearm retention and shooting, is where Cecil really got the class interested. Cecil is an accomplished Jiu-Jitsu competitor and instructor. Combat up close and personal is where he lives, and he had our undivided attention as he explained concepts, and backed those up with data and facts.

A lot of instructors can tell you stuff, and there are certainly those that love the sound of their own voice so much that they are sure you love it just as much. But the good instructors, the real good ones, know how to educate you. Cecil is real good. Looking around the group we were all dialed in to what he was teaching, with two gentlemen diligently taking notes.

I wasn’t one of those notetakers, which probably tells you something about how smart I am.

Understanding the dynamics of an up close, hand-to-hand attack through the eyes, and experience, of an accomplished Jiu-Jitsu practitioner provides an entirely different understanding of what could happen in real life. Photo: P. Erhardt

Cecil wrapped up the class explaining these two hours were less than a quarter of what is covered in his full one-day class. I can’t speak for everyone on the range that morning but as for me and Yamil we both agreed that his daylong class, which ballparks around $175, would be money really well spent.

And that’s without knowing how many rounds we’d actually end up shooting in the class.

Don’t let round count fool you into thinking the more you shoot the better the class is. When recently speaking with George Harris, well-known, long-time, and highly respected instructor, he reminded me that with a high round count comes fatigue, and with fatigue comes the accentuation and reinforcing of bad habits.

I kinda wish he had pulled me aside several years ago when I was working with him at Sig and explained that to me. He would have saved me several years of stupid assumptions. That, too, is something I learned today…seek out and listen to the advice George has to offer.

I’m looking forward to the opportunity to attend a formal class with Cecil and learn a lot more while hopefully discrediting more of my foolish assumptions.

– Paul Erhardt, Managing Editor, the Outdoor Wire Digital Network