(Continued from Part 2. This concludes the article.)
Flashlight
I bought this from Gunsite’s pro shop where they have a couple of options. I bought their bottom of the line (but still expensive to me) Fenix PD36R V2.0 Rechargeable Flashlight for about $100. I agonized a bit over this decision, I did not normatively carry a flashlight and I was not planning to begin carrying one. When I started researching I found that Flashlight guys are like Watch guys, they speak their own language and very quickly start spending huge amounts of money for the model that’s “just right” for them. Because none of them are “just right” they wind up with dozens of models. I didn’t want to do that.
Ultimately, I said “I don’t know exactly what type of night shooting we’ll be doing. The models that Gunsite sells will be adequate for their training applications”. I was right. It’s a good flashlight, I do carry it now. Makes me almost wish I had jumped up to their SureFire Stiletto lights that are flatter and more comfortable in the pocket. Almost.
I will share here what I learned from instructors about flashlights to help you with your choice: “50-to-100 dollars in decent brand will get you a good light”. They went on to mention that the two big dogs are Streamlight and Surefire. They generally expressed preference for simplicity: more light is good and “on off” switch is all you need. Don’t agonize about multiple modes and understand that the strobe functions are mainly useless. More light is better than less. You can always cover the head or use the edge of the light if you need less.
A brief aside about Weapons Mounted Lights: The instructors all like WML for home defense guns but are not huge fans for using them on handguns that you carry. Not everything you need to see also needs to be shot. Legally speaking, pointing a firearm at someone is assault with a deadly weapon, and possibly a brandishing charge as well. So, even if you have a WML, you also need a regular light. For the younger crowd, there’s nothing wrong with WML. Gunsite doesn’t hate them. However, the low-light shooting you will do in the 250 course requires a regular flashlight which you’ll need as well. You might as well learn what they are teaching here.
Personal Protection Equipment
We’re using firearms, so eye pro and ear pro are non-optional. We’re also in the desert, so you really want some darker eye pro as your main here, though you do want a pair of clear eye pro as well for the indoor simulators. This is all stuff you should already have if you are shooting. The one aspect you might not always be wearing is the hat, you do need one for standing in the desert.
You’ll be wearing eye pro, ear pro, and a hat constantly. Whatever mixture of eye pro, ear pro and hat you choose must be comfortable and stable. They could all be individually fine but fail working together. The ball cap advantage is that it plays well under ear pro. The boonie hat advantage was that it played well over ear pro. The area I wish was better for me was how my eye and ear pro interacted. Sunglasses can break the seal around your ears or push uncomfortably into your skin, neither is ideal.
Make sure that your eye pro, hat (or hooded shirt), plays well with your ear pro. If it’s slightly uncomfortable but bearable, I would say spend some money to get a better solution. Being slightly uncomfortable for a couple hours is one thing, being slightly uncomfortable for at least 4 hours a day for 5 days in a row is another thing entirely.
Eye Protection
I used a pair of Wiley X tactical sunglasses I got at a friend’s recommendation. It was 60+ bucks a few years back. I generally don’t wear sunglasses and I generally don’t want to spend that much money but I needed a pair of sunglasses for driving and I thought I might as well “buy once and cry once”, especially if I could then use it for marksmanship. A nicer pair of sunglasses really makes a difference in what you see. The bump from 20 dollars to 60 dollars is significant and worth making.
Ear Protection
I used a pair of Walker’s Razor active hearing protection ear muffs. I got them at Fleet Farm on sale for about 40 bucks. If you don’t have electronic hearing protection, then get it. Seriously. The advantage of not having to take them on and off as constantly and still hear spoken instruction is practically a “superpower”.
Hat
Again, we’re in the desert, so you need a hat. Most people wore ballcaps and that was fine. I did see more than one burned neck this way. I wore a boonie hat that I got as a gift. It worked fine although it did make me stand out, there’s a little bit of social cost there. Really though, if you have a boonie hat or an Aussie hat, if you can’t wear it in the desert, why do you have it? I saw a fair number of the lightweight hooded shirts which is an alternative to a hat.
Packing Clothes
Clothes are part of your Personal Protective equipment. I highly recommend light colored, lightweight, long sleeved shirts. I asked an Arizona native if outdoor workers ever wore shorts and short sleeves and he said that they didn’t. Take your cue from them. If it’s covered by fabric you probably don’t need to put sunscreen there.
By the same token, loose-fitting long pants were my choice. Jeans or cargo pants, either works. I would put a slight preference for cargo pants just because you might need to slip something into a pocket instead of a dump pouch. For a week of training, 3 shirts and a couple pairs of pants should be adequate.
It’s the desert so at night (at least in spring) it still gets pretty chilly. I was camping and long sleeved PJs with long pants inside the sleeping bag were a requirement, not a suggestion. Likewise, for the evening shoot, you probably want a vest; it was uncomfortably chilly waiting for my turn at the line.
