Review: HEAT 1 Combat Tactics May 2024: Pete

I have been a regular MVT class attendee for the past few years, and for this course I brought my two sons (15 and 22) with me. While I was more interested in the training my sons would receive, it was also a good refresher for me on all the fundamentals that MVT teaches.

The class starts with an introduction on basic weapons manipulation on the flat range, and I was glad to see both of my boys staying up to speed with the rest of the class. Weapon manipulation and safety is drilled over and over in the class, something that becomes increasingly important later. On the third day as the training moves to the tactical ranges the complexity and speed increases. Each phase builds on the last one, making it easy for students to grasp the next concept or phase of training.One aspect of the training is how well it simulates real-life issues one will eventually encounter. The weapon malfunction training is excellent, and will expose just how well or poorly you can diagnose and clear a malfunction. Component failures are also discussed in detail, and this was not the first course where someone experienced an actual parts failure that had to be diagnosed and repaired on the range. The same goes for quality and weapon manufacturer selection, you discover very quickly not all weapons are made alike. Your rifle will be stressed on the range to make sure it can function correctly during the various live-fire phases.

The HEAT 1 training curriculum is a result of years of refinement and it shows, with the instructors often knowing ahead of time the types of problems students will encounter. The progressive nature of the training is designed to be useful for novices and experienced shooters alike, taking a new shooter through the paces until they know how to shoot, move and communicate effectively, and refining even the most experienced shooter with little tips and drills that are based on decades of actual combat experience. 

I had drilled a lot of the MVT safety into my sons prior to the class, and was watching them like a hawk throughout the training. When they made mistakes instructors were right there to correct them, and by Sunday they both were moving on the tactical range as if they had been carrying a rifle for years. Whether you are a seasoned veteran, of which we had a few in the class, or a novice like my sons, you will walk away from HEAT 1 with a good experience.

Pete.

Review from Pete’s 22 Year Old Son:

Hey Max I first off wanted to thank you for the course and doing what you do. Like I said at the end of day 4, you guys teach this class phenomenally and more importantly you make it easy for anyone to really get into it. Other than a pistol class I took this was my first real introduction to more formal firearms training I’ve done. So coming into this I was unsure of what to expect however you guys transition into everything beautifully, starting with basics and working your way up very smoothly. Plus you guys made me feel really comfortable as someone who doesn’t have as much experience as some of the others. It’s really nice you guys offer these courses because the people it brings in are awesome, it’s great to meet people with interesting stories, backgrounds and training and making a community out of it is awesome as well. Doing this course really opened my eyes to what formal training looks like and feels like and it’s definitely piqued my interest. Now after doing it I definitely wanna look into more of your guys’ classes because it wasn’t easy and I’m sore as hell but I had a blast learning all that I did.

Thanks for the course.