Effective Training Programs by Competent Trainers

The training delivered by Mr. Merriman was of the highest standard throughout. He has an absolute wealth of experience borne of a lifetime of professional and active operational experience of sign and tracking. He is an articulate and engaging character with a talent for understanding the level at which to pitch to his audience. This has been particularly valuable to us as he has made the training challenging for the junior soldiers but also understandable and enjoyable resulting in a deeper level of absorption than would otherwise have been the case. Mr. Merriman went to great lengths to ensure that the training was focused right in on the task we are fulfilling in Afghanistan with all the current in theatre indicators and IED intelligence included. I have no hesitation in strongly recommending his services to any organization, military or civilian looking to enhance their sign, tracking or general situational awareness in any theatre or country of operations.

I have just attended both the Ground Sign Awareness Instructors Course, and the Combat Tracking Instructors Course conducted by Randy Merriman...The courses were very well planned, prepared and executed. The instructors are all very proficient in their areas of expertise, and all hold a very large amount experience.…This ensured a fully updated knowledge on the subjects taught. The lessons were all delivered in a relaxed atmosphere, with plenty of room for student/instructor discussions…a very thorough training package, which included all types of combat tracking…Quality control was carried out throughout the courses…courses were among the best courses I have ever attended in my 19 year career. The subjects are not only very interesting, both also extremely relevant to the operations that both the Danish Army and most other armies participates in today…I thoroughly recommend Randy Merriman… to any organization who aim at introducing Combat Tracking and Ground Sign Awareness into their training package, the quality of training …is in my opinion of the absolute highest of standards.

I am currently serving as Commanding Officer of the Marine Training Command, Royal Netherlands Marine Corps. Under my command I have the Centre Of Competence Mountain, Arctic and Jungle Operations. This COC is also responsible "for area competence” of Military Tracking:- As we are responsible for developing doctrine, procedures, issuing rules and harmonize training and instructions for the Netherlands Defense Force. For implementing Combat Tracking we have participated in different basic courses around the world. After observing a Pursuit Tracking Course conducted by Randy Merriman…we decided to contract a Combat Tracker Standard Military Course (CTSMC) in the Netherlands (with him), to prepare our marines for deployment in Afghanistan. The students of the CTSMC declared it was a very good course. They were enthusiastic because of the professionalism and knowledge of the instructor. The instructor was able to transform the subject matter of the course into real world combat incidents and situations. Especially the students appreciated the lED related subjects, because IEDs are the major threats in our operation area. The Royal Netherlands Marine Corps will definitely utilize the services again and I can proudly confirm that we have booked a second CTSMC later this year…Because of (his) professionalism, knowledge and efficiency our marines are well prepared for operations.

The Danish Defense received Ground Sign Awareness (GSA ) training….the Danish Defense sought the best training… on the market to encounter this threat…The delivered course by Randy Merriman was…tailored to meet Denmark’s demands. The delivered course met Denmark’s expectations and requirements…The students had different backgrounds such as Navy divers, SF, Air Force dog handlers and Army, all arms specialists. They all learned a lot during the course. At an incredible pace students improved their skills. The diversity of the instructors made all classes interesting and it assured that no question was left unanswered. The instructors are very professional and their skills impeccable…The students left the course with a higher degree of situational awareness and confidence in spotting ground signs. The training is without a doubt helping us to save lives in Afghanistan and assisting us to avoid IEDs. An additional advantage … is that they are able to custom fit the courses to our needs in form of content, timings etc. so that the training fits our specific needs. This has all been arranged in a smooth, précis and professional matter. The course was spot on…Denmark can therefore strongly recommend their expertise and skills in the field of Ground Sign Awareness.

