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Showing results for tags 'improvement'.
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Josh's Competition Journey: Finding the ClearAdvantage
GorillaTactical posted a topic in Range Diary
Let me kickoff by just saying that BEnos has been an amazing resource that I've utilized over the years. I've learned an immense amount from the wealth of knowledge in the threads on this board, as well as in-person from many of the participating members. Additionally, I've collected my share of lumps as I've grown both in the sport and as an individual, gathering information about what works and what doesn't, "on and off the field". In my quest to better myself further and share what I've learned with others in this community, I've decided to finally go ahead and post here in the "range diary" section. Forgive the length of this first post, but I believe it's important to understanding my journey as a shooter, where I'm at today and what I hope to achieve. For starters, I'll kickoff with a history of my shooting background, and where I'm at today: I shot a firearm for the first time in 2009. Later that year, I joined the Baylor Marksmanship Association (an on-campus firearms club started by a now, close friend) and shot my first competition, a 3 gun match at Tac Pro Shooting Center. I had no quality gear, no skill and basically just flopped around like a fish out of water for the duration of the match. I can also say that it was one of the most fun experiences I've had, and I was immediately hooked on competing. Over the course 2010 I began to shoot as many 3 gun matches as I could (that meant about one a month or so), still flopping around mostly, until a friend and I discovered Magpul Dynamics. Yup, you read that correctly; the "tactical-Magpul-porn" was the first time I was able to actually understand some of the basic mechanics of recoil control and increasing shooting speed. At the same time, I was fortunate enough to meet some extremely skilled shooters (locally) who introduced me to this forum, and for all effective purposes, began to mentor me in all things related to our sport. Throughout 2011 and into 2012, I did a deep dive into understanding the best gear and parts, and shot as much as my college budget would allow, even having some moderate success with 3 gun - always in the running to win at my local area matches, and even doing decently (a relative term) at the 2 or 3 majors I had the opportunity to shoot. At the time, if I were to average/combine my shooting skills across the 3 different firearms platforms into an overall rating, my rifle would have been above my skill average, my shotgun loading would have been above my skill average with the shooting being about at my average, and my handgun would have been far below my overall average (that last part is important for where I'm at today). In the summer of 2012, I was involved in a serious accident that required some major hardware to be installed into me left leg, along with some otherwise invasive surgery. At that time, I basically hung up the shooting rig. I shot maybe 2 matches from 2012 up to 2016, mostly because friends asked me to, with a collective 200-300 additional rounds fired at an indoor range (static shooting) to practice for concealed carry or make sure the firearms were still sighted in, etc. In the summer of 2016, my wife encouraged me to begin shooting again, and I decided to start back into shooting with USPSA. I felt that my overall performance was always hampered by my ability to shoot handgun, and as such, I felt if I was going to improve, I might as well focus on this one area to start with. I got myself a production gun (CZ Shadow) and started shooting about twice a month for the remainder of 2016. At the time, I decided my #1 Goal was to make Master. I classified initially as an A in production, and at the time of posting, am sitting at about an 83% classification. At the kickoff to 2017 I decided I was going to pick up a PCC, immediately violating every reason that I had decided to go back to shoot USPSA, but come on...I love shooting rifle at things up close and with speed, so I figured I'd grab one and mess around for a bit, then go back to handgun...This picture really sums up what was going on inside my head: I made initial classification as Master on the PCC and was encouraged by many of my local match directors and coordinators to shoot some majors with the PCC in the 2017 season. Without drawing out this post, I figure that's a good place to stop. I plan to post up my AARs or Postmortems or whatever we want to call them, for the next few major matches I shot with PCC, and then link all of that information back up my ultimate goal of improving with my handgun. I appreciate any feedback you might have and look forward to utilizing this tool to keep myself honest respective to my growth and practice regimens, and again, hopefully share some knowledge with my fellow shooters. -
Hi everyone, i posted this topic a couple weeks back in the "introduce yourself" section and wanted to see if maybe i re-posted it in here it might grab someones attention - thank s for looking, and for any help offered! -Chase M. Posted 26 March 2013 - 10:29 AM Hi everyone, I’m a newbie here but have been lurking on the forum for a few months trying to gather tips whenever, wherever I can. I just finished Brian’s book and to say I am inspired would be a tremendous understatement. Who would have thought the concepts, ideas and strategies he thought up 20+ years ago would still be just as relevant as they are today! (Thank you again, Brian) So on to my latest road block - Shooting groups from 18-25+ yards-freehand(I mean standing with both hands).Before you all beat me up too bad - I am following the steps as have been outlined by the master - started out shooting at nothing at all, just the berm. Got comfortable enough to "see" what I needed to see when I needed to see it given the circumstance (shooting at a berm with no target) and felt it was time to move on to bench rest shooting. I stayed on that damn bench until I could get my 2.5-3" groups at 20-25Yds consistently with little or no flyers on most given days. Relying on mechanics, eyes open, calling the shot as best I could see it, following through- everything was working well from the bench. So I moved on...I went in steps- started at 5 yards, moved to 10 then on to 15 and after that is where things started to change...Drastically. I observed that at about 18-20+ yards my fundamentals begin to deteriorate rapidly. I am overcome by "thought" rather than "action" - immediately I am doing mental checks on ALL my fundamentals - stance, grip, pressures, relaxed stomach, FRONT SIGHT, EYES OPEN, trigger, call the shot - EVERYTHING! And its during that time my form just goes to complete shit. I’m anticipating the shot/recoil, losing the front sight, incorrectly calling my shots; it’s just the worst feeling ever. So my remedy when this is happening is to first observe that it is happening and go back to what’s comfortable and easy (I know what a puss) moving it back to 7 yards, 10 yards 15 yards and guess what - as soon as work back up to the 20-25 yard range - it’s the same problem! It’s almost like at that distance (20-25 yds.) my mind flips this anxiety/doubt switch that on some days it literally seems impossible to overcome so i resort back to bench resting, or moving back to 10-15 yards and usually end up leaving the range feeling very unaccomplished and pretty bummed out... Sorry for the rant! Please know I am not looking for that "one special answer" I was really hoping just to get your guys opinions, possibly some tips and maybe some shared similar experiences if at all applicable or relevant to my situation. Thank you everyone in advance for taking the time to read and/or respond all input is much appreciated! Make it a great day everyone!! -Chase M.
