d_striker

[d_striker]

After a long hiatus, I'm back in the game. For the past couple of years, my job required about 70% travel. Being a road warrior most of the week means that one's weekend is spent taking care of things in life that are usually done incrementally throughout the week. I recently switched roles within the same company and I don't have to travel anymore!

I managed to shoot 2 matches in 2012 early in the year but that was it. Until last Sunday, I haven't shot any matches in quite some time.

I wasn't really going to post in this thread anymore...Then I started watching some vids from 2010 and re-read what I wrote back then. I completely forgot all of the realizations I was making and what I was struggling with back then and documenting here.

I suppose that is the purpose of the 'Range Diary'. For a minute I thought, "Well, I can just create an offline range diary and keep track of my progress there." I don't think I would put as much effort into it though if I knew I was only logging information for myself. I also wouldn't be getting feedback/tips from some other amazing shooters using that method.

Long story short, I'm back....And I'm super pumped about it. Living out of a suitcase and spending all of your time in hotels, airplanes, airports, and rental cars gradually kills your soul.

Edited April 10, 2013 by d_striker

[Chris iliff]

Welcome back!!

[frunkenstein]

Rough weekend last weekend for both of us ehh d man

[d_striker]

Rough weekend last weekend for both of us ehh d man

Yup. I had fun though. And it was great being outside in that great weather before it turned to shit this week.

[d_striker]

I have recently entered into a coaching arrangement with Charlie Perez (CHA-LEE.) I'm incredibly pumped to have Charlie as a coach and I believe that his coaching will help me arrive at my full potential much faster than going at it alone. I'm currently a C class Limited shooter and I'm excited to see how far I can take my game.

In our first session, we reviewed and discussed Charlie's "curriculum" which is based upon key aspects required (identified by Charlie) to be successful at practical shooting. This portion was performed with somewhat of an informal "classroom" vibe employing mutual Q&A. Charlie spent a good amount of time qualifying those key aspects both in general and also as it pertained to where my skills are currently at.

The discussion portion was extremely insightful as I was getting countless "nuggets" of invaluable insight/tips which I assume took Charlie years and thousands of rounds of ammo to figure out. After the discussion portion, we did some dry fire activity in order to establish where I was at with my stance, grip, draw and reloads.

I have had a Limited rig set up for a few years now. I thought I had my belt, mag pouches, and holster configured in the best manner possible until we started discussing why I had my gear at their current locations. Charlie gave me advice on what works and the reason for why it works.

So far I have discovered that Charlie has an inherently, profound nature about himself that allows him to identify the reality of what is actually going on and also allows him to provide the solution to any identified problems. Rather than just giving the answers, though, Charlie frames his perspective in a manner that challenges the individual to logically arrive at the answer for oneself. Speaking from my own perspective, I appreciate this approach as it makes me understand the "why" rather than being told the "why."

Edited May 22, 2013 by d_striker

[d_striker]

I recently got a Double Alpha Race Master holster. I am incredibly impressed with the design, materials, and finish of this holster with respect to its price tag of $200. This holster is comprised of 4 CNC machined aluminum components. The insert block is machined Delrin with engraving of the pistol model that the insert is for. Top it all off with what appears to be a Type II anodized finish and "Race Master" laser marked on it and I'm very surprised at its price tag.

I have been using a Blade Tech Black Ice DOH and I've become accustomed to how low the pistol grip sits when in the holster. My only "complaint" (if you can really call it a complaint) with the DAA Race Master is that I would prefer that the gun sit lower when holstered. I believe DAA's new version addresses this.

I sat down and thought about how I could drop the gun a little lower. Luckily for me I work at a manufacturing company that has a tool room. I brew my own beer and I trade one of the tool makers homebrew for machining services.

I created a 3D model for a part that would drop the holster up to 1.75" and also angle the hanger away from my leg by 5 degrees. The part will attach to the belt attachment using the top hole on the end with the radius and the hanger will be attached to one of the three bottom tapped holes.

I gave the tool room my model and it's in queue for fabrication. We'll see how it turns out.

Edited May 25, 2013 by d_striker

[frunkenstein]

Looks good d-man hope to see it soon.