I would highly recommend James "Randy" Merriman and his pursuit Tracking Class. Randy provides exceptional training and is a true subject matter expert in this field. His training not only provided students with a new set of tracking/pursuit skills but also greatly improved their sense of perception. Any student will leave his class with a new or improved skill set that will improve officer safety as well as efficiency. We have asked Randy to bring his course to the District of New Mexico twice over the last two years to train Tactical Tracking and Pursuit Operations. The training and knowledge we received have been invaluable to our fugitive operations. One week after we finished the first course, we were called out on a tracking mission where we integrated with two different agencies into a rural setting to look for an armed and dangerous felon. The training Randy provided allowed us to immediately deploy with confidence and act as an effective tracking team. Not only have we used these skills on major operations but our deputies and task force officers have taken their knowledge and used it in their daily missions to investigate crime scenes, determine if suspects fled an area before law enforcement arrived, protect vital facilities and assets, and track fleeing fugitives through rural or urban settings with great success. We would definitely utilize (his) services again. The instructors were professional, knowledgeable, efficient, and a pleasure to work with. I highly recommend (this course) for anyone looking to receive training in tracking or pursuit operations.

Having completed a range of courses with Randy and his team, I can say hand on heart that the skills and knowledge they have passed onto me have enhanced my abilities in the special operations arena. I wish that I had been given this knowledge as a junior trooper as I can see without doubt how it would have benefited me on a number of operations I have taken part in prior to this training. I have completed all of his tracking courses and I am now qualified instructor in this field which also incorporates the counter IED training which I have found invaluable. These tracking courses were conducted in a number of different environments including the jungle (triple canopy)...I would recommend Randy and his team to anyone; they are friendly, approachable, flexible and very professional and will construct a course to suit the requirements of the unit or individual.

Excellent!!!

Myself and several colleagues received instruction in a Tracking Pursuit Course from Randy Merriman…The course was a custom designed course that was held on Pope Air Force Base in North Carolina, USA. …First, I would like to say that it was a pleasure to work with Randy... top notch instructors... very knowledgeable in the course material and flexible with our unique requirements. All the students felt this training was excellent and beneficial. We all felt that the information covered and the skills taught were very relevant to our current fight overseas. We especially appreciated the professionalism and knowledge of the instructors. They were able to tie in the subject matter of the course into real world combat incidents and situations. The IED exercise especially was quite valuable and more time spent on this would be even better...The instructors were professional, knowledgeable, efficient, and a pleasure to work with.

I am currently serving as the OC of Training Team Brunei, the UK Forces Jungle Warfare and Military Tracking School based in Brunei SE Asia…after completing the Covert Operations Course (COC)…I would firstly like to thank the Training Director, Mr James (“Randy”) Merriman, the instructors and staff…for their exceptional training. In particular Mr Merriman’s depth of knowledge, experience and training methodology must be commended and is of the highest standard…I can assure you that these lessons will be incorporated into our training here in Brunei and the UK and will hopefully mean that many more US and British troops will continue to successfully wage the war on terrorism…will be recommended to other units within the British military and I hope that my colleagues and I will be able to return soon and take part in his Survival/Search and Rescue package. Please pass on my thanks to all the instructors…and may they continue the good work into the future.

Yours Aye

I am currently serving as the Commanding Officer, Mobile Training Company, Advanced Infantry Training Battalion, School of Infantry East. Mobile Training Company is responsible for imbedding emerging Marine Corps concepts across the training continuum and developing them into Marine Corps doctrine. One of the programs under my responsibility is the Combat Hunter Program. Combat Hunter involves infusing an intuitive and adaptive nature in Marines by creating increased situational awareness.  It encompasses the skills of enhanced observation, combat profiling, and combat tracking.  The skills taught in this program have far reaching implications across the Department of Defense in the creation of junior service members who “think on their feet” and thus are better prepared for the rigors of combat. In building this program, I have had the absolute pleasure of working with Randy Merriman.  He is an articulate, dedicated professional and his vision of the second and third order affects of the services he provides the student populations we reach, and how he shapes that instruction to achieve the ultimate goal vice the short term goal of teaching tracking, are nothing short of exemplary.   Randy is truly a “team player” and from day one sought to build relationships and mold his instruction into broader Marine Corps concepts. In many cases this required that Randy conduct outside research and travel.  I have relied on Randy on several occassions to brief senators, congressmen, and general officers alike.  In this regard he has my utmost trust and confidence.I would most certainly seek to have Randy as a part of my staff in the future, regardless of the endeavor, due to his ability to adapt, his work ethic, and his superior professionalism.  His service to my Company has been invaluable.

