Food for Thought

[Sean Gaines]

I figured I would start a thread on things that have helped me along the way. Some of the things will be trivial and some will be more complex ideas. Some will just be my oppinion on particular subject. Alot of people have setup range diaries, which are awesome! But in a way this will be my way of throwing ideas out there for everyone to benefit from, when they come to mind. I guess you can say stuff that is in the "toolbox", thats been sitting there collecting dust that someone could benefit from and put in their "toolbox" to help their overall game, and shorten the learning curve.

[Sean Gaines]

"Change out your fiber optic after every 2-3k rounds of shooting, or every other time you clean your gun."

Some will leave their fiber optic in, until it falls out. I think they are missing out. A $.25 piece of fiber optic changed out fairly frequently will provide a nice bright dot for you. Its kinda like washing your car, you feel as if your car is running better, and we all know its not true, its just a mental thing. Well changing your fiber optic can give you that new gun feeling.

Also if you are getting sloppy with your hits, change out to a different color rod, and change things up a little. It plays with your mind. change out to a blue color, which does nothing, but blacken your sight. It forces you to concentrate on your sights more. Then go back to your original color when your hits start comming back.

Edited May 26, 2011 by Sean Gaines

[Sean Gaines]

"USPSA is as hard as you make it to be"

When you first start shooting this sport. You see alot of veterans shooting stages with blazing speed, and it can be intimidating to alot of new shooters. With time you will find that alot of the scenarios that you see, will be repeat scenarios, maybe changed up a little bit. What we tend to do at first is make

"Mole Hills into Mountains". We look at the entire stage and go man there is alot of movers, no shoots, reloads, and clutter our mind with negative thoughts. The way you should look at a stage, as a series of drills. Each shooting position is a 8-10rd drill, then you move to the next drill. We tend to make a stage more complicated than it actually is and let our nerves beat us before we even fired the first shot. Don't let this happen...

I remember a major event that I shot last year, and I was shooting an excellent match. I had one more stage to shoot, and I started getting a little nervous. Which kinda took me out of my game a little. I was telling myself I will win my class with this stage, knowing that I shot all the rest of the stages good. So it came down to one stage, and I started getting butterflies the pressure started adding up and getting the best of me. I was making a "Mole hill into a Mountain". My mind was setting me up for defeat, when in all actuality, the stage wasn't difficult by any means. But your mind can play tricks with you. And you must learn to play tricks back.

I was to the point of not talking to anyone, and focusing on the stage. looking back, it must have been funny, because I was in this serious mode, while this anxiety was creaping over me. Then I thought to myself, all I have to do is shoot good points on this stage and I will win! Telling myself that sent the butterflies flying out of my stomach and it felt like a ton of bricks came off my shoulders, I instantly became more relaxed, and a smile appeared on my face. I could actually breathe correctly. Just by telling myself "All I have to do is shoot good points"! The stage wasn't difficult, it was 24 shots, port to port type stage. Actually a nice stage to end with, short and simple.

So, The buzzer goes off, I shot the stage with good points but had a death jam in the middle of the stage,that cost me about 6 seconds and the result 2nd master.... LOL, but I shot the stage with no nerves!

Morale of the story is to not make something bigger than it actually is, in life and in shooting. Don't be defeated before you even fire your first round.

Edited May 26, 2011 by Sean Gaines

[Sean Gaines]

"Murphy was an optimist"

Always check your equipment, and don't wait till the day before the match to do it. Try to get into the habit of checking your gun in the safe area after each match to make sure everything is still functioning properly, and that something didn't break during the match. So that all you have to do is clean your gun for the next match, and not fix something on a whim.

First of all you will have peace of mind with your equipment. If something is broke, you can take it to your gunsmith and hopefully have it fixed before your next match. If you fix something on a whim, and the gun hasn't been test fired, in some instances could pose a safety issue to you and your fellow shooters.

