pdmoderator
New member
This doesn't compete with Thunder Ranch, etc. but Ray wanted to hear why I wasn't at the last NJ shoot. 
The Personal Protection (Defensive Handgun) is a 10-hour NRA-approved course divided into two sections and three instructors. About half of the course is on legal aspects of self-defense, with the other half on defensive shooting. There's a range exercise and a written test. (Everyone passed.)
Jack Giordano, the chief instructor for Eastern Firearms, is an outgoing guy with a lot of credits. He's a former police sergeant with the New York Port Authority and police firearms instructor, and does a lot of business designing ranges as well as teaching shooting.
Handling the legal side of the course was Tom Westfield, another retired Port Authority police sergeant. Tom turned lawyer after he retired and now works as a prosecutor. Tom has a million stories and has decades of familiarity with New Jersey firearms law.
The newest member of the teaching team was Patrick Buryk, an NRA instructor who will soon be getting certified as a Glock armorer. Pat was a bit nervous but did a good job.
The class was informal with a lot of give and take. Six students signed up, all male. Jack thought that that was unusual, as he had always had at least one woman sign up.
Course materials included a 200-page book published by the NRA (well worth reading) and a short pamphlet on NJ firearms law that EFA published itself. Jack also showed the NRA's personal protection videotape, which I already owned.
I found the range exercise and the written test to be a piece of cake. But YMMV.
There will be another course in early June. The cost is $175 -- in my opinion, well worth it. If you're interested, visit the web page at http://www.easternfirearms.com .
Cheers,
- pdmoderator
The Personal Protection (Defensive Handgun) is a 10-hour NRA-approved course divided into two sections and three instructors. About half of the course is on legal aspects of self-defense, with the other half on defensive shooting. There's a range exercise and a written test. (Everyone passed.)
Jack Giordano, the chief instructor for Eastern Firearms, is an outgoing guy with a lot of credits. He's a former police sergeant with the New York Port Authority and police firearms instructor, and does a lot of business designing ranges as well as teaching shooting.
Handling the legal side of the course was Tom Westfield, another retired Port Authority police sergeant. Tom turned lawyer after he retired and now works as a prosecutor. Tom has a million stories and has decades of familiarity with New Jersey firearms law.
The newest member of the teaching team was Patrick Buryk, an NRA instructor who will soon be getting certified as a Glock armorer. Pat was a bit nervous but did a good job.
The class was informal with a lot of give and take. Six students signed up, all male. Jack thought that that was unusual, as he had always had at least one woman sign up.
Course materials included a 200-page book published by the NRA (well worth reading) and a short pamphlet on NJ firearms law that EFA published itself. Jack also showed the NRA's personal protection videotape, which I already owned.
I found the range exercise and the written test to be a piece of cake. But YMMV.
There will be another course in early June. The cost is $175 -- in my opinion, well worth it. If you're interested, visit the web page at http://www.easternfirearms.com .
Cheers,
- pdmoderator
