CQB27
US Veteran
I spend my days working in the training division; my title is “range master”. Last Friday morning I met three retired LEO’s on the range. There were three of them, one retired city officer, one retired deputy, and a retired federal agent (DEA). Their mission for the morning was to complete the Georgia POST LEO handgun qualification course and secure another year of LEOSA carry credentials.
The morning was very nice, cool and sunny, a pretty much perfect day to be on the range. After a short class on “Use of Force” and a safety brief, we headed outside to get the fun part done. All three passed the course the first time around, with mid-range scores, 260’s out of 300, about 80-85% for the group. They performed like most retirees do, looking a little rusty on the draw, a little jerky on the movements, the indicators of what time has a way of doing to us all. No worries. I always allow this group to stay on the range and continue to shoot on their own. It makes the drive, about an hour for the closest and 1.5 hours for the long man, worth it to all. It also gives them a chance to bring along a few extra firearms to knock the dust off of.
As I headed off the range to complete the qualification paperwork, the retired deputy said; “Hey, I was wondering if I could qualify with a revolver too?” The Georgia POST Council requires retirees to qualify with either a pistol or revolver, or both. The qualification is type specific, not model/caliber specific, so any pistol/revolver will do. I said, “Yeah, no problem”, expecting to see some sort of IWB/J-frame sized/exercise unfold. Imagine the look on my face when the deputy pulled his old, and I mean OLD, Sam Brown duty rig out of his range bag!
Now this rig was a beautiful thing, well-worn black basket weave with a silver buckle, standard “Law Man” for sure. The belt sported a baton loop, a handcuff case so worn it had spots that looked just like brown suede, a double speed loader pouch, and a right hand six inch revolver holster. Nothing more…Nothing more, save a radio, really needed. The holster looked like a Tex Shoemaker, but I didn’t poke my nose into that too much. Resting in the holster was a 6 inch 686, good old Pachmayr Presentation rubber grips on the square butt. Again, straight “Law Man”.
The deputy picked up that old rig, swung it around his hips, and secured the buckle…..And that’s when it happened. I Saw It With My Own Eyes! He stood different. He walked different. His face changed. Not bright and cheery. Not cold and hard. Stern….”Seriously Stern” is how I describe it. He moved to the 25 yard line, made ready, and when those targets faced that 686 came so effortlessly out of that old holster, like sweet tea pours from the pitcher. Just tip it, and out it comes, every time. The old deputy double actioned that 686 from the 25 yard line all the way to the 3. Like a well-oiled machine, round after round, smooth and deadly accurate, on and on he went. Watching the whole thing, it was so amazing, at times I felt like my head was detached from my body. I don’t remember, but I think my mouth was open during the whole course of fire.
When it was all over, I walked forward to score the targets, but I already knew. I had watched every hole magically appear in the SQT-1……298 out of 300….99.33%. I completed the paperwork, still reeling over what I had just seen. When the trio was through for the day, they stopped in the office to say goodbye. I wanted to say something to the deputy, somehow acknowledge what I had witnessed. I just couldn’t think of what to say. So as I shook his hand I said, “You sure can run that 686.” He just smiled and said, “I don’t know. I think sometimes it runs me.”
The morning was very nice, cool and sunny, a pretty much perfect day to be on the range. After a short class on “Use of Force” and a safety brief, we headed outside to get the fun part done. All three passed the course the first time around, with mid-range scores, 260’s out of 300, about 80-85% for the group. They performed like most retirees do, looking a little rusty on the draw, a little jerky on the movements, the indicators of what time has a way of doing to us all. No worries. I always allow this group to stay on the range and continue to shoot on their own. It makes the drive, about an hour for the closest and 1.5 hours for the long man, worth it to all. It also gives them a chance to bring along a few extra firearms to knock the dust off of.
As I headed off the range to complete the qualification paperwork, the retired deputy said; “Hey, I was wondering if I could qualify with a revolver too?” The Georgia POST Council requires retirees to qualify with either a pistol or revolver, or both. The qualification is type specific, not model/caliber specific, so any pistol/revolver will do. I said, “Yeah, no problem”, expecting to see some sort of IWB/J-frame sized/exercise unfold. Imagine the look on my face when the deputy pulled his old, and I mean OLD, Sam Brown duty rig out of his range bag!
Now this rig was a beautiful thing, well-worn black basket weave with a silver buckle, standard “Law Man” for sure. The belt sported a baton loop, a handcuff case so worn it had spots that looked just like brown suede, a double speed loader pouch, and a right hand six inch revolver holster. Nothing more…Nothing more, save a radio, really needed. The holster looked like a Tex Shoemaker, but I didn’t poke my nose into that too much. Resting in the holster was a 6 inch 686, good old Pachmayr Presentation rubber grips on the square butt. Again, straight “Law Man”.
The deputy picked up that old rig, swung it around his hips, and secured the buckle…..And that’s when it happened. I Saw It With My Own Eyes! He stood different. He walked different. His face changed. Not bright and cheery. Not cold and hard. Stern….”Seriously Stern” is how I describe it. He moved to the 25 yard line, made ready, and when those targets faced that 686 came so effortlessly out of that old holster, like sweet tea pours from the pitcher. Just tip it, and out it comes, every time. The old deputy double actioned that 686 from the 25 yard line all the way to the 3. Like a well-oiled machine, round after round, smooth and deadly accurate, on and on he went. Watching the whole thing, it was so amazing, at times I felt like my head was detached from my body. I don’t remember, but I think my mouth was open during the whole course of fire.
When it was all over, I walked forward to score the targets, but I already knew. I had watched every hole magically appear in the SQT-1……298 out of 300….99.33%. I completed the paperwork, still reeling over what I had just seen. When the trio was through for the day, they stopped in the office to say goodbye. I wanted to say something to the deputy, somehow acknowledge what I had witnessed. I just couldn’t think of what to say. So as I shook his hand I said, “You sure can run that 686.” He just smiled and said, “I don’t know. I think sometimes it runs me.”
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