[d_striker]

The majority of what I know about practical shooting has been gleaned from reading articles on the internet, watching videos online, and of course surfing this forum. While this approach is better than nothing, it does nothing as far as giving the individual insight into what they perceive they are doing and what they are actually doing; especially with fundamentals and movement. One can try to argue that you can achieve the same thing through independent video analysis. One might see certain things on video but video will never be able to fully capture and convey everything that is going on.

I did some live fire training with CHA-LEE over the holiday weekend. I learned a lot about how I currently approach stage planning and my misperceptions on the actual time associated with certain activities.

It has been ingrained into my mind that I always need to be shooting while moving whenever possible. If I move at a slow enough pace, I can get mostly Alpha's with a few C's and D's. My shooting cadence while moving is slow and deliberate and transitions from target to target follow suit. If I push it on my walking pace, I start breaking shots with a marginal sight picture and my hit quality goes down significantly to the point where I might have a miss, especially on a partial target. In general, my overall hit quality goes down substantially the faster I walk.

I learned that while there are sometimes certain sections on a field course where it is advantageous to move while shooting, there are times where it is not beneficial with where I'm currently at with my shooting. I learned that in most situations (for me), it is faster to shoot an array while standing and then haul ass to the next array. The quality of the hits are also substantially better. Of course, if the array is only 3 yards away, I'm going to blast that array while moving if it makes sense. Once targets are in the 7-10 yard range, I start running into problems with accuracy and speed. At club matches, I will often incur penalties from misses and I accept marginal hits whenever I force myself to shoot while moving. It would be one thing if I were shaving 3 seconds off of my stage time by moving/shooting, but I'm not. So in the end, it's a net loss in value. Of course I will continue to practice shooting while moving, but I need to take into consideration the risk vs reward associated with shooting/moving at my current skill level.

We also worked on elements of gun handling and movement that enable me to move faster and start shooting sooner. There are numerous "little" things like weight distribution, foot placement, body position, etc that optimize movement through a stage simply by being more efficient. These factors were only half of the equation, though. The other half of optimized gun handling and movement was getting into shooting positions that ensured a solid stance/body position. Moving into a port to engage a wide array in the optimized location and stance enabled me to effectively and powerfully transition throughout the entire array while maintaining a solid base.

While I've always been good about not getting "sucked" into ports if not necessary, I've never given a lot of thought to how I was positioned once I got to the port and transitioned through an array. On a wide array through a port, I would just get there and transition with my arms. My legs were just there, not helping. By transitioning with my arms I would end up shooting on one leg when engaging the targets at the outer extremes. No matter how good one's balance is, they inherently have a more solid platform when on two legs. While there will always be that portion of a stage that forces you to shoot on one leg, I found out that I was shooting in an unbalanced stance when it wasn't even necessary due to how I was setting up at the port.

The above lessons are only a few of the knowledge bombs dropped on me. I am being introduced to a level of stage strategy that goes FAR beyond airgunning a stage while programming "shoot these targets, go here, reload, shoot those, etc." I've always believed that efficiency is the rawest form of common sense and today's "nuggets" reinforce that belief. Although I say that the nuggets are based on common sense/efficiency, they are at a level of detail that I'm not sure I would have independently arrived at for at least a few years. Additionally, every individual does a certain task their own unique (often wrong) way. One will never know what they are specifically doing wrong or how they could perform a specific task better through reading books or watching general video tips.

What I'm starting to realize is that there is no magic secret or trick that makes the top shooters as good as they are. It's all of the collective "little details" executed efficiently and flawlessly, on top of solid shooting fundamentals that makes them as fast and accurate as they are.

CHA-LEE puts on training classes for small groups. I will be attending one of these formal training classes on Saturday and can't wait. I'm getting a better and deeper understanding of practical shooting and I can't get enough.

Edited May 29, 2013 by d_striker

[Esther]

hey Dominic,

Thanks for sharing what you learned from CHA-LEE! While you are right that everyone does things wrong in their own way and that nothing can replace in-person observation and feedback from a coach, I'm learning a lot just reading about your mistakes and progress.

Best of luck and keep the info coming!