Whatever shoes you wear you want ones you’re comfortable standing in for several hours. They specify closed-toe and that’s reasonable. Whatever your choice, they need to be shoes you’re comfortable standing in for hours.
Miscellaneous
Batteries
Anything you have that needs or uses batteries, show up with a pair of spares. Ear pro, red dot, flashlight…whatever you have that needs batteries. Show up with 2 sets of spares.
Sunscreen
It’s Arizona. You want sunscreen.
Notebook
You’re paying this money, you want to make the most of it. So take notes. It’s one of the best ways to keep you focused and comprehending the material.
Extra magazines
You will want more than they suggest. You can get by with the 4 double stack or 6 single stacks but I would add more. I would do 6 double stack or 10 single stacks. You’ll have enough time to reload but it’s good to be able to take it easy for a break instead of frantically loading mags. Sometimes you’ll need to just sit and hydrate.
Screw driver set compatible with your equipment
Yes, there’s a gunsmith onsite but if you’ve got a problem you want it to be fixed sooner rather than later. Each minute your gun is down is instruction and range time you’re missing. Have all the tools you need to service your equipment.
Extra credit: an extra set of screws for your red dot. Didn’t happen to me but a friend of mine had his screws sheer off on the last drill of a class. The better equipped you are the happier you’ll be.
A can of CLP (or your preferred cleaner and lubricant pair)
A “Rag” shirt
Especially if you have a red dot, you’ll want this on hand. 100% cotton, freshly laundered, and you don’t care about it anymore.
Cleaning brush
Buy the gun specific ones, not an old toothbrush. Might as well grab a few dozen q-tips
A Method of Double-Checking The List
This is a little more in depth than I normally do because this was going to be such a long haul for me. Gunsite is well over a thousand miles from my house. If I forgot something I was out of luck. So I took extra steps and I recommend them to you as well.
1. Make a clear packing area
This should be a space that is normally completely clear, or at least, is completely clear now. This could be a bed, a truckbed, a floor, the garage…any place where you can put everything you need to take.
Start by putting the bags you are going to take in this area.
2. Make the list of everything you need to take.
3. Move all the things individually to your packing space.
As you place the item in the clear packing area make a check next to the item.
4. Begin to pack into the bags.
As it goes into the bag, turn the checkmark into an X
5. Leave all the bags in the clear packing area.
Make it so you cannot leave without those bags. I put my keys on top. Perhaps your phone. Whatever it is that you will not leave (cannot leave) without, set it with the bags.
Final notes: While you’re at Gunsite
- Buy an extra box of frangible ammo. It’s pretty tight round count wise, you’re one malfunction away from coming up short at the end and frangible loves to malfunction. So, pay the money and be able to perform your reloads. Maybe one extra box per 4 people will cover you.
- Go ahead and order the optional lunch, it’s that much more you don’t have to think about. You can instead think about what you’re learning.
- Go and see Colonel Cooper’s house at the end of the week. It’s a piece of history. Only the 250 classes get to go and see it, so take advantage of it.
Closing thoughts
In many ways going to Gunsite is a pilgrimage. Colonel Cooper was a trailblazer in training average citizens to use force morally and competently and his school continues to further that trail. I’d read books by him and while I was there I also bought a physical copy of his “Principles of Personal Defense”. I had read it a long time ago and it is my “if you can only read one book on self defense…” answer. I bought it so that my children can read it.
There’s talk about the 250 course being “Life Changing”. That’s a big claim. But I think in some respects it’s true. I came away a better pistol shooter than I have ever been. It took me two weeks after coming home to get to the range but when I did I shot the best b-16 I’ve ever shot in my life. Not only has my skill gone up but I’m on a path of improvement. That is life-changing in a sense and perhaps life-saving.
There is another aspect of “life-changing” that I am a little more hesitant to write about. I did have an epiphany or religious experience (depending on your slant) as I was driving away. I’m hesitant to write it because it had nothing to do with the coursework. It was about my journey and my issues that are fundamentally unrelated to firearms, marksmanship, Second Amendment, or politics of any stripe. I do believe the Gunsite experience brought me to that place, despite it being unrelated.
I camped. I didn’t have my family around. I took it alone. I didn’t go back to town to eat out or get supplies. It was a week in the desert, camping and working, and reading and thinking. Now it’s glamping mind you. Nice showers. Included laundry facilities. Wifi. But it was a lot less comfort and stimulation than normal. And after a week of turned down noise maybe you can hear that still small voice better. At any rate, I did.
I don’t know that I’ll ever get back to Gunsite, as it’s a very long drive and a big ask of my family. I do know that just going once was well worth my time. In my case, I was a very untrained pistol shooter. I wondered if it was likewise useful for more advanced shooters, so I asked the top shooter in my class on the last day what he thought of it. He said: “knowing what I know now, I’d still come back and do it”. He was a better shooter than me at the beginning and at the end. He didn’t feel it was wasted time or money. So I feel confident in encouraging you, the prepared citizen, to make the pilgrimage to Gunsite.
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