Also, double check your ammo. If there is a doubt about a round. "Throw it away"

you can check your rounds. Using a case gauge that is tighter than your barrel, if the gauge is not tighter than your barrel, than find one that is. And, if you cannot, than use your barrel to gauge your rounds. Make sure there is no cracks in your cases,sometimes case gauges will catch cracks and somtimes they will not. I usually inspect the rounds going into my magazines, by inserting the round and spinning the round at the same time, while keeping an eye on the case rim.

[Sean Gaines]

"Kydex vs Speed Holsters"

My take is their is a use for both. Personally I like using a good kydex holster as opposed to a speed type holster for the following reasons.

-Using a kydex holster can be just as fast as a race holster.

-Using a kydex holster is required in 2 of the 6 divisions

-Using a kydex holster like a bladetech, will allow you to have a similiar and consistent draw, if you decide to switch and shoot a different division. There is no retraining of your draw, it stays consistent!

-Kydex holsters argueably can be safer than some of the speed holsters available. And, Nobody wants to go home because they drop their gun.

-In my oppinion a race holster are good if you are just going to shoot open, or just limited/L-10, but if you plan to shoot all of the other divisions, use a good kydex holster and get used to it. The only reason I use a race holster, is for open shooting, where there is a scope mount on the gun, which prohibits me from using a kydex. in that case, my speed holster is setup the same as my kydex.

[Sean Gaines]

"The yeah, yeah Phenomenon"

Or the yeah I know that one phenomenon. or do you really? This actually should have probably been the first post on this thread, but its close to the top, so who cares right?

the YYP usally applies to fundamental aspects of the game. example grip, stance, sight alinment, trigger control etc etc. Usually when I teach a new student, I will tell them the fundamentals like the ones listed above and I will get this look, like are you serious, I paid for this class and you are going teach me how to hold the gun, without really saying it. Each fundametal aspect in shooting is equally important, and should not be taken with a grain of salt. Everyone knows that when you grip the gun you should apply 60/40 pressure between your weekhand and your stronghand, but have you ever tried pulling the gun up and trying to exert that type of force on the gun. Most of you have not, you "yeah, yeah" your way through it. You know that its what you are supposed to do, but don't really do it, or even try it.

What typically happens with this Phenomenon is that one day you will realize that you are doing something wrong, ie. hits on target are all over the place, the gun is flipping harsh in your hand,etc. and you will attribute it to one of the fundamentals, and say to yourself "duh" I knew that. Once this happens you will consciencely have to put more effort into doing that particular fundamental correctly so that your hits are not everywhere or the gun doesn't flip in your hands so hard. The problem with this is that you are bringing a consciece thought into an instinctual/subconscience action, which makes you slower. This is ok! What you will have to do is do many repitions to burn that fundamental into your subconscience, and once you do this than it will be done instinctually and your speed will come back! Everyone, has heard of the term "Muscle Memory" This is what is happening. "Yeah, Yeah" you know!

The most common place I see the YYP happening is burning the stage in your memory. I will ask someone "how are you going to shoot his stage?" They will tell me I am going to draw, shoot these 4 paper, run to this spot shoot paper, paper steel, then do a reload and then shoot ther rest of the targets at the last spot, ok now I am going to load my mags. And thats it! There are varying degrees of burning in a stage. you can burn in it at the quality of 8 track, tape, cd, dvd, or Blue Ray. The person was burning in the stage like an 8 track. My point is, is that varying degrees of quality per fundamental. In order to master the fundamentals, you must study each and everyone and try to perfect each and everyone. The person thought he was doing that particual fundamental(burning the stage in) correctly in his mind, but actually it could have been done more vividly and to a higher degree than what he was doing, he could have shot the stage 20-30times in his mind before he evens steps up to the line.

One thing you ought to try in your spare time is write down every fundamental you can think of. Once you do this, write a page or two about what you know about each fundamental that you have on your list. Write down, Why is it important, how would it benefit me? what would happen If I didn't use it? This is called Homework.

