THE "WHY"

We wanted to figure out a way to demand your skillset to improve to meet the challenge, instead of squeaking through with a run that luckily meets standard. The Trials require an intense amount of focus and shooting skill to conquer. 

This is 3 Trials, 21 rounds, and some physical hardship. It originated as a way of pushing the standard for police officers and military personnel, but it is open to anyone from any walk of life to achieve. Our hope is that this pushes you physically, mentally and technically and gives you something to strive towards.

We are using an elevated heart rate to get out of that relaxed shooting mindset, and also as a significant stressor for the mindset of a "no fail shot". Failing the drill means a challenger will need to buyback in with another set of burpees if they want to try again. This creates more of an on-demand skillset that a shooter needs to build up to, as it is difficult to run these Trials repeatedly on the same day without diminishing returns.  

Get out there, follow the rules and earn your coin!

RULES:

1.  A clean target, timer and the required distance per Trial must be displayed prior to starting the Trial. The shooter must be visible in the video. The target must be clearly shown after the run and all hits must be visible on camera.  Follow the loadout listed below (for slide-lock), the instructions on each Trial and follow the rules of your range.

2.  The timer starts before the 20 jump burpees and shooter starts standing. Each trial requires 20 jump burpees with proper form started on the down movement and counted on the jump/clap where the feet must visibly be clear of the ground. Hips must make contact with the ground and the chest must get as close as the belt/equipment allows while maintaining a straight back. If you are unable to perform the jump due to mobility issues, you can delete the jump and add two more burpees for a total of 22 burpees (from hips on the ground to fully standing).

3. There is no requirement to run The Trials in order, or back to back. For instance, they can be completed in the same day or within the same year, or decade. Upon completion of a Trial you will be added to the Challenger list until all three are conquered. There is no time limit between runs.

4. During ONE, the shooter may move from right to left, or left to right on their discretion to perform a safer and easier reload movement. During TWO, the shooter must only use the designated hand to complete the reload (no assistance from the other hand). 

5.  Line breaks must be definitive, meaning the actual bullet must have clearly passed through a portion of the scoring zone. No grease rings, or close calls. 

6. These are pass or fail drills. Any shot that is missing the scoring area designates the run as a failure. This means that no additional rounds can be fired to make up any missed rounds. 

7.  The Trials can be run with any pistol (minimum of 9mm or greater caliber) and belt setup (concealment, open class, duty rig). There are no other gear requirements. 

8.  There is no requirement to be enrolled in the Shepherd Development course to conquer The Trials. Anyone who is willing and able to conquer The Trials is welcome to partake in the suffering and earn their coin. 

9.  We reserve the right to deny any submission due to an invalid attempt, dishonest play or poor sportsmanship. If your run is valid we will add you to the list of Victors (unidentified on request) and send you the next numbered challenge coin on the list. You may also submit a single Trial and be added to the Successful Challengers list to receive your coin when all Trials are completed.

10. The submission must be in real time with no edits or breaks in the footage. Submissions can be made by email at training@shepherddevelopment.com with a private Youtube link. Alternatively, a submission may be sent through WhatsApp or Signal by reaching out to @shepdev_online on Instagram or email for further contact information. 

 LOADOUT:

ONE

1st magazine with 6 rounds. 2nd magazine with 1 or more rounds.

TWO

1st magazine with 2 rounds. 2nd magazine with 3 rounds. 3rd with 1 or more rounds. 

THREE

1 magazine with 8 or more rounds. 

TARGETS