What a find! I'm new to the area and this has been a great place to socialize, work out, and learn…read moreimportant skills. As a woman I always feel safe and respected here but also challenged to improve. A+ teachers and fellow students.

Started this month & I'm really enjoying it! There's several times and classes to join & learn…read morefrom. Krav teaches you self defense which is great to know and the kickboxing conditioning provides a great workout if you need a quick 30min ! The instructors are knowledgeable and you learn something new in every class .

I just completed the Florida Concealed Carry Masterclass with James Dowler…read more James is a seasoned professional trainer, his live feed back after each set helped me close a 43 year gap in my pistol handling and shotting skills. By the final set I was able to put 25 of 30 shots in the strike zone. This was the best training money I've ever spent. I highly recommend any and all training class James provides.

We thoroughly enjoyed the course we took with Jim. It had been quite a while since my wife and I…read morehad gone shooting so I'm so glad we went with his company instead of a big classroom full of people at a local gun range. It ended up being just my wife and I so we had his full attention and were able to receive hands on training throughout the day and it was a great refresher course. As a flight instructor, I've taken a lot of training through the years and Jim was excellent at what he does so I highly recommend you spend a few bucks more for his training course as it is well worth it!

This article sums up most of the survival course:…read morehttps://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/travel/a-wilderness-survival-course-leaves-a-novice-camper-hungry-cold-and-triumphant/2016/01/21/ed15bd4e-ba40-11e5-829c-26ffb874a18d_story.html I'm not sure if the writer did the Safe Return course or the Bare Bones course, but I have insight into Bare Bones. No backpacks. No tents. No food or water. It was all bare essentials just as the name states, as we learned what to do in each situation to get what we need for basic survival. No backpacks. We had to learn how to carry all of our items that we were allowed to take with us, in a hands-free way, every single time. Tying and untying, loading and unloading. This really is a very basic survival skill that a lot of people don't think about. Hands-free is definitely the way to be, in case you need to make any quick decisions about anything. Use your hands for anything, and/or simply pull a cord on your loaded up essential items and the pack falls off your back for body use/leverage. No tents. We went when temperatures were below 50 degrees (it was actually 35-40 both of our nights!) so a sleeping bag was allowed. Upon arrival, we were also given one tarp to use. Both were so handy. We used the tarp as a roof, and then piled up ground scrapings for a mattress-type bedding, and laid the sleeping bags on top (I do have to say, in that 35 degree weather, I am SO very happy that me (female) and my BFF (male) were able to zip our bags together for added heat. Each evening we had to setup. Each morning we had to break everything down. It is quite the chore and takes a considerable amount of time. I did think that we would be building our own shelters, completely, out of items we could find laying around... and in fact a few of the students did that, somewhat, the second night. But again given the cold and my teammate just getting over a week-long illness, we decided not to. At our next survival training, and there will be another either Byron's again or another out West, we will be building our shelter! No food, no water. We came with 2 bottles of water filled for use. But out and about and working on all kinds of things, all day long, 2 bottles isn't very much justice for your body. Upon arrival, we are given minimal amounts of food (ramen, clif bars, and an orange) and beverage (instant coffee and tea). While all of this came in handy, I was a bit disappointed that we were being given anything at all. If you read the description of the course, I literally thought that the group would kill the rabbit (yes, we killed and ate a rabbit, sorry Mr Bunny!!) on the first day and that have to determine how to manage it between us through the whole weekend. Lucky for us, we had the additional items. But I still stopped at McDonald's on my way out of the course for some meat and carbs. Anyway, we also learned to filter our water. Everything else - positive mental attitude, tips and tricks, learning from Byron, and learning from each other - all excellent essential skills for survival. Byron has a laid-back, knowledgeable approach to teaching and I recommend him and his courses to everyone interested :)

