Getting TASED!

This day was shocking! :) We had our classroom portion of learning how this tool is used and what makes it so effective in some situations. It is great to learn about more methods of using non-lethal means to take people into custody. It is also eye opening to learn that a Taser is not the “end-all” tool to gain compliance from possible suspects.

There are some main aspects that must happen to create that circuit and for that circuit to remain active. Deploying a Taser comes with responsibility that it will end when one has gained the compliance that we are looking for and ultimately need.

I’ll let you know about my experience and then it will be on to the pictures. I had been building up my anticipation all day for this experience. You might think that my mind is a little twisted, but I was actually looking forward to being Tased! Let me give you a little bit of background of myself really quickly, I used to work as an electrician “go-for” back in the summers for my uncle. So needless to say, I have been electrocuted more times than I care to remember! Being Tased was worse than any of the experiences I had as an electrician, and I had a few! It is a hard feeling to describe, but the pain that you feel is throughout your entire body. Have I mentioned that the Tase lasts for five-seconds? I bet you are saying to yourself five-seconds isn’t that long, I could handle that. That’s what I had thought as well! I really don’t think that five-seconds has ever been so long in my entire life.

If I had to choose between either being Tased again or OC sprayed again...hands down I would be Tased. Without a question! This was one of the most memorable days of the academy for myself. I am really glad that I chose to experience the Taser. Without further waiting, enjoy the pictures! (and if you are ever having a bad day, come back to these pictures for a good laugh!)

*Check out the faces of the support guys as they hold the person actually getting Tased...classic!

POST Qualification and Weapon Familiarization...

One of the coolest days yet at the range! We first had to go through the qualification for P.O.S.T. (Peace Officer Standards and Training). There were a lot of nerves there that morning with us, but I am proud to say that everyone passed this without a problem! With all the pressure off our back we were able to have a day were we became familiar with different types of weapons that we might come across in our careers.

I unfortunately did not have a camera with me on this day. We were able to shoot and handle the following guns: AR-15, MP5, .38 Special, and a double action handgun. It was a blast to be able to manipulate such an array of weapons.

We ended the day by having real live shots fired way above our heads. Our instructors set this up so that we would be able to know what it feels and sounds like to have shots fired in our direction. This experience was eye opening. I had no clue that most shots or bullets, given the space, will break the sound barrier! The sounds that is made reminds me of a loud lightning strike right next to you. The “crack” is accompanied by a “whizz” that seems to be right next to you. When of course the sounds came from way above our heads.

Pretty awesome day!

Night Shoot

Great experience! Once you have practiced, practiced and practiced some more your natural point of aim becomes dialed in. We learned this during the night shoot that we were able to participate in. Our firearms instructors continue to work with us to build our confidence in our shots and our fundamentals.

During our night shooting we learned about different flashlight techniques. There are some techniques that are harder to learn for some and easier for others, all really depends on the person.

I will keep this entry short, I really just wanted to share the following pictures with you guys.

Learning to drive all over...

We all had the opportunity to head out to Colorado State Patrol’s track where were able to practice driving in different scenarios that we as police officers will come up against. There were many different obstacles that were set up to simulate backing up, pulling forward, split second decision making, and many more.

Our instructors that we had for each stage knew their stuff! Each group would pile into the car with the instructor driving, and then would be blown away at how fast that stage was just completed! It was a great time had by all. I mean, how often do you get to go out and drive a vehicle almost as fast as you can push it, and be paid for doing it?!

It was and is very helpful to learn the limit as a driver and also the limit of the car you are operating. Yes, there were times where we lost control or hit some cones, but that is really how you make yourself learn in this environment. We would make the corrections the following time through and clear all the obstacles.

One of our days out on the track included a night pursuit. This was awesome! We put to use what we had learned in our previous days of training and applied everything to a night drive. We also added in the use of a radio (calling into dispatch reporting the vehicle we were chasing), as well as adding in the use of our lights and siren.

Hope you enjoy the pics!

There has been so much going on!

OC Day...

