10-Ring Handgun Academy

08/09/2026

Long Shot: Safety First!!
When dealing with fi****ms, regardless of the situation, the number-one priority is safety. We drive cars, we handle power tools and such, and when the safety rules are applied to each situation, mistakes are less likely to occur. Many of you know that for the past forty years I was a professional trumpet player before I embarked on a new teaching career in fi****ms safety classes. The most important concept I learned working in either category is how you approach the subject mentally. You get it right in your mind, you will get it right in application. When I had a difficult musical passage to work out, I always began playing it slowly and increase the speed in small increments. You must never try to play a musical passage faster than you can play it perfectly. Never operate your firearm any faster than you can control your firearm SAFELY. If I were to miss notes in a concert, nobody dies (although I would feel like doing it). Make a mistake with your firearm and injury or tragedy is a very real possibility. Slow is good until it becomes a part of your sub-conscious level. Most folks don't train enough to get to this level so I operate under the assumption no one knows what they are doing until they prove otherwise to me. Start with the three rules of safe gun handling....which are.....? (test #1.....I'm still a teacher in my soul). Even though you're in a fight, you still must consider safety. Trigger finger? Muzzle direction? Innocent bystanders?
Lastly, remember that people are watching you so be a good role model. You may influence someone in ways you will never know; so make it the good/safe way.
Be Safe, Be Smart, Be Prepared

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08/09/2026

I posted this story a few years ago, but I think it's worth doing again.

TSA Airport Story:
As a professional trumpet player turned fi****ms instructor, I had a crazy experience in a Florida airport. I live in Missouri and a friend hired me to play an Easter gig in south Florida. I travel with three trumpets in a triple case that I always take on the plane. The trumpet bag usually draws a bit of attention at the TSA station, but nothing more than a comment or two. On the trip to Florida, no problem, but on the return trip I put my bag through the x-ray machine and when the bag came out there were three TSA people standing there. I walked up and they asked me if this was my bag and I said “Yes.”, and then they asked me to step to another table. My mind starts to race! This is my big chance because I just know they are going to ask me to play one of the trumpets to make sure they are real. What “airport excerpt” would be the best? The opening to “Pictures At An Exhibition”, Mahler’s Fifth Symphony? The best part is I have a captured audience right here to do my thing. Then my heart sank, they said there was a bullet in my bag………. A BULLET!?? The lady dug the cartridge out and It was a .22 LR cartridge at the very bottom of the padding in the case. To get that far down in the case, that cartridge must have been in there for a very long time. Then this little LEO wanna-be starts interrogating me on if I had ever been charged with a crime, arrested, convicted of a felony, jay-walked or been mean to my mother; the list went on and on. Of course, I answered “No” to all the questions and he obviously didn’t believe me. He took my I.D. and left to check me out and I told him numerous times I didn’t have a criminal record. About 45 minutes later he returned, he gave me my information back like he was giving up his lunch money and reluctantly said he didn’t find anything. They took the cartridge, gave me my trumpet case and sent me on my way. Well, the moral of this story is, stay out of trouble and keep your record clean. It just might come in handy someday.
Marc

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08/02/2026

In Defense of Others:
Have you given any thought to entering a convenience store (or any other type of business) and discover you just walked into the middle of an armed robbery in progress? What’s the first action you would take? Draw your firearm? Find cover? Run like hell? Wet yourself? There are a lot of options and if you haven’t thought this through or trained for this scenario, you will probably freeze or worse. Remember, preservation of your life (and your loved ones) is paramount. If you do draw your firearm, do you have a clear shot? Is there more than one robber (inside or outside the store)? Is it best for you to exit the store, find cover and wait for the robber to come outside before you confront him or them? Getaway driver? Try not to take cover behind the getaway car. Sometimes you have to realize that people are victims by choice. They chose not to purchase a firearm and get training. They chose to outsource their protection to other individuals, security guards or the police; so, they may have to wait until the police arrive before they can be saved. There are difficult choices in this life and the more you prepare, the better your decision-making process will be and the more options you will find. I have made my decision; I hope this article will be the beginning of som**hing that helps you make your decision.
Be Safe, Be Smart, Be Prepared

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08/02/2026

QUICK SHOT: The Chambered Round in Your Carry Gun
If you're like me, I unload my carry gun every night and put the round that was in the chamber, back in the magazine. Now ejecting that round over time will scratch, dent and scar the rim of that round until the ejector on your gun might not catch and eject that round when you need it the most. Take your finger and run it along the case rim and see how rough it is. If it is very rough, I would put that round into a box of practice defense rounds to be shot later at the range.
Be Safe, Be Smart, Be Prepared.