I remember speaking with Blake Miguez at the LA Gator Classic back in 2007, and I asked him how do you shoot the stages so fast? I guess its a question he gets asked alot. lol, But he replied,"I have strong fundamentals. I don't have to worry about my draw, my reloads, my footwork. All I have to do is shoot good points." I looked at him and thought thats it! I went back to the hotel, and thought about it, and the more I thought about it, the more it made sense. I thought his fundametals are strong. His expectations on lets say the fundamental action of a draw is .80 of a second on a 7rd target. My expectation of draw at the same target is 1 second. His expectations or desired degree of success on a target that close is .2 of a second faster than mine. Do that with all the fundamentals, and it starts adding up to some serious time savings. Albeit he has alot of natural skill, but we all do to some "degree"

The fundamentals are the little things that make us a well rounded shooter, but there are varying degrees of expectation that we have set in our mind, per each fundamental skill set. In order to get better, look at the fundamentals, and do not "yeah, yeah" the importance of each of them. Set your degree of expectation high on each of the fundamentals, and take action on each of them and watch your shooting go to the next level....

[LINC]

Good stuff Sean.

[Sean Gaines]

"learning from video"

This is probably the best way to learn the game!!! They say a child will learn more in his lifetime from ages 1-5. Most of the learning is done from watching their parents and imitating them. When I first started shooting USPSA, I bought every single dvd out there on the market that had a professional shooters. I would watch these videos over and over and watch how the pro's moved, transitions, how they shoot the stage etc. What is great about video, is that you can see every nuiance. You can replay the stage over and over, you can put a particular shooter in slow motion and really get a good critique from it. It seemed like everytime i would watch a video, I would pick up something small that I could put in my toolbox or some different aspect of the game that I never even thought of. The cost of instruction can be expensive, and alot of times you have to wait on the instructor to have an opening to take a class. This is not discouraged, but in the meantime watching video can be great for learning subtle nuiances that some instructurs won't divulge, because they might think it will go over your head, and they don't want to waste 30 minutes trying to explain something small, when they could be spending more time on the meat and potatos of shooting. Sometimes learning on your own can be more constructive, due to the fact that you discovered it, and that you wind up taking the finding a little further to verify its validity. This alone has been one of the biggest learning tools in my game!

video yourself

keep in mind that having a training partner is great, but sometimes they have things they must do during a course of the match. Bring a video camera. Today the video cameras are very easy to operate, in fact so easy that all you have to do is push the red button to start and push the red button to stop, and what you see in the little screen is what I will see. Hand the video camera to someone and tell them to film from your head to your feet(Very Important) alot of times people will just film your upper body and the gun flipping, well how much can you really gain from that? Not much.

Videoing yourself is great for alot of reasons but the main is the fact that you can take the video home and in the comfort of your home, critique yourself. Critiques on the range are good, but alot of times. The stage will happen in 10-15 seconds, and it takes a trained eye to catch what you are doing wrong, since there are alot of things happening very fast. Wheras the video, can be stoped, moved back, watch a certain position, slow motion etc. From the video you can extrapulate bad habbits, things that you could have done to shoot the stage faster. Some of those things are so subtle and happen so fast that its hard to catch when you are not looking for it.

I was watching a guy locally here and he was having problems with his draw, he told me he was having problems breaking the 1 second mark, I told him to take some video. After watching the video a couple of times. I noticed that he was fishing, which is common problem with the draw. when I showed him what he was doing he looked at the video and saw it clear as day. Now he can consistantly pull a draw on an up close target in under a second on command. But just watching him draw I coudn't catch it, because the action was happening so quickly. From the video we were able to knock at least .2 of a second off his total time for pretty much every stage. Multiply that by the number of stage in a match, and it starts adding up to seconds.

Also, posting videos on this forum and have people critique them for you is great for learing, there are some savy people on this forum that could catch problems right off the bat. If you have 3 people critique you, you may have 3 different things to look at, and you make the decision of what you want to work on, and what you don't, Also, show the video to shooters who use video often to critique. Since they are always critiqueing themselves, they may serve you well and give you a whole laundry list of things to look at. In fact he may learn something from you also.

