Right on target

Welcome to the June “Firearms” issue. Training is always top-of-mind in all agencies, for every level of officer. I’m told time and time again that it is of the utmost importance that officers are familiar with their duty guns, that they wear their body armor, and that they practice, practice, practice.
This month we go one-on-one with police officer and world-class competitive shooter Robert Vogel. He has a lot of good insight into what it’s like to compete in crazy challenging shooting matches, including the latest IDPA in Springfield and Pan-American IDPA match in Puerto Rico. He also shares with me one of his favorite training drills, called “Swinging Target.” Take a look:
“It’s set to where it’s stopped: The swinging target (called a swinger) isn’t activated yet. Take a couple barrels for a wall or something and put them in front of the target. Now you can’t see it. After you shoot the steel it activates and swings out and back from the sides of the barrels or wall. Out and back is one pass, and depending on how fast the swinger is, exposure time is usually 1 to 1.5 seconds per pass. So for 3 passes, total shooting time might be about 4 seconds.” The shooter is usually 25 to 30 feet from the target, and Vogel only counts hits in the center A zone (either an 8-inch cube or a 6-inch by 11-inch rectangle). “How many should people get ‘in the A zone’? ... It definitely depends,” he says. “Average for most classes is maybe 4 to 5.” The drill is about accuracy, but it’s also about speed, decisiveness and unpredictable factors.
In addition to our interview with Vogel (p.16), check out Lindsey Bertomen’s latest review of a bolt action tactical rifle and a scope on p.28, as well as a detailed run-through of the cost/benefits/disadvantages to all the various types of armor plates out there, from the bruisers to the buoyant.
If you have a tried-and-true, low-cost shooting drill you regularly employ at your department, drop me an email. I’d love to share it with our readers!