The First Half of the Draw
Dry-Fire · At Home
Verified clear. Thirty reps of only the first part of the draw: clear the garment, get a full firing grip in the holster, and stop. Check the grip each time. If it is not the grip you would shoot with, the rep does not count. Finish with five full draws.
Live-Fire · At the Range
Five strings of four at 7 yards: draw or come up from ready and fire one round in the box. Before each draw, pause with your hand on the gun and confirm the grip.
Service Pistol
Get the grip and defeat the retention in one motion. A poor grip in a duty holster stays poor all the way out.
Concealed Carry
Through a winter coat, the grip is the hardest part to get right. Give it most of your reps.
Carbine
Carbine version: thirty reps of getting a firing grip and a correct stock position from a slung carry.
AUX (when ready): thirty grips in a row that you would be willing to shoot with.
A bad grip cannot be fixed once the gun is moving.
Your Daily Callout — By Archetype
You hurry the grip to get to the shooting. The grip decides how the shooting goes.
Feel for the same three contact points every time.
A sure grip is what lets you shoot one-handed if the other hand is busy.
Most of the draw is decided in the first half second. Work on that half second.
Layer: run ten of the reps with gloves on.
- Treat every firearm as if it is loaded — always, no matter what you think you know.
- Never let the muzzle cover anything you are not willing to destroy.
- Keep your finger off the trigger until your sights are on target and you have decided to fire.
- Be sure of your target — and everything beyond it.
Dry-fire: no ammunition in the room. Verify the firearm is clear — twice. Use a safe backstop. When you finish, say it out loud: “Dry fire is over.”
The Four Universal Safety Rules
Non-negotiable. Every drill, every rep, every time. This applies to live fire and dry fire.
- Treat every firearm as if it is loaded — always, no matter what you think you know.
- Never let the muzzle cover anything you are not willing to destroy.
- Keep your finger off the trigger until your sights are on target and you have decided to fire.
- Be sure of your target — and everything beyond it.