So you've signed up for your first course with The Cadre. Here's everything you need to know to show up prepared and get the most out of your training.
Before You Arrive
Review Your Enrollment Documents
When you sign up for a class, you'll receive a confirmation email along with three documents:
- Background Check Verification — All students must complete a background check through SentryLink before attending. The cost is $19.95 and results typically come back same-day. Don't wait until the last minute—get this done as soon as you register.
- Liability and Hold Harmless Agreement — Read it, sign it, and bring it with you. Standard stuff, but we need it before you step on the range.
- Registration and Cancellation Policy — Know the terms. If something comes up and you need to reschedule, this spells out how that works.
Note: If you're signed up for a webinar, these documents don't apply—just show up online and be ready to learn.
Read Your Confirmation Email
We send detailed logistics info after registration—location details, schedule, and any course-specific requirements. Read it. Print it if you need to.
Gear Checklist
Required: Rifle & Optics
- Precision rifle in .223 Rem, 6mm, 6.5 Creedmoor, or .308 Win with a quality barrel
- Optic with a reliable reticle and locking turrets, zeroed and ready
- Two magazines that feed reliably
- Bipod attached and adjusted to your rifle
Additional Support Gear
- Rear bag for stability (squeeze bag, sock, or purpose-built rear bag)
- Secondary support bag for barricade work
- Notebook and pen for data, notes, and coaching points
- Ballistic solver — a Kestrel is great, but a phone app like Applied Ballistics or Hornady 4DOF works just fine. We can help you get set up if you haven't used one before.
- Scope tools — a torque wrench and any tools specific to your optic. Turrets can come loose, and you don't want to be borrowing on range day.
- Tripod — not required, but useful. We have tripods available if you don't have one.
Required: Ammunition
- Minimum 150 rounds of match grade ammunition
- Bring more if you have it—you won't regret having extra
- Hornady or any other quality match ammo works. Bring what shoots well in your rifle.
Personal Gear
- Eye protection
- Ear protection — recommended, especially since not everyone runs a suppressor. If you're taking a class in California, definitely bring ear pro—suppressors aren't exactly an option out there.
- Prep for conditions — check the forecast and dress accordingly. You know your weather better than we do.
Recommended Extras
- Food and snacks — we don't usually provide meals, so plan to bring your own. Stay fueled and hydrated.
- Portable chair or pad for breaks and classroom portions
- Cleaning kit and basic tools for your rifle
- Backup battery/power bank for electronics
What to Expect
What you'll cover depends on which course you signed up for. Here's what each one looks like.
Foundation Course (2 Days)
This is where most people start, whether you're new to precision rifle or rebuilding your fundamentals.
Day 1 — Rifle Setup & Ballistics
- Safety orientation and course expectations
- Rifle fitment and setup: getting your rifle dialed to you
- Marksmanship mechanics: trigger control, breathing, natural point of aim
- 100-yard drills to build consistency
- External ballistics: understanding what happens after the bullet leaves the barrel
- Ballistic solvers: how to use them and what the numbers mean
- Confirming your data at distance
Day 2 — Wind, Unknown Distance & Applied Performance
- Zero confirmation and warm-up block
- Wind reading fundamentals and real-time application
- Known distance engagements with coach feedback
- Unknown distance target engagements
- Culminating event applying everything from both days
You leave with a clear picture of where your shooting stands and what to work on next.
Advanced & Intro to Competition Courses (2 Days)
These courses are for shooters who already have their fundamentals down. We're not re-teaching rifle setup. We're putting you in situations that test what you know and push you into match-style shooting. If you've taken a foundation course or have solid range experience and want to start competing, this is the next step.
In addition to the fundamentals, here's what these courses cover:
Day 1 — Positional Shooting & Field Fundamentals
- Barricade and obstacle position building
- Wobble zone management across multiple shooting positions
- Recoil management from unstable and unconventional positions
- Gear deployment and management in field conditions
- Rapid position transitions under time constraints
- Troubleshooting positional stability issues independently
Day 2 — Wind, Unknown Distance & Scenario Execution
- Reading wind indicators across varying terrain
- Real-time windage and elevation adjustments
- Shooter/spotter team scenarios with corrections and wind calls under stress
- Adapting your process to weather, terrain, and time pressure
- Full shooting process execution: position building through follow-through
- Run-the-stage scenarios with coach feedback
- Performance review and take-home training plan
Intro to NRL Hunter (3 Days)
This course is built around the NRL Hunter competition format. If you're interested in field-style precision rifle competition (shooting from natural terrain, finding targets, managing gear under the clock) this gets you ready for your first match.
