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B_RAD Range Diary


B_RAD

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Hello all!

 

I've been reading the range diaries of others for a while now and decided to start one of my own.

 

Quick introduction. I started shooting IDPA about this time last year. Initially got classified as a SS (missed EX by 1 pt). Shot my first Tier 2 match and won the division so that got me a bump to EX.  The next classifier I shot a MA score in SSP.  Then I shot my first USPSA match towards the end of '16.  Went and shot a classifier match and just barely squeezed out a M classification (85.1%).  I've shot 4 IDPA sanctioned matches (won SSP Div Champ 2).  I just shot my first LV2 USPSA (AR Sectional) last weekend and man was it fun! I didn't perform as good as I wanted. I'm still green when it comes to USPSA.  My stage planning sucks! I shot 89% of the points. I didn't have any M or NS. Just shot really slow. Our fellow forum member Hwansik Kim smoked everyone in Production! I shot 74% of him.  His pts was around 91% but he shot the 10 stage match 47 sec faster!

 

I can shoot accurately. I feel like I can move from point A to point B fairly fast (for a fat boy). Notice I didn't say efficiently!  I really think the low hanging fruit for me is moving in and out, shooting in and out, target transitions. I'm going to start videoing myself but I know I'm running into positions full steam. Probably don't have the gun up and ready beforehand. I'm also running into position then standing up. Things like that.  

 

Shooting points while moving efficiently is what I'm trying to focus on going forward.

 

Anyways, I look forward to learning and improving!  Please feel free to provide any critiques and advice!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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DF last two days for 30 min AM and 30 MIN PM. 

 

Worked on from Dry fire reloaded

1. Split drills w/micro drils

2. Targets at distance

3. Shooting while Moving 

4. Pulling trigger fast drill

Did all freestyle, SH, WH. 

 

 

Also, this morning I made up a loaded table start drill. Started sitting two steps away from gun. Made it where I had two pick up the gun and take a step back to see targets.  

 

 

Last two days my grip has been where it needs to be! Not sure why but I've consciously noticed that "man, I'm gripping hard"!

 

 

Last two days have been really good practice sessions. 

 

Things I want to practice every session no matter what else I work on. 

 

1. Pulling trigger fast (by the end of the start beep). I'm gonna do this at simulated 30 yd target. 

 

2.  Far targets, 30 yd and further (simulated)  See that front sight!

 

 

 

Edited by B_RAD
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LF training today. 

 

Goal

1. Call shots, see sights lift and come back

2. Work on transitions 

 

Drills

Draw fire two

@ 7  Average time 1.25 w/ all A's

@ 15  Average time 1.75 1A/1C

 

Bill drill

@ 7 yds. Average 1.9 w/all A's.

@ 10 yds. Average 2.1 w/ 1 C.

 

El Prez

@ 10 yds.  Average 5.5 sec with 10 pts down. 

 

 

Things I noticed.

1. need to work on draw.  I can draw sub second @ 7 but that doesn't require much technique, just speed.  At 12 yds and past I need to work on techinique.

 

2. I need to work on transitions. I noticed my transitions on the el prez were mid to high .30's. Would like to see them at .25.

 

3. I also noticed that when I try to physically move as fast I can to get a fast time on something, I end up doing worse. That's actually not surprising but when I make myself go slower (which is hard for me to do) I end up doing it at the same time on the timer and I have a better score.  For instance when I try to rail and go as fast as I can on a 7 yd Bill drill, I can do a 1.85 sec but will have a couple of C's. If I make myself relax and slow down I get about the same time, maybe a little slower and I get all A's.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited by B_RAD
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  • 4 months later...

Things to work on this winter

 

 

Lose 60 lbs

 

 

Transitions

  • Looking to spot. Not brown!

  • Drive gun!

  • Don't look for holes!

  • Leading with eyes!

  • Use legs

  • Don't over aim

  • Using appropriate sight picture for each target

  • Aiming at center of steel

  • Using appropriate trigger control for each target.

 

 

 

 

Movements

  • Coming in softer in the last few steps. Use knees. Smaller steps.

  • Not overcharging. See above!

  • Gun up and ready to aim!

  • Not popping up on arriving.

  • Set up to explode out without drop stepping (unless necessary)

  • Starting in a position that allows for the most efficient movement. As much as the WSB allows.

