Training with JBS Training Group, Enjoying A little Bit of Americana

I freaking love warm weather. I truly love seeing different places around the country. And I absolutely love shooting and training. A couple of weeks ago I traveled to West Liberty, IA to take JBS Training Group's American Gas Gun Rapid Precision class. Training with Mark Smith of JBS has been a holy grail goal of mine for years and he was finally close enough to WI on a date that worked. On my way to class one morning from the AirBnB, surrounded by wide open corn fields in every direction, Trip Around The Sun came on, and I remembered how blessed I was in this life after hearing Kenny say "It's a cosmic Hallelujah that we're sitting here right now." It was going to be a great couple of days of learning and shooting.

Memorial Day this year came and went all the best things about it. It was a hot one and we spent the day outside. The kids played in the sprinkler and kiddie pool all day, we had meat on the grill, cold beers, and good company. It was exactly how it should be and summer kicked off properly. For me, it was a kick off week.

A few days later I left for Iowa and it was about a 4 hour trip. Almost every part of that drive was good. There is something about driving through the midwest in the summer: being on the highway, feeling the warm breezes, the sweet scent of a grassy field, and country music carrying you through the miles. It just hits. You see a lot of those random ponds along the highway, with shelters, docks, swim rafts, and slides. Little slices of paradise that I bet those people frequent.

Arriving in West Liberty, I saw it was the birthplace of President Herbert Hoover. That's the town's claim to fame and there is little else there. But the place had that small town magic. Baseball games being played with packed bleachers, a small downtown, bars where everyone knows each other, and kids playing with water guns in the yards. Life definitely moves a little slower here, but I get why people like living in places like this.

I stayed in a cheap room from AirBnB and it ended up being upstairs in a 100 year old farm house with zero AC. I'm not a picky traveler but an open window at night did little to drop the temps each night. Everything else was comfortable and the owner had 3 super friendly golden retrievers who weren't shy about asking for scratches.

The first day of class was 90 and sunny but that was forgotten about while absorbing all sorts of amazing information from Mark. He's good at what he does and it shows. If you've taken classes before and have had those light bulb moments, you understand immediately when the class was worth the time and money. And this class could have lit a gym for me. We put a lot of rounds downrange getting smart zeros and training on the concepts for achieving precision with an AR.

That evening I dipped into a local pub for a drink and to catch the Cubs game. A local bourbon hit the spot. I was the only one in there that didn't know somebody else. Even the bartender was hardly behind the bar as she sat with people elsewhere most of the time. It was quaint, cheap, and relaxing.

Day two at the range was spent working on movement and positional technique. Less rounds but just as much information. The day ended with a little competition between everyone and I finished top 3 behind some really good shooters. In terms of overall skill, I think I was in the top 50% of shooters there. It was cool talking to some of the others and meeting some of the local LE, which made up more than half the class. Iowa has a fairly well-run LE training community which is refreshing to see. Those guys like to shoot.

I appreciated hearing Mark's thoughts at the end, including him sharing a little about his faith and being a good man. I told him it was a grail class for me and I think he appreciated that. We took a pic and then I had to hit the road for the long drive home. It's always hard to leave a good experience but I was looking forward to getting back to the fam and kids.

Although tired from being on my feet for two days, mentally noting all that I had learned and how to practice it, finding a quick dinner, preparing for another two-day class that same week, and getting the lawn mowed, I didn't feel rushed. I think focusing on the moment played a part.

Until the next one,

Andy