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Skroggster

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  1. Please stop by and become a member if you have not already become a member, please do if you shoot USPSA and are interested in the Single Stack, Production, Revolver Discipline. https://www.facebook.com/groups/170593016334239/ If you missed this match last year, you missed a hell of a match. The raves were right there with the Indiana Section match with a lot fewer shooters. We are starting to get sponsorship for this match all stage or Gold level sponsors Please note. Decot Sunglasses, Sentry Solutions, Metaloy Industries Inc., Montana Gold, Springfield Armory, and the list continues daily. This is the site for updates, Application, other than: www.USPSAIndiana.org http://www.eteamz.com/AtlantaConservationClub/news/index.cfm?cat=593292
  2. Robert that would be Medtronix (www dot medtronix dot com)I used to supply custom tooling their and got to take a tour. Actually got to see a spinal replacement they had patented and this procedure was used in an Indiana University Soccer player who was seriously hurt in an auto accident. She apparently had 3 crushed vertebrae and was to never walk again. They replaced that segment of her spine and she actually played college soccer again. Amazing Technology! http://medgadget.com/2011/01/medtronic_laounches_solera_spinal_implant_system.html
  3. Pat Great representation. I too had the same or near similar instance happen to me at the Indiana SS/Prod/Rev Championships. I have attached the stage for reference. (It may not provide exact representation of the instance) I was not running a junior but a seasoned veteran. This particular stage 2 array left 2 array right and had to move to engage. Then breach the door to engage thru left and right ports and down range. The only difference in the diagram is that the center wall the 2 targets were forward not rearward as to engage from ports prior to breaching the door. Allow me explain the setup. When going through the door there were 4' walls on both sides so you couldn't engage L & R port from that position. As well the vertical walls had the 45 deg stakes to hold them up. This shooter breached the door, headed left engaged the left array rather fast. He hit the left steel (LOW) did not fall, reacted on sound. cleared right and engaged the final two from the port on the right, I could not due to setup be directly behind him but to his left rear. He swung left at that steel and fired before I realized what had happened I had the tip of my nose powder burnt. Again, as your situation there were not any grounds for DQ. Wasn't close to a 180. It was RO positioning. I too ruined a good pair of BVD's!
  4. Many may have already read this however for those who have not I in my beginning found it interesting and useful. Zen and the art of hitting stuff July 21, 2009 by Bruce Gray We can separate the skills associated with practical handgun marksmanship into three rough sets: aiming, trigger control and tactical gun handling. In my experience, handgun shooting errors are invariably trigger control related, though most shooters tend to ascribe large groups and missed shots to incorrect aim, poor vision or a “bad grip”. Blaming your sights is praying to a false idol. Let’s assume sight regulation is OK for now. I’ll go so far as to say that just about every person I’ve ever worked with had the ability to see and focus on their aligned sights, and hold that alignment well enough to shoot a very small group. However, few have had the ability to press the trigger well enough to exploit their aiming skills without considerable training. So, I agree with those who counsel dry firing. I’d say dry firing is far more important than any other single thing you can do to build your fundamental skills. I do not think it will hurt your pistol as much as shooting poorly can hurt you. Shooters generally seem to “flinch” (which we can define here as a failure to press the trigger and release the hammer without disturbing the sights, and/or to follow through during the entire shot) for two basic reasons: The first is performance anxiety. By it’s nature, shooting is an exercise in truthful self-realization: the bullet hits or misses, whether completely or by degrees. Everyone wants to “do well” and not look like an idiot in front of others. Without intending to make broad gender-based generalizations, women are less prone to succumbing to this anxiety (and in fact often do better in marksmanship training as a result), whereas men do tend to become more ego-involved in the results to the detriment of their skill development. In any event, those who have been highly conditioned to feel potent and capable (such as law enforcement officers and other highly trained professionals) will tend to identify strongly with symbols of that potency to support their self image. Nothing in American society symbolizes this potency more than the gun. It follows that when presented with an objective test of competency that challenges one’s illusory self-image, even highly educated and successful new shooters will freak out and fail. This is the person who shakes his or her head in growing frustration at each “bad” shot. In reality, shooting is pretty darn easy; it’s just the shooter’s highly personal investment in results that makes it difficult. Everyone wobbles. The sights are never going to rest motionless and in perfect alignment on the target. Yet, our egos tend to be perfectionists. Result-oriented