Student Review of Gunfight Concepts in NC

 Gunfight Concepts & Hard Target Traveler AAR

By Crusoe

Anytime K from Combat Studies Group is east of the Mississippi it is worth clearing the

schedule for his series of courses. I had already taken GroundRod I & II and was so thoroughly

impressed with those classes that I absolutely was going to make both the Gunfight Concepts and

Hard Target Traveler courses. As always, it is important to define what your desired training end

state looks like and then work backwards to plug training holes. These two courses significantly

added capability for my personal needs.

The 3-day Gunfight Concepts was most definitely not your average go to the range and statically

shoot for a couple hours. As with all his courses it was extremely dynamic and focused on both

skill development and problem solving while moving across a complex environment. Day1and 2

started with a qualification test to measure current capability on both the handgun and rifle which

gave K a solid starting point of the class’s strengths and weaknesses. The rest of those two days

were centered around finding your shooting rhythm while moving around obstacles within a high

threat environment. What makes a great instructor(s) is their ability to work with each student

individually to provide nuanced solutions for their individual needs. Day 3 of the course was all

about shooting under both physical and mental stress with more advanced problem solving. The

running of a complicated course of fire while either holding a “package” or trying to protect a

person while employing the previous two days’ lessons was an absolute smoker and a ton of fun.

Everyone was grinning from ear to ear at the end of the day.

While at the previous GroundRod course the class participants drafted out an ideal training plan

for follow on courses with CSG. His one-day Hard Target Traveler course was on that list. What

makes this course exceptional is that he teaches it from the perspective of an international

traveler but makes it useful for the person that either travels domestically or even commutes to

work. The underlining skills are applicable across multiple real-life scenarios. You always need

to understand how to protect yourself and provide for the basic hierarchy of needs. Everything

from digital considerations, logistics, filtering of water, and navigating through civil unrest was

covered. If you travel, then I would consider this course a necessity for your personal training

needs.

My final thoughts on both courses. For those that have read my previous articles you know that I

advocate for understanding what your personal requirements are and then building a training

curriculum to address shortfalls and weaknesses. I can with reasonable confidence say that I am

an “okay” shooter but lack the real-world experience to quantitatively define where I lie on the

continuum. With K’s guidance, and answering my thousands of questions, I have a clearer

picture on where I stand and where I need to be. He gave me a lot to think about as I build out

my ‘at home’ training plan to work on my personal weaknesses. With a quality shooting course,

you will leave a better shooter; however, the ‘pure gold’ is leaving with the understanding of where you

 need to focus your efforts. The Hard Target Traveler fits nicely into my overall

preparedness as it linked multiple concepts together within a concise training syllabus. I travel

and interact daily with the rest of the world and these skills are as useful to me today as they will

be in the future. Training with a diverse number of instructors gives you the opportunity to see

different solutions and viewpoints to common problems. It fosters intellectual problem solving

and a better understanding of the overall picture. It is worth seeking out and finding quality

instructors while you still have the time to do so.

Finally, I recommend you read K’s article Become More Dangerous and think about his overall

theme. My biggest takeaway from this article is that you must cultivate a resilient and skills-

based mindset to function in a chaotic world.

Crusoe is retired from the Air Force after 30-years of service as a flight crew member. He

spends most of his time thinking about the apocalypse and how to mitigate its effects. When not

immersed in academic pursuits, he is often on a trail hiking in the mountains of North Georgia

or reading with a glass of Irish whiskey and a German Shepherd by his side. Global travel

enthusiast, history nerd, Appalachian Trail thru hiker, and recovering ultra-endurance athlete.

He can be reached at aircrew@tutanota.com