Esther :-)

[CHA-LEE]

Learning is an ever evolving process. Keep at it buddy

[d_striker]

I attended a training class instructed by CHA-LEE on Saturday. The class covered a lot of material and was a lot to take in, but it was very well run. The class focused on a combination of elements such as stage strategy/breakdown, gun handling, marksmanship and shooting strategy, and movement. There are so many different aspects of movement....From entering/exiting shooting positions, transitioning through arrays, and moving through the stage in general just to name a few.

We set up a 32 round stage with 4 different arrays. If one were to just roll up on the stage, one would think that it was a typical field course at first. As the class progressed, you realized that there was a reason why each section was set up.

The class was structured in an incremental progression of skills on each array and gradually "pieced" one array to the next. Each individual array was broken down and discussed. CHA-LEE talked about the advantages, disadvantages, and reasons for different approaches. We first shot the stage as if it were a match. Then we broke down each section as previously described.

The first section focused on strategy surround foot position, target transitions, and reasons for setting up on certain targets in a given array. We shot this array multiple times until everyone had a good grasp on what was being conveyed and then worked on the movement out of this shooting location and into the next. One guy was shooting Production and CHA-LEE worked with him individually about throwing in his reload after this section.

The lessons on the second array followed the same structure as the first array, but the skills focus was unique for this particular array. Most everyone else was running at higher mag capacity and would reload after this array. We spent a good amount of time on how to dynamically exit this shooting location while doing a mag change.

The third section had 4 targets in it with 2 to the left and 2 to the right of the shooter. Getting to a specific location was critical for this array as it enabled the shooter to engage the targets in the most efficient and strategic order possible while considering movement into the last section which was a port.

The last section had a popper activated swinger and static paper targets. We spent time discussing the different types of moving targets and the manner in which they are activated. We spent a lot of time discussing the different methods for engaging swingers and then went through an incremental skill/shooting progression on this array. The swinger training was worth the very reasonable class fee alone, especially if you don’t have access to one. The only time I ever shoot swingers is in match.

At a club match stage with a swinger I would typically watch where the swinger stopped. I would try to ambush the target and throw a round before it got to that point and again when it was on its way back up. This “hope and pray” method would sometimes work by luck but most often it would not. Calling one’s shots using this method is very difficult. CHA-LEE showed us a way to shoot the swinger that makes more sense and even allows one to call their shots. I walked away with a lot more confidence on swingers. It’s crazy but towards the end of this lesson, the swinger didn’t seem like it was moving as fast as it initially was. Prior to the swinger lesson, I felt like I was “reacting” to the swinger (in an anxiety ridden panic) and chasing it. After the lesson, I felt like I was “controlling” this portion of the stage which allowed me to manage my time more effectively. Swingers have always screwed me up because I’d feel rushed to trap the target. I would sling a few bullets at it, not certain if I got my hits, and the potential misses would be looming in the back of my mind while engaging the next targets.

There were a few practical shooting newbs in the class and they went from not getting any hits to drilling the A zone on the swinger. It was really cool to see the instant progression in other’s skills.

Finally, we put it all together and ran the complete stage using all of our newly learned skills/strategy. It was impressive to see the quality of hits and time improve for everyone in the class. The class was extremely beneficial and I feel like I keep adding new skills to my practical shooting “skill toolbox.” I hope to attend more of CHA-LEE’s training classes in the future.

[d_striker]

I shot an indoor match on Monday night. Overall, I'm happy with how I shot the match. I'm making fewer mistakes and I'm doing certain things better and faster. My first stage wasn't a disaster but it wasn't great. I was using a target focus on 90% of the targets which made me shoot REALLY slow. I shot okay on the other 3 stages but made a few mistakes. On the classifier, I didn't nail my reload on the first string. I completely botched my reload on the second string which is embarrassing due to the fact that it was a standing reload. I had one miss for the match overall which occurred due to me looking at the next target before I broke the second shot on the one I was engaging.

I seem to struggle the most on the first stage of a match with using a target focus. I think part of it is that the targets are fresh and it's easy to see clean holes. After the first stage, I'll keep telling myself over and over to look at my sights and eventually will start focusing on my sights most of the time. A close target will still suck me in and make me revert to a target focus but I'm making a deliberate effort to really call my shots. I think that as the targets get more and more shot up, I start using my sights more because I subconsciously know that the targets are too beat up to try to look for holes.