  • Hips and shoulders in the direction you want to go.

  • Running lower (shoulders stay the same elevation when running)

 

 

 

 

Calling shots

  • Where the front sight was when it started to lift. Not where it was when I made the decision to pull the trigger!

Edited by B_RAD
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  • 4 months later...

It's been a while since I've written anything in here.

 

I feel like I've learned a lot. However, I still see how much I need to improve!

 

 

I've switched guns again (and Divisions this time)! I'm shooting Limited now.  It's been 2 months and I really like Limited! I'm shooting an Atlas Titan.  I think I'm done with switching. For the year at least.  I've signed up for Limited Nats. The cost and time spent on switching is also going to make it less likely that I switch back.  I'm not worried about finding another gun that I'd rather shoot. I shot a TSO and I didn't like it at all compared to my 2011. So, I feel good that I’m set up and good to go!

 

I'm sitting at (or will be Wednesday morning) at 92.6% in limited.  Which is exciting and nerve racking at the same time. Just need a couple of more runs to hit 95%. Though, that's when the real work begins. 

 

I feel like I've made a break thru. It's funny because it's not something I've figured out but it's something that I had to accept/prove to myself.  If I try to do everything as fast as I can, I have decent success at hooking up and hitting a "home run".  However, if I "relax" or shoot tension free, I end up preforming at my current level of skill.  Which has resulted in two 100% classifier runs out of the last four.  Previoiusly, I was hitting 85%-89%.  I wasn't trying to hero or zero but I was trying to do everything with too much tension. That's at least how I can explain it.  I want to go as fast as I can physically. I want to pull the trigger now even though it may not be aimed correctly!  In practice I've tried runs with my hair on fire and I do have a decent amount of success. For example, I' can do a Bill Drill around 1.7 sec with 50%-75% C's (and maybe a D) or I can do it in 1.9 sec with all A's almost every time!  It's the same for everything I've tried. At the moment, it seems the faster I try to yank the gun out of the hoslter/draw, the faster I do everything else.. I guess I'm trying to do faster instead of sooner. I don't know how to say it.  I just know that if I simply do everything calmly, I still do it at the same (or very close to it) speed and the results are better.  I keep thinking this is a tension or stress thing! Or just loss of fine motor skills with too much effort.

 

 

Areas I want to work on.

 

  1. Everything!

  2. Transitions!

  3. Calling shots!

  4. Visual patience

  5. Efficient movement

  6. Acceptance of skill

 

 

 

Number 6 may need to be at the top.  What I mean by that one is, I understand that my skill level is where it is and that trying to shoot at a level above it, usually doesn't work well. That's where I get frustrated, or at least did until yesterday!  I know that if I just shoot, without trying too hard, I'm going to do well.  Is it 1st place at Nats well? No, but my skill level isn't there.  However, when I screw up and I'm able to determine why, and if it's because I tried to rush rather than accept something like, it's ok that the sight needs to settle, but instead I went bang, I get pissed at myself.  So, when I know I screwed up because I chose not to do what I've proven to myself works, I get mad!  Saturday night, before my Sunday match I told myself that I need to be disciplined with my shooting. If it takes longer to clean up a sight pic then oh well.  Do everything as fast as you can but don't pull that trigger until it's acceptable!  I had a great match!  Was it perfect no but I didn't screw up a stage because I over reached on my ability or because I went bang instead of waiting for the sight pic to be acceptable!  I shot 94.55% of the points, had no mikes, 1 D, and had the 2nd fastest overall time (just behind an M open shooter). 

 

 

Discipline!  It's hard to do! 

 

 

Edited by B_RAD
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  • 3 weeks later...
28 minutes ago, SCTaylor said:

You'll get a lot out of it. If you have specific questions just ask. I hesitated and still have a few lingering questions.

Good to know. Thanks. 

 

Edited by B_RAD
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1 hour ago, SCTaylor said:

You'll get a lot out of it. If you have specific questions just ask. I hesitated and still have a few lingering questions.

I'll be sure to post in here after the class. 

 

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

Took Ben Stoegers Practical Shooting Fundamentals class this past weekend.  It was great. It's pretty cool to watch someone at that level shoot. He didn't do a lot of shooting but when he did you could definitely see the world champion level skills. 

