Apply What You've Learned

posted on April 4, 2014
** When you buy products through the links on our site, we may earn a commission that supports NRA's mission to protect, preserve and defend the Second Amendment. **
artv.jpg

After three days of training and shooting, Day 4 of FTW Ranch's SAAM Precision course (Sportsmans All-Weather All-Terrain Marksmanship) culminates with a practical evaluation and a chance for students to apply what they've learned. The instructors call it a "drive around," and essentially it is an eight- to 10-station course that includes shooting positions and distant targets at points all across the ranch's 12,000 acres.

It's a bit like golf, but with guns. Three- and four-person groups were assigned lanes and, with an instructor/score keeper, began driving from "hole" to "hole". At each shooting position a target was identified and engaged by the students. Shooters had three shots with which to engage each target, and point values were assigned for first-, second- and third-round hits. Obviously a successful first shot was worth more points than a third-shot save. For my group, targets ranged from about 450 yds. to 800 yds. Our instructor also served as a spotter (caddy?) and provided one wind call for each shooter-the call was in miles-per-hour, so shooters had to confirm the call, multiply for distance-to-target, and choose their own holds. The real challenge, and test of our marksmanship, came in determining wind holds and, on unsuccessful shots, observing impacts and making appropriate adjustments to score a follow-on hit.

My colleagues here in the Rifleman offices will be relieved to know that I came out on top in my heat. But the margin of victory was only one point (of 50 possible), and the spread for my four-person group was only two points. I think this is a real testament to the training and instructors at FTW. Everyone who attended the course was a better rifleman (or woman) by the end, and the skill-level gap between relatively new shooters and those with more experience shrank to almost nil. I think that alone qualifies everyone as a winner, and serves as a ringing endorsement for FTW's SAAM Precision training.

Latest

Left A3 Bullpup Web
Left A3 Bullpup Web

Bullpup Your AR-15: The A3 Industries Triad Modular Bullpup Chassis

This chassis kit provides a handy way for AR fans to try a bullpup carbine on for size.

Hillsdale College & The Shooting Sports

Hillsdale College has invested in the Second Amendment and the shooting sports in a way that few schools have. At its John A. Halter Shooting Sports Education Center, collegiate shotgun and action pistol teams compete and build their firearm-handling skills.

Thompson/Center Arms Acquires Green Mountain Rifle Barrel Company

Thompson/Center Arms announced it has acquired the Green Mountain Rifle Barrel Company.

Teaching Liberty: Hillsdale College & The Second Amendment

At Hillsdale College, students don't just learn about the fundamental truths behind the Second Amendment. They also learn the practical side of the right to keep and bear arms.

Smith & Wesson Partners With Lipsey's On Line Of "Mountain Guns"

First applied to its Model 629 in 1989, the Smith & Wesson "Mountain Gun" is a lightweight and compact variant designed to be carried afield, and thanks to a partnership with Lipsey's, Smith & Wesson is bringing them back.

Pro-NRA & Second Amendment Supporter Dr. Michael Fuljenz Wins National Writing Award

Longtime NRA benefactor Dr. Mike Fuljenz, president of Universal Coin & Bullion, was honored by the Numismatic Literary Guild for his recent and timely article about the need to eliminate copper pennies.

Interests



Get the best of American Rifleman delivered to your inbox.