I can't express how much I have learned from watching video of other shooters and watching myself. This will be a big key to your success...

[Sean Gaines]

"Make a list of neccessities that you need to take to the match every single time"

Make a list and have it displayed where you keep your gear at. Before you leave the house to the range make sure that you go over the list and make sure you have everything on that list.

My list consist of:

Gun

inner/Outer Beltj/holster

Bullets

Hearing Protection

Eyewear

Towel

Water

Cleats

Coat

Camera

tools

Having a list will be great for you on those days that you sleep in a little and you need to hurry up and get to the match, and you havent had your cub of joe and your mind is not quite there, you can refer to the list and be done with it. Lists are one of those easy things you can do to keep you from looking like a fool on match day. I have seen people forget to bring their gun, and have to leave and drive 45 minutes home with out shooting the match. Pretty embarassing not to mention that you have to wait another week to shoot. Do that at a major match and you just wasted $400+

[TexasShootR]

Thanks for all the advice Sean. Keep it coming!

[JimmyZip]

Thanks Sean,

This is great and really appreciated.

[Sean Gaines]

"Imitation is the ultimate form of flattery"

When you first start shooting, you should really look hard at yourself and evlauate yourself. You should look at your body type, you should look at what skills that you have that you have been blessed with. What attributes you have that will limit you, and so fourth. You must be honest with yourself, and this is key. If I am 5'10" and weigh 240lbs, I am not going to be as fast as Max Michele or a Blake Miguez. So with that said in mind, look at videos of GM shooters that are as close to your body type when trying to figure a style of shooting. Of course you can always take bits and pieces from all the shooters, even ones that are not your body type. A combination of all these, will inturn make your own style of shooting.

For example if you are a tall shooter, you may want to look at videos of a shooter like Henning Walgren. If you are a "bigger body type" shooter and you don't move quite as fast, but maybe fast enough, you may look at videos of Taran Butler. This is not a knock on any shooter, because these shooters have been very successful in their own right. and there is alot to be learned and brought to your game! of course a phsically fit shooter, is always going to have an edge, we shouldn't use that as a crutch to go out there and not compete and win. There are other aspects of the game that they he/she may not have that you have that will allow you beat them 9 times out of 10.

The flip side of this coin is, if you have the natural ability to run a 4.3 40yd dash, then you should use that speed to your advantage at all times, when available. If you are a tall shooter, you should look at shooting on the move, since your steps while shooting on the move are bigger than most individuals. Use those attributes at all times to seperate you from the competition. Use your natural talent when all possible.

If you want to be suceessful in this game you must do your homework. Homework to me is, doing research, analyzing, thinking about the game, dry firing, anything that is not done on the range. Just becasue you lack in physical ability doesn't mean you can't compete. You can shoot smarter than the competition, and still win! Its done every weekend!

Saul Kirsh said in one of his books (not exact wording), if you want to improve your game the most, write down all the skills that are required in shooting. Grade each and every skill with a rating of 1-10, 1 being the worst and a 10 being your best skill. To see the biggest leaps in your game. Take all your worst grades and practice those. So if you have a grade of 3 on your draw, and you work on your draw and bring that grade up to a 8, you just improved your game 5 points. if you have a grade of an 8 on strong hand shooting, and you go and practice strong hand shooting, and you bring your grade up to a 9, you only improved your game 1 point. The point here is taking all your weak skills and try to bring those grades up, by doing this you will see your overall biggest improvements in your game.

In conclusion, Look at your body type and skills to determine a style of shooting. Look at video of all shooters, but especially the top shooters that have the most characteristics of your shooting ablity. Take those skill and attributes and refine them so that those are your best attributes and they will shine and seperate you from the competition. Use those skills whenever possible. Be honest with yourself when determing which skills you are good at, and which your not so good at. Work on your weakest parts of your shooting and bring those grades up, and you will see the biggest leaps in your game.

