Riding Shotgun With Charlie
#198
David Laird
DSC Training & FASTER Saves Lives

In the summer of 2021, I was fortunate to have taken a FASTER Saves Lives Level 1 course in Ohio. A number of friends and passengers of the show were there with me. David Laird was there, too, and he was nailing everything like it was nothing. Doing all the drills. Nailing the targets. Finishing before everyone else. It was impressive to say the least. I did interview him on that trip (RSWC #127). David was taking the FASTER course to see if it was something worth bringing back to Arizona. It was. 

David was a presenter at AMMcon (Alternative Multimedia Conference), which is hosted by Second Amendment Foundation. His topic the last two years at AMMcon have been on how to better use your social media. Here some of his presentation in 2022.  Here’s some From AMMcon 2023 part 1.  And here is part 2.. He was at AMMcon & GRPC and we hopped in the stagecoach to talk about FASTER. He does spend some time talking about using various means of the socials, who is using each different one, and why its important to have content at each of the platforms. 

As a perpetual student, he takes several courses as the student attendee. There’s always something you can learn from another instructor. He runs Dynamic Combative Solutions Training. DCS offers training on all firearms, CCW, and private courses around the country. He’s trained with many of the top instructors and he’s an instructor at the Active Self Protection Instructor. 

Besides being an instructor, David has been helping the AZCDL (Arizona Citizens Defense League) bring the FASTER program to The Grand Canyon State. Cheryl Todd (RSWC #060) and David went to Ohio’s FASTER course to see the Level 1 & 2 classes to make sure it was solid and going to be good for Arizona. Since the 1994 gun bill that Biden brags about didn’t end violence with guns in schools. Iit increased.

The FASTER program has various levels of courses. There are basic Foundations courses to teach anyone new to firearms the fundamentals of shooting and gun handling. The Level 2, 3 and 4 courses get much more into scenario training and response and force on force. States like Arizona, Ohio, Colorado, and Idaho already have legislation that allows school staff to carry. So the program needs to get into more schools and make this the norm from schools around the country. Particularly for rural schools and counties, this is an important aspect of school safety. Oftentimes, the police can be anywhere from 15-45 minutes away from the school. An incident can be over in that amount of time. 

I will say that the big takeaway from the FASTER course for me was the medical aspect. There are lots of people who get wounded during a mass shooting whose medical needs are not met until the event is over. Meaning police have stopped the threat and then medical comes in. During that time is crucial for the wounded so they don’t bleed out. The medical training can be used outside of a shooting. It can be used on the playground. But it can also be used for car accidents or even at home if someone is injured. 

It was great to have some time with David. He’s very well trained and educated, very professional in all ways. I love running into him at GPRC or SHOT or where the road and the training takes us around the country. 

Favorite quotes:
“When I do retire and make training my full time thing, I need to know how to use the social webs.”
“Think of using it (TikTok) as a teaser trailer to where you main content is.”
“Stick to what you’re already doing, just find snippets of what you’re already doing, then blast that out to the other areas, and bring that traffics back to you primary thing.”
“We shouldn’t restrict self defense anywhere.”
“Your body won’t go where the mind hasn’t been.”
“You can carry it but how often do you train with it?”

Dynamic Combative Solutions
https://www.dcs.training/

FASTER Saves Lives
https://fastersaveslives.org/

Arizona Citizens Defense League
https://azcdl.org/

AZCDL FASTER Page
https://azcdlfoundation.org/faster-saves-lives/

Second Amendment Foundation
https://secure.anedot.com/saf/donate?sc=RidingShotgun 

Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms
https://www.ccrkba.org/

Please support the Riding Shotgun With Charlie sponsors and supporters. 

Dennis McCurdy
Author, Speaker, Firewalker
http://www.find-away.com/

Self Defense Radio Network
http://sdrn.us/

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