Telekinesis
Member
I haven’t taken Gunsite 250, but I have taken a number of classes from other schools so I’ll add some recommendations.
Bring more ammo than required if you can. Sometimes (depending on class, how many people are there, how much extra time you have etc) you can get some extra reps in. It’s nice to know you have extra ammo and can run the additional drills and still finish the class without running out.
Before you go, dump the ammo out of the boxes and into ammo cans (I like the MTM .30 cal cans - they come in a set of 4 on a stackable tray and you can get 1,000 9mm in each can which makes it very convenient). Also get an UpLULA for loading mags. It’s much easier to load mags from a pile of ammo than it is to pull each round out of a box.
Bring as many loaded mags as you can. If they say bring 10 mags, bring 20. If you’re using a single stack, bring even more. One of the first classes I took, I only brought the recommended number of mags and spent so much time stuffing ammo in mags that I could barely get a drink of water. If you bring a lot of mags you can take a break and get some water instead of loading if you need to. That is especially helpful near the end of the day when you’re getting hot and tired.
Electronic ear pro is a must. You’re there to learn, right? You need to hear what the instructor is saying. Gel ear cups are awesome - get some and you’ll never go back. For peltors you can get them for about $15 so they’re really not prohibitively expensive. The high dollar electronic ear pro (MSA Sordins, Swatcoms, Peltor Comtac) do have advantages in comfort, battery life, and amplification tech (they reduce all sound, they don’t just turn off momentarily when a loud sound occurs), but the <$100 options from Peltor and Howard Leight are big steps up from using plugs and I would not feel bad about using them at all.
If you’re going to be on the ground, wear knee pads. It helps comfort wise but also protects your pants from getting ripped up. Also, consider wearing long sleeves if you’ll be on the ground too. I scraped up my arm pretty good at a class and had to go to work the next day. Had to quickly come up with an explanation of what I did over the weekend that didn’t involve me and a whole bunch of other guys suiting up with rifles and plate carriers and learning how to run around and shoot things. I now have a set of training clothes with long sleeves. While rifle classes and defensive pistol classes generally have different dress requirements, I’d still recommend long sleeves if you can. Even in hot climates a long sleeved breathable material (under armor or dry fit) will be very helpful.
Bring a folding camp chair and a cooler full of water and Gatorade/Powerade. Snacks are great as well. Some of the most interesting conversations I’ve had with instructors happened during brakes and lunches, so if you can spend the time with the group (as opposed to at your car) you’ll pick up a lot.
Finally, take notes. I keep a small write in the rain notepad in my pocket when taking classes. It’s very useful for writing down things like gate codes and instructor phone numbers if you need to contact them. Sometimes it’s hard to take more detailed notes during classes, but once you get home (while it’s fresh on your mind) write an after action review. Write down what you learned and what you need to work on, and then write down what things you might want to bring next time to make your class easier.
Bring more ammo than required if you can. Sometimes (depending on class, how many people are there, how much extra time you have etc) you can get some extra reps in. It’s nice to know you have extra ammo and can run the additional drills and still finish the class without running out.
Before you go, dump the ammo out of the boxes and into ammo cans (I like the MTM .30 cal cans - they come in a set of 4 on a stackable tray and you can get 1,000 9mm in each can which makes it very convenient). Also get an UpLULA for loading mags. It’s much easier to load mags from a pile of ammo than it is to pull each round out of a box.
Bring as many loaded mags as you can. If they say bring 10 mags, bring 20. If you’re using a single stack, bring even more. One of the first classes I took, I only brought the recommended number of mags and spent so much time stuffing ammo in mags that I could barely get a drink of water. If you bring a lot of mags you can take a break and get some water instead of loading if you need to. That is especially helpful near the end of the day when you’re getting hot and tired.
Electronic ear pro is a must. You’re there to learn, right? You need to hear what the instructor is saying. Gel ear cups are awesome - get some and you’ll never go back. For peltors you can get them for about $15 so they’re really not prohibitively expensive. The high dollar electronic ear pro (MSA Sordins, Swatcoms, Peltor Comtac) do have advantages in comfort, battery life, and amplification tech (they reduce all sound, they don’t just turn off momentarily when a loud sound occurs), but the <$100 options from Peltor and Howard Leight are big steps up from using plugs and I would not feel bad about using them at all.
If you’re going to be on the ground, wear knee pads. It helps comfort wise but also protects your pants from getting ripped up. Also, consider wearing long sleeves if you’ll be on the ground too. I scraped up my arm pretty good at a class and had to go to work the next day. Had to quickly come up with an explanation of what I did over the weekend that didn’t involve me and a whole bunch of other guys suiting up with rifles and plate carriers and learning how to run around and shoot things. I now have a set of training clothes with long sleeves. While rifle classes and defensive pistol classes generally have different dress requirements, I’d still recommend long sleeves if you can. Even in hot climates a long sleeved breathable material (under armor or dry fit) will be very helpful.
Bring a folding camp chair and a cooler full of water and Gatorade/Powerade. Snacks are great as well. Some of the most interesting conversations I’ve had with instructors happened during brakes and lunches, so if you can spend the time with the group (as opposed to at your car) you’ll pick up a lot.
Finally, take notes. I keep a small write in the rain notepad in my pocket when taking classes. It’s very useful for writing down things like gate codes and instructor phone numbers if you need to contact them. Sometimes it’s hard to take more detailed notes during classes, but once you get home (while it’s fresh on your mind) write an after action review. Write down what you learned and what you need to work on, and then write down what things you might want to bring next time to make your class easier.