I took the Sea School online course and was extremely dissatisfied with the experience: The quality…read morewas very poor; they sent me outdated forms (I had to complete the newer version which was a lot of work to get notaries, physician to redo physical, etc.); they did not respond to questions during the course; and they issued a certificate that has "Online" in bold across the top, in addition to the space for location, indicating that the certification is inferior. I tried to contact Cathy Bancroft, COO, to discuss the reason the certification was issued the way it was, but she did not return my call or respond to my email. What makes this experience so frustrating that I am taking the time to write this review is that they charged a lot of money, it took a lot of work to get through the course, and they took no ownership and responsibility when I spoke with them. I tried very hard to communicate with Ms. Bancroft so that we could resolve the accumulation of service issues ami Fortunately, I was able to use other online resources, primarily YouTube videos, to master the material and passed all sections on the first try. Had I relied on what Sea School provided, I would not have been so fortunate. (I feel like I should send their competitor money because their videos got me through the plotting section.) My recommendation is to stay away from Sea School if there are other options available.

If you work in the cruise ship industry aboard vessels, sooner or later you will need to take the…read moreSTCW series of classes for your Coast Guard certification if you intend to work aboard vessels traveling internationally. A lot of places are now requiring it for domestic vessels as well. I've gotten along without needing the training for the last 2 years, but I plan on applying to international cruise lines so I needed this under my belt. Sea School charges $725 for the 4 required STCW classes and it is a 5 day adventure in the classroom 9-6. Their fee is less than a lot of the other places and they are also convenient if you live on the West Coast of Florida. I was able to sign up at the last minute and start right away. They seem to offer the classes almost weekly. I liked some of the added office support, such as Captain Bob being available to help with the MMC form and even provide the necessary Notary stamp (for free!). I also asked the office staff if they could scan in my certificates and email me a copy so that it would be easier for me to provide proof of completion as an email attachment. They were very helpful in that regard. You as the student need to ask for these things and also ask them to print out the MMC application for you if you don't already have it-- get it notarized while you are there and save yourself the additional hassle and expense of doing it later. Some of the training will take place off site. There is a pool they use to do the survival suit training and there is a fire fighting facility at St. Petersburg College you will be going to for that part of the training. I will say out of all the classes, the work on the fire-fighting field was the most intense. In order to pass, you have to get all the fire fighting gear on in an under 5 minute time limit. This facility has several free standing buildings that are specifically designed to have controlled fires in so you practice with real fire, real hoses, real oxygen tanks, etc. Even knowing it was all a drill, I felt myself panic a bit when I had to crawl into a burning building with 60 pounds of gear on! Mastering my own sense of panic was probably the most valuable thing I learned that day. Put into context, that is extremely valuable if you are charged with helping passengers aboard a vessel in a real life emergency. Keeping your wits about you and keeping a lid on your own freak out factor so you can help others who are in full freak out mode is essential. The fire crew helping us were both real firemen and also instructors at the facility. They were patient, professional and supportive. It took me more than a few tries to get all the gear on under the time limit and they helped me and worked with me until I mastered it. A lot of the classroom material was either going through a binder or watching videos. The instructor for my class was a former Captain, so he had stories to tell if you asked. All in all, it was a good place to take my courses and I would use them again when and if I need additional training.

I took the 5 week COBRA Academy and I highly recommend it. It teaches you awareness and practical,…read moreyet very effective, self-defense​ techniques for real-life situations. The instructors are the best - they explain well the details of each technique and how and why to use them. I look forward to taking more COBRA classes in the near future.

From the owner: Skills learned in the C.O.B.R.A.™ self-defense program are to be used in real life situations. This…read moreis not a sport or a point match. In real life you do not get to pick your bad guy. He/she will almost always pick the time, place and/or method of attack. You will never get this luxury. We train our students with this in mind. This is why C.O.B.R.A.™ was developed to be extremely effective in real life. In your 10 Week Academy you will develop the ultimate mindset for real self defense and the skills you need to defend against any situation. Why C.O.B.R.A.™ Is So Effective The Combat Objective Battle Ready Applications or C.O.B.R.A.™ self-defense program is designed to be highly effective in real world situations where your survival is on the line. C.O.B.R.A.™ was created from experience in law enforcement, close quarter combat techniques and martial arts with further extensive study on the psychology of criminal intent and realistic self defense.

