The folks here in central Kentucky were just treated to a three-day Urban Carbine class by Mr. Cain and I just wanted to pass on some observations ... and an enthusiastic endorsement!
Those of you who have attended similar courses under Louis Awerbuck and Jim Crews will find Randy's routine a familiar one. He is an Awerbuck disciple, which is good news for those of us who seek truth without fluff. While I haven't studied under Awerbuck, many of the techniques I learned for the tactical shotgun through Jim Crews (another Awerbuck associate) were echoed in this course, corroborating their effectiveness and efficiency.
After a short lecture on the Four Rules and range etiquette we went right to the firing range for zeroing and a quick workout on the basic firing positions. Some students were quicker than others, but Randy didn't let this interfere with the pace of the class and showed a definite willingness to help anyone who was having trouble during breaks and lunch.
And what a pace it was! A lot of stuff was thrown at us in the next three days (and one evening) ... I think there's enough there to fill four days, actually, maybe five if you allowed for repetitions and review. What you do get is a foundation for you to practice on your own. Ammunition, sights, grips and stance, moving while shooting, dealing with stress, procedures on clearing malfunctions and the different reloading methods ... some in retrospect seemed common sense, but all proved invaluable. Setting my Dissipator aside, I shot several relays using my M1A Bush rifle and was treated with a speed reload method that made me competitive with the AR-15 guys. Sweet!
This was a physical workout as well as a challenge to shoot. (Translation: David needs to spend less time in the office and more on the trail!) Most memorable were the relays behind the barricade (using the "bastard" firing positions) and the shoot-move-communicate exercise. Oh, and the 50-yd selective balloon shoot (where I accidentally killed the yellow baby while shooting the red bad guy) ... and the nightfire training combined with transitioning to handgun.
Some of this maybe old hat to you veterans out there, but it was an eye-opening experience to me. The Army teaches its general body of troops how to qualify (barely!) on the range without shooting anybody; effectiveness and morale would greatly be improved if a class like this was given instead of the usual "standard."
On a personal note, there's a hell of a lot of difference in reading about this stuff and playing with it on your own versus having someone run you through the paces and call you on your mistakes. Randy is a gentleman and a tactical scholar, and I took great pride in the couple of times he walked by my target and said "That's good shooting." I also took it very seriously when he came by and said "You can shoot better than that!" He makes you want to do better and I don't mind one bit having him chewing my ass because I know it's for my own good.
Long story short: For the cost of a moderately priced vacation (I'd rather do this than go to Pigeon Forge or Dizzy World!) you can dump your outdated notions and gunstore commando habits and get the real deal. Randy takes a complex and highly misunderstood subject and makes it palatable to the novice, while at the same time challenging to the veteran.
For more info on Rand Cain check out http://www.guntactics.com
Those of you who have attended similar courses under Louis Awerbuck and Jim Crews will find Randy's routine a familiar one. He is an Awerbuck disciple, which is good news for those of us who seek truth without fluff. While I haven't studied under Awerbuck, many of the techniques I learned for the tactical shotgun through Jim Crews (another Awerbuck associate) were echoed in this course, corroborating their effectiveness and efficiency.
After a short lecture on the Four Rules and range etiquette we went right to the firing range for zeroing and a quick workout on the basic firing positions. Some students were quicker than others, but Randy didn't let this interfere with the pace of the class and showed a definite willingness to help anyone who was having trouble during breaks and lunch.
And what a pace it was! A lot of stuff was thrown at us in the next three days (and one evening) ... I think there's enough there to fill four days, actually, maybe five if you allowed for repetitions and review. What you do get is a foundation for you to practice on your own. Ammunition, sights, grips and stance, moving while shooting, dealing with stress, procedures on clearing malfunctions and the different reloading methods ... some in retrospect seemed common sense, but all proved invaluable. Setting my Dissipator aside, I shot several relays using my M1A Bush rifle and was treated with a speed reload method that made me competitive with the AR-15 guys. Sweet!
This was a physical workout as well as a challenge to shoot. (Translation: David needs to spend less time in the office and more on the trail!) Most memorable were the relays behind the barricade (using the "bastard" firing positions) and the shoot-move-communicate exercise. Oh, and the 50-yd selective balloon shoot (where I accidentally killed the yellow baby while shooting the red bad guy) ... and the nightfire training combined with transitioning to handgun.
Some of this maybe old hat to you veterans out there, but it was an eye-opening experience to me. The Army teaches its general body of troops how to qualify (barely!) on the range without shooting anybody; effectiveness and morale would greatly be improved if a class like this was given instead of the usual "standard."
On a personal note, there's a hell of a lot of difference in reading about this stuff and playing with it on your own versus having someone run you through the paces and call you on your mistakes. Randy is a gentleman and a tactical scholar, and I took great pride in the couple of times he walked by my target and said "That's good shooting." I also took it very seriously when he came by and said "You can shoot better than that!" He makes you want to do better and I don't mind one bit having him chewing my ass because I know it's for my own good.
Long story short: For the cost of a moderately priced vacation (I'd rather do this than go to Pigeon Forge or Dizzy World!) you can dump your outdated notions and gunstore commando habits and get the real deal. Randy takes a complex and highly misunderstood subject and makes it palatable to the novice, while at the same time challenging to the veteran.
For more info on Rand Cain check out http://www.guntactics.com
