If you read a lot of gun magazines like I do, then you know there are a million and one drills that a person can practice. And each of these drills depends on what your purpose is for using the gun. For instance, are you using the gun for self-defense or are you solely a competition shooter?
Since the reason I carry a gun is for self-defense purposes, I want to share with you two simple drills that I practice and that I recommend you practice over and over until you’ve mastered them. And please remember, these are self-defense drills, which means they are practical. They don’t involve “race” guns that are tricked out for competition.
And they also don’t involve you having four magazine pouches on your belt, or anything silly like that. In fact, I don’t know a single person who carries four magazines, and the majority of people I know don’t even carry one extra magazine on their belt. (I myself only carry one extra and it’s in my pocket.)
So let’s get to the first of the two drills:
The first drill is the two-second drill and the only target you need is a regular 8.5 x 11 sheet of paper. You will also need some type of timer. You will put the target three yards away for this drill. Set the timer for two seconds, and when it beeps you must draw and fire one round in two seconds or less. All hits on the 8.5 x 11 sheet of paper count.
If you miss the paper, or miss the two-second mark, then you have failed and you need to practice until you can complete the drill by getting one round onto the paper in two seconds or less. Once you’ve mastered the drill at three yards then move back to five yards and start over again. Once you’ve mastered five yards then move back to seven yards and keep moving further and further back. But remember, if you can’t get the shot off in two seconds, or you miss the paper, it doesn’t count.
The fact is, we know that in a self-defense situation it’s going to happen incredibly fast, which is why you need to practice getting your gun on target and making accurate hits in a matter of seconds. As legendary gunslinger Doc Holliday has been quoted as saying, “Take your time in hurry.”
The second drill is the 5-Second Reload Drill.
Load the magazine in your gun with only one round. Then, in your pocket (or wherever you actually carry a spare magazine) have a full magazine of 15 rounds or so. You’ll again need a timer and an 8.5 x 11 sheet of paper. This drill starts at 5 yards.
Set the timer for five seconds. When the timer beeps, draw and fire one round, reload, and fire as many rounds as you can within the five-second time limit. Again, only hits on the white paper count.
The first time you do this drill you might only get two shots off, but practice this over and over until you can get three shots, and four shots, etc. Once you feel comfortable, move back two yards and make the drill more challenging.
Like I said earlier, I know there are dozens of handgun drills to practice. But start with these two so you learn how to get the gun out quickly with accurate shots and so you know how to reload quickly in an emergency.