I can't cancel my membership. Noone responds to my texts or calls. Most aggravating. And is wasting…read moremy time. This should not be so hard.

I can't say enough about Camp Gladiator and especially Lauren! She has been a life changer for me…read more I've tried SO many workout programs (I.e. boot camps, beach body) and I have never found one I enjoyed until now! Her workouts are different each time, challenging yet fun, and take you out of your comfort zone without making you feel like you can't do something! Lauren is not only your trainer, she's also your therapist, mentor and accountability coach! Example of her amazingness: on one of her late night classes I was the only person to show up and I told her I would leave and let her have an early night. She said no way....and gave me a kick ass one on one workout in 40min!

Short review: Karen is a phenomenal coach! She got me from barely swimming to completing an Olympic…read moredistance swim (0.93 miles) in the Lake Tahoe Triathlon in 8 short weeks. It helped that she is a Triathlete herself and gave vital tips on improving form to competition tips. Long review: I've done several Sprint Triathlons in the past and really wanted to take it to the next level but my swimming skills consisted of poor breast stroke and dog paddling. I started taking lessons at Jean Brink pool in Pacifica but classes were taught by inexperienced teenagers. I've noticed Karen giving lessons at the pool and approached her (best decision ever). Within a week I was taking private 30 minutes lessons with her and it made the world of difference. By the end of the 8 weeks, my stroke count for 25 yards went from 26 strokes to 18. My endurance and speed improve dramatically as well. Karen would video tape you swimming and break down your stoke, kick, pace, breathing and ends each lesson with drills to practice, practice, practice. Triathlons will be a large part of my life and I look forward to continued sessions with Karen.

This is a long review, so here's the TL;DR to save you some time: I suggest that you never hand…read moreover money to an instructor before the lesson takes place. If you are considering taking lessons with her, I would strongly advise against forking over a lot of money at once. ------ I set up my first swim lesson with Karen for this past Sunday morning. I woke up that morning feeling unwell, and began feeling increasingly worse as the morning progressed. However, by then, Karen was already almost to my home in the East Bay. I thought I'd wait for her to come and offer her some compensation for her travel time. I apologized for having to cancel and asked her how much she thought was fair as compensation. She said she just wanted the full lesson fee ($65) to apply to the 7-lesson package ($390) that I had intended to buy. I gave her the $65 and we talked about rescheduling for the following Tuesday. However, when I sent her an email asking about our Tuesday lesson, she responded saying that she will no longer be able to be my swim coach due to the cancellation on Sunday. I then sent her an email apologizing again for the incident, and assured her that it would not happen again. She considered giving me lessons in her pool in Pacifica. However, I do not drive, so that was out of the question. She had known that I lived in the East Bay before agreeing to teach me, and she was fully aware of the distance. She told me that since her policy states that cancellations require a 24-hour notice, she will be keeping the $65 I had given her. If that was made clear to me initially, I would have understood, but it was not. Her cancellation policy on her website (as of 06/23/2015) does not state that the client must pay the full lesson fee in the event of a cancellation. Additionally, she had explicitly told me that the $65 was to be applied to the 7-lesson package. It is her business and she is free to make whatever policy she thinks is reasonable, but she has to make that policy clear to the client. Not only did she not make it clear, but she had explicitly told me something else. She should not tell clients one thing (i.e. "I will apply this money toward your lesson package") when she means another (i.e. "I am taking this money and I do not intend to teach you any longer").

Hands down the absolute best firearms training in Florida! Originally went to them for concealed…read moreweapons class and had so much fun that I continued to take some of their more advanced tactical training! It's always so much fun going out there and the instructors are amazing!

Had a great time with Jeremy, Brain, Paul and the Fight crew at Tactical pistol training. Having a…read morebackground in military and DoD operations the tactics and rules of engagement were greatly different and I believe they did a great job giving both myself and my fellow group the tools essential to identifying and neutralizing a threat in several ways with minimal risk to the public. I highly recommend the training to anyone who owns or plans on owning a firearm, or if you're like me and just want to get more modern and practical training. I look forward to coming back and bringing my wife and daughter for the Defensive Pistol Training. Brandon C.