I regularly write about drills or courses of fire. Since most of my shooting is done on outdoor ranges, I typically have more freedom in what I am allowed to do on the ranges I use. Many gun owners, though, are limited to indoor ranges. Indoor ranges typically come with more restrictions on what is allowed, so many of the drills I write about are not usable on indoor ranges without modification. This time, I have drills for indoor ranges or that can easily be modified for indoor ranges.
The Test/10-10-10
This is a classic in the training industry and has been having a resurgence in certain social media groups, and has even been written about before on USA Carry at least a couple of times. Once in an article I wrote three years ago about training on indoor ranges and by Sam Hoober last year in his article about low round count drills. It is a very straightforward drill, normally shot from the ready position, consisting of 10 rounds fired on a single B-8 target in a single string of fire. The time limit is 10 seconds (hence the name 10-10-10), which is scored at actual point value. So a hit in the 9 ring scores a 9, and hit in the 7 ring scores a 7, and so on. You can even get B-8’s for free online if you have a printer at home.
If you want to step it up a bit, I wrote an article about the Super Test a couple of years ago.
The Illinois Retired Officer Qualification
Law enforcement qualification standards are typically not very difficult for the more experienced shooter, but that is not all of us. Illinois uses the same basic qualification for active law enforcement and retired law enforcement/off-duty guns. The only change that is made is that instead of strings of fire having the shooter start from the holster, they now start from the low ready.
All of the strings of fire are short and straightforward. The par times are also quite generous. If someone wanted to cut 1 second off the par times when running from ready because there isn’t a draw to get through, I think that is actually fair. However, the course of fire itself does not require modification to the par time, regardless of the starting position used.
The course of fire is as follows:
| Distance | Time | String of Fire |
|---|---|---|
| 5 Yard Line | 6 Seconds per Repetition | From ready, fire 2 rounds. Repeat for a total of 6 repetitions of 2 rounds each. |
| 7 Yard Line | 7 Seconds per Repetition | From ready, fire 3 rounds. Repeat for a total of 4 repetitions of 3 rounds each. |
| 15 Yard Line | 10 Seconds per Repetition | From ready, fire 3 rounds. Repeat for a total of 2 repetitions of 3 rounds each. |
There is an option to replace one of the 15-yard strings of fire with a single 25-yard string of fire. The number of rounds fired remains the same. The time limit is increased to 15 seconds.
The target that is supposed to be used as an 8.5”x14” scoring area in the center torso of the target. This is the same size as legal paper. Who has legal-size paper, though, a standard piece of printer paper would be a suitable stand-in. Alternatively, as skill level allows, you could use smaller targets if it needs to be more challenging to keep it interesting.
A passing score according to the Illinois Law Enforcement Training and Standards Board is 70%. Hits off of the 8.5”x14” scoring area are considered misses. That means 21 of 32 rounds fired need to impact the scoring area to pass.
This is an easy shooting standard and can serve as a good starting point, but I would not stay here long. Once you can master this course of fire, it is time to move forward to bigger and better things.
26662
This is a drill created by Todd Green. For those who weren’t around to know, Todd was an instructor and ran a website called pistol-training.com. The website is still around, and the associated forum, but sadly Todd passed away several years ago. His influence on the training industry is significant. It is truly unfortunate that he is no longer with us.
26662 is designed to have the shooter draw to a low probability target, transition to a higher probability target, firing multiple rounds, then back on a low probability target. It is really about control. How well we can control the gun, and how well we can process and control our shooting.
Obviously, most indoor ranges do not allow people to draw on the range unless in some class. Starting this drill from a low ready or a compressed ready position will work well enough. We still have to visually pick up the sights and manage the trigger appropriately to get our hit, even starting from ready.
The drill is shot at a distance that is suitable to our skill level. As close as 3 yards, as far as 7 yards, or further if you are a real stud. 3 yards is a good place to start if 2” circles are not something you regularly shoot. If 2” circles are your jam, maybe start at 5 yards.
Each repetition of the drill requires 5 rounds to be fired. The first time the drill is used, shoot it at least 4 or 5 times with a timer, getting all hits, and set a good baseline time. Use this as the par time for any future runs. When it gets easy to meet the par time with all hits, reduce the time by a little, or push the target out another yard. Rinse and repeat until you are a rock star.
Everything Else
If you have not been reading USA Carry for long, here are some other drills we have written about before and are a good fit for indoor ranges.
Wrap Up
Hopefully, this holds everyone over for a bit who is stuck with indoor ranges. If an indoor range is all you have and doesn’t allow you to draw on the range, be sure to work that draw in dry fire. I would also be on the lookout for opportunities where I am allowed to draw the gun. This is a good reason to get involved with local practical shooting matches or take local classes. At least that way, we can get some reps in drawing the handgun under live fire conditions.
