Bill Wilson's Half-Prez Drill

[luzyfuerza]

Bill Wilson and Ken Hackathorn posted a video recently in their Master Class series describing a drill that Bill calls the "Half El Presidente."



Watching Bill Wilson smoothly and calmly clean the "half Prez" under the par time of 6.0 seconds is wonderful to watch.

On the surface, the Half Prez kind of looks like Cooper's full Prez without the 180 degree turn to the target and the emergency reload. But there are two subtle differences between these drills that make them quite different.

First, the half Prez is shot on the black center (the 9 or better zone) of a B-8 target. This scoring zone is 24 square inches in size (5.54" in diameter). By comparison, an 8" IDPA center (which is typically used for a full Prez) is 50 square inches, and a USPSA "A" zone is 64 square inches. For the half Prez, accuracy is king.

Second, the half Prez uses Larry Vickers' scoring system. Any shot out of the B-8 black but still on the B-8 target paper adds one second to the drill's time. Anything off the B-8 paper is a three second penalty. Again, this scoring system emphasizes accuracy. The 6.0 second par time is very difficult to meet with any misses at all. When you shoot this drill, you have to be fast enough, but not so fast that your accuracy suffers.

This compares to the accuracy standard that I understand Jeff Cooper originally used for the full El Presidente: any shot outside of the 8" center is an automatic fail.



So, I went out to my range the last couple of mornings to see what Bill's "Half El Presidente" could teach me. Here's what I learned:

Shooting the half Prez in autopilot (meaning shooting how I've practiced in the past), each run I was letting one or two shots go that were just off of the black B-8 scoring zone. Those misses killed my final scores. I typically use 8" targets, and those misses would have been down zero on the bigger targets.

Plus, because I was focusing on getting every shot in the black, my raw times were slower than 6.0 seconds. So, total scores averaged between 7.80 and 8.0 seconds.

As I focused harder on the fundamentals of a firm grip, good sight picture/sight alignment, and a really smooth trigger press, the misses on the B-8 went away. And my raw times dropped to under 6.0 seconds. My last six runs this morning all met the 6.0 par, averaging 5.93 seconds.

With the full El Prez, I can get a little sloppy on the fundamentals and still do OK. But with the half Prez, I found that these fundamentals had to be consistent, and very, very good to meet the 6.0 second par.


Give the half Prez a try the next time you're at the range, and see what it teaches you!



Just for reference, here's a thought-provoking discussion of why the B-8 might be more than just an arbitrary set of circles

https://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/2020/10/13/the-tactical-relevance-to-b8-targets/

And here's Lucky Gunner's discussion of Cooper's full "El Presidente"

https://www.luckygunner.com/lounge/start-shooting-better-episode-6-el-presidente/

 

[Smokin Gator]

I have difficulty hearing these videos. Targets at ten yards? How much space between them? It appeared he shot it, 2 on middle, two on left and then 2 on the right target . Is this about it. I have and use the same targets. I did hear the scoring part.

 

[luzyfuerza]

Yes...shooter stands ten yards from the targets.

I believe that Col Cooper originally separated the targets in an El Prez by three yards. Now, its commonly done with one yard of separation. Whatever works for your range configuration.

 

[jmorris]

So, I went out to my range the last couple of mornings to see what Bill's "Half El Presidente" could teach me. Here's what I learned:

Shooting the half Prez in autopilot (meaning shooting how I've practiced in the past), each run I was letting one or two shots go that were just off of the black B-8 scoring zone. Those misses killed my final scores. I typically use 8" targets, and those misses would have been down zero on the bigger targets.

Plus, because I was focusing on getting every shot in the black, my raw times were slower than 6.0 seconds. So, total scores averaged between 7.80 and 8.0 seconds.

As I focused harder on the fundamentals of a firm grip, good sight picture/sight alignment, and a really smooth trigger press, the misses on the B-8 went away. And my raw times dropped to under 6.0 seconds. My last six runs this morning all met the 6.0 par, averaging 5.93 seconds.