 

I was also very impressed with his ability to spot things shooters were doing wrong. 

 

Things he spotted that I was doing wrong or things I need to fix.

 

1. Gripping too hard with my right hand. Causing shots to creep towards the C line. 

 

2. When I move out of position I bring the gun into my chest, then start to move.  I think it's a wind up type motion I do to help get moving. I've never noticed this but this has to be bad for my stage times.  

 

3. I over swing targets bad.  He kept yelling at me to relax. He said I'm trying to muscle the gun to the next target. He said just look to the spot and the gun will show up. This was on close targets. He said there are times when you have to really swing the gun but I was overswinging on targets that weren't far apart.

 

Now that he pointed each of these out, I definitely notice it when I do them. 

 

I feel that fixing these three things will really help my scores a lot! Another thing I feel I got from the class was the stressed importance of being patient when it's required. Not just pulling the trigger but waiting for the sight to settle or making sure it's were it needs to be before pulling the trigger. Also, front sight on steel/difficult targets.  It's unnatural for me to switch my focus back to the front sight for harder targets but I need to be disciplined enough to do it. 

 

 

The class had a lot of shooting. Everyone that took it felt is was worth the price and then some. It was humbling!  I'm at 92% and after this class I feel like I may not be ready for GM. Though, there's a difference between a GM and Ben!  

Edited by B_RAD
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I'm seeing a lot of benefit from taking Stoeger's class. It's not that I'm better after a 2-day class, it's what I'm seeing in my practice now that I didn't see before. I'm guilty of doing a decent amount of dry fire practice but hardly any live fire practice. I now see why live fire practice to verify your dry fire is so important!  It's funny, this game is just like anything else in life. You hear stuff like, "do this thing this way" but you don't really do it because it's easier or faster not to.  Then one day, eureka! You slap yourself upside the head and think, yeah, I've heard that before but I didn't listen/do it! 

 

One thing I now see that I've been doing was not getting the correct sight pic but instead rushing and/or unknowingly accepting a bad sight pic just to beat the buzzer. This shows up as C's and D's, if you're lucky, coming in on a target or leaving a target. Knowing this is very valuable. Now, I'm seeing what it looks like to be more disciplined with my sights.  I'm seeing when I pull off or over swing a target, or just flat our didn't get a sight pic at all. 

 

One thing I feel I got form the class, that's worth the cost alone, was to watch Ben do a drill or an entire stage without firing a shot. That made it more obvious just how much attention he gives to each target. I think the bang of the gun going off makes everything seem faster and it mask just how much sight picture you're getting or not getting. It also displayed how well his movements/transitions were executed.  He made us do drills and stage runs like this as well and trust me, this will expose poor technique! For me it revealed just how little or poorly I was aiming!  This is like randomly putting a dummy round in your mag to see what happens when the bang and recoil of the gun going off isn't present to hide bad form!

 

Another thing I got from this was the reinforcement of something that I've proven to myself before but again have been too undisciplined with. Which is, it really isn't any slower to be disciplined. It's not only the same speed but it obviously results in better performance.  I'd run a drill and he'd shake his head and say, "Dude, you gotta be disciplined with the sights", and when I'd do it like he said, guess what?  It payed off every time!  Being more disciplined is going to improve my performance! Duh!

 

Things I'm working on

 

1. Being disciplined with sight pictures. Fight the urge to pull the trigger now instead of pulling the trigger when the sights are correct!

 

2. Not trying to transition so hard. It's not that I ride the sight pic to the next target, I just physically swing too hard. Look to the spot at and let the gun appear.  He also gave us a technique for transitioning to harder/further targets but I can't give away all his tips/techniques. It was something that I've never heard before but wasn't shockingly revolutionary. Just never thought of it!

 

3. I also want to ingrain looking at specific spots to stop when moving long distances or when you need to be precise at where you stop!  Overrunning positions cost when you got to step back into the shooting area before you shoot. 

 

There is a lot more I need to improve on and/fine tune but I think these things are the most important at the moment. Or my lowest hanging fruit at this time. I really feel that with just a few weeks of dedicated training to make these things more automatic/consistent, my skill level will increase greatly.

Edited by B_RAD
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1 hour ago, tha1000 said:

I don't think it's going to take you long at all to pick up that remaining 3%.