I still don't have certain things "programed" as I'll revert to old habits with my grip, posture, and transitions. I realized that I'm not using the new grip that I've been working on. Once the buzzer goes off on a real stage, I draw using my old grip. Last night, while dry firing I really broke down my draw into two steps that I think will help me consistently obtain the grip that I've been working on with CHA-LEE.

The turnout of GM's and M's at the local indoor match is not that high. CHA-LEE was the only GM there and I finished at 85% of his first place, overall finish. Without a 3-4 second malfunction that CHA-LEE had on the first stage, I think I still would have finished at about 80% of him. A month ago, I would have finished at approximately 55%-65% of the top Limited GM.

It's crazy because I've only been training with CHA-LEE for a few weeks but the rate of my progression has skyrocketed. My actual shooting hasn't gotten faster yet, but I'm executing my plan with newly learned skills and fundamentals that are improving the quality of my hits, reducing penalties, and increasing my movement efficiency while navigating through the stage.

I've been thinking a lot about my goals for USPSA. Of course, I want to someday see that M or (hopefully GM) on my USPSA card, but personally I'm in the camp that doesn't think classifiers are a true indication of one's OVERALL skill level. The other thing is that I could shoot 4-8 matches in a month before the classifications are recalculated. My short term goals, match-to-match, are to finish as close as I can to the top Limited GM's. I need to drill into my head that the only way to achieve both my short and long term goals is by calling my shots, one shot at a time...

Edited June 7, 2013 by d_striker

[d_striker]

I shot a club match down in Pueblo last Sunday. Some stages went well, some were just "meh", and I only had one disaster stage where my mag dropped unintentionally from my support hand hitting the mag release.

Once the buzzer goes off, I'm not hitting my positions as planned. This is causing me to "shuffle" around within an array to engage my intended targets. I also struggled with aggressively moving out of shooting positions.

I struggled with looking for holes in targets all day. With the sun high and bright, it was easy to see daylight through bullet holes in targets. Especially when those holes were in portions of blacked out hard cover paper targets. I think that my left eye picks up the daylight which sort of distracts me and then makes me look at the target with both eyes after suspecting misses.

I was also "confused" on some stages. I felt like I was wandering around deliberately thinking about where to go and what targets to shoot next. I chalk this up to not having my stage plan adequately programmed which means that I need to become more proficient with burning it into memory.

Overall, I finished at 66% of the top Limited GM. I was hoping to finish around 70%-75% as longer field courses are different from indoor matches where there aren't as many "options." In the end, I just wasn't consistent enough stage to stage.

I'm really bummed that I can't shoot the Mile High Showdown this weekend. This is by far the best Level II match in Colorado. It's always well run with fun stages. Additionally, the prize table goes deep at this match and there are always guns up for grabs.

I have to travel out of town tomorrow which means no shooting for me this weekend. I'm going to go get some live fire practice in after work today and test out an extension tube that I just installed on a shotgun. One day I want to start shooting 3-gun when time and money are more available. I had to get the shotgun lined up before the stupid CO magazine bans go into effect on July 1. I'm looking forward to getting back into town midweek and shooting a club match in Aurora on Saturday and then a section qualifier in Dumont on Sunday.

Edited June 14, 2013 by d_striker

[frunkenstein]

Missed you out there great day, not a lot of heat ,stages laid some Cha-lee traps. I made 2 errors that hit me pretty good. The morning steel was doing a dance on me and wasted alot of time, I tightened up my grip and the afternoon steel wasnt quite as bad. Hope to rock at PSAC next Sat.

[frunkenstein]

Hey d man you playing at PSAC tomorrow

[d_striker]

The part I designed for my DAA Race Master holster has been fabricated. Overall, it came out pretty good. The guy that did it took the liberty of putting a heavy bead blast finish on it. I don't know what media he used but it was aggressive and makes the part look and almost feel like a whetstone. I'll probably sand the finish off and leave it at that.

Edited June 29, 2013 by d_striker

[CHA-LEE]

That part looks pretty cool!!! Are you going to get it anodized?

[d_striker]

That part looks pretty cool!!! Are you going to get it anodized?

Nah. Most commercial anodizers charge a lot fee of at least $200 which wouldn't make it worth it.

