Rush, Rush shoot

[aztecdriver]

Nothing major in the form of screw-ups - just a point that what goes on in our heads can alter the frame of mind we need in order to perform.

Tuesday night indoor match, my daughter has started a traveling soccer program that requires practice this night, and it's in the area of my range - and she's done at the time the match starts, so I dropped her off - make my way over to help setup. 5 new shooter show up! (great!) and we have plenty of hands helping setup the stages. So I go about giving the briefing to the new guys, and then realize I have to go pick her up.

15 minutes to the field, 15 back. I left my eyes in ears in my bag - back on the range. Grab a loaner set - get mine - and get us setup. They've started shooting so I'm getting my rig on, loading mags, talking to my girl...

Even though I was there - I didn't get to look at the course and develop a plan with everyone else, so-- i sneak a couple looks - do a walk through when i'm on deck and think I've got it.

The plan I made called for me to load 20 rnds in the first mag (G35 limited) and I typically put 18 in each to start. Didn't remember that until I had chambered the barney up - so I holstered the gun, pealed another two off the barney mag and shoved them in the first mag, and slammed it home solid. Started off ok, threw a makeup shot I wasn't expecting, so whoops, a slide lock reload - oh well, I can deal with that. Get to the last array before my reload, shoot one into the bottom target(two stacked on a stand) and I'm at slide lock - DANG - it was really 22. Standing still slide lock load... oh well... lets get on with it, Finish the course out - with an ehhh limited time. I'm about a B class guy, so I realized that time I lost was going to hurt on the 28 rnd course. Then we go about scoring - and I see the mike - on the first target I engaged -- in fact - it was a D/M. Think back - did I see the sight when it indexed on the target - --- nah, not sure I did. Crap... oh well, on to the the 25 rnd speed shoot.

Some reason, I had it in my head just to smoke the course. 5 targets - 5 rounds on each basically two positions and a reload at 7 yards. Simple right? I step out engage, and start walking while engaging the next two - reload and post up and scream away. - again I think about whether i saw the sight. - Nah and there was a ton more hop in the shooting so I'm sure my grip was not right either. Grip - are you serious - I havn't had a grip issue in a year. Sure enough 2 M and a whole ton of C's and D's - got 4 alphas total. Shot it in 8.42. You can't miss fast enough is what I just hung my head and said to myself.

It's an indoor two stage match, but it's not how I perform. It's not how I can perform, and after it was over I looked back and said "why did you do that?" All I can come up with was - my mind wasn't on the game. It was on driving, getting places on time - getting ready, talking with my daughter, wondering why she didn't want to shoot with us The basics slipped away. Nothing untoward happened with safety.

I guess the reason I had to write this one up was just I was expecting myself to do better. I've BEEN performing better lately. Everyone has a bad day, and maybe it's just that I look forward to this SO much I didn't fathom that mentally - I might not be at my best. Everyone has times when things are invading their mental arena - and sometimes, yes, it does even effect safety... but I also see people that do something like this regularly and completely dismiss the mental aspects that go into it. With my next matches being a sectional and an area - i guess it concerns me a bit - and I also realize I have something to work on that has almost nothing to do with cartridges, barrels, mags or sights.

Edited March 24, 2010 by aztecdriver

[benos]

Let go of all your expectations, and at all times know that rushing is the natural enemy of flawless execution. And see what happens.

be

[aztecdriver]

Let go of all your expectations, and at all times know that rushing is the natural enemy of flawless execution. And see what happens.

be

Thanks for reminder. A quick update - last Tuesday another club match and I won the field course in a time that was pretty surprising to me. It was a very relaxed evening and the shooting just seemed to flow. I'm definitely taking this as the biggest reminder going into two majors in the next two weeks.