This day was such a test mentally and physically for everyone. OC stands for Oleoresin Capsicum. The main active ingredient is the capsicum portion, it is mostly derived from the fruit of plants in the capsicum genus...mostly including chilis.

During the day, we learned about the non-lethal effects of the OC spray and the advantages and disadvantages to resorting to this method. It seemed like the disadvantages out weighed the advantages because we were on the receiving end of the spray. There are many instances that the OC spray could be useful in subduing a suspect when they have chosen to be noncompliant and threatening.

I was one of the last recruits to be sprayed (I tried to take as many pictures as possible). Since I had the opportunity to watch everyone and see the different reactions that people were having, I was able to prepare for the worst. I have to tell you...the worst I was planning for was not nearly as bad as it really was! It was a great experience and I would probably do it again if I absolutely had to.

After being sprayed in the face with OC, we all had to complete a series of tasks while feeling the effects of the spray. The first of them was to deliver strikes/blows to a standing dummy while giving verbal directions. We then moved to a corner of a building to find a suspect that we had to give verbal directions to get on the ground and eventually handcuff them. Our last encounter was a suspect with a (fake) gun, we too were given a simunition (non lethal gun) and after giving many verbal commands to the suspect, we had to make the decision to shoot the suspect after he showed the intent to point the (fake) gun at us.

These exercises were really great to go through. It was showing us that we are to continue to fight through adversity (physical or mental) and fight until the threat is stopped. I can now tell you that I now appreciate the affect that OC provides.

I hope that you enjoy these pics...try not to laugh too hard!

Red Man

You are asking yourself...what the heck is this?! It is an afternoon of learning what adrenaline does to you and your senses during an “acted” arrest.

Throughout our classes of arrest control, we have learned a ton. Red Man days are days that we are to put our training to use. We have mock scenarios of making arrests on our suspects. All of our training “could” be put to use, which makes for a dynamic training day. Our training that we have received really prepares us for these exercises. I found myself even with the training, experiencing “tunnel vision” during the arrests and forgetting aspects that I need to keep in the forefront of my mind.

Below are some pictures of our first Red Man day...there will be more.

Oh...and AWESOME job to our instructors who helped us out all day!

Receiving direction

Recruits V and H practicing arrest techniques

Good distance



Attempting to arrest

Range Time! (Photos)

Gun ready position while kneeling

Receiving instruction of how to shoot in the prone position...from the 50 yard line of course!

Our marksman of our group

Recruit F showing off his kneeling skills


Recruit K brings his military experience to the range




Perfect timing for the shot (see the casing??)



Receiving great instruction



Dialed in!

Range Time!

BANG BANG! The times out on the range are AWESOME! We have been going to the range now for about five weeks. Most of us have come a long way from day one...including myself. I would not by any means consider myself to be a recreational shooter before the academy. I have shot a few guns in my time but nothing near the repetition and skills that are learned while up on the range! TRIGGER PRESS!! (learn it and know it!)

Deputy Ackerman and the other specialists are doing an AWESOME job at honing all of our skills. We are being taught to deal with different scenarios and decision making tactics that are to be made within a seconds time. The range is fun, but along with the fun comes the reality of why we are up there practicing. We have to have the mindset, that everyday we put on our uniforms that we could essentially be going to battle. This training is helping us achieve that mindset.

I have taken a few pictures while we are out at the range (next post)... hope you enjoy them!

Pretty Tough Schedule...

Hey everyone, it seems that I am constantly apologizing that I haven’t blogged enough. Well, we are just going to skip over the apologizing and get to some new blogs :)

I just came back from a great relaxing weekend that I had with my wife of 3 years now! I’ll be honest and say that it was great to be able to get away (even though it was only for a night) and do something different from eating, breathing, and sleeping academy! The academy has developed more in schooling and training in the past few weeks. With that comes more and more studying and preparation that needs to take place. Let me give you a brief look into my daily schedule:

0500 - 0630: up and running with dog, material review, breakfast, shower, etc.

0630 - 0720: drive in (this might get longer as the snow comes...)

0730 - 0800: class evaluations, reviewing notes

0800 - 1700: class!