Day 1 — Foundations & System Setup
- NRL Hunter format overview and division classifications
- Rifle and cartridge selection for competition
- Rifle setup for comfort, stability, and recoil management
- 100-yard zero confirmation and system evaluation
- Recoil management across multiple positions
- Ballistic solver programming and utilization
Day 2 — Field Skills & Target Acquisition
- Building stable field shooting positions
- Efficient scanning and ranging methods for timed stages
- Systematic observation techniques for target search
- Unknown distance target engagements
- Equipment management and gear organization systems
- Wind reading and environmental considerations
- Coach feedback and position refinement
Day 3 — Match Strategy & Execution
- Analyzing NRL Hunter stages: what to look for before the clock starts
- Course of fire execution under time pressure
- Target acquisition and engagement under the clock
- Match-style stage scenarios with coach feedback
- Gear transitions and stage management
- Performance review and match preparation strategy
- Take-home training plan for continued development
Performance NRL Hunter (3 Days)
This is for shooters who have already competed in NRL Hunter and want to get better. The focus is on identifying what's holding you back and building the systems to fix it.
Day 1 — Performance Assessment & Stage Planning
- Skill assessment and performance baseline
- Marksmanship mechanics evaluation
- NRL Hunter stage planning: balancing speed, risk, and gear deployment
- Rapid target acquisition methods under the clock
- Performance psychology and mental systems for pressure management
- Pre-shot routine execution under stress
Day 2 — Equipment Mastery & Field Execution
- Equipment transitions: pack usage, tripod setup, bino harness access
- Stable positions from props, barricades, and hunting tripod configurations
- Dynamic wind reading across varied hunting terrain
- Real-time firing solution adjustments in field conditions
- Shooter/spotter team operations under pressure
- Stage scenarios with immediate coach feedback
- Unconventional position stability refinement
Day 3 — Mock Competition & Performance Validation
- Pre-match mental preparation and focus routines
- Full-scale NRL Hunter mock competition
- Field-style course of fire execution under time pressure
- Immediate coach feedback between stages
- Performance breakdown and limiter identification
- Personal training strategy for your specific gaps
Mindset
Show Up Ready to Learn
Even if you've been shooting for years, come ready to be a student.
Some of the best students we've had in class were senior Marines who could have coasted on experience, but instead they kept their mouths shut, absorbed everything, and walked away sharper than anyone expected.
We're not here to dump our brains on you. As Phil puts it:
"The hardest thing about being an instructor is holding back. Less is more."
We'd rather you leave with five things you can repeat on your own than fifty things you'll forget by next week. (More on our training philosophy)
Be Honest About Where You Are
There's a difference between what your rifle can do and what you can do with it.
Steve Holland breaks this down in his rifle troubleshooting walkthrough:
"Mechanical accuracy is the limitations of your rifle in its entirety. Practical accuracy is you plus gun equals what."
Your rifle might be capable of half MOA. That doesn't mean you are. Not yet. And that's the whole point of showing up.
Don't come trying to prove something. Come trying to learn something.
Our instructors aren't ballisticians or engineers. They're shooters, same as you. The coaching is straightforward, no BS, and based on what actually works on the range.
The Mental Game Matters
New shooters don't expect this: when the timer beeps, a lot of what you know goes out the window. Wind calls you were nailing in practice suddenly disappear. Your process falls apart.
That's normal. And that's exactly why we train it.
We talk about this a lot in our competition tips episode. One of the biggest things you can do is talk to yourself. Out loud. Verbalize your wind call before you send the round. Walk yourself through your process at each position.
"My wobble has to always be inside the plate. If I'm not inside the plate, I'm getting off the prop and figuring out why."
It sounds weird until you realize the best competitors in the country do it every single stage. The goal isn't to get rid of pressure. It's to build a process that holds up under it.
One Thing at a Time
People always say "slow is smooth, smooth is fast," and there's a reason it sticks. That's how progress actually happens.
To be a good shooter, you need to be methodical. Work on one thing at a time. Get better at one thing at a time. If you take that approach, your processing speed will start to get faster on its own. Don't rush the process. Trust the process.
Same idea Steve uses when diagnosing rifle problems. If your groups open up, don't change three things at once. Change one. Test it. Write down what you find. Don't throw money or guesswork at the problem.
Gear, positions, ammo, technique. Same approach across the board.
Bring a notebook. Write down what worked and what didn't. The stuff you capture during class is what makes your practice at home actually useful.
Misses Are Data
You're going to miss. That's part of the deal.
What matters is figuring out why you missed. Was it the position? The wind call? The trigger press? Something mechanical?
Every miss tells you something. We're here to help you read it and fix it, not just move on to the next shot.
We're All Here for the Same Thing
As Phil says:
"We're just regular people — dads, husbands, significant others, sons, brothers."
There's no elitism here. Everyone on the line, instructors included, is there to get better. Celebrate the hits, help troubleshoot the misses, and leave the place better than you found it.
Logistics Tips
- Arrive early on Day One for check-in and setup
- Bring cash for lunch if the venue doesn't have food service
- Know the drive time to the range—some locations are remote
- Charge your electronics the night before
Questions?
If you're unsure about anything, reach out before the course. We'd rather answer questions now than have you show up unprepared.
See you on the range.
No shortcuts, no gimmicks—just proven techniques and honest feedback.
Precision through Chaos