[Sean Gaines]

"IDPA vs USPSA"

There shouldn't be an argument to which is better. I don't want this post to be a long dicussion about the 2. this is just my oppinion!

My take is. Its like chess and checkers, they are both played on the same board, just under different rules. You still have to move a man forward or backwards. There are too many other outside forces that are against "guns". Why should we be fighting amongst ourselves? Respect each others game, because we are using the same board. If we break our own board, then we will not be playing either game, will we?

End of that discussion!!!!!

[TexasShootR]

Sean, as you have progressed through the USPSA ranks do you recall any milestones that led you to the next rank or classifacations? As an example when I went from U (unclassified) to to D class it was all about me thinking shoot faster with little thought about choreograph or marksmanship. Now that I'm C class I think of the latter but not so good at the execution. What got you to the next level? And what are you doing/thinking now to get you to the next level of GM?

Edited June 1, 2011 by TexasShootR

[Sean Gaines]

Sean, as you have progressed through the USPSA ranks do you recall any milestones that led you to the next rank or classifacations? As an example when I went from U (unclassified) to to D class it was all about me thinking shoot faster with little thought about choreograph or marksmanship. Now that I'm C class I think of the latter but not so good at the execution. What got you to the next level? And what are you doing/thinking now to get you to the next level of GM?

There are alot of things. But Mainly I would "eat, sleep, drink, ipsc" When I first started shooting thats all I did. I would watch alot of videos, watch alot of the top guys locally, and ask them questions. Everyone was always helpful. I took a class from Rey Abad, you may or not know him. But he was very influential in my progress. He would also "eat, sleep, drink, ipsc" I still do it to this day!

As a new shooter, we want instant gratification. You must be patient, and enjoy the competition. Learning from an instructor can also steepen that learning curve. you must think that a class is cheap. When you spend $20-30 for a local match and $400+ for a major, you can pay for some instruction with not much more that. Also, your desire to improve must be there. Since you are local, I will keep an eye out and let you know what I see. I can hand you a laundry list of things, but the problem is, you must know what to do to fix it, or know what I am talking about. Some of the terms that I may use, maybe a term that you are not familiar with. If you have some free time, give me a call.

Also, you must have confidence! this past week you were not very confident in your gun, as it was mis firing. Its hard to think about other things to improve your game when the instrument that you are using in this sport is malfunctioning. Get confidence in your gun, and then you can start working on fixing yourself.

[Sean Gaines]

"Eat, Drink, Sleep, IPSC"

If you desire is to move up in this sport, you must do this to some degree. When I first started shooting, I was always thinking of the game, when i wasn't shooting it. I shot pretty much every local match that I could attend, plus a match during the week. When you do this, you are seeing all kinds of scenarios. You start to gain confidence. Also you start learning about the mental aspects of the game. If you shoot a match once a month, it is hard for you to learn as quickly as someone who is attending regularly.

When you are not shooting a match you can be thinking of the game. When I wasn't shooting, I was thinking of what I could have done better from the previous match. Watching video, and self critiqueing my game constantly. I would experiment with differnt footwork tehniques, stances etc. Rarely, would I give myself a break. I was pretty much hard on myself when it came to self evaluation. Which worked good for me, because my desire to learn was great. Being hard on yourself may not be a good motivator, so this is somthing you may want to evaluate in yourself. Find a "like minded" shooting partner who likes to think outside the box also, and challenge him to debates, and see who's right and who's wrong. this can only benefit the both of you. Some of my best learning experiences have been from long converstions with good shooters, about different scenarios that we shot, and why we shot it the way we did. We both got to hear why we did it a certain way, and why we thought it was better.

You can always find time to think about shooting. Driving on the way to work, while at work (where there is a lull), at the house, walking, working out, waiting in the lobby etc, etc. What you should be doing is thinking about situations that you could have did better or things that will help your overall game. What this will do, is spur questions! It will also spur Action!