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06/09/2026

Quick Shot: Accurate Shooting vs Effective Shooting.
There is a difference. Accurate shooting is chewing the “X” out of the target and effective shooting is stopping a conflict as soon as possible by inflicting as few immobilizing, but effective, wounds as possible. Shooting an attacker center-mass three times in the same spot (accurate) will not have the same effect as shooting your attacker center-mass three times in three different places (effective). Your target(s) should be anywhere from the pelvic girdle up to, across and just below the shoulders. That is where all of the organs, lungs and major stuff is in your body. A head shot is the last spot to target for the “final solution” because the head is small and way more mobile than center-mass is. But sometimes a head shot is the only thing that will bring the attack to a close and that is why we train in all sorts of scenarios. The weapon your attacker is using will also have a lot to do with where you might want to shoot. Someone attacking you with a knife or fists; (any contact weapon) and time permitting; the pelvic girdle might be the perfect shot placement. Your shots have the chance to be non-lethal shots, and if you break up those bones, your attacker is going down no matter how high on m**h they are. If your attacker has a gun, pelvic girdle shots might bring him down but they will not stop your attacker from shooting, so center-mass would be the better choice. Drawing from concealment needs to be a part of this equation, but will not be a part of this article. I took a “Holster class” earlier this year and I wanted to demonstrate what an accurate shooter I was (showing off) but one of the teachers kept wanting me to go faster to find my “breaking point” where I would start missing the target. I did go faster but not fast enough to mess up my grouping. The “X” was gone on the target with a hole about the size of the palm of your hand left in the middle (what a hot-dog!) with a few holes around the big hole. It was a great class and I learned a lot; and Andre, I promise to go faster!!!
Be Safe, Be Smart, Be Prepared

06/09/2026

Quick Shots: Carrying a Spare Reload
When it comes to carrying a concealed firearm, I’m just glad people do it, much less carry a spare reload. Some folks tell me that they don’t need extra ammo because their semi-auto carries ten to fifteen rounds in one mag. Well, that’s all fine and dandy until you have a mag problem. You get off one or two shots and then your firearm quits! That’s a terrible sound when a firearm goes “click” when you need it to go “bang”. If you carry and train with a semi-auto, be sure to train with different magazines than you carry. Training mags get bounced off of concrete, gravel, doused in dirt and mud and those tabs on the top can take a beating. You should always keep two or three mags specifically for carrying so you know there is no hidden damage that can cause a failure when you’re fighting for your life. If you carry a revolver (five or six shot), you may want to remember that bad guys tend to travel in packs, and six rounds just might not get the job done. I recommend speed loaders as opposed to speed strips or loose ammo. Your fine motor skills are going to be lost if you are in a self-defense situation and a quick reload is essential. I carry two 6-round speed loaders with me when I carry my revolver. Practice reloading your firearm. Time yourself and find that rhythm for a safe and quick reload.
Be Safe, Be Smart, Be Prepared

05/01/2026

Quick Shot: Victims By Choice
When someone chooses to depend on their security from outside sources (ie: police, security guards, other people in a crowd, neighbors, etc.) they are what people in self-defense circles describe as potential “victims by choice”. If one makes the decision to delegate their safety onto a third party and not take an active role in the security of their family and/or themselves, then they have set themselves up to be victims without any recourse except submission or worse. A recent article described a fi****ms instructor flying home to Seattle, Washington and was sitting beside a college professor also returning to Seattle. During the course of general conversation professions came up and the professor declared that he wished all guns would be banned and that he would never have one in his house with his wife and three daughters. The fi****ms instructor said, “fair enough”, but then asked this question: “Since you know what it is like when rioters take over your city (referring to the riots of 2020), what would you do if you experienced a home invasion with your family in the house? The professor replied that he would call the police. “OK” said the instructor. “Response times from the police average from 12-17 minutes in most cities, so let’s choose 12 minutes and start the timer”. Then the instructor started describing all the things the invaders would begin doing to his wife and daughters as three minutes crept by…..5 minutes…….7 minutes.....9 minutes and finally 12 minutes had pasted like turtles racing. Then the instructor asked if the professor really wanted to delegate his and his family’s security to a third party? How would he explain that he could do nothing to help or protect them and that their only recourse was to wait until the police arrived before they could be saved? They both sat in silence for a long time and just before the plane landed the professor asked for the instructor’s business card to get more information about what he could do to protect his family. Changing hearts and minds one at a time.
Be Safe, Be Smart, Be Prepared.