shooters won’t accept their wobble and are disappointed in the lack of immediate reinforcement shot as an instantaneous event mediated by their will to hit, yet are frustrated by that overpowering will when they jerk the trigger, flinch and miss. That frustration stems from the highly conscious (and thus clumsy) nature of their technique. In the absence of a learned, subconscious and visually patient process which presses the trigger in response to the appearance of aligned sights orbiting about the target area, the results-oriented shooter jumps on the trigger when the sights suddenly look right “NOW”. This reinforces true flinching reactions from recoil and blast, which is the second reason we miss. It’s true the good Lord didn’t design us to well tolerate an explosion 18 inches in front of our eyes. Guns were our idea. Grabbing at the trigger when the sights look “right” to satisfy the ego causes the shooter to place his focus even more on the target, and less on that icon of his increasingly conflicted, unpleasant and unsuccessful marksmanship process: his sights. When a shooter feels he’s inconsistent, it’s often because his visual attention floats aimlessly on an unstable emotional sea between sharply focused process and vaguely seen results. Process oriented shooters develop a sense for what they must do to fire an acceptable shot for a given target and distance, and train their subconscious minds to do only that. Note, I do not say a “perfect” shot, as that’s not possible or even desirable to strive for. We must define an acceptable shot as one that puts the bullet within a reasonable target area for the style and application of shooting we’re doing. For IPSC and other practical shooting applications, the process of making an acceptable shot varies by distance, target area, position and how long it takes to make it. Some shots require an absolutely hard sight picture, perfect trigger break and monolithic follow through. Other acceptable shots require a quick slap of the trigger with the gun on the move to the next target. Training the mind to select and apply the correct technique for each shot is the first trick. Having the visual patience to let your highly trained mind do it for you without conscious intervention is the second trick. Guess which trick is harder to master? While perfectionism can be counter productive, I also believe shooters handicap themselves by being too in awe of supposedly greater talents and therefore convincing themselves they can’t shoot as fast or as accurately for various reasons. The empirical nature of shooting spawns endless excuses that allow each of us to remain comfortable in our self-imposed zone of relative skill. It’s a little uncomfortable to extend oneself out of that comfort zone and try something harder. The champion differs only in that she knows her comfort zone is an illusion. But that doesn’t mean we start out trying to hit aspirin tablets at 50 feet. For right now, we just want to hit something honestly and reliably. Let’s say a 2″ dot at 10 yards? That’s reasonable, though daunting for the new shooter. (For that matter, I know of some very experienced competitors who won’t allow themselves to hit that target reliably.) Well, assuming your sights are aligned fairly well and you see the blurred dot somewhere behind them, you’ll hit within a 2” target area every time so long as the trigger is pressed correctly. That’s the fundamental skill. This is how to get it: Unload your gun, and check it three more times. Good! You’ll do the rest with eyes closed. You note that you can easily drop the hammer without disturbing a dime when dry firing, but not when you know a bullet is present. I think you need to develop an unshakable faith in that skill, and an equally hard faith in the belief that if you focus on and align the sights and press through as you practice, you absolutely will hit the target. You also need to have equal faith in your ability to call each shot, and know where it went based on what the sights were doing as they lifted off the target during recoil. Visualize a sight picture on your chosen target in your mind while simultaneously pressing through on the trigger. Feel the trigger, how it might creep and wiggle under finger pressure. Try to get as close to dropping the hammer as you can, and hold it as you watch those imagined sights. You should ignore the target if your mind wants to stick one down there for you to look at instead. Watch the sights in your mind’s eye and you’ll see them dip, jerk and do all sorts of things. Feel the recoil and blink, perhaps. That’s great! Let your visualized shooting session seem as real as possible without too much conscious direction. Just allow yourself to come back to the sights, focus on the front blade, align them and press. Be focused on the process of operating the trigger, and learn to press through without tension, convulsive grasping of the hand, jerking or other funny stuff in response to the appearance of aligned sights in your mind. It’s a thing, a device, a machine you own and control. It doesn’t control you. Do this for two weeks, each night for at least ten or 15 minutes, or until you can’t maintain good form and sight visualizations without your mind wandering too much, and stop when you can’t feel exactly what the trigger’s doing as it releases the hammer. It’s fine to alternate visualization drills with a sighted “shots” against the wall, but the bulk of your dry firing practice should be associated and reinforced with guided