1700 - 1800: drive home

1800 - 1900: time with dog

1900 - 2100: family time, dinner and maybe tv

2100 - 2230: study, preparation for next class

All of you out there that are thinking about getting into this role as a Peace Officer make sure you know what you are getting yourself into! My wife continues to be great and accepting of what little time that I actually have during the week. She knows that this profession is what I want to do and encourages me to do my best. I continue to remind myself of how great I have it! ;)

All in all...mentally prepare yourself to set aside 21 weeks of your life and be able to make sacrifices that need to be made!

Arrest Control

This was a great class! Sgt. Gompert and his team have done a great job teaching us different moves that we could put to use if necessary. Going through this class and learning what is expected of you physically just re-enforces the fact that you better be in great shape! The pictures of this day show us learning punches and elbow throws which can be very effective even through the bags! Enjoy the pics!

The kind of deputy sheriff I am going to be...

This is something that I have been thinking about ever since the academy started. If you talk to most people who know me, they would hopefully describe me as being laid back, sociable, fun, devoted, and optimistic...a “glass half full” type of guy. I have told myself over and over that I am not wanting my personality to change. I have had many talks with my family and friends to hold me accountable to this goal of mine.

I understand that within this career, one might come up against adversity dealing with people, possibly with the whole system in place, or even within themselves. I think that in order to be successful doing this job, you have to have outlets to relieve stress that builds up in your life. In my case, I love to hang out with my wife and dog. We go camping, white water rafting, road trips, love watching movies, hiking, and other interactive activities that separate ourselves from our careers. It is important to us to have a life outside of our jobs and to remember we are defined by God and the plans he has for us.

Through the training that we are receiving and the courses that we are taking, I feel like JeffCo is preparing us to be effective and well trained cops. I say effective because, as cops I think that we could misrepresent the badge if we are not trained properly. Thankfully, that is not the case! Our training is preparing us to be effective speakers, role-models, enforcers of the law, shooters, and effective protectors, among other qualities we possess. I hope to embody all these qualities and more to become a successful deputy sheriff.

Saving a life as a First Responder...

We had our training on being a “first responder” the other day. It was a fun filled day full of CPR, basic First Aid, as well as AED training. In the afternoon, we played out a couple of different scenarios that incorporated all the skills that we learned throughout the morning. Hope you enjoy the pictures.

Pictures of our "patients"

Life is a blur...

Things have been AWESOME in the academy. I thought that time was flying by earlier, but now throw in two days a week at the firing range and arrest control and it seems like we are hardly at school now. Just a friendly reminder...we are getting paid for all this work we’re putting in :)

I have a ton of pictures for you guys. The first two firearm lectures were done in the classroom. We covered a lot of different aspects of clearing malfunctions and learning to draw our weapons (as I have stated before). Below are some pictures (thanks to Deputy Ackerman) of our classroom training. Good times! I’ll be trying to have a few pictures of us out on the range while practicing...hopefully I can get those next week!

Excellent reloading

Sharing the wisdom

Tactical reloading

We have a great time in class!

Firearms!

Hey everyone! Today was awesome :) As you can probably tell by the title, we had firearms today. I learned today that there is so much more that goes into drawing your weapon, than just drawing your weapon. We started with learning about the maintenance of our weapons and the responsibilities that come along with having a gun. For instance, we learned that we better take great care of our weapon so that when and if it needs to be fired it will not turn into a “one shot wonder gun” with a hefty price tag on it. Cleaning and maintaining the gun is such a vital part of carrying a weapon like that on your hip. Don’t get too intimidated by the toolbox of tools, our instructor is an Armory!

The afternoon consisted of us committing to both memory and muscle memory the steps it takes to correctly and safely draw your weapon. In order to be proficient with drawing our weapons, we must practice practice, practice, and practice some more. The actions that we learned today could and will save our lives at some point in our careers as Police Officers.

Enjoy the pictures!

How does this work again Instructor Barrick?

A few of the tools we're going to need :)

Learning which eye is dominant at lunch break...hope they figured it out :)