04/29/2026

QUICK SHOT: The Cooper Color Code and Situational Awareness:
The question about Col. Jeff Cooper and the color code came up in my last class, so here it is again.
The awareness code is described by colors:

White-Completely unaware of your surroundings. Wearing and listening to earbuds or earphones, futtsing with your phone, looking down while you are walking, etc.

Yellow-Aware and observing your surroundings. Nothing in particular, just looking at traffic, people and their movements. You can remain in this mode for long periods of time without becoming physically or mentally fatigued.

Orange-Som**hing or someone has piqued your interest. You have recognized a specific threat or have a feeling that som**hing is not right. It could be more sensual than visual, but som**hing is wrong. ALWAYS trust your instincts.

Red-It's GO-TIME!! The fight is on!! Your training is taking over and you are doing whatever it takes to win and survive this attack.
At this point, if you're asking yourself, "What would I do if 'Red' happens to me?", you just lost this encounter. Seek out training, get some ideas on your options when danger finds you. When the world goes sideways is not the time to form a plan.
Be Safe, Be Smart, Be Prepared

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03/13/2026

Quick Shot: The Mental Side of Things
As I listen to the news today, I wonder what I would have done if I had been present at Old Dominion or the Jewish Temple in Michigan when things “went south”. I am a retired trumpet player of some 45 years, and I used visualization techniques to help me perform to the best of my abilities, many times. As it happened, authorities at Old Dominion, and I think in Michigan, had recently conducted “active shooter” (AS) scenarios. They had rehearsed what to do and how to do it if an AS situation occurred. Do you perform mental exercises when you go to a restaurant, doctor’s office (where you can’t carry your gun), grocery store, etc.? Do you visualize what you would do if you were caught up in an AS situation? If the mind sees it, the body will have a much better chance of completing the task than if you try “making it up” as you go along. Waiting until you get into trouble is not the time to form a plan. When the “SHTF”, you must react immediately, decisively and without hesitation and never question whether you are doing the right thing or not. Seconds count and training is the key to it all; go get you some.
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03/08/2026

Quick Shot: Winter Concealed Carry Options
I carry a concealed firearm everyday. These last two really cold snaps made me think about how I carry in very cold weather. If you carry concealed, have you ever tried to draw your firearm wearing your winter attire? I'm talking about the whole "sha-bang"; coat, gloves, scarf, stocking cap...etc. If you haven't tried drawing from that setup, I suggest you do. You might find the process looks more like a skit out of Saturday Night Live. Will your trigger finger fit into the trigger guard with gloves on? How many layers of clothing do you have to get through to get to your firearm? If you carry Inside-the-Waistband (ITW) you just added at least one more layer to your draw than if you carry Outside-the-Waistband (OTW). A shoulder holster (SH) might work, but there would still be a zipper or buttons or whatever holding your outer garment together. I bought a jacket that has a built in holster (left or right handed) in the coat. It has accessibility through the outside pocket, an inner zipper or unzipping the jacket and using a cross-draw m**hod. I like the jacket because I can walk around with my hand in my coat pocket (holding my gun) and no one is the wiser. It's not uncommon to have your hands inside your coat pockets, I feel like I'm ready for just about anything and I'm not doing anything that would call attention to myself. I also like the fact that I have a built-in-holster and can carry w/o the fear of my gun falling out of a pocket. Do a check on how you carry in the winter. You might need to make a few changes.
Be Safe, Be Smart, Be Prepared

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