Low Light Training: Are You Ready To Fight in the Dark?

The gap between real-life situations and training situations is often large. The majority of the shooting we do even in training classes and practice is relatively static shooting at paper targets with little sense of urgency. Such methods can allow us to focus on the fundamentals (stance, grip, target acquisition, trigger press) of defensive shooting as well as practicing mechanics (drawing, reloading, malfunction clearances). Additionally, some classes focus on Tactics to better incorporate the real world into training such as adding movement, scanning, threat determination, and use of cover.

Depending on the resources available, many advanced classes try to incorporate additional methods to increase realism into training scenarios including non-verbal threat identification, more realistic moving targets, and stress-inducing drills. Additional techniques to better simulate real-world encounters include the use of simulators or force-on-force encounters using simunition (simulated ammunition, which allows for non-harmful rounds, often with paint indicators, to be shot from the firearm).

The primary goal of many of these classes is to practice skills to the level where they will be easier to use in a real-world defensive situation. Although exact statistics are hard to find, there is a fair amount of information indicating that violent crimes are more likely to occur during the night in potentially no-light or low-light situations.  Additionally, the majority of civilian uses of force occur on their property or in their home. Burglaries (breaking and entering for the purposes of theft when no one is home) are more common during the day, and home invasions (entering to do harm when the home is occupied) are more likely at night.

Based on what can be found regarding the civilian use of force, there is support for incorporating low-light or no-light training into your plans. Learning what tactics best fit your needs as well as trying out your choices and gear is always a great idea whether it is a $10 flashlight or a $5000 set of night vision googles.

Seek out low-light training as part of your defensive training program.

Although the gap between training and real defensive encounters may be large, we can work toward building skills in training that will transfer to the real world. Transfer of training refers to whether what is learned in classes will translate to actual behaviors in real-world situations. Transfer of training is the goal of any training, whether it is learning to land a plane on a simulator, practicing workplace safety protocols in a classroom, or practicing defensive skills in a training class.

As with all training, successful transfer of training includes learning skills that are likely to survive stress, creating mental maps to better prepare for potential situations, and interacting with equipment and tools to pre-determine any issues. Based on the available data, once fundamentals and mechanics are well established, training for self-defense should include a focus on home defense and low-light tactics.

However, focusing on home defense and low-light tactics is rarer than it should be. Low-light and home defense classes are often not as popular as classes focused on direct self-defense in open situations.

Within the training I direct at Indy Arms Company in Indianapolis, the breakdown of classes paints a vivid picture. A full rundown of class yearly averages is presented in the table below, but it is clear that the vast majority of our students are focused on skills related to direct confrontations with potential threats. It is also worth noting that Indiana has no mandatory educational component to civilian carry, so none of our offerings are required of gun owners as is the case in some U.S. States. Though we still offer a low-light course it is usually taken much later in the sequence than required. The only prerequisite is our Basic Defensive Handgun course, but most students who take this class have already completed Tactical Handgun III before they take the low light class. Less than 5% of those students that could take a low light class in our sequence ever do.

Notice in the table that there are no home defense classes listed. We previously had two, a four-hour home defense class focusing on using cover and low-light shooting and a six-hour USCCA Home Defense class that had a similar focus. Neither class was ever filled, and after dropping both to only twice a year, we finally removed them from our regular offerings.

Yearly number of classes and total yearly students by class.

Although this is an example from a smaller training academy, a look at the offerings of many other successful firearms training facilities paints a very similar picture with lots of generalized handgun classes and few low-light or home defense classes. I would argue that based on the data, low-light classes should be far more popular. Fortunately, such classes are still being offered and should be sought out as a part of any defensive training program.

Lessons Learned from Low Light Classes

I have been taking and teaching low-light and no-light classes for over a decade covering everything from basic flashlight tactics in no-light situations, night sights in low-light situations, and multi-day classes focused on using night vision. Having taught Indy Arms’ Low Light Encounters, Skill Builders focused on low light shooting, and covering no light shooting in Tactical Handgun III, I have developed a list of lessons learned from students. The first lesson learned is few people have seriously evaluated their tools for lower-light encounters. Every student thrown into such situations leaves with a strong appreciation for the need for night sights if they do not already have them. Few students are happy with their chosen flashlight after trying to use it in simulated defensive situations. Issues include awkwardly placed controls, incompatibility with the technique they gravitate towards for pairing a light with a handgun during the class, too many optional settings, and unhappiness with the brightness.

There is the rare student who is happy with his gear and adapts to it well within the class, but almost without exception, they will admit that they had taken similar classes before and had worked out these issues prior to the class. Such classes often will also illustrate the differences between various light types such as high-lumen lights and their impact on your low-light vision, and red and green lights. Towards the end of these classes, we often will work on some mechanics with dry guns in the dark, and again skills that were thought to be well trained are often exposed to be light/sight reliant.

The largest advantage to taking a low-light class is to explore the options and challenges in a non-threatening training environment. Find out what techniques work for you from various ways to incorporate a separate flashlight, to using a rail-mounted light, to considering night vision. How does your gear work when the lights go out? How much do your skills degrade in the dark? These questions are best asked and answered in a training class than under the stress of a real-world defensive encounter. Don’t be one of the multitudes that skip such classes in preference of potentially more glamorous ‘tactical’ classes.

Also, don’t put off such training until much later in your defensive training. Take at least one low light class as soon as you are able to confidently and safely handle your firearm. Put your gear, skills, and assumption to the test. Find out what works and what needs worked on or replaced as soon as possible. Another common lesson learned from my low light classes is a very common refrain of students at the end of the class: “Why did I wait so long to take this class?”