Shouldn't. Though, I'm cutting back on the amount of club level matches because I feel I'll gain more from practicing.  I've been shooting local matches about 5 times a month. I'm gonna drop back to 2.  So, we'll see. 

Edited by B_RAD
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23 minutes ago, B_RAD said:

Shouldn't. Though, I'm cutting back on the amount of club level matches because I feel I'll gain more from practicing.  I've been shooting local matches about 5 times a month. I'm gonna drop back to 2.  So, we'll see. 

 

I think swapping matches for dedicated practice has helped me so far this year.   I'm shooting 1 a month, maybe two if I can sneak it in... I'm about to the point where I would rather practice than shoot a local.

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54 minutes ago, tha1000 said:

 

I think swapping matches for dedicated practice has helped me so far this year.   I'm shooting 1 a month, maybe two if I can sneak it in... I'm about to the point where I would rather practice than shoot a local.

I guess the real issue for me is, not live fire training enough. I need to step that up and do it during the week. I don't have any excuses not to. I have a range 5 min from my office. So, if I get off my ass and do that then I may still shoot 3-4 matches a month. I do think good matches help too!  Gotta get that experience!

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I've got a wife and a little one and the range is 40~ minutes each way... so I have to make some sacrifices somewhere to get the range time in...  level 1 matches is the easy choice.  I only have one uspsa match within a 2 hour drive from me.  Shoot the true local, practice more, spend less time staring out a windshield, make wife happy... 

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1 hour ago, tha1000 said:

I've got a wife and a little one and the range is 40~ minutes each way... so I have to make some sacrifices somewhere to get the range time in...  level 1 matches is the easy choice.  I only have one uspsa match within a 2 hour drive from me.  Shoot the true local, practice more, spend less time staring out a windshield, make wife happy... 

So what you're saying is, women and kids ruin your life?  Fuhhhk..... That!  

 

 

Ha ha. Kidding. Gotta make them happy! Or keep them happy!  

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Shot a club match today. This club alwssy puts on a good match! This director and crew always set up good stages. They're a blend of tuff and technical but have a little hosing.  

 

My performance was pretty bad on all but the first and last stages. I had 4 Mike's and even has a freaking procedural for popping a shot off with my foot over the fault line. It wasn't neven close. Hanha. I planned on leaning hard to take a target then after I was done I wanted to drop step ad drive hard to the next postion but I dropped stepped early. Ha. 

 

All the Mike's we're due to not using the front sight.  I pushed too hard on all stages but the first and last. I wasn't disciplined at all with my sight pictures and suffered the consequences.  

 

I really don't think I've ever performed this poorly before!  I did have the highest score in Limited by 15 pts but I can't accept this. 

 

 

I was pleased, mostly, with my movement overall. 

 

Going forward I MUST perform at the level of discipline I know I'm capable of. The level I know will yield the results I'm looking for!

 

 

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and now, deep thoughts………

 

 

I shot Ok Sectional this past weekend. This was my 4th match above the club level. My first level 2+ shooting Limited.

 

 

I shot 91% of the points. I excluded the 4 NPM from the equation. Nobody went for them. Not even Max Michelle.  I was 20 sec slower overall compared to the Div Champ (who shot almost identical pts %)

 

Overall I am not happy with my performance! I don't feel I shot any stage great. Or to my level of skill.

 

issues

  • I can't look back and say I moved as fast as possible or maximum effort when moving from position to position. I wouldn't say I was supper slow but I probably had a little more in the tank to push. 

     

  • Transitions are something I need to improve on! I did not transition or lead with my eyes like I learned from Stoeger's class. I did it like I was doing before. 

     

  • I think I also had some kind of pre-programed metronome for when to fire each shot. I know I wasn't using the sights for when to pull the trigger. It's not that every shot was the same split regardless of how difficult the target was, I just KNOW I didn't see the front sight lift and return like I should have. It was more like the nose on my face. It's there but my brain has programmed itself to not see it!  This is so WRONG!

     

  • I over ran a position on one stage because I didn't look down at the spot while moving to it. I bet that cost me 2 secs. I tried to fight it and make it work but eventually had to get rebalanced. At least I knew not to just shoot and hope for the best. One of the targets had a NS and probably would have gotten hit. I need to break the habit of looking at the target as my reference for when to stop. At least until it's time to look up at the target.  Meaning, use the spot on the ground as reference until you've gotten close enough that I'll be able to make that spot and can then get eyes and gun up out to the target.

