I was well into my 30’s when I first fired a pistol. I could count on one hand how many times I had gone out with buddies into the mountains somewhere and shot rifles and shotguns, not even knowing enough to consider offering to pitch in for ammo or help clean the firearms afterward.
Holding a gun felt “cool” because I looked like the guys in the movies! I even remember one occasion – in a fit of intoxicated exuberance – surprising a group of guests by bursting into the room with my roommate’s loaded cheap pistol. I did what they did in the movies: “Nobody move!” …and waved it around, probably sweeping everyone at least once with my finger on the trigger. We all laughed because they were genuinely startled, none of us really knowing how dangerous my little prank was.
Fast forward to certainly more mature times. All of the major platforms are stored properly in the safe: shotgun, carbine, and pistol. However, they most certainly do not stay in there. You see, planted firmly in my mid-thirties, these platforms belonged to a “Rookie”. Green as the grass in the morning dew…
The only way to get better was to train. A lot.
With a mounting stack of training completion certificates and a quickly growing collection of gear, what once was a curious fascination with looking like the guy in the movies has turned into a legitimate pursuit of proficiency in all things tactical. From shooting to driving to handling the same K-9 Assets as those used by the Secret Service and Israeli Special Forces, virtually no aspect of my life is the same as it was just a few years ago.
There’s always a way to do things safer and smarter and I am learning it all.
I’m married to a lovely woman and together we are Mommy and Daddy to our two K-9 Assets: Vilin and “Mad” Max. When we aren’t training, we work together from home and can be found swimming, riding dirt bikes, enjoying movies and cooking gourmet food.
… And, of course, doing what R2R was built to do: document the journey from being a total “noob” to full-on expert in the tactical field. R2R invites you to join us in this story as we work off our “Rookie” status and learn how to be better, faster, safer and – above all – more dangerous than the other guy.
