Sterling police host handgun red-dot instructor course for 18 officers

Rain fell over Sterling, but 18 officers from 14 Colorado agencies still came to town for a Handgun & Red Dot Instructor Course that turned the Sterling Police Department range into a regional training ground. Some traveled from as far away as Bayfield, an eight-hour drive, underscoring how far agencies will go for specialized firearms instruction now centered in Logan County.

The course was sponsored by County Sheriffs of Colorado, which says its training program is built around educational and professional development, public safety initiatives and support for law enforcement personnel. That matters in a county where local police and sheriff’s offices often rely on one another for backup, shared standards and officers who can work together smoothly across jurisdiction lines. By hosting 14 agencies in Sterling, the department gave neighboring departments a place to train under the same expectations, on the same equipment and under the same conditions.

The red-dot focus reflects where modern police firearms training is headed. County Sheriffs of Colorado lists a Red Dot Sight Firearms Instructor Course through Rocky Mountain Gun Works that trains handgun instructors in reflex sight use and program development. Colorado POST has its own Handgun Red Dot Sight Instructor Program, and officers must first complete a Colorado POST-approved handgun instructor program before entering it. POST’s materials also require a score of 100% on the handgun qualification course on the first day, and the program is listed as 44 hours. County Sheriffs of Colorado says participants must attend all days of a course to receive POST certification.

For residents, the shift has practical meaning. Red-dot optics are increasingly being used on duty handguns, and the point of instructor-level training is to make sure officers know how to run that equipment safely, consistently and under stress before they ever take it back to patrol work. The course also showed how much local support is needed to bring in a multi-agency class: County Sheriffs of Colorado says host agencies must provide target stands and backers, turning Sterling into more than a meeting place and into the operational center for a course that strengthens readiness across the region.

With officers coming from across Colorado and a state-certified curriculum now moving through Logan County, Sterling is positioning itself as a practical hub for police training that reaches well beyond city limits.