Range Work with Intent
I don’t like the idea of going to the range just to turn money into noise. This library is a curated collection of benchmarks and assessments that help make the most of your practice time. For your best chance of success, pick one of the standard Everyday Marksman courses of fire and assess where you’re at. From there, pick two or three drills appropriate to improvement, and relentlessly pursue them in practice for three to six months. Re-assess and then come back here again to pick something new.
If you try to chase two rabbits at the same time, you'll catch neither.
Standard Courses of Fire
All Firearms Drills
This 50-round drill, designed by Delta veteran Patrick McNamara, bridges the gap between traditional bullseye shooting and modern tactical mechanics. Inside, we break down the five stages of fire, establish performance standards, and share a "target hack" using the DOT-4 to save you money on the range without sacrificing difficulty.
The 10-10-10 is a simple but demanding pistol drill popularized by Ken Hackathorn: fire 10 shots on an NRA B-8 at 10 yards in 10 seconds. It’s an intermediate test of grip, sight management, and recoil control—pushing you to hold real accuracy at a sustainable cadence, not just shoot fast.
The classic 700 Aggregate, “The Humbler,” is a 70‑round pistol test on B8 targets at 25 yards that mixes slow, timed, and rapid fire across multiple positions and draws. Less discussed is Larry Vickers’ Modified Humbler, a version for 15 yards with simpler scoring.
Inspired by a long-running challenge on a 1911 enthusiast forum, this drill balances speed and accuracy in a repeatable format. Run it with either a handgun or a long gun, and I've provided variations for both- along with a simple method for practicing and training for success. So let's get into the Pair of Queens drill.
This drill stems from the work of John Simpson, a sniper instructor and author I've interviewed several times. The goal is using a consistent sized target, 5 shots, and decreasing amounts of time. Let's dig in.
This is the first of several "official" drills here at The Everyday Marksman. This one is about focusing on speed while maintaining a minimum accuracy standard at any distance with any weapon platform.