imagery. Then, go the the range. Dry fire in this way on the line a bit. Now, here’s the deal: tell yourself the truth. You know when the gun’s loaded, but you have convinced yourself that following this process is what you will do. You must allow your subconscious to do it for you, since that’s what that last two weeks of intense repetition was for. Trust me, you’ve learned it. To actually DO it, you just occupy the ego with something safe it can do to help, rather than letting it take over in a doomed effort to make it happen and be the star of the show “now that it counts.” So, give the ego a job: let it watch the sights. Tell it to focus intensely on the front sight and not to think of anything else. Not the target (it’s there), not the gun (it’s fine and we know it’s zeroed well enough), just the front sight, aligned in the notch just as you’ve visualized. If you visualize the pistol firing when the sights appear aligned on the target, that’s what will happen. You have only to step out of the way and watch that front sight. The gun will fire, at least once or twice in that first session, without conscious thought making it do so. Those are the shots you’ll remember. Ignore the flinches, jerks and misses, as they don’t matter and are not any indicator of success. That’s how top shooters get there: they focus on the process and count their hits. Note, the most highly skilled shooters use the sights all the time, every time, as clearly and as well aligned as needed to make a given shot. Some tactical gurus, gun writers and other hounds baying at the moon will tell you that truly practical shooting isn’t about sights, and you’ll swear when you watch us on ESPN, the Outdoor Channel or at your local match that we can’t be seeing the sights at the rate we’re shooting in high-level competition. The entire concept of “point shooting” is praying to yet another false idol. I personally think the only true god is God, but your front sight is a safe icon to regard with complete obedience when it’s time to shoot, whether at maximum warp or at aspirin tablets. Here’s some additional thoughts on trigger pull weight and technique: Yes, a 1.5 pound trigger does facilitate trigger slap without unduly disrupting sight alignment / index / pointing or whatever you choose to pay attention to during a given shot. It also makes anything but a trigger slap impossible for most shooters, particularly at moderate speeds on discrete targets where positive reset would be a good thing. Much of what you see top Limited and Production IPSC shooters doing when shooting relatively quickly is indeed drawn from Open gun technique, in which the trigger is released and then pulled right through the reset point without stopping. Slapping the trigger is easier to learn with a dot, since you get instant feedback from that bouncing ball if you jerk the shot. I had leaned to slap with good follow through once, long ago when I shot an Open gun; somewhere along the way, I lost much of the follow through but kept the slap when I lost the dot. I say, follow-through is everything, whether you take a hard reset before breaking each shot or blow right through. I think it’s best to learn to use both trigger techniques, and incorporate them when appropriate in a seamless skill set. I can slap the 3X trigger on my SIG P-226 9mm with fair accuracy. It can be done. The first trick is to train your mind to apply only the pressure and rate required to release the sear without driving the trigger into the frame. The second trick here is to develop rock-solid, “dead” follow through skills. Yes, your muscles will always react to recoil in a reflexive way, as you realign the sights. Fine! Just make sure that reaction takes place well after the bullet has left the barrel. Dry firing with visualization and dummy round training at the range are keys, I believe. Calling shots at speed means using information from the sights to determine whether the previous shot hit or missed. There’s two ways to shoot: One is reactively, in which the sight picture is read on some conscious level and coordinated with a more or less sub-conscious action of trigger pull. That’s the “watch your front sight” school, and it works…sort of. The other is proactively, in which the sight picture is recalled on a lower-conscious level as verification that the subconscious saw what it needed to see when it broke the previous shot, while the subconscious is busy making the present one. This relates to the mode of observation that Enos and others describe. The conscious mind tends to linger in the just-past, not the present. If you ever wondered why some top shooters could do the things they do, this paragraph is really the whole enchilada. As for transitions, I do mean between targets. I stress, and can prove, that fast splits between first and second shots are not very productive in Limited, and for darn sure not in Production. (By fast, I mean faster than most anyone can really call their shots, or faster than about .16.) Despite what you see the hosers in your local club do, you will generally not find that the top guys like Todd, Robbie and Eric Grauffel depend upon such splits in Limited to make up time per se. In Open, yes, they can get away with more. But, the math suggests there’s little to gain in stressing splits over transitions, due to the points inevitably lost on the second shot and the extra physical and mental tension involved.
  5. We sure hope you make it too! Lots of vitamin C prior to the match! Stay Healthy my friend!
  6. Dana,

