Course Testmonials

Excellent presentation and safety briefing. A real insight into current assault rifles, from their history, to development, the component parts, assembly and disassembly, prior to the actual firing of the weapons. A very good days instruction which I would recommend to anyone with an interest in this subject.

What a great day! and what a great instructor! Staring in the classroom Mark A.K.A Nobby Knowles took us through his career in the Marines and the Special Forces and what a career it was. This was followed by a session in the shooting range, on weapons safety, weapons handling and marksmanship. Nobby made the day into an experience to be remembered.

I doubt you will find a higher level of weapons handling instruction anywhere else in the world.

I was gifted the Special Forces Firearms Experience as a gift for my 30th Birthday. The experience was absolutely brilliant. Learning about Nobby’s experiences through the services and his incredible stories. We have gone on to do some weapons handling, stripping of weapons and then onto the range for an afternoon of shooting. The 4 of us throughly enjoyed the day and would highly recommend the experience!

Dear Nobby,. Thank you very much for an excellent day on Saturday. We were enthralled with your presentation of your career with the Marines and the SBS, and as a civilian with no military experience, I am so glad that there are incredible individuals like you that are willing to put yourself in harms way, for the benefit of our nation. Thank you for all your service, which is frankly extraordinary, and also the enormous amount of money you are raising for veterans and military charities. The weapons training and shooting experience, was great fun, very well delivered, and I felt absolutely safe under your control. I was nervous at first [stripping the AK47], and I think we all agreed you needed to keep an eye on me on the range! Thankfully my confidence grew, and the experience of handling and loading the weapons became enjoyable, and of course competitive with my two sons and brother in law. For the record, I preferred the MP5 - its elegant, simple design and operation suits my aversion to the other more complex weapons, and I also liked the sighting system. I think that the final shoot-off was surprisingly close, and I can report that my brother-in-law and I indeed bought the wagered curry for the rest of the family when we got home. Thank you again for a great day. I know that everyone thoroughly enjoyed the day, and it wouldn't surprise me if in years to come we're back again! Enjoy your next holiday, and thank you again.

An excellent day of instruction on the Glock 17, covering aspects from safe handling through to the shoot itself. Nobby was a fantastic instructor who improved my shooting tremendously.

If you are reading this testimonial, I have two words: book it. This was, by far, the finest training course I have attended. Mark (Nobby) was in touch with me throughout booking and tailored my course to my exact requirements, clearly doing the prep on his side to provide a bespoke course for my genuine safety and survival in the environment I would encounter. On the day, Nobby knew exactly how to ease me in to the process, clearly as a result of his many years of experience at the very highest levels of military service in the world. He trained me with precision and careful guidance, and knew where to assist if required, all without comprimising that I had understood the safety requirements I needed to leave with to be safe in the field. The theory and practical elements were both perfect and I cannot recommend STS enough. I feel I have gained a genuine skillset from my day with Nobby and I would love to go back to learn more.

Thank you for a great day, loved the insight into your career and sharing story's with us. The experience on the shooting range was fantastic , this down to you teaching us in a calm, & patience way , and still injecting humour into the experience. Thank you again

We had a great time with Nobby on this course. Hearing about his career and achievements is gripping, a tiny insight into the secretive world of Special Forces operations. We were all beginners shooting, so learning the basic principles for gun handling and marksmanship was a great experience. Would highly recommend and hopefully we will be back for further courses.

The course was a great day for our small group. We learned loads on the safe handling and operation of rifles which went far beyond a typical shooting experience, whilst still being in a fun and relaxed environment. I would highly recommend. We all finished the day smiling.

Thanks Nobby for a great day, myself and Max throughly enjoyed ourselves, it was very interesting to hear the experience you have had. It was also informative to learn the dismantling and reassembling of the guns too. Great competition at the end, I was relieved it was a draw otherwise I would never of heard the end of it!

great fun and instructive as well. I would like to join the SBS but i’m too old! competitive element to shooting was an added bonus. I would recommend the course and Nobby who gave it.

Thanks so much for a really fun day!

