The search for an instructor-level course is a task which can be daunting in itself; finding a company that offers quality instruction at a very reasonable price is challenging, especially when you take into account the amount of time and money required for these trainings. The bottom line is this: your hard-earned dime and precious time are valuable. This is where P2 Concepts comes into light. P2 Concepts is an experienced and professional provider of specialized weapons and tactics training services to Law Enforcement agencies across the United States. Their training programs are principle-based and focus on proven and practical concepts for real world situations. P2 Concepts prides themselves in offering quality training for Law Enforcement Professionals and is driven by the sole fact of passing along information, tactics and techniques to better train our Police Officers and Military.
P2 Concepts is founded by Robbie Allmon (Lead Instructor). His professional experience consists of serving honorably in the United States Marine Corps where he later transitioned over into Law Enforcement. Rob has served over 12 years as a Law Enforcement Officer and maintains an Advanced Peace Officer’s License in the State of Texas. While in Law Enforcement, Rob served as the Team Leader of the Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) unit, a member of a Special Operations and Response Team (SORT), Firearms Instructor, TCOLE Instructor, and Field Training Officer (FTO) among many others. He was later assigned as a Training Coordinator for a private training facility where he developed curriculum. In 2015, Rob launched P2 Concepts, LLC where he continues to provide training for law enforcement and military.
I recently attended the Reality Based Training (RBT) Force on Force Instructor Course by P2 Concepts in Brownsville TX, hosted by the Brownsville Police Department. The course itself consisted of three solid days of instruction with teach backs, demonstrations, drills and scenarios which each student in attendance was responsible for conducing.
The first day started off in classroom-like fashion. Robbie introduced himself and his extensive background, managing to keep it short and sweet. He explained the need for Reality Based Training combined with Non-Lethal Training Ammunition (NLTA) and Non-Lethal Weapons such as UTM Handguns and Man Marker rounds. As instructors, when teaching material—be it, tactics, principles or techniques, we must ask ourselves a few questions: Is it simple? Can it be duplicated under stress? Is it combat proven and is it truly needed (Hicks Law is a thing)? All simple yet effective questions. The main objective of RBT is to validate what we teach as instructors as well as to evaluate our students’ skill level and weaknesses. To supplement this, we must also identify problem areas and provide corrective action to better enhance our students’ performance and mindset.
The day continued with an abundant amount of information of various types of NLTA equipment, developing an effective training model to enhance and isolate skills, and the simple fact that all training must be objective based…working with the goal in mind. Robbie expects students to be active listeners; this is in the form of note-taking, so come prepared and do not expect anything to be handed to you. Robbie provided his students with a simple yet effective step-by-step process of building a RBT Force on Force program and the details that pertain to such program. He then had students conduct an impromptu teaching topic (which students could choose for themselves). The format which was provided by Robbie was effective and simple for students to incorporate into their teaching topics. Robbie is a proponent of helping instructors become knowledgeable teachers who are also comfortable in their practice; this was evident in the days to come. The only way to become better at teaching is by teaching. Regular practice and exposure to the subject(s) being taught is key and will ensure success in the field.
The following day, we started off at an undisclosed location to begin Force on Force drills. This was an opportunity to see how Robbie implements his teaching methods into his training programs. He explained the various zones in the area that were safe and unsafe; something that was discussed in class day one. The day continued with a safety brief along with decontamination of students’ weapons and the area prior to beginning training. Safety was stressed for the remainder of the two days.
Robbie started the day by introducing students to a simple “Action vs Reaction” drill. This was done for several reasons: 1) to allow students to acclimate to the gear and UTM Man Marker rounds 2) to show students how a simple drill can cover multiple objectives without wasting tons of ammunition (I used 50 rounds of UTM for one full day surprisingly) and 3) to show any inefficiencies in techniques or gear. So, ponder this for a second. If we at an instructor-level course are having problems in certain areas, what do you think our fellow officers are dealing with? Their situation might be the same if not worse. Robbie continued the afternoon, implementing the format he provided students with the day before— in a crawl, walk, and run fashion, covering multiple drills before diving into scenarios then “frag” scenarios. After drills and scenarios, he explained the importance of debriefs and role players in the courses. Role players can either make or break the training provided.
Robbie explained that good training is mentally, physically and emotionally draining. We want students thinking and evaluating what they have been taught. In the end, you are either thinking and evolving, or you can stay stagnant and die.
The final day consisted solely of teach backs; each student was responsible for creating one within their team. This consisted of two drills and three scenarios along with the various roles that were required to run a successful and safe RBT Force on Force program. Students were assigned to a two-man group for their topics. Each group proceeded to teach their topics and were evaluated on the delivery of their teaching, communication, drills and scenarios. Various topics were covered, such as: two-man entry, target discrimination, traffic stops, and felony vehicle stop procedures (to give you an example). Students evaluated each other, voiced their pros and cons and received input from Robbie following the presentation. All groups provided solid instructions and demonstrated subject matter expertise in the topic of their choosing.
The day ended with Robbie congratulating students on the successful completion of the course along with certificates for their hard work. All said and done, I can’t recommend P2 Concepts enough for any serious instructor wishing to become a better teacher and provider of quality training for their departments. You won’t regret training with Robbie. Till the next instructor class with P2 Concepts.
