Reading - What's Next?

[chasfm11]

Before I took my CHL class, I bought and read "In the Gravest Extreme" by Massad Ayoob. In my opinion, the timing for reading that book is before you decide to carry.

Since joining this forum, I've read "A Gift of Fear" by Gavin de Becker and, last night, I finished "Strong on Defense" by Sanford Strong. Both are excellent and I will be giving copies of at least "A Gift of Fear" to friends and family. I'm still working on "Tactical Reality" by Louis Awerbuck. It is good but I'm having more trouble following what he is trying to tell me. I find myself having to take notes while I read it.

I've arrived at the point where I realize all that I don't know and how unlikely I might be in many cases to use my gun effectively if I need to.

Short of spending 100s or 1000s of dollars on personal training, is there a way to understand how not to make rookie mistakes? Here are some examples of what I think I'm looking for:

- In Strong on Defense, the term "Point of Aim" was used to describe firing without aiming in close quarters. I was looking at laser bore sights and thought that might be a great way practice with that skill. The problem is that the breech mounted bore sights all look like pieces of junk.

- The major point in Strong on Defense is mentally working through situations in advance. I'm usually pretty good at that, once I understand the correct idea. For example, the recommendation for a blow out, especially on the steer axle, of a large motor home is to hit the gas - a very counter intuitive action. When you understand that the reasoning behind it is an attempt to keep control of the vehicle until the force of the blow out explosion has dissipated, it makes perfect sense. I've mentally worked through that 100s of times while driving our motor home and think I could do it if a blow out did happen. I'm looking for the same kinds of ideas in gun handling in a crisis. Yes, I do understand that the idea is not to let the BG get to close but even with situational awareness, that isn't always possible.

If I now had to rank the books in order of benefit to me, here's how I'd do it.

1. A Gift of Fear
2. Strong on Defense
3. In the Gravest Extreme
4. Tactical Reality (I might change this when I finish the book but right now, I don't think so)

OK. Now you can call me stupid. I believe that many "skills" are really ideas that one can acquire the means to do without instruction.
Examples:
- I wanted to replace the "pop-corn" ceilings in our house with "orange peel", a different texture. Our neighbor was having her ceiling done and I asked the contractor to allow me to watch the orange peel being applied. He gave me a big song and dance about how it was a skill that took years to acquire and that I'd never be able to do it. I got to watch the worker pouring the mix into a gun (so that I could assess the texture and thickness of the mix) and then watched the gun technique that he used. I bought a cheap hopper gun at Home Depot and have done our whole house except for the kitchen. My neighbor will admit that my job is better than the one that she paid for - because I was more careful in doing it than her "professional". I've had to match the texture in a place were water damage caved in the ceiling. A professional builder could not find the outline of my patch.
- I wanted to put up tile in a shower surround. I'd never done any tile work before. I watched a You Tube video by Home Depot on performing this work and finished the job easily. Once I understood the mechanics, it only took a little bit of actual practice for me to get the hang of it.

I currently believe that some gun techniques are the same. It is a matter of understanding the principal and then practicing individually to acquire the motor skills to perform it. Am I wrong? If not, what should I be reading to help me?

Thanks,

Chas.

[WildBill]

I would suggest taking Personal Protection Inside the Home (PPIH) and Personal Protection Outside the Home (PPOH). They are both NRA courses that cover tactics for gun owners. They have mostly classroom instruction, but do have some range time practicing what is taught in class. The courses are relatively inexpensive compared to most other courses. The training manuals are excellent and are available for purchase, but I suggest taking the classroom and hands-on class rather than just reading the books. I know that both classes are offered at PSC Range, but I don't know of any in the DFW area. Maybe one of the CHL instructors will post more details.

Another good source of inexpensive training is the TexasCHL Forum day at PSC Range in Friendswood. A day of fun, meeting forum members, training, and lunch. All for only $15. You can't beat that.

[chasfm11]

I would suggest taking Personal Protection Inside the Home (PPIH) and Personal Protection Outside the Home (PPOH). They are both NRA courses that cover tactics for gun owners. They have mostly classroom instruction, but do have some range time practicing what is taught in class. The courses are relatively inexpensive compared to most other courses. The training manuals are excellent and are available for purchase, but I suggest taking the classroom and hands-on class rather than just reading the books. I know that both classes are offered at PSC Range, but I don't know of any in the DFW area. Maybe one of the CHL instructors will post more details.

Another good source of inexpensive training is the TexasCHL Forum day at PSC Range in Friendswood. A day of fun, meeting forum members, training, and lunch. All for only $15. You can't beat that.

Thanks. I have the 10/23 date on my calendar. Did I miss something about how to actually sign up to attend? I really do want to do that. I figured that I could drive down Friday evening and then go to PSC on Saturday. It is about a 5 hour drive for me, according to my GPS. I do understand that around Houston, all bets are off on exactly how long a drive can take.

I looked at the NRA website to see if PPIH and PPOH were listed and if I could find a link to where they were taught anywhere close to here. Perhaps I'm not seeing that site correctly but I couldn't find anything like that. I really don't mind taking classes but have discovered that I often learn better working at my own pace and then going to a class to have the information repeated.

[WildBill]

I was probably not clear. Both of these courses were developed by the NRA. Certified NRA Instructors teach these classes, but the NRA does not schedule or teach the classes. I don't know if they sell the books directly, but you might be able to buy them on Amazon.

Why don't you try to eEmail Marc Gentine at Marc@TexasShooting.com for some more details. He might be able to fix you up with a class.

[chasfm11]

I knew that the NRA itself didn't teach the classes. I guess what I was hoping for is a link to a local person/organization that did. I'm still pretty new to all of them and am not yet good at finding my way around to the right information.

I sent a note to Mark as you suggested. I also looked at the Texasshooting website but it appears to be pretty outdated (shows Texaschl day at PSC for 2008)

Thanks,

Chas.