I have listened to Jared Reston numerous times on various podcasts and mods talking about practical experience, incidents and how they relate to his training, and have wanted to take a class from him for quite some time. I reached out to him to schedule a training and he was all about coming to Iowa. I am glad he did.
Equipment:
Wilder Tactical belt pad with AWS belt
Gcode AR and Pistol Mag pouches
Safariland 6390RDS Holster
Staccato P DPO with Aimpoint Acro P2 and Factory Magazines
SOLGW 14.5 Carbine topped with Vortex HD 1-6
ADM 12.5 with Rosco K9 barrel topped with Unity High Mount (2.04) and Aimpoint Micro T1
Other students arrived with quality gear which led to a smooth-running class. We did not have Trijicon MRO that was having some serious issues maintaining a group. One takedown lever on a 1911 in .45 that broke.
Location:
Big Springs Shooting Complex – 100 Yard Range
New this year, extra large canopy that provided a good amount of shade
Weather:
TD1 – Sunny, High of 88 with 20MPH winds
TD2 – Sunny, High of 91 with 10 to 20MPH winds
TD1
The class started out with Jared doing an introduction and brief bio on his experience and how the course came about. This was followed by a range safety brief and his take on the 4 firearm safety rules. Jared covered his version of the fundamentals of marksmanship and gave a brief explanation for each and then we headed out on the range.
The first drill fired, 25-yard slow fire, 10 rounds on a B8 for score with the pistol. We scored the targets, taped hits and moved back to the 25 for another iteration. During this time, Jared was watching each one of us in the class making mental note on each shooters position and quickly discussed zeros on dot guns and irons. Jared then broke down each of his fundamentals with explanation and demonstration followed by us shooting at 25 yards on a B8. Jared provided the whys behind the way he teaches the fundamentals that he does, followed by practical experience from shootings he has been apart of. The biggest part was each student learning what true trigger prep was. There were many, as he said there would be, early ignitions. He gave a thorough explanation as it related to the why and how critical learning this can be.
This took the class up to lunch and we had a short lunch break and got back at it.
Following chow, the class transitioned to the carbine. Jared explained the zero as many students do not understand the true concept of the zero. Jared is a great artist. He covered the pros and cons of the two most popular zero, 50 and 100 yards, and what his preferred zero distance was. He then covered the aspects of a good prone position for conducting zero procedures and went on about how the position should be utilized in tactical environments. Its not just a position to shoot slow like snipers. We then shot quite a few groups at 100 yards to not only zero but to shake out potential equipment issues. He talked about high mounts on guns with dots and LPVO and related parallax issues. During this class, I shot two rifles as I was testing out some components as well. One being the UNITY High mount with my Aimpoint T1. I found with this mount, at distance and in the prone position, it was difficult to maintain the dot in the center of the optic for zero procedures to not allow parallax to show through. It did not only for me but for some other shooters in the class.
After completing this portion of his POI, we transitioned back to the pistol and worked on the draw. His explanation of the draw and his 3-step process changed the minds of some students in the class on how to become more efficient to increase speed. Sub second draws were talked about and how they look great for the gram but some people, even with proper practice, lack the necessary hand speed to get under one second. It was told that we need to understand our speed and look for the deficiencies to aid in increasing our speed. We worked the process, and each student was timed to see where they were currently. This was worked through various drills on his RGT target inside the A zone.
The remainder of TD1 was spent going back and forth between weapons systems covering aspects of mounting the rifle, transitions, reloads and trying to break bad habits taught from prior teachings. Jared explained the whys behind each of his concepts and how it creates an efficient process for all topics covered followed by a sequence of shooting drills to assess the process.
TD2
Started TD2 off with the goals of the day along with the range safety brief. Once completed, he asked if any questions arose over the night from items covered on day one then we hit the range.
Again, we started with pistol, 25-yard slow fire for 10 rounds on a B8 for score. The drill was shot, we scored targets, taped, and got into the next block of instruction reenforcing the fundamentals that were covered day one. The drills consisted of timed, one shot draws at 25 for a specific speed and reason in which he explained, then a progression to multiple rounds. Again, this was all fired at 25 yards culminating with a 10 round in 20 seconds for score.
Like TD1, we transitioned to carbine work at 100 yards. We conducted a quick zero check again on the rifles and got into working the prone position at 100. Jared expanded on the combative application of the prone position and that it is not just to shoot zeros and shoot slow. Getting into the position quickly and the ability to put multiple rounds on a small target quickly, because we have to, and not always because it’s the best position. The prone position is an inherently stable shooting platform but leads to decreased speed and ability to move. Multiple iterations of his drill were run at 100 yards with times starting out a little slower then decreasing the amount of time to run the drill. This led to one of his rifle standards that can be done while applying his methods but is not an easy standard.
Following the prone work, we moved into the 50-yard line and worked his variations of the kneeling position. Again, this was based on getting into the position quickly, locking into the position to deliver multiple rounds on a small target area. Like the 100-yard, it was also on a B8 for score. Some nuggets were taking away from his kneeling position. Specifically, for me as someone who has horrible knees, and this portion increased my accuracy in the kneeling position with little pain.
We then moved in between 7 and 10 yards and worked some basic up drills which led to multiple shots, different target areas, and reloads. We then finished with a drill putting it all together. Jared also talked about how to prepare drills to make sure we break “the common, one reload one” as we all know its coming. Again, he put the why’s behind it for proper application. This in turn led to the aspects of shooting with cadence. He explained the whys behind cadence training and setting up drills to focus on application of the fundamentals to lead to moving fast and shooting smooth. This was a common theme throughout the course of instruction. His Cadence Target (can be found on LE Targets) led to multiple drills working cadence to increase speeds between the .27 and .31 split range. This coincides with ones ability to process information and be able to observe change in your intended target. This allowed the drills fired to increase speed with accuracy along with showcasing an important thing, the target that we shoot at in defensive encounters are never stationary. The use of his cadence target allows one to visualize the shooting of different areas of the target to simulate, with proper focus on the drill, as someone changing locations.
The final exercise of the POI was shooting on the move while maintaining accuracy on a small target zone at speed. Jared demoed the movement drill after his explanation and damn, he can move quickly for a big dude. Not to mention, all shots entered the target in a tight, quick fashion. With proper application of his movement techniques, everyone in the class realized, and demonstrated, that they could move faster and shoot more accurate than we all thought.
Jared’s method of instruction is not only well thought out, but practical based on personal, real-life experiences by him and fellow teammates from the agency he retired from. Jared always gave the why behind the concepts and principles he was teaching and only asked for us to have an open mind and try the methods. His instruction was on point, deliberate, based on practical application and to top it off, Jared is one hell of a person. He was very personable, answered questions, took time for each student and truly wanted each person to become better gunfighters. If you have not trained with Reston Group Training, you should. It will make you better.
Check Jared out at www.restingrouptraining.com
