Wingmaster,
Would that all shared your enthusiasm. Some officers show up at the range only because they are required too. They take no pride in their shooting abililty, and if not required too before they leave, the instructors know their weapons will not get cleaned until a supervisor tells them to.
A result of this has been the erosion of firearms proficiency standards over the last thirty years. The outfit I worked for used to fire twelve rounds at fifty yards as part of the qualification course. When I retired it was only two at fifty, and those two rounds did not count against the score. For 'reference' only. Only twenty five and closer counts. Now as you see, some agencies don't fire past fifteen yards, and I've heard of some that don't fire past ten.
I also agree there should be mandatory re-qualification for pursuit - high speed driving and self defense/defensive tactics. The former is expensive and hard logistically for most agencies, the latter will get all the fat, lame, and lazy officers' panties in a bunch. The command staff included. And to be honest, there will be some injuries, but those will be off set in the long run when better trained officers get hurt less in actual confrontations. And a lot off officers fail to remember that a part of defensive tactics is training on how to de-escalate a confrontation.
I also believe there should be physical fitness standards and related testing. The standards should be graduated by age, and based on realistic situations. But lets face it ain't going to happen in most places. The officers would gripe, the unions would get involved, and frankly the brass would be terrified they would have to be held to those standards.
But in my mind, if you cant sprint a half block, go over a chain link fence and get to me with enough wind left to help me, just stay in the car. You'll get in my way. Your partners and your citizens are less important to you than food, TV, beer, and thirty minutes a day of your time.
I've now alienated some fellow cops on this board.