I felt the entire course was excellent! I definitely walked away with a ton more knowledge than I previously had…Overall it was a great course, very interesting, and a lot of fun. The instructor staff is top notch.

I can’t stress enough how valuable this class is for any and every officer on the street in the US today. I would highly recommend this class become a mandatory block of training for anyone who wears a badge. Putting you in the shoes of those whose only purpose is to cause fear and destroy the thread of our way of life, is the only way to prepare ourselves for the battles that we WILL be facing here in the US.

The group of instructors that Randy has gathered are by far the most passionate and knowledgeable group of individuals I have had the pleasure to study under. Each is a subject matter expert in their field and more than willing to pass on their experiences and knowledge to make each of us more aware and ready to evaluate our surroundings.

The planning and coordination that went in to the instruction from day one to the final evolution, clearly shows the amount of dedication…put into the training.

First Class all the way. I applaud you and thank you all!
If I can ever be of assistance, please call.

Having gone through course last year, I had a baseline of what to expect and looked forward to building on that knowledge. The instruction delivered did just that and added new skills I had been lacking. I was very happy with the environmental awareness and human kinesics portion as it was training I had never received in the past. I plan to further educate myself on kinesics as this is something I view as valuable to my job. I was very impressed with all 4 instructors on this course. DSI did a great job at assembling a team with a wealth of knowledge from all fields…I will recommend we continue to use DSI, not just on this course but as part of other courses we run as applicable. Thanks a lot for all your hard work this week. I look forward to working with you guys again…

Overall an excellent course. From day 1 the professional standard was set within the instructor introduction. The variance in instructor background and operational experience directly contributed to the well roundness of the content. Law Enforcement experience caused me to look at things from a different perspective, leading to a more “outside the box” thought process. The human behavior lessons were very interesting and will prove to be paramount to our future operations. Humans are similar around the world. Picking up on that and establishing a baseline will keep our guys aware thus minimizing casualties. Having done lots of KIM’s games in the past, being exposed to new ones was very beneficial. Thank you.

This training was everything I hoped it would be. I have leaned new ways to recognize and interpret…body reactions that will directly impact my day to day activities…

Overall class was excellent. Huge improvement on how I will work and observe/identify people, being aware of the unknown and how to identify it.

To start off with, the course was great! It has opened my eyes to how easy, and how hard it is to ambush someone. These are things that we normally don’t get to train in at all in law enforcement. I have learned to keep my head on a swivel and also pay more attention to the people and things around me, both on and off work. “In all my years of law enforcement, this is absolutely the best training I have ever received”.

Training was awesome! I learned a lot and the hands-on observation (exercises) were helpful. I have a better view on officer safety…

Very interesting course. I do a fair amount of sniper overwatch where this is directly beneficial. The body language and personality indicator drills…were extremely enjoyable. The role players…totally snowed me. Great stuff. Took more away from this course than expected, thought it was going to be basic stuff, very happy that it wasn’t. Would recommend this to others.

I really enjoyed this course. It was a pleasant surprise to what I was expecting. I feel that all military members can benefit from this type of information. Now that we have had an exposure to this and have guidance on how to instruct others, hopefully we can spread this information out to our comrads…Randy is very organized and I feel the information was presented in a very professional sequential manner. The presentations were all incredibly informational and interesting…Also, the variety of different ground surfaces that we were able to utilize in the field were perfect along with the houses we were able to use for drills. The sites were well planned and very effective.

I found this course to be a good eye opener. It made me look at things, I feel I should already be looking at. I liked the wide range of experience the staff had in these backgrounds…I would like to see us have a staff trained to bring this info back to a larger group. I am personally happy I did this course…

The course was a really good course. I learned about being aware of my surroundings, IED’s, Tracking and practical’s on Thursday and Friday were good. The course definitely made me think and I’ll be more aware. I think every troop should go through this course and they would be a better troop. Good course

ALERT training was very informative and I believe will be beneficial in both my personal and professional life. Complacence is a huge problem amongst police officers…and I believe this course taught the steps to take to mitigate complacency.

