Posted: 7/28/2025 10:49:30 AM EDT
[Last Edit: cmsnare][Edited]
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Posting here for visibility to the Colorado crew. Some great training opportunities in Southern Colorado. I have no affiliation or connection to NSR Consulting other than as a repeat customer to of their training classes. AAR – Solo Structure Strategies 1 & 2 Host: NSR Consulting (nsrconsulting.net) Instructors: Mick & Jeff Class Size: 7 on Day 1 (Law Enforcement, Church Security, and Civilians), 5 on Day 2 Equipment Used: Glock 17 Airsoft pistols Overview Solo Structure Strategies 1 & 2 is designed to teach students how to clear structures alone using both deliberate and hasty methods. It covers room geometry, movement, threat identification, and decision-making under stress. The course builds from classroom instruction to shoot house work, ending with realistic force-on-force scenarios to test skills and techniques learned during the class. This was my second time taking level 1, and my first time rolling into level 2. The experience built nicely on what I learned the first time around — a lot of things that didn’t fully click before started to fall into place this time. Day 1 – Building the Foundation We kicked off in the classroom with a review of the core ideas behind solo clearing. Mick and Jeff covered safety protocols, the “Gunfighter Quadrangle,” mindset/OODA loops, and the “priority of life” framework. They walked us through key tactics for different room and hallway types: L-shapes, T-intersections, 4-ways, and the differences in approach between center-fed and corner-fed rooms. The pace was solid — covering the concepts in class, then immediately head into the shoot house to apply them. Everything started with deliberate movement: working threshold techniques, checking corners, and slicing the pie. We did dry runs with coaching, then moved on to live “force on paper” reps using shoot/no-shoot targets. Later in the day, we introduced “hasty clears” — entering more aggressively in response to stimulus like sound or yelling, drawing us to a particular area of the shoot house. Takeaway: Even though I’d done the class before, I got a lot more out of it this time. I had a better mental framework for what I was doing and why. Having that context made a big difference in how I approached the house. Day 2 – Applying and Testing the Fundamentals We started with a classroom talk on how the brain reacts under stress — decision-making, motor skills, tunnel vision, and how those can degrade (significantly) under pressure. Back in the shoot house, we warmed up with some tailored reps based on areas where we needed work. We then had the opportunity for two full shoot house runs with force on paper to reinforce what we'd covered and refined to this point. Following lunch, we began with force-on-force scenarios. Each student cleared the house with other students playing unknowns, threats, or victims. After each run, we debriefed with both self-assessment and feedback from the role players. The ability to process what occurred from both perspectives was super helpful, as mistakes and successes allowed us to learn with each iteration Later, we added complexity by changing the house layout and using stimulus (sound, noise, etc.) to prompt a switch from deliberate clearing to hasty movement mid-run. Takeaway: The moment there was a risk of pain (getting hit with airsoft), everyone naturally slowed down during deliberate clears and movements became much more intentional. Once a stimulus was introduced, students sped up, made less-thorough searches, and started making mistakes — like bypassing threats or getting caught in ambush zones that could’ve been cleared from the doorway. What Stood Out Experience Matters: Doing day 1 of the class a second time helped a ton. The terminology, geometry, and tactics felt more natural, which freed up more bandwidth for decision-making and improving specific issues. Stress Changes Everything: Under pressure, even experienced students dropped key tactics they knew on paper. Center-stepping in the doorway to clear deep corners was a perfect example; we discussed this component in detail, but most students (myself included) still walked straight into L-shaped ambushes when stress was introduced. Decision-Making Degraded Fast: When things became "urgent" due to additional role player stimulus, people started shooting non-threats, over-exposing themselves, or moving too fast to process the room. Good Use of Role Players: Having live role players made a huge difference. The unpredictability, the interactions, and the ability to provide and receive feedback from someone who “played” a threat or unknown was very beneficial compared to engaging only on paper. Final Thoughts Overall, this course is a great opportunity to begin applying flat range skills and mindset to the reality of searching and interacting with threats in a more real-world environment. It takes students from tactical theory to application, then to a realistic stress environment, and shows you exactly where things start to fall apart. Combining levels 1 & 2 back to back was extremely valuable and I'd recommend students take both days together instead of jumping right in to level 2, regardless of their background. Additionally, taking Level 1 it a second time gave me a much deeper understanding of the tactics and how hard they are to apply under stress. There’s no substitute for this kind of training. You can read all the tactics and watch all the videos, but until you’re moving through a building with unknowns and getting shot at, you don’t know how you’ll respond. This class helped me see both where I’ve improved and what I still need to work on, along with a clearer path forward to continue my journey. Thanks to Mick and Jeff for another solid class! |