A gun range that prohibits drawing from a holster is like a clothes-on massage. It’s a great experience and all—but not quite great enough. Besides, how can a gun owner possibly train for self-defense without practicing their draw?
In the heat of battle, the first guy with the best shot wins. Unless the guy is made out of paper, of course. Fortunately, all the ranges where I practice have no problem with quick draw McFarago. Or, in this case, Andre.
My Russian mate’s draw may not be perfect—we had to work on keeping his weak hand out of the action during re-holstering—but I wouldn’t bet against him in battle. How’s your draw and how often do you practice?
I do a lot of dry fire draw practice. I make the wife work the timer so I'm used to it in a match. If I can't draw from a holster at the range I start from a low position and execute the last 2/3 of the draw, the push out and a single shot. Drawing and firing a double tap can be broken down into several steps that need to be learned individually and combined. Then they need to be separated again and accelerated gradually until you can make Dave Sevigny like hits on a regular basis. Ok. Well, we can all dream.
This was actually the main reason I started shooting our local USPSA matches. "Dry drawing", i.e. drawing and dry firing is great practice, but drawing a loaded gun (especially under a timer) is something everyone should practice if possible. None of the ranges in my area allow drawing, but almost every class I've taken (such as "Low Light I", and "Defensive Pistol") allows it. If you present the instructor with the fact that you haven't drawn from a holster before, he/she will certainly give you pointers and will allow practice.