I'm not sure if Rick Hebert anodizes. But if he was running something of the same color, i'd be interested in seeing if my part could take a dip with whatever else he was running.

[frunkenstein]

How about just polishing it up. I have a few friends who do this you would like.

[d_striker]

How about just polishing it up. I have a few friends who do this you would like.

I'm not too concerned about the bling factor. It would have been cool if the tool maker just left it with a machined finish. I thought it looked pretty cool.

[d_striker]

It's been a busy couple of months with work, and life in general, which means that I haven't shot as many matches or practiced as much as I would have liked. The next couple of months are going to be pretty busy as well as elk archery season is in a couple weeks. I also have to go to a wedding in NC in September which is sort of a bummer because it's the same weekend as the section qualifier match at PPPS.

I shot a section qualifier match at the HPPS venue yesterday. EVERY stage at this match was a lot of fun and a good test of movement. Both shooting on the move and also movement throughout the stage. Overall, I'm happy with my performance. I had a few screw ups but managed to avoid any complete train wrecks. I finished at 73.67% of the 1st place GM (CHA-LEE) which is where my expectations are for myself at this point, but I would like to be finishing at an A class percentage of the top GM at club matches.

I still have a couple of tanked scores factored in my classification after the update last week, so I'm a few points shy of B class. I think I'll get bumped to a low B in Limited after the revision next month. My goal is to continue to try to shoot at an A class percentage of the top GM at club matches. My shooting has progressed astronomically since I started training with CHA-LEE a few months ago.

Stage 3
I got off to a rough start on Stage 3 today. I botched my reload and had a M on this stage. I was looking for bullet holes on the array after my botched reload. I caught my eyes wandering back to targets I just shot at which caused the M on the last array.


Stage 4
I got all my hits on this stage but called misses on each of the last 3 targets that I didn't need. I felt comfortable shooting on the move today as I wasn't trying to push my pace like I often do when shooting on the move.


Stage 5
This was a really fun, 36 round stage. I had 1 M on the last paper target before my reload.


Stage 6
I didn't get any video on this Classifier

Stage 1
I had 1 M on headshot on the first array. I got a little confused after my reload after shooting the targets on the left. I'm moving in slow motion, trying to think about which target I'm supposed to shoot next.


Stage 2
This was a fun stage that started with all of your mags in a suitcase. I forgot to unlock my holster which didn't hurt me too much. But it did make me panic a little bit and made me think like I was behind. I forgot where I was going to reload and went to reload one target too early but then re-engaged the target. I bobbled my mag on the reload a bit as it was on a magnet. I need to find a magnet that is a little bigger as the mag isn't too stable on my setup right now. Once I touch the basepad, the mag sort of just falls off.

Edited August 18, 2013 by d_striker

[frunkenstein]

You shot very well yesterday and if you dont make B soon Ill know you are sand bagging LOL. It was good to see that you were not out running the pistol. Is that magnet the one with your holster. I on the other hand am going backwards and Im really struggling to find the sweet spot. Im going make major grip changes this week and put the *thumb rest [generic]* back on to see if anything helps. Again great shoot.Hopefully we wont have any micro bursts like yesterday next week.

[d_striker]

Thanks Frank. Stage 1 was good. Your stage designs are getting better and better.

The magnet is on my first mag pouch.

Edited August 18, 2013 by d_striker

[frunkenstein]

I try to design to my weaknesses and then try to give everyone a chance. Now if I could shoot them it would be fantastic.

Edited August 21, 2013 by frunkenstein

[d_striker]

Well, it looks like another hiatus from practical shooting is in the cards for me. I've been working on getting a brewpub going for the past couple of years. We've been close a couple of times but the location we wanted would have taken a lot more capital than I was comfortable with. I've been consulting for another brewpub startup for the past year and we've come to the agreement to partner. I will be a managing partner of Manitou Brewing Company located in Manitou Springs, CO. We hope to have our doors open by the beginning of 2014 which means that this venture has already begun to take up all of my time outside of my current job. I will eventually leave my day job and go to MBC full time.

All of this has materialized just when my shooting was progressing on the fast track. I went from a D shooter in Limited to B in only 4 months. I could not have progressed as quickly as I did without the training from Charlie Perez.

If anyone is truly serious about progressing their game, I highly recommend taking classes with Charlie.