Great knowledge and experience, with examples, behind concepts put forward – Tracking, Human Behavior, Sign awareness. Structure was good. Minimal class time and days broken up between indoor and outdoor. The observation stands and lanes were superior – small objects in a small spectrum vs larger items in a lane format. Liked the idea of using students to emplace threats and then the other students trying to discover them using Ground Sign Awareness.

The course was very valuable. It sharpened my awareness and taught me to pay attention to my surroundings…I would definitely recommend this course for other law enforcement agencies.

I thought that the DSI course was set up well. It taught me how non observant I am to the surroundings that I am in. I learned a lot and I will be better prepared for my Afghan deployment this November. I think this class should be mandatory for all EOD personnel…

Good course. It was good to see instructors from different backgrounds weigh in on the topics covered during the course. Very knowledgeable instructors. They provided lessons and feedback in their areas of expertise. Great course overall.

This Course served as an eye opener. I was able to identify certain weaknesses and will now be able to correct them. I feel better able to notice and identify indicators and cues in both Human Behavior and IED detection.

I learned a lot about being more aware of things around my area. I will be able to take the information back to my unit and help other team members learn some of the things…I would recommend this course to other EOD techs and commands.

An important aspect of this course was the extremely unique instruction pertaining to human behavior…and the “anomaly walks” that forces the student to observe the smaller details that may or may not involve a threat. The class will benefit me from the standpoint of human behavior interaction on a daily basis both on and off duty.

Overall good program. I very much enjoyed the training and will utilize this tool. I would recommend a tweaked version of the course for future Special Forces Assault Engineer SO Trials and possibly our Inaugural Operator Qualification.

Due to my position within the Mounted Patrol Division, we work large crowd areas, rural locations, and search and rescue. The information obtained from this class will greatly benefit not only me but my section when looking for anomalies in crowds and when looking for ground sign or disturbances for search and rescue. This course…peaked my interest in the subject matter for daily work and will seek further training on this subject matter. All material…was presented in an easy to learn and understand format. I would highly recommend this course to others…

Good course! All officers could learn from it. Interrogations, perspectives and indicators were valuable learning tools.

Very personable and experienced cadre with a wealth of knowledge from different backgrounds. There were some very good stands including…walking IED/spoor lanes and the tracking part.

Overall, the DSI course was highly valuable and its applicability is vast. As an Army Infantry soldier, the things learned can be used in Key Leader Engagements, daily foot patrols and even for things like tactical sight exploitation. The instructors were very well rehearsed and more than proficient in their fields. At no time did we get a vague or half answer to a question. Each question was given full attention and thoroughly answered for the student… I felt the course was very well put together and highly valuable.

Class was very well presented. It exceeded my knowledge base in all learning objectives. Instructors were very thorough. The last exercise was very good. I would recommend the course to all Law enforcement, especially first line officers.

This was a very interesting class full of eye openers…Our instructor, Mr. Randy Merriman has been a wonderful host that brings a lot of knowledge…to the students he teaches. I personally would recommend him to other agencies in my area. Both “hands on” and power point presentations were incredible.

This class greatly heightened my situational awareness and taught me how to pay attention to detail. I will definitely recommend this class for other officers. Practical exercises were awesome and extremely helpful.

The DSI course and the instructors were awesome. I definitely see the application for this course…You guys were very knowledgeable and I really enjoyed the course…thanks for your time, I learned a lot.

This course was very helpful in helping me to pick out IED’s and people trying to solicit info from me. I would consider and recommend this class to everyone.

feel confident that I can take this information and pass it along to all my guys and anyone else in my command. The instructor staff was very knowledgeable and professional. It’s obvious that they genuinely care and are passionate about the course material. The student to instructor ratio was also very good allowing great one on one student instructor interaction in order to really grasp the material. I would highly recommend this course to any EOD tech. It is an incredible skill to add to the repertoire of EOD knowledge and skills, and can only aid in the C-IED fight.

Awesome wealth of knowledge from all instructors. I learned a lot of information that I initially did not see in the connections to awareness (ie: Human Behavior and Terrain). I would recommend this course to this unit as well as all other units as these should be basic baseline skills.