With the full El Prez, I can get a little sloppy on the fundamentals and still do OK. But with the half Prez, I found that these fundamentals had to be consistent, and very, very good to meet the 6.0 second par.


Give the half Prez a try the next time you're at the range, and see what it teaches you!



Just for reference, here's a thought-provoking discussion of why the B-8 might be more than just an arbitrary set of circles

https://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/2020/10/13/the-tactical-relevance-to-b8-targets/

And here's Lucky Gunner's discussion of Cooper's full "El Presidente"

https://www.luckygunner.com/lounge/start-shooting-better-episode-6-el-presidente/

It’s this kind of post that should be more common in this forum. I will make time to give it a shot(s).

 

[Smokin Gator]

I've shot the standard El Presidente quite a few times in USPSA classifiers. Our last match had it. I'll have to try this version.

 

[Smokin Gator]

Using the same setup and target but only shooting at one target is another drill. 10 shots at 10 yards in 10 seconds. Same penalties apply for out of the black or off target. I shot this in a Larry Vickers class.

 

[mcb]

The accuracy requirement seems a bit excessive for self defense drill. The A zone of a USPSA target or the down Zero area of a IDPA target are more than sufficient for self defense shooting. Speed may not be everything but going too slow to get exceptional hits may get you hit first.

My best runs on the full El Pres was a bit under 6 seconds and I dropped only three Charlies. My best run with a revolver was just over 8 seconds again with only four Charlies.

 

[Kleanbore]

The accuracy requirement seems a bit excessive for self defense drill. The A zone of a USPSA target or the down Zero area of a IDPA target are more than sufficient for self defense shooting. Speed may not be everything but going too slow to get exceptional hits may get you hit first.

Agree.

 

[luzyfuerza]

The accuracy requirement seems a bit excessive for self defense drill. The A zone of a USPSA target or the down Zero area of a IDPA target are more than sufficient for self defense shooting.

You're a better pistol shooter than me, for sure!

But I don't remember anyone calling this a "self-defense" drill. A test of core pistol shooting fundamentals, yes.

Even if it were a self defense drill, not every bad guy presents out in the open, face-on, square to the shooter. Please be sure to check out the link discussing the B-8 at the bottom of the OP.

 

[mcb]

Unless I missed something I looked at the B8 target more I believe the OP has it wrong, the black area (9, 10 & x) ring is 8-inches in diameter not 5.54-inches (that is just the 10 & X). Hence the name B8, And this is exactly the same as the down zero on an IDPA target which in surface area is only slightly smaller than the A zone of a USPSA. 50 in^2 vs 65 in^2. In that case this accuracy is on par with IDPA including the down point being worth 1-sec.

When Bill Wilson was younger IDPA was a 0.5 per pt down...

 

[luzyfuerza]

Nope. Dig out a B-8 and put a ruler to it.

"The B8 consists of a black bullseye with a 1.695-inch X-ring, a 3.36-inch 10-ring, and the 9-ring, which grows the black to 5.54 inches across. There’s also an 8-ring, which brings the entire center target size to 8 inches in diameter."

https://www.gunsandammo.com/editorial/nra-b8-bullseye-target-comeback/462424

Think about it...when you print a B-8 on 8 1/2 x 11 paper, the 8 ring takes up almost the entire width of the sheet.

 

[luzyfuerza]

My best runs on the full El Pres was a bit under 6 seconds and I dropped only three Charlies. My best run with a revolver was just over 8 seconds again with only four Charlies.

Col Cooper would have considered these runs to be examples of an imbalance between speed and accuracy. Hence, by his original standard, they would all have been automatic fails.

That's the subtle intent of the Half Prez...to develop and test the skills necessary to balance speed and accuracy.

 

[jmorris]

Col Cooper would have considered these runs to be examples of an imbalance between speed and accuracy. Hence, by his original standard, they would all have been automatic fails.

Gungamers' groupthink prioritizes speed over virtually all else.

