Last month, I began this series of guides on shooting the Rogers Shooting School test stages. This is the ninth and final installment: the Freestyle Blast Drill.
Stage 9: two-handed, from the holster, 21 seconds
Maximum points: 21
Seven targets appear, short pause for reload, seven targets appear, long pause for reload, seven targets appear
The Freestyle Blast Drill is what most people envision when they think of Rogers Shooting School: fast paced, plates coming and going nonstop, speed and accuracy on demand with little room for error. It’s the most fun stage for most people. Plus, you’re all warmed up having just shot the (much more difficult) weak hand only version.
Tip #1: Similar to Test #8, capacity matters. There are two pauses during the stage. The first one is fairly short so if you can start with enough bullets to knock down 14 plates you save yourself the need to reload during that short pause. The second pause is ridiculously long (four seconds, I believe) so if you’re only going to reload once, plan to do it during the second pause.
Tip #2: Also like Test #8, the sequence here is complicated but you don’t need to memorize all of it. Knowing which plates come up at the beginning of each string lets you plan and be on target to get ahead of the system. This is the order I used:
String 1: T1, T2, T3
String 2: T1, T5, T7
String 3: T7, T6, T5
Be especially aware of that last string. This is one of the few times at Rogers when the first target to appear is not T1. Given how much time you have to perform the reload before this string, be aimed in on the space where T7 will rise, slack out of the trigger, and ambush it as it pops up. You get all the time in the world to hit that hardest target, and for people who struggle to hit T7 normally this is almost like a free extra point.
Tip #3: Don’t go postal if you miss a plate. If you’re managing your ammunition properly you should have more than enough to hit everything even if you miss here or there. But if you do have a miss, follow it up with an aimed hit… not more, faster misses. This stage of the test has a huge number of easy points to earn as long as you don’t get fixated on one plate that won’t fall down. Don’t go all Imperial Stormtrooper and empty your mags downrange without aiming and hitting.
Tip #4: Forget about all the prior tests. Don’t go into stage 9 thinking you absolutely need to get 17 or 21 points or whatever. Try to start fresh as if this was the first test of the day. Shoot one target at a time. Knock down plates. Score points.
Here are two different videos of me shooting it clean. The first is a typical run with a reload during the second pause:
The second is a run where I started with 23 rounds and didn’t need to reload:
As mentioned in the Test #8 post, the instructors may frown on you starting with that many rounds in the gun. The time you have for the reload during the second string of fire is so long that it’s really not necessary, anyway. But it was fun!
For convenience, I’ve complied links to each of the test guides here.
Train hard & stay safe! ToddG
That looks like a remarkable amount of fun.
The camera makes the target look a long ways away.
The first plate, 1B and 1H, is about 6Y away.