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Why do I really shoot?


atomicbrh

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Team Amish 1, on 03 Jan 2016 - 5:35 PM, said:

I don't know much about 'Zen' but there is a certain 'Germuetlichkeit' to the whole thing.

Gemütlichkeit is a great word. Gemütlichkeit + Zen is a wonderful description.

Whether Shooting, Gunsmithing or Reloading I can be in the moment and mindful of my state of action.

Each of the the three actions incorporates the next....

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I shoot comps' to learn to channel stress into a positive area and overcome it, as best as one can anyway. OK, plus it's an enjoyable way to spend part of a day. And every once in a while I actually get in the zone and become one with the gun. Not good with the gun, just one with it. Accuracy I have no problem with, it's speed that holds me back because I don't want to work at it. There's that enjoyment part again.

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I've always loved shooting. It's therapeutic for me like a lot of people. I just like the level of concentration, the zen, the personal pride in making the shot. It's all good.

I originally started shooting competition because of my decision to carry a concealed gun. I don't think that gun handling can be part of the process in a self defense scenario. It's all about the defense, not trying to figure how a tool works.

At any rate, once I started shooting USPSA it was WAAAAY too much fun to stop. At one point I was like... too bad none of my friends shoot with me. I need to find a friend or two to shoot with me.

Later I realized, these ARE my friends. I've found a group of people I love hanging out with and get to shoot with them every weekend.

How cool.

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I honestly shoot because I enjoy the training/practice. I feel like I always need to be better today than I was yesterday and to do something today to help me be better tomorrow than I was today. I used to be really addicted to lifting weights because I was hooked on trying to lift 5 more lbs than I did in the previous workout.

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On June 24, 2015 at 4:00 PM, Fuelie777 said:

When I go to a match or practice, the world's troubles or life goes on hold until I leave. Shooting allows me to compartmentize those items of life for a few hours.

One of the best parts of our sport that calm sense of focus.....adrenalin isn't bag either?

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I love the smell of gunsmoke in the morning

My performance is ONLY relevant to myself.  I cannot control who else shows up, what teammate threw a bad pass etc.  I can control how much I dryfire, my thought process etc.

It gets me out of the house with a relatively fixed timeline which is an important part of being a husband and father for my own sanity.

As a CCW holder there are practical applications even if they aren't a direct cross when "gaming"

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I have always loved shooting and I don't even really know where it came from.  My parents weren't and aren't shooters.  I wanted to shoot before I ever was able to.  My first exposure to shooting was the Boy Scouts and my Grandfather with BB guns and 22's.  Since then I have been hooked.  I discovered competitive shooting about 3 years ago.  I've never look back.  It kind of ruined other kinds of shooting for me.  Standing in a shooting lane blasting at a bullseye target is just lame now.  I will say that is unfortunate but o well.  The friends that I have found through competitive shooting are awesome.  We are pretty much all as into as the next guy.  It really makes it fun.  I love the challenge and the people.  Its an awesome community.  Sort of unusual and unique if you ask me.  Its just so calming for me and really the only time that I can truly shut out the rest of the world.  When I'm pressing that trigger and moving through the stage everything else just fades away.

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  1. i shoot because i enjoy it, i work all the time so when i get the chance to go to a match i jump on it, its like a vacation for me, i try not to worry about how good i do in the match, i do my best and i enjoy the match and hanging out with friends
Edited by DASR4
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On ‎3‎/‎2‎/‎2016 at 8:10 AM, derekmelton said:

I shoot competitions because it's fun, it beats shooting paper, and the combination of nerves/movement/accuracy and draw mechanics help me become a better shooter I just don't get to do it enough

I'm with Derek!

Shooting competitions is a blast, I feel that the more competitions I will just become a much better shooter. anyone can go to the range and take their time and shoot accurately at paper. I enjoy the nerves, movement and the accuracy required to shoot a match well. That is better training and practice than we will get anywhere else in my opinion.

 

Just wish I got to do it more often!!

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I guess it is hard to explain why I shoot.  I started off buying my first gun with little or no exp in the shooting game.  I started training at the range to make sure I knew how to use it well.  I kept training and I drifted into competitive shooting.  I started reloading as I was spending so much money on bullets it made sense.  I started a competitive shooting club as I needed time to train and practice movement.  At each stage it seems one thing leads to the next.  Who knows where it will take me, but I really like the feeling of seeing how far I have progressed in a short span of time.

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On ‎5‎/‎24‎/‎2015 at 8:23 PM, atomicbrh said:

Since the start of the 2015 match season I have been thinking extensively about what really motivates me to match shoot. Why do I spend the money on equipment, ammo, and travel? Why do I think about the physical act of shooting the matches when I am not occupied with other activities? Why do I train in some way every day to shoot better? Why would my family and I drive 14 hours one way to shoot a match? Is it because I like to help youngsters and beginners start in the shooting sports? Is it because l like to try to shoot better scores than other competitors? Is it because I want to continue to improve my shooting skills? Is it because I like to visit with friends at the matches? Is it because I like to win a prize or a trophy at the matches? Is it because I like to eat good food at the matches? No. After many months of contemplation and soul searching, I came to the conclusion that I match shoot because I am selfish. I want to live in the Zen moments as frequently as possible and extend the length of those zen moments as much as possible. After 15 years of competition, volunteering at the matches is rewarding but the zen is what really keeps me motivated. Does anyone else feel this way?

I shoot because I was put on this earth for 3 things in order

 

1)BBQ

2)shoot a firearm

3)to be a total beer geek!

 

its important to note that all of these are outdoor activities that are only properly done with a fine beard.

 

I do not have all of lifes answers.....but I am 100% confident as to why I am here!

 

the bench

Edited by benchmstr
enlightenment
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I've been shooting in one form or another since I was a kid, and when I discovered practical shooting, it was a natural fit for me since it meshed with a passion I already possessed.  Additionally, I work a desk job that is dangerously sedentary, as well as pretty intellectual in nature.  As I learned the ways of USPSA, I came to realize that it provided an opportunity for me exercise my brain in a different way than it is exercised at work, PLUS it gives me motivation to stay in better physical shape than would otherwise be the case.  Long story short, it drives me to be a better person, whether I win or not.    

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I started out by just simply wanting to feel like I deserved to have a carry permit.  It then morphed into wanting to climb the match results lists.  Then my 11 year old wanted to start shooting.  I have so much fun watching him progress that we started traveling to level 2 matches.  He got high junior production at the first one, high junior single stack at his 2nd one.  Along the journey I have came to the realization that we just love being in the company of shooters.  It is like stepping into a different world, we call it : the world, as it should be.  People who are always eager to help advance their fellow competitor despite their desire to win.  They share their ideas about equipment, stage breakdown, reloading, techniques, and etc.  There is no other way to perfectly escape the real world stress!

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I shoot competitions to challenge my skills, to better myself at something at I enjoy doing. I have always been in competition, in one sport or another, since I was a kid.

 

The comradery of being around like minded individuals, the pressure of performing, the preparation, all of it is enjoyable to me.

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