Spartan Group Advanced Tactical Training now at RTSP

[checko 180]

Any class schedule yet?

[seamusSU 0]

I was very impressed with the quality of the instructors that Spartan has assembled. I got there a few minutes to late to catch the pistol demo but I caught the carbine, home invasion, and unarmed sessions, all of which were great. I don't think I'm going to signing up for any of the classes just yet as their offerings are well beyond my current skill set. I will definitely consider them in the future though.

 

  It was also great to meet a few of the members on here and put faces with names/handles. For anyone I didn't meet, I was the guy in the front right during the classroom portion wearing the NASA t-shirt and Pittsburgh Penguins hat.

[GeorgeHM 5]

Thanks again for the time today. I also do feel when I am ready to improve my skill set they are on the short list.  They gave good explanation of tactics and reasons behind them.  Also grats howard on the win. 

[Spartan Group 0]

Any class schedule yet?

Yes...course descriptions, dates and prices are on the web at rtsponline.com...goto the Spartan Group tab on the top right.

 

If you'd prefer to talk to a person, as I usually do, come into the RTSP training center and see Sasha or call her at 973.434.7601. She can give you all the info and get you signed up.

 

 

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[Spartan Group 0]

I was very impressed with the quality of the instructors that Spartan has assembled. I got there a few minutes to late to catch the pistol demo but I caught the carbine, home invasion, and unarmed sessions, all of which were great. I don't think I'm going to signing up for any of the classes just yet as their offerings are well beyond my current skill set. I will definitely consider them in the future though.

 

It was also great to meet a few of the members on here and put faces with names/handles. For anyone I didn't meet, I was the guy in the front right during the classroom portion wearing the NASA t-shirt and Pittsburgh Penguins hat.

Great to meet you yesterday! And don't forget that we offer private lessons with any of the guys you met yesterday. So while you may be apprehensive to jump into a class for fear that it's beyond your skill set, you can get the same level of instruction in a one on one setting that moves at your pace and comfort level. The private lessons are also more cost effective when you consider the 1:1 ratio between student and instructor. Thanks for your support yesterday and here on NJGF.

 

 

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[Spartan Group 0]

The Spartan guys spent over an hour with us going over lots of things they cover in tbeir classes. The guys seem very knowledgeable and clearly have lots of experience.

 

I picked up a few great tips from the tail end of the carbine class, and some great but very simple self defense tactics in the unarmed class.

 

Overall a very good experience and a big thank you for ha ing us!

Thank you for your support and glad you enjoyed it. Maybe we can do more NJGF only events in the future. I think everyone enjoyed meeting in person and exchanging some knowledge. That's what this forum is all about. If you guys pitch me some ideas for future GTGs, I will organize it with RTSP and host the event. We can use the shoot house or the digital sim, have food brought in and also do a seminar on another topic. Take care.

 

 

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[Spartan Group 0]

Howard...thanks for stopping in today and for the feedback. It's much appreciated.

 

 

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[SgtToadette 59]

So I'm a bit late in writing this, and for that I apologize. I've had a lot on my plate between school and work and simply haven't found the time.

 

I'm going to write about two things: 1) My experience with the members of Spartan Group, and 2) My experience with RTSP.

 

I had originally intended to attend the Grand Opening on Saturday, as I get time and a half for work on Sundays. Apparently, the universe did not want this to happen, as multiple conflicts arose on that date. Fortunately, Sunday seemed to be the best day to go.

 

A little back story before I got into the meat of this. I hadn't been to RTSP in about 2 years. I first went when I got into shooting about 2 years ago. Back then, I was impressed with the facility and the faculty was very friendly and helpful, especially to a new shooter like myself. I hadn't visited since because of budgetary constraints. I consequently spend most of my range time at EFGA, but that's not really relevant to this comment.

 

I was able to get to the event at about 10:27am. I got out of my car and I was immediately confused. When I had visited 2 years ago, there was only one door into the facility. There were now three. Fortunately I remembered I could read and found the appropriate door. I remembered that RTSP had expanded as I followed it on the Facebook, but the scale of the expansion didn't quite register until I saw it for myself.

 

I walked in and was in awe. Gun counters were everywhere, the range had doubled in size, there was a VIP lounge, and entire area dedicated to classrooms. This was not the same RTSP I had visited before. This is on a different level. Perhaps adding to that sense of awe was the fact that this was within the boarders of NJ. I've seen pictures of high-end ranges from Texas and the sort. Never thought I would see something like this only an hour from my house. Enough ass kissing, though.

 

I was just barely on time for the first pistol demo. I squeaked in and was invited past the ports for the on range demo. My line of the day was "I'm not good with names". If I had a superpower, it would be name forgetting. Consequently, I don't recall the name of the instructor doing the pistol demo, but to say he was very good would be an understatement. Not just in the level at which he was performing, but the way in which he could connect with and explain concepts to an audience. Approachable yet authoritative. That's what makes a great teacher, and I knew off the bat that this was going to be a good event.

 

The demo eventually evolved into a brief carbine demo, which was done by Marc. All the same attributes that the previous instructor had were also present in Marc: skilled, articulate and an excellent communicator. He clearly knew his way around a carbine platform, which was especially important to me because of the classes offered, I am most interested in the carbine offerings. After the demo, I was pretty much sold. Taking the class was no longer a matter of if, but rather a matter of when.

