Monday morning, 9AM - class meets at the Pioneer Sportsman Club.

After the welcome, introduction, and standard safety videos, we have a review of weapon retention: what to do if someone grabs your gun.

We warm up with some friendly competition with a fun target: bowling pins! Five pins per table; you knock your pins off the table before the guy next to you. If you're fast enough, you can rub it in by clearing your table first then helping him clear his.

My turn!

A couple hours a day are spent in the classroom, either listening to Mas impart his wisdom or learning from other students. Everyone had to give a 15-minute presentation. (Yes, the guy's shirt in the picture says "Weaselcraft" - LFI students may not be strong, but like a weasel they learn to be fast and clever.)

Massad Ayoob: master of firearms tactics, laws and ethics.

We did numerous shooting qualifications (tests). For a few, some instructors (Mas, Tony, Debbie, Greg) would do the drill before us.

Assistant instructor Debbie out-shot Massad himself.

Then the students go at it. Do the New Hampshire Police Qualification test. Then do it with the weak hand only. Then do it with strong hand, but in half the time. Of course, everyone throws in a buck and the highest score gets the pot.

Not everything is done with handguns; we study shotgun shooting under pressure also.

Part of the LFI qualification: from 4 yards, do 6 shots in 2.6 seconds with your weak hand. Do it again with your strong hand.

Another part: from 10 yards, do 6 shots crouching, 6 shots high kneel, 6 shots low kneel. You have 25 seconds.

Yours truly.

Shotguns from 50 yards.

Again, from 100 yards.

By the way: the scenery was beautiful.

Handguns from 100 yards (!). It's hard - but possible.

Simulation: you're at an ATM. There's a crowd behind you. Some are about to assault you, while others are innocent bystanders. Deal with it appropriately - and fast. BTW: To simulate suprise and disorientation, you've been spun around six times.

On a rainy day, we do more weapon retention inside.

Mr. Nasty tries to grab your gun while you're backed up against the wall - perform the indicated response.

It's not just a "guy" thing. These are some of the assistant instructors.
Cathy is a college student (and Mas' well-trained elder daughter).
Gail is CFO at a well-known radio station.
Debbie is a NH legislator, former programmer, and assembles machine guns for fun.

Learning to shoot when your only light is a flashlight.

(Like I said: the only light was flashlights.)

Time for videotape-based simulations! The scene is projected on a large paper screen. Behave properly, using a revolver loaded with plastic bullets.

25 scenarios total. Here's two: burglar exiting house sees you, drops the bag and shoots you. Did you stop him before he stopped you?

Holdup at a video store. Do you shoot the bad guy before he kills a hostage? He's swinging his gun toward one, and you don't know if he's threatening or carrying thru on the threat; either way she's in terrible danger.

Machine gun time! M16, H&K MP5, and a Grease Gun (others out-of-picture). Rock & roll.

Lecture on how they work, and how and when to use them. Anyone can "spray & pray", which is really a bad idea. High skill is setting it to fully automatic fire, and still getting off just one controlled shot per trigger pull.

The guy with the videotape-based simulator brought his SteadyCam and taped the machine gun shoot.

Introduction to the H&K MP5.

Mas & Me.

Not sure which I like more: the MP5 or the M16 carbine.

When done, we cleaned up 4 gallons of spent brass.

Class photo, students & instructors.
These are quite respectable members of our society. The class consists at minimum of a doctor, two medics, lawyers (one worked with Trump), pilots (at least one flew large commercial passenger planes), a Hollywood movie script writer, a financially independent chef, a programmer, a NH legislator, a psychologist, a Vietnam vet, two police (one a K-9 handler), two soldiers, an FTC auditor, an engineer, a machine shop manager, and a CFO of a major radio station (pardons if I missed someone). All are taught by the planet's most respected instructor of armed self-defense.

Beautiful Vermont scenery on the long drive back home.