Week 10- Recruit Yost

Wednesday, September 18, 2013 marked our half way point… While the first few weeks went by slowly (in an overwhelming way), the last 4-6 have flown by so fast I’ve often forgotten the day of the week.

Since this is a milestone week, I made sure I set aside an appropriate amount of time to mark the occasion via blog. That being said, when I say “appropriate amount of time,” I mean approximately ten minutes because that is all I could do this week. My excuse: I have quite a bit of writing to do for class. I’ll conclude my disclaimer with an apology for the brevity and lack of detail in the below paragraphs.

Firearms training went from crawl to walk and finally to run in what seemed like minutes (weeks = actual time frame for the transition).  In this relatively short time we’ve had at the range, my firearms skills have increased significantly.  I came into this portion of the program with some deeply imbedded bad habits.  It was a rough time breaking myself of them but once I did, I quickly became a better shooter. It’s the same story with our arrest training.

Arrest Control is one of the most cathartic experiences I’ve had in the Academy.  We get to do ground and bag work (punching bags) and I’ve determined that it is to me as yoga is to a yogi; it’s almost meditative. It is one of the most effective ways to release the stress of the week(s).  This is a totally controlled environment, so it’s safe.  At the same time it is the most freeing thing we can do at this point.  Honestly, I don’t think you even have to be good for it to relieve some stress. Maybe others would disagree; I can’t speak for my classmates… Of course, like everything else, the more you do it, the better you get and the goal here is to improve.

Until next time...