Student Notes
While I'm not going to password-protect this page, it's mainly of interest to folks who have taken carry classes with me. If you're not one of those, feel free to move along, nothing to see.Florida
The Florida application is here. You can order as many different forms as you'd like, but the ones you need are:Upgrading and Retraining
For my students
I've been getting quite a few calls from students of mine who took the class before I was able to give out Florida affidavits, and understandably want to "upgrade" their training, as well as a few who want to go through the class again, as a refresher, and to see the new subject matter I've added.Not a problem. I think it would be unfair to make you pay the full course fee again, as—among other things—you don't need another copy of the book, which is always included in my course fee. But I can't sign off on you retroactively, for a whole lot of reasons.
So I'll make it simple: you do need to attend another of my classes, but we don't have to do the shooting qualification, and the cost is a fixed $75. It might be worth your time anyway; I've expanded the discussion of "Defense of Others" and "Defense of Dwelling" since the AACFI release of the course, and there's now quite a few handouts that you might find useful.
For other permit holders
For folks who've taken their classes with other instructors, I can't make the same offer, even if the other instructor was AACFI-certified; while the Twin Cities Carry Course covers everything that the standard AACFI course does, it covers more than the standard AACFI course does, particularly the "Defense of Dwelling" material derived largely from the NRA "Personal Protection" course, and my own research and additional writing.If you've already gotten your MN permit, you can attend one of my classes for a flat fee of $125—which includes the book—and do have to take a shooting qualification; I won't sign off on somebody who I haven't trained, for the obvious reasons.
It's your call, but I think it's a good value, and very much so if your previous class was a bit sketchy. There's lots of good instructors out there, but there are a few folks who I hear have been taking some shortcuts, and as anybody who has taken a class with me can tell you, we don't take shortcuts.
This has come up a couple of times, from people who have already taken a class with somebody else and found that either their instructor wasn't certified and that the sheriff wouldn't issue the permit, as well as some folks who wanted to know what the fuss about my classes is, and wanted to see for themselves. Up until now, I've been handling it on a case-by-case basis—I really don't want to get into the business of criticizing other instructors whose courses I haven't sat in on, as I'm sure that some of the criticisms I've heard have been exaggerated.
For other instructors, generally
I've also been getting requests from other instructors who've been wondering what all the fuss over the TCCarry course is about, and want to see for themselves.No secrets; you can sit in on a class as one of my non-students, assuming you've got your permit, and, yes, you'll get the same handouts that everybody else does.
For a very few other instructors, and you know who you are
Please do remember that everything I write is covered by my copyright, and that reproducing it and substituting your name for mine is just plain not okay. Most of the information that goes out from my classes is available elsewhere, if you're willing to do the research and writing, but I spend a lot of time improving what I do, and I wouldn't want you to think that you can just get a copy of, say, the "Things Your Family and Friends Need to Know" handout, xerox it, and use it in your own classes.No, I don't think many folks would do that. Most folks are ethical and law-abiding. But I've seen a copy of one of my handouts where somebody whited out my name and contact information, and I'm more than a little displeased about that.