    Haven't spoken to you for some time. I know schedules and life can get in the way. However, I wanted to see how you were doing and hope all is going well.

    Here are a few Links

    Ohio Section

    http://www.brianenos.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=135893&st=0

    Indiana Section

    http://uspsaindiana.org/index.php?option=com_content&v...

  7. Oh Chris, we Indiana folk would have to be dragged to Ohio for this match! I will be there for sure, trying to coordinate with Daniel and others. Maybe we can get the Indiana Clan together and make a squad.
  8. Entry form 2 is attached, we did not allow enough room for your address and we are getting entries that are hard to read. 2012 Indiana Entry form.pdf
  9. If anyone has or wants to submit any stage designs or ideas all will be encouraged to send, accepted, reviewed and a determination will be made. All bays are near 25 yds X 25 yds. We look forward to seeing you all there. This years prize table is going be better than last as we have already received commitments from new sponsors as well as some from last year!
  10. 2012 Indiana

    Single stack, Production & Revolver

    USPSA Championship Match

    Brought to you by :

    Atlanta Conservation Club

    Central Indiana Practical Shooters - IN19

    Atlanta IN.

    October 27 & 28 - 2012

    Match fee $65 before October 1 $80 afterwards

    Juniors $30 with paid Adult

    No Refunds after October 1

    Hop...

  11. 2012 Indiana Single stack, Production & Revolver USPSA Championship Match Brought to you by : Atlanta Conservation Club Central Indiana Practical Shooters - IN19 Atlanta IN. October 27 & 28 - 2012 Match fee $65 before October 1 $80 afterwards Juniors $30 with paid Adult No Refunds after October 1 We are pro-actively getting this match organized to make it better than 2011! We have heard nothing but positive feedback from this years match 2011. I have already had commitments from major sponsors and working on more for a larger prize table in 2012. This will be a trophy match again however if we continue to get the support we have been receiving we may have a lot more for the winners of each division. YTBD. This is the application for 2012 for those, who like us plan our year sooner than later. This is just to inform you that it is available, and acceptance will be received and self Squadding will start in May. We are accepting requests for staff for this match. (Setup, CRO, RO. and Scorekeepers) of these staff members match fees are exempt.
  12. Count me in. We made late decisions last year and had a Great Squad of Hoosier Shooters!
  13. Ladies & Gentleman. We are proud to announce that ACC has graciously been awarded the 2012 USPSA Indiana SS/Prod/Rev Championships per the Indiana Section Coordinator (Jake Martens) This match will be held Oct 27 & 28th 2012. I am seeking to put a specific website conjoined with USPSAIndiana.org together for promotional reasons so we can make this match bigger and better than this year, with more preperation, more sponsors who have committed to next year, and more competitors. What I am seeking is anyone willing or wanting to share photos, video, or any memorable moments from this match so we can incorporate it into promotional reagalia. It will not be paid, sponsored, nor, anything other than compeitiors willing to show their sport in action. If interested. Please PM me and I will give you my email address. Thank You all for coming. It was the most FUN I have had shooting like SH!T. Why because we were there for YOU~! Bart Farmer
  14. Hey Gentlemen! Thank you for stepping up and donting bullets to the prize table! Jim you see they were the first to go!

    You guys are Awesome and good job to Ryan!! Hoorah!

    Hope to see you affiliated next year!

    Bart Farmer

  15. That was Jonathon Cochran! He is a new Jr. Shooter at ACC. He is an awesome shooter! WE at ACC look forward to, as well as our fellow competitors mentoring him into the future! His Father is an awesome guy! Thanks Kyle for that Kudos to him! He was a knowledge sponge and super curious about everything from guntech to stage breakdown. Glad I had a chance to shoot with him. Ross! Kudos to assiting and mentoring! That is what this sport is about! Hoorah!
  16. Funny You won the Makers Mark in the "Bet" who would finish first in C Class! I hope it taste good. He will be shooting that XDM he won. Oh NO HE WONT, The A-Hole will sell it to put towards another freaking CZ! Rob You Suck!
  17. That was Jonathon Cochran! He is a new Jr. Shooter at ACC. He is an awesome shooter! WE at ACC look forward to, as well as our fellow competitors mentoring him into the future! His Father is an awesome guy! Thanks Kyle for that Kudos to him!
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