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nightmare69 wrote:Having a blast driving, we got done early on the shalom course and they let us do it again as fast as we wanted to go. I found out drifting when turning around is frowned upon at the academy, sure was fun though. Only problem is they was us to use the "shuffle" technique when driving and it just feels unnatural. You hold your hands at 4 and 8 o clock and it forces you to make small adjustments when driving. This becomes a problem going fast on the shalom course. The instructors wanted to show us up and got behind the wheel and they did not use the shuffle technique that they rammed down our throats and got on to us when they could see our hands. Oh well still was a fun day and tomorrow should be a blast as well.

Shuffle steering feels really awkward when you first try it, but if you work at it a bit you'll find that it's far more precise than other methods. The first time I took a pursuit driving course I had to be convinced, but came away a believer.

Watch the hands of race car drivers - they're all using it.

I agree it would work well going high speeds on a highway but a road course where the faster you go the more turning of the wheel you have to do and do it quick it does not compute with me. When we did the shuffle on the slalom course going fast enough to have understeer and the rear end skid I had to use 9 and 3 o'clock hands to prevent the car from spinning out. I was pushing that old crown vic as hard as it would go. I will drive however they want me to so I can pass the course but I have to disagree that the shuffle is the best on a slalom, you just do not have enough movement or time to turn the wheel when doing the U-turn.

Got to do evasive lane change and "the box" which is basically set up like a parking lot with a bunch of U-turns. The people who went slow hit cones, those who went at a good fast pace did great, I was told to slow it down a bit a couple of times but I rocked the box course. The evasive lane change I did OK on the slower part, hit the cones a couple of times but once they let me take it to 40mph I did great. I seem to perform best at the higher speeds, I did take the evasive lane change at 45mph and executed a flawless run but was only supposed to go 35mph, oops. When asked how fast I went by the instructor I said about 35-38mph and he just laughed.

This video was uploaded back in 2006 where a student running the evasive lane change course lost control and flipped the car, this is the same course we ran today. The video does have a few choice words as you can imagine.

[youtube]http://youtube.com/watch?v=OEKMV6HK49Q[/youtube]

nightmare69 wrote:Got to do evasive lane change and "the box" which is basically set up like a parking lot with a bunch of U-turns. The people who went slow hit cones, those who went at a good fast pace did great, I was told to slow it down a bit a couple of times but I rocked the box course. The evasive lane change I did OK on the slower part, hit the cones a couple of times but once they let me take it to 40mph I did great. I seem to perform best at the higher speeds, I did take the evasive lane change at 45mph and executed a flawless run but was only supposed to go 35mph, oops. When asked how fast I went by the instructor I said about 35-38mph and he just laughed.

This video was uploaded back in 2006 where a student running the evasive lane change course lost control and flipped the car, this is the same course we ran today. The video does have a few choice words as you can imagine.

[youtube]http://youtube.com/watch?v=OEKMV6HK49Q[/youtube]

Whoever said training can't be fun?

Excaliber wrote:

nightmare69 wrote:Having a blast driving, we got done early on the shalom course and they let us do it again as fast as we wanted to go. I found out drifting when turning around is frowned upon at the academy, sure was fun though. Only problem is they was us to use the "shuffle" technique when driving and it just feels unnatural. You hold your hands at 4 and 8 o clock and it forces you to make small adjustments when driving. This becomes a problem going fast on the shalom course. The instructors wanted to show us up and got behind the wheel and they did not use the shuffle technique that they rammed down our throats and got on to us when they could see our hands. Oh well still was a fun day and tomorrow should be a blast as well.

Shuffle steering feels really awkward when you first try it, but if you work at it a bit you'll find that it's far more precise than other methods. The first time I took a pursuit driving course I had to be convinced, but came away a believer.

Watch the hands of race car drivers - they're all using it.

Plus you have to be able to calmly call out a pursuit on the radio and multi task. That is part of the process....

texanjoker wrote:

Excaliber wrote:

nightmare69 wrote:Having a blast driving, we got done early on the shalom course and they let us do it again as fast as we wanted to go. I found out drifting when turning around is frowned upon at the academy, sure was fun though. Only problem is they was us to use the "shuffle" technique when driving and it just feels unnatural. You hold your hands at 4 and 8 o clock and it forces you to make small adjustments when driving. This becomes a problem going fast on the shalom course. The instructors wanted to show us up and got behind the wheel and they did not use the shuffle technique that they rammed down our throats and got on to us when they could see our hands. Oh well still was a fun day and tomorrow should be a blast as well.

Shuffle steering feels really awkward when you first try it, but if you work at it a bit you'll find that it's far more precise than other methods. The first time I took a pursuit driving course I had to be convinced, but came away a believer.

Watch the hands of race car drivers - they're all using it.

Plus you have to be able to calmly call out a pursuit on the radio and multi task. That is part of the process....

Not to mention keeping up with update text messages coming through on the onboard PC. It's a form of mandatory distracted driving.

I got 3rd best in time on the road course today. I should have gotten 2nd but the two people keeping time disagreed but oh well I had a blast and what a way to end the halfway point of the academy. 9 more weeks to go then Im outta here.

nightmare69 wrote:I got 3rd best in time on the road course today. I should have gotten 2nd but the two people keeping time disagreed but oh well I had a blast and what a way to end the halfway point of the academy. 9 more weeks to go then Im outta here.

Time flies when you're having fun.

Yes it does. Next week we all get back together and do long guns for 3 days, that should be fun.

Sounds like a great time indeed. Right now I am taking the Austin Community College program, going through the Texas Law and Procedures part.
In Summer I will hopefully take the Skills, ie the fun part!

I am enjoying reading your progress through the academy.

garodrig1 wrote:Sounds like a great time indeed. Right now I am taking the Austin Community College program, going through the Texas Law and Procedures part.
In Summer I will hopefully take the Skills, ie the fun part!

I am enjoying reading your progress through the academy.

Thanks man. I believe the best was driving, I get to shoot as much as I want/can afford to but how often do you get to drive the dog out of someone else's car around a road course? Shooting is better than being in the classroom but its just meh. Everyone did well with the ARs. Tomorrow we qualify with them and on Wednesday we qualify with shotguns, then back in the class for 2 days of CPR and first aid training.

nightmare69 wrote:how often do you get to drive the dog out of someone else's car around a road course?

Every time I rent a car in Southern California.

Anygunanywhere

My score for shotguns today was 100. To qualify we had to shoot 2 rounds slugs at 15 yrd standing, and 3 rounds slugs at 25 yards kneeling. We went through 25rds of field loads doing various positions, from the hip, at distances from 7 yrd, to 25 yrd. Shot some coming out of the patrol car, from cover, around barricades. Shoulder is a bit sore but everyone passed both shotguns and patrol rifles.

Our area TCOLE rep came by to talk to us today. He said you are not licensed until you are sworn in as an officer. I thought that once you pasted the state test you were licensed, guess not. Even if I go to work for a county as a jailer after graduation I guess the 30.06 signs will still apply to me until I get the badge.

Sorry if you have answered this before, but you going to corrections first and then head on to patrol for the sheriff?

And going through the academy is like a self sponsor sort of deal?