It’s the rules they made that prioritizes speed over accuracy. One could “miss fast enough” to win. If I want to win your game, I play it the best way I can, within your rules. I guess I got out of IDPA about the same time Joyce took it over and they threw out the “stability of rules” part and kept messing with the game.

If you want hits or nothing, steel, is perfect. Don’t even have to go down range to tape it.



You can also make them dynamic but then you do have to reset them.

 

[luzyfuerza]

I agree with this. Shooting fast is fun. And rules that prioritize speed make a sport popular.

But its also one reason why I quit playing the gun games.

The old dogs like Cooper, Hackathorn, and Wilson understood the need to balance speed and accuracy in "practical" pistol use.

For them, I think that "fast misses don't end gunfights" still applies. Maybe "a lawyer goes with every bullet" and a "charlie is just a gutshot" would still apply, too.

I just learned more about steel challenge last night. Might have to try that game out!

 

[mcb]

Col Cooper would have considered these runs to be examples of an imbalance between speed and accuracy. Hence, by his original standard, they would all have been automatic fails.

That's the subtle intent of the Half Prez...to develop and test the skills necessary to balance speed and accuracy.

I would disagree with Cooper then, at least on where the balance between speed and accuracy lie, because a fast Charlies is better than a slow Alpha in most defense handgun uses. And in the particular case of my El press runs the Charlies were always paired with an Alpha hit that came ~.2 seconds before or after. Had I dropped a Delta or miss in there than yes I would also have considered my runs failure and the score would have reflected that. But if I can put 9-alphas 3-charlies on three targets in less than 6 seconds including turning around, drawing, and a reload half way through, I feel my gun handling and accuracy skills are just fine for real world too.

 

[mcb]

It’s the rules they made that prioritizes speed over accuracy. One could “miss fast enough” to win. If I want to win your game, I play it the best way I can, within your rules. I guess I got out of IDPA about the same time Joyce took it over and they threw out the “stability of rules” part and kept messing with the game.

If you want hits or nothing, steel, is perfect. Don’t even have to go down range to tape it.



You can also make them dynamic but then you do have to reset them.

You could never shoot misses fast enough to win in either sport, USPSA or IDPA. Misses are brutally penalized in both sports. Now in USPSA you can in theory shoot Charlies fast enough to beat slow Alphas but you have to be really fast to make that work more than occasionally. With the 1-second per point down in IDPA now you cannot shoot +1 fast enough to win. And for this reason IDPA has taken on an unrealistically slow pace.

 

[luzyfuerza]

But if I can put 9-alphas 3-charlies on three targets in less than 6 seconds including turning around, drawing, and a reload half way through, I feel my gun handling and accuracy skills are just fine for real world too.

No argument about anything you've written here. That's stunning shooting! If you felt attacked, it wasn't my intent. But Cooper's original standard stands. If you disagree with it, that's fine by me. And if you can meet or beat whatever standards you're comfortable with, I'm thrilled.


The half Prez drill, with its small target at ten yards and simple shot progression, is about helping shooters focus on core fundamentals of pistol shooting (firm grip, sight picture/alignment, trigger press) to meet standards for both speed and accuracy. And to help shooters improve those fundamentals by objectively measuring results.

As I noted in the OP, focusing on those fundamentals while shooting the half Prez improved both my measured accuracy AND speed.

The invitation to learn whatever you can from this exercise is extended both to those who have worked on speed and are satisfied with just a few misses, as well as to those who typically focus on, say, small groups at 25 yards with, say, five second splits. And everyone in between.

But anyone who believes that there is nothing they can learn from this exercise is probably correct.

 

[Smokin Gator]

These are shooting drills. If different shooters are shooting different sized targets or with different penalties you can't compare. That's the usefulness of standardized drills. If I try to shoot the drill at a speed I can be pretty confident that I will get all hits in the black or down zero it will be slower then if I try to get 2 As or 1A and 2C but shoot faster. But then I have made them into 2 different drills.

 

[jmorris]

With the 1-second per point down in IDPA now…

Yes, many rules changes after Joyce and the “tiger team” took over.