Thank you to Mark Nobby Knowles for a unique experience. Felt very privileged and humbled by the day. Very professional setup and I felt totally safe in the environment. If you get chance to do one of Marks courses please do not hesitate. Simon Parkinson

This event was in support of one of Marks charities. An excellent day from start to finish. Having only had limited exposure to firearms it was very informative with lots of hands on experience and tailored to our needs. Mark was thoroughly professional and made the experience a pleasure. I would not hesitate in recommending Mark and his services. The classroom’s & firing range are great facilities. Thank you Mark Nobby Knowles for a top day Graham Moffitt

Mark (KNobby) brings a wealth of personal experience and expertise to his training courses providing a bespoke days input for our small group. He was engaging and keen to understand our levels of firearm experience, plus what we wanted to get from the day. His methods of teaching cater for all sorts and he was able to improve everyone's technique with one to one coaching. On top of all that, Mark provided an insight into his personal background and the role of the UK Special Forces. Overall, a great day, both enjoyable and insightful.

What a great course and instructor. I had not handled any weapons for many years but under Mark's instruction I soon became at ease. The safety side of thing's could not be done any better as every tiny detail has been taken into consideration. Mark's amazing career and knowledge are truly breath taking. Purely talking from a corporate background I found the whole day really motivating and aim to take some of Mark's enthusiasm and professionalism back into the business world with me. I would recommend this course to anyone who has a interest in firearms or the military plus team building in the business world.

This was a difficult course for me as it takes me a long time to process information however once something is in my head it stays there. Nobby was a very engaging man whose life almost existed in a parallel world. His wealth of experience and knowledge is probably unsurpassed and I only scraped the surface. He's a good instructor and a man you'd want on your side when the going gets tough.

I thought I was attending a simple point and shoot social event, how wrong I was. Nobby has stories to tell that defy belief, a captivating narrative of decades in the service: Funny, sobering and absolutely extraordinary! After blowing my mind with his experiences he then gave a comprehensive day shooting training. I feel like I learnt a huge amount in a relatively short space of time, experienced a wide variety of rifles and improved my technique and weapons handling no end. Thanks Nobby and STS. Can't wait to come back.

A truly memorable day. This course gave a wonderful insight into special forces. There was incredible instruction into weapons safety and weapons handling and marksmanship to such a high standard. Anyone who undertakes this course will carry lifelong memories of how incredible our Special forces are. A brilliant day.

I came into this course as a complete novice with firearms and thoroughly enjoyed it. Nobby was very patient and informative and was always willing to answer any of my questions. I felt very safe throughout the course and certainly came away with some extremely valuable lessons and insight. I would highly recommend Shooting Training Solutions to anybody who is unsure how to take their first steps into firearms training. Excellent quality of instruction!

As a complete novice, I recently took 2 days bespoke shooting course with Mark and I absolutely loved every second of it! Mark is very experienced and passionate about his work, yet he is very humble and does not need the spotlights. His knowledge, work ethos and patience are outstanding. I felt very safe and well looked after and will recommend him and his business to everyone,who's looking to give it a go!

Very good, informative and enjoyable day. The course delivered everything expected taking a relatively inexperienced gun user through all safety exercises required followed by live firing with a range of weapons. I left the course feeling comfortable that I am able to operate the weapons safely with a degree of competence and comfort Nobby delivered the course really well emphasising the safety elements throughout- and made it fun to boot. Cheers Nobby!!

I thought that after a brief introduction to the weapons we would go and shoot, but that wasn't the case. we learned every part of the weapon, every function and how important safety was. and only after the teacher understood that we knew the basic rules did he feel confident in sending us to shoot. The teacher is extremely competent, I was constantly asking questions and he always answered very thoroughly and with clear examples and scenarios. he never had any problems explaining things multiple times and demonstrating multiple times. I was happy with the experiences and I'm sure I will take other courses to deepen what I learned.

The course was excellent. The instructor was very professional, friendly and welcoming. The course was delivered in a way that prioritised safety, understanding of the weapons and procedures, while also being interesting and enjoyable. I would highly recommend it. Thank you.