Training Glossary

A

After action review (AAR)

A structured look back at a class or event: what was planned, what happened, why there was a gap and what to do next time. See Write Your After Action Report.

AIWB

Appendix inside-the-waistband carry: a holster worn in front of the hip, around the one o’clock position for a right-handed shooter.

AOJ

Ability, opportunity and jeopardy: three conditions commonly taught as the test for using deadly force in self-defense. State law varies.

B

Ball and dummy drill

A partner loads a mix of live and dummy rounds so the shooter sees any flinch when the gun does not fire.

C

Cold range

A range where guns stay unloaded except on the firing line on command. See Firearm Safety Rules.

Color Code

Jeff Cooper’s scale of awareness: White (unaware), Yellow (relaxed alert), Orange (specific alert) and Red (ready to fight). Jeff Cooper

Compressed ready

A ready position with the gun held close to the chest, muzzle toward the target. Also called high ready or position SUL variants.

Concealed carry permit (CCW, CHL, LTC)

A state license to carry a concealed handgun. Many states now allow permitless carry; many classes still teach to the permit standard.

Cover and concealment

Cover stops bullets; concealment only hides you. A car engine block is cover, a bush is concealment.

D

Dry fire

Practice with an unloaded gun and no ammunition in the room: drawing, sight picture and trigger press. The cheapest training there is.

E

ECQC

Extreme Close Quarter Concepts, the ShivWorks course on fighting with a gun at arm’s length. Craig Douglas

F

Failure drill (Mozambique)

Two shots to the body and one to the head, for a threat that does not stop after the first pair.

Force on force

Training against live role players using marking or training guns, to practice decisions under pressure.

H

Hot range

A range where students keep loaded guns holstered at all times, as they would when carrying.

I

IDPA

International Defensive Pistol Association, founded in 1996 around practical self-defense scenarios.

IFAK

Individual first aid kit: tourniquet, pressure bandage, gauze and gloves carried for gunshot trauma.

IPSC

International Practical Shooting Confederation, founded at the 1976 Columbia Conference with Jeff Cooper as first president.

L

Low ready

A ready position with the muzzle pointed down in front of you, finger off the trigger.

M

Malfunction clearance

Getting a stopped gun running again. Type 1 is a failure to fire (tap, rack), Type 2 a failure to eject or stovepipe, Type 3 a double feed.

Modern Isosceles

A square, aggressive stance with both arms extended, popularized in competition. Rob Leatham

Modern Technique

Jeff Cooper’s system for the defensive pistol: the Weaver stance, the flash sight picture, the compressed surprise break and the Color Code.

O

OODA loop

Observe, Orient, Decide, Act: John Boyd’s model of decision-making under pressure. John Boyd

P

Par time

The target time for completing a drill.

Point shooting

Shooting at close range without a sighted aim, taught by Fairbairn, Sykes and Applegate. Rex Applegate

R

Red dot (RDS)

A reflex sight that projects an aiming dot. Now common on carry pistols.

Reloads

An emergency reload after the gun runs empty; a speed reload that drops a partial magazine; a tactical reload that keeps the partial magazine.

Round count

How many rounds a class will fire. Check it before you buy ammunition.

S

Scout rifle

Jeff Cooper’s concept of a light, handy, general-purpose rifle with a forward-mounted scope.

Shoot house

A building with movable walls for live-fire or force-on-force room clearing.

Shot timer

A device that beeps to start a drill and records the time of each shot.

Sight alignment and sight picture

Alignment is front sight centered in the rear notch; picture is that alignment placed on the target.

Split time

The time between two consecutive shots.

T

Trigger reset

Letting the trigger out only until it re-engages, for a faster, smoother next shot.

Tueller Drill

A demonstration that an attacker can cover about 21 feet in the time it takes to draw and fire. Dennis Tueller

U

USPSA

United States Practical Shooting Association, the U.S. region of IPSC, incorporated in 1984.

W

Weaver stance

A bladed two-handed stance with push-pull tension, developed by Jack Weaver in the 1950s and adopted into the Modern Technique.

Z

Zero

Adjusting sights so the point of aim matches the point of impact at a set distance.