 

The demo ended soon enough, and I left the range to go explore RTSPs endless cases. I was drawn over to the case with LWRC lowers. As a lefty, I was always interested in LWRC's ambi lowers, and I wanted to see if these were the IC lowers or the "standard" lowers.

 

As I gazed, a gentlemen approached me and asked to see if I was able to see the demo that just occurred. We went back and forth for a while about it, and I learned that this was Nick. The guy hosting the whole damn thing. Although caught off guard by Nick's desire to really meet and greet with everybody attending the event, I was able to mention that it was really nice to see such an active presence on the NJGF. He took immediate interest and asked me what my board name was. I introduced myself and Nick proceeded to give me the VIP treatment.

 

I'm not going to lie. It was a little strange at first. Strange in a good way, though. I've attended board meetups before and gotten to know a lot of you here on a more personal level, but I had never seen the level of enthusiasm about how we spend our time getting carpal tunnel syndrome. It was clear, however, that Nick takes what we do here seriously and really values us as potential customers. If you're the kind of person (like me) who thinks it's important to support the people who support us, then let me assure you that Spartan Group is without a doubt one of the most quality groups of people I've encountered. This is despite their relatively recent presence.

 

As we talked, Nick called over another gentleman wearing a Spartan Group polo. I'm fairly certain that this was Pat. Nick introduced us, I made a bad joke, and we proceeded with the tour. I would encounter Pat later at several of the future demonstrations.

 

I don't even really recall how it happened, but some freebies appeared in my hands by the time Nick and I walked over to the case with the Spartan Group blue Glock in it. Nick assured me he would show me the gun later as we moved pasted the counter and into the VIP lounge. For those who don't know, the VIP lounge is typically a room reserved for a specific tier of members. It has a full kitchen, a large HD television playing CNN, and plenty of seating that looked perfectly suitable for a potential business meeting. In the corner next to Wolf Blitzers head, was this:

 

 

Definitely caught the eye. Nothing really scream "legit" like a large metal sculpture of a company logo. We finished up in the VIP lounge and proceeded to move to the training area of RTSP.

 

Right next to Range 1, there's a door which leads to a flight of stairs. At the bottom of the stairs is a reception desk where classes could be scheduled and browsed. Nick and I made our way past the desk, where he showed me the plethora of classrooms. There's a windowed classroom with tons of ergonomic chairs, a projector, and some whiteboards. All the classrooms were immaculate.

 

I was also shown the virtual simulator. Wow! It's no joke. I know Howard had done a write-up on here before. Even though I only watched, it really is something that needs to be seen to be believed. Howard's write-up is very good and I don't think there's really much more I could add.

 

This is where I met Lou. Nick introduced us and the three of us made our way into the shoot house. This is located in a giant warehouse type space. After remarking about plans to significantly expand the shoot house, Nick returned to the main event and had Lou show me around the inside. I originally though that this was a simunitions based area, but I was informed by Lou that they use a more advanced and reliable type of training munition. The name of it escapes me, but I examined a spent "casing" and I am definitely intrigued. We proceeded to walk through to the exit of the house. It is very realistic and looks like it would be adaptable to a wide variety of scenarios to meet the customer's needs.

 

When Lou and I exited, he offered to show me the custom Spartan Group Glock he had on his hip. Now I had never handled a stippled gun before, but I was impressed. Definitely not a gimmick. Aside from that, the gun was totally tricked out. New barrel, trigger, sights, mag-well, beaver-tail, and paint job. I'm not much of a Glock fan, but this was really nice.

 

Nick rejoined us and we proceeded to the main area for the next demo (which, I had unknowingly just gotten a preview of). This demo is advertised as a Home Defense course. From the title, I assumed it was going to be a meat and potatoes kind of course. I was wrong. This course has two modules: a classroom portion and an at home security evaluation. The classroom portion covers everything from community relations to emergency communications. The outline of the course was lengthy, and each bullet point could be a class in itself. I'd be curious to take this just to see how much I don't know.

 

After the powerpoint, the class proceeded to shoot house, where Lou and Pat gave a run through. One thing I didn't observe when I went through the first time was that there's a catwalk above the house where you can see people within. It basically gives a bird's eye view to the entire house.This has the potential to be really helpful for learning purposes.

 

...aaaaaaand I've spent a lot of time writing this. I'll finish this up when I have more time. If you don't get the vibe already, though, I'm really satisfied with what I saw. If you're on the edge about taking a class, I urge you to take the plunge. You won't regret it.

[Howard 538]

Well if I did not know you I would have thought this write-up was just a professional marketing piece, but I know it is the real deal. The demos as you mentioned were amazing. I was thinking about the carbine course as well but I think it is a little above my pay grade and plan to start on the home defense course. Great write-up, perhaps you can join the marketing dept

[checko 180]

I checked a couple of days ago and a carbine class hadn't been posted. Is there one in the works?

[SgtToadette 59]

I checked a couple of days ago and a carbine class hadn't been posted. Is there one in the works?

 

I would think so. One thing I failed to do at the event was visit the reception desk and look at class dates. Probably one of the more important things I should have done, but it is what it is. I'm sure if you call, they can give you some details.

[Old Glock guy 1,127]

Looks like no classes scheduled until August.  Is that correct?

[Howard 538]

Looks like no classes scheduled until August.  Is that correct?

The Home Invasion course is being given July 12th.  Figure once I take this I can become a criminal, that way I'll be able to carry a gun in NJ