Student Review: Combat Team Tactics (CTT) April 2016: Socks aka gold-finger aka Daniel

So what is it that brings ten random people—all different professions, ages, and walks of life—together on a cold Friday morning on a mountain in West Virginia?

It is really quite a simple answer; a desire to improve skills that may someday be needed to stay alive.  Too learn from the best, those who have truly been there and done that all their lives.

Maybe you have had training before.  Maybe even a lot of training and you are a master at “driving your AR15”.  Good, you are now ahead of a majority of people in this country.   Now, are you ready for more?  The next step?  Are you ready to move beyond being a “shooter” and learn how to be a gunfighter?

What does that really mean you might ask?  Well some would have you believe that being a gunfighter is little more than standing around on a square range and rapidly putting holes in cardboard targets seven yards away.  It is so much more.

Can you move, communicate and shoot?  ID the enemy quickly and engage them effectively at different ranges?  Can you identify proper cover and keeping low and moving fast get there with that heavy rifle and all that gear you like to weigh yourself down with?

Can you recognize stoppages when your weapon goes down (it will sooner or later, trust me) and get it back in the fight quickly?  Can you work in a team and not accidently shoot them in the chaos of combat?  Can you keep your team alive?  Or protect your family?

These are uncertain time we live in.  When have so many threats been visible in all directions?  Can you protect the ones you love?

I know nine other people who now have made a huge step towards that goal.  Amazing what can be accomplished with the right teachers in such a short amount of time.  The effort that Max and First Sergeant put into this admirable.  You can see the passion to “keep good folks alive”.  Three days (four for a couple of us) and already the lights were clicking on and we were becoming more effective individually and as teams.

Incidentally this was my second time at Combat Team Tactics (CTT).  This time I took the extra Rifle Skills (RS) day and I can heartily recommend it.  Especially for newer shooters or people who don’t get a chance to train that much.  Honestly though, everyone needs that extra day in my opinion.  The whole point of doing this is to be more effective right?  Take the extra day, it’s even discounted!  I promise you will not regret it.

I could go on for pages about the incredible quality of the training, the awesome people you will meet, the chance to get your gear squared away out in an environment that forces you to realize what works and what doesn’t but there are a lot of good reviews that will give you a better day by day account.

I will just say that taking these classes is the best money I ever spent.  And that I firmly believe that somewhere, someday in the future I will look back at the time I spend out there and realize that I am still alive because of it.

To those of you who have already taken CTT I would like to recommend that you strongly consider taking it again.  It has gotten better than before!  That’s right.  Better.   I went about eight months ago and sad to say some of what I learned had faded.  Of course if you are fortunate enough to have like-minded folks to train with all the better but still… take CTT again!

We become skilled by repeating what we learn again and again right?  And while Max has stressed more than once how “simple it is and you all like to complicate things” SUT is a skill that needs to be constantly practiced and honed to a fine edge.  Why not have the experts hone you to that edge?

To those who have not yet taken CTT I will say this again and again, you need this training!  For all the reasons above and so many more.  This is not some skill that you can pick up simply by reading manuals or watching YouTube videos.  You need to be physically out there training and being shown how to do it the right way.

You don’t know what you don’t know.

Just how valuable is your life?

You’re family’s lives?

Think about it.

When you are done thinking about it, with any luck, I will see you in Romney!