So - plenty of local cop drama this week, which has kept us stressed. But I am personally safe & alive, just busy.
Along with all this, we have a recruit academy going through their first week on the range. Today had the incredibly rare occurrence of a moment which left me at a complete loss for words.
For those who don't know - when teaching adults a new skill it helps to put it in the perspective of a skill they already have. Helps the mind process the concepts better & gives you a common point of reference. For a lot of combat shooting you can do this by relating it to athletics and martial arts - balance, poise, relaxed focus etc. are all common elements.
Well, a young lady I was helping today on the line was having problems with keeping a consistent grip on her handgun. Thinking to use an analogy like softball, golf, or whatever I asked what sports she had played in school.
"None sir." (they're still in that super-enthusiastic military bearing mode - you get used to it)
"Well, what about other athletics? What kind of stuff do you do for fun?" Still determined to find something here to relate my point on gripping the weapon firmly & consistently, ever the dedicated instructor...
"Well... I do belly dancing sir." Perfectly straight faced, and I know she's waiting for me to give her some grief or something.
"Ummmm yeah I got nothing on that one. I'll be right back."
6 comments:
I admire your restraint, my friend. Wow.
Belly dancing is all about core muscle strength and control...or so I've been told.
Hmmm.... Well Belly Dancings about tensing and relaxing muscles in conjunction with breath control; should translate just fine.
I'm more than willing to give up some of my free to help her work on it.
:-D
Josh
LOL! I would have opened my mouth to say something, then shut it once I realized I had no comeback....
When teaching DT's to academy students, I've found that if they have a background in dancing then I'm able to incorporate that into the lesson. Dancing incorporates precise movement, thus so does DT's.
One idea is that belly dancing involves sword dancing. Ask her how she grips the sword.
I was able to use the dancing stuff for her posture and movements, as well as rhythm in shooting - so yes, that worked. She finally grasped the grip issue on her own...
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