     

  • There were several times I could have been shooting earlier when coming into position but for some reason I probably set up a little too hard or "perfect".  I think I was a little scared of dropping points or not being able to steady the gun enough. Also, think my mindset was, "I got to get here anyways to shoot the rest of the targets at this position so just shooting on the way in and not completely settled isn't the way to do it" Which is stupid now that I think about it because I could have been moving/transitioning to the next target while still finishing up on the "set up". There were several instances where this would have shaved a tenth here and there.

     

  • To piggy back of the issue above, I don't think I shot any target while moving out of position. At least not in the correct way.  I set up on most arrays so that I would swing in the direction of the next position/movement. So, outside/in, then move toward the center of the stage.  Instead of shooting inside/out, while backing/moving out then having to swing further to get back towards the center of the stage.  I noticed this was something I got from some of the other shooters and I did it too.  I normally would have done it the opposite. Obviously, this is one of those things that will depend on each stage or situation, but I did do it mostly the opposite of how I would have if I wouldn't followed what everyone else was doing.  It made sense in theory and I'm not even saying it was wrong but it's something to note. The "theory" was not swinging back and forth but swinging in one continuous direction.  It was something new for me.  Not sure I'll do it that way in the future unless I really feel it helps. 

     

  • Another thing that's on my mind is squading with your direct competition.  I shot with two others that both ended up beating me by 1 and 2 points.  Both are equally skilled but both are classified a level below.  Though, that really doesn't matter and does not make me mad. Now, I will be honest and say that in my mind, I believe that it was the unspoken thought that I was the heat in the squad prior to the match. Did that have any affect on my performance or cause any self imposed mental pressure? I'm not sure. Everyone on my squad was awesome, except for one person! We all discussed plans and thoughts after a run. Nobody held back any information because they didn't want the other guy to beat them. Which is cool in my opinion! I like squading with people above my skill. I feel it helps but I'm not sure how to feel about squading with folks I'm neck and neck with?  It's probably best to just accept it and not even think about it since you're really never going to be able to completely control who you squad with.

     

  • I know I didn't use my sights for 2 of my 3 mikes. The other M was because I was moving out of position when firing the last shot. As I left, I knew it didn't feel right.  Which really pisses me off because during my walk thru, I freaking told myself make sure and get that last sight pic/call that shot/see the sight lift on the target before starting the run to the next position but I didn't do it!  The last M of the day, while still a result of no sight pic, doesn't bother me as bad. It was on a fast swinger that was activated off a plate/stand under the weight. So, it activated immediately and I just popped off 3 rounds in the general area of the dwell (tried to ambush it). The problem with that is, I didn't get a sight pic, and popping off extra rounds in the spray and pray sense, really means just 3 pulls without aiming.  It was a difficult target (classic) at about 12 yds (guessing from memory).  The other part that pisses me off was I swung back to it after finishing on the other targets but didn't take any more shots because I gambled I had at least two on paper. I only had 1 delta and it was on the perf of the bottom left of the D line.  So, I almost had 2 mikes on that one!  I either make up A's or close C's or don't make up M's. Which, makes feel like a dumb ass just knowing! 

 

 

 

 

 

postive things to take away

 

 

  • I did plan for more in my walkthroughs. I did make note of this is a difficult target and requires more of a sight pic. I did try to make myself look for stage markers too.

 

  • For the most part my stage plans were good. I watched the div winner who beat me by a large margin, and for the most part the plans for each stage were similar. The differences were he took more targets in between activators. He also, did everything quicker (transitions/splits, max effort moving), sooner (in and out), and probably a tad more efficient.

     

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

now, the million dollar question……..

 

 

  • What do I want? What are my goals?

    • Do I want to improve/reach the level of the HOA and beyond?

      • Am I willing to do what that will take to acheave?

         

    • Do I just want to have fun and stay at the level I'm at currently?

      • Will I be content with that?

Edited by B_RAD
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If your shooting 95%+ classifiers and sitting at 92% classification you have the speed. You need to give each shoot the attention it needs and not worry about HOA or results. It’s good to shoot with your competitors and better shooters, it helps you work on mental aspects and just focus on what you can do. 

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