A Baer of a Drill

By Michael Mills

Posted in
#Skills

Would you like to make your pistol or rifle skill improvements fun? There are a multitude of drills and targets we can all use on the range for practice, but for me and many people I have instructed over the years, a little bit of fun in the training really makes the process take off. Don’t get me wrong, firearms and training are serious business. But if we can have fun while still being serious, we will retain knowledge and build positive experiences. Check out my video above, and keep reading the article below.

Instead of just punching holes in paper, why not run a range drill that’s both fun and helps you improve your skills?

Breaking It Down

The Baer Standard Drill was the birthchild of a retired Special Forces operator and owner of Baer Solutions. The targets for this drill are free and available for download on the Baer Solutions website. The goal is to run it clean at whatever speed you can and then improve from there.

The Baer Standard Drill target is free and downloadable from the Baer Solutions website (see link at bottom of article).

It’s a simple drill requiring you to draw from the holster, shoot five rounds in one of the boxes, transition to the next box with another five rounds, and then conduct an empty gun reload and finish with three rounds in the circle. This can be done from any distance you choose and with the rifle or pistol of your choosing. For my test of it, I selected a Springfield Armory XD-M Elite Tactical OSP 9mm equipped with a Holosun HS507C V2 and a Streamlight TLR-1 HL gun light.

Mike ran a Springfield Armory XD-M Elite Tactical OSP with a Holosun red dot and Streamlight gun light.

Everything Is an Evolution

The beauty of this drill, especially if completed with a shot timer, is that we will be able to identify where we can speed up or slow down. If we are missing the mark, we need to either slow down or practice those fundamentals to guarantee the shots.

By analyzing your shots, you can see where you need to focus to improve your skills.

If we are slow on the draw, maybe dry-fire draw practice is the cure. Or maybe like myself we need to speed up those reloads.

Much of what can be identified by running this drill is something we can work on without needing to be at the range or shooting live ammo. Everything from the draw, reloads to trigger press can be worked on in dry-fire form at home.

Mike discovered during the drill that he needed to speed up his reloads a bit.

WIIFM

Surely we have all heard of WIIFM, right? It stands for “what’s in it for me.” There are three main things in it for you. First, it’s something new to go out and change up your boring range days. Second, you’ll be able to see what you need to work on specifically rather than just randomly punching holes in paper. And lastly, it will be fun for you and your friends on the range because a little competition is always good — even if you’re competing against yourself!

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