Today I had the opportunity to attend a basic pistol class taught by SGM (R) Kelly Venden of Criterion Tactical. The class was held from 1200-1600 at Cedar Ridge Range in Bulverde, Tx. I have previously attended basic pistol and basic carbine classes with Larry Vickers, a 1911 class with Vickers and Ken Hackathorn, and an advanced pistol class with Kyle Defoor.
The class began precisely at 1200 with introductions. There were 4 shooters in the class (2 late notice fallouts) and Mr. Venden already knew everyone’s name and where they were coming from. This immediately made an impression on me since in a couple of the classes I’ve taken the instructor never asked or learned my name. The class was made up of me, a brand new shooter, a new shooter with some prior instruction, and a military member with little pistol experience. Immediately following the intros Mr. Venden had everyone field strip their pistol and talked about proper cleaning and lubrication. After the pistols were reassembled we went over range and basic firearm safety.
After the admin was complete Mr. Venden began his shooting instruction by speaking at length about sight alignment. He had two very effective sight alignment visual aids made of poster paper. One showed perfect alignment while the other had a moveable sight that could be used to show the acceptable range of sight alignment (or misalignment). After sight alignment came discussion of trigger press and reset, grip, and stance.
After about thirty minutes of academic instruction we moved down to the firing line. For the rest of the class we worked on efficiently achieving an acceptable sight picture while pressing the gun to the target, firing the shot, then working to get the sights back on target for a follow up shot. We began with relatively slow fire from the high ready then worked up to faster shooting and multiple shot strings. Mr. Venden then spoke about the draw and reloads. For the rest of the time most strings were shot beginning with the draw. We moved on to strong hand only, support hand only, close range shooting from the high ready, very close range shooting from the body, and covered shooting while moving forward and backward.
It was a lot of information to cover in 4 hours but Mr. Venden covered all the topics thoroughly but concisely. His briefing style is top notch and he conveys information in a clear fashion. He is also completely without attitude or ego with regard to shooting and had a very professional bearing throughout the class. Given the small size of the class I received a very high level of one on one interaction with Mr. Venden. When the class was over at 1600 he stayed behind and worked with any shooter that wanted to stay late.
I would emphatically recommend this class to any shooter who has never received formal pistol instruction regardless of their firearms experience level. I will also be seeking any additional training opportunities available with Mr. Venden and Criterion Tactical. The level of instruction is as good or better than any I've received to date.
The class began precisely at 1200 with introductions. There were 4 shooters in the class (2 late notice fallouts) and Mr. Venden already knew everyone’s name and where they were coming from. This immediately made an impression on me since in a couple of the classes I’ve taken the instructor never asked or learned my name. The class was made up of me, a brand new shooter, a new shooter with some prior instruction, and a military member with little pistol experience. Immediately following the intros Mr. Venden had everyone field strip their pistol and talked about proper cleaning and lubrication. After the pistols were reassembled we went over range and basic firearm safety.
After the admin was complete Mr. Venden began his shooting instruction by speaking at length about sight alignment. He had two very effective sight alignment visual aids made of poster paper. One showed perfect alignment while the other had a moveable sight that could be used to show the acceptable range of sight alignment (or misalignment). After sight alignment came discussion of trigger press and reset, grip, and stance.
After about thirty minutes of academic instruction we moved down to the firing line. For the rest of the class we worked on efficiently achieving an acceptable sight picture while pressing the gun to the target, firing the shot, then working to get the sights back on target for a follow up shot. We began with relatively slow fire from the high ready then worked up to faster shooting and multiple shot strings. Mr. Venden then spoke about the draw and reloads. For the rest of the time most strings were shot beginning with the draw. We moved on to strong hand only, support hand only, close range shooting from the high ready, very close range shooting from the body, and covered shooting while moving forward and backward.
It was a lot of information to cover in 4 hours but Mr. Venden covered all the topics thoroughly but concisely. His briefing style is top notch and he conveys information in a clear fashion. He is also completely without attitude or ego with regard to shooting and had a very professional bearing throughout the class. Given the small size of the class I received a very high level of one on one interaction with Mr. Venden. When the class was over at 1600 he stayed behind and worked with any shooter that wanted to stay late.
I would emphatically recommend this class to any shooter who has never received formal pistol instruction regardless of their firearms experience level. I will also be seeking any additional training opportunities available with Mr. Venden and Criterion Tactical. The level of instruction is as good or better than any I've received to date.