Look at it this way... Most of you are pretty good at your job, you have done your job hundreds of times and you are pretty good at it right? What caused you to be so good? Many reptitions of the same scenario? Have a bunch of people with the common goal of growing the company? survival? probably all of these are good motivators. When you do your job, you want to be efficient, you want it done correct, because that means bonuses and or raises. Well the same can be applied to shooting. You get what you put into it. If you work hard and do many repitions, and think about the game, you will reap bonuses and raises. If you were to shoot hundreds of rounds a day, and it was your job, could you be good at it? The answer is usually always "yes" Well since we have mortgages, bills, college tuition, cars etc, most of us don't have the time to shoot every day. But we can always find time to be thinking of doing it. You must have a vivid imagination, and use self imagery to accomplish it the way it should be done.

I remember reading a story of a person in prison camp. While people around him were suffering and dying, all he would do to keep his mind off the suffering and dying, was to think about golf while he was in his cell. He would play golf in his mind everyday. finally when the war was over and he was realeased, he became a golf pro! He had not even hit a ball for 4 or 5yrs. but his mind was actively thinking of the game, and thats what kept his sanity, and kept him alive, in such a terrible condition. Look at Beethoven, he couldn't hear his music, but he could come up with difficult and technical music that have been around for centuries

In conclusion:

allow you to think outside the box

spur you to ask questions, and learn more.

spur you to take action! motivate you to improve your skill set.

find a "like minded" shooting partner that you can bounce ideas off of.

just because you are not shooting, doesn't mean you can't be practicing in your mind!

Like Yogi Berra Says, "90% of the game is Half Mental"

[jayd]

Worthy of a Sticky !

[Sean Gaines]

"know your platform"

Some of you know how to fieldstrip your gun. But you should know how to take your gun down to its nuts and bolts. When I first started shooting glock, one of the first things that I learned to do was take the gun apart completly, and know how the gun works, and why their are springs here and there. Knowing your platform, can help you take your gun apart on a whim, if something breaks, it will also allow you to do modifications that may enhance the firearm to seperate you from the competition. Being able to fix your guns, can also save on gunsmithing charges.

When I started shooting, I used a glock 35 in limited. I knew that gun in and out. I could tell you that drop testing the bullets through a case gauge would not ensure that the gun was going to accept those reloads, since I had an aftermarket barrel. I would have to barrel check each and every round. I could tell you where the gun was going to hit at 50yards. I knew which basepads worked with my gun and which one's didn't work. Which mags gave me 22 rounds at the start of a stage and which ones gave me 20 reloadable. knowing your gun and its accessories is huge, it will allow you to make decisions on a stage based on your equipment and what it will do.

knowing your gun will allow you to do modifications to the gun. I remember when I first started shooting glock, I remember I hated the pre travel, there was too much of it. Since I knew how the gun operated, I was able to put a pin in the trigger housing and take all the pre travel out of the gun, and it put the trigger exactly where i wanted it. If I just shot the gun and didn't know how it operated, I would have never figured that one out! I did this before companies started selling kits with pre travel adjustments in the housings already.

Remember Murphy was and optimist. I would always keep a plano fishing lure box with all the parts, I thought might break during the course of a match. If I heard of someone breaking a part on that gun on a forum or from personal experience, I would make sure that I had one of those parts in my spare parts box.

Once you have peace of mind with your gun, than you can start working on the things that will make you a better shooter. If you always have doubts about your gun, you will be thinking of your gun and questioning it, instead of thinking of what really counts, your match and how you are going to shoot the stage in front of you. Your gun must work flawless, there is nothing more frustrating then a gun that fails on you. Mathces have been lost because of this. National titles have been lost because of gun malfunctions. Dont fall victim to this, be a boy scout when it comes to your gun.

[Sean Gaines]

"Match Conditions and Weather"

This is one of the most overlooked things that can make you or break you at a match. I just got back from the Double tap Ranch match. it was well over 100 degrees, it was completely miserable shooting conditions. Not only was it hot, but it was a dry heat. They had just placed a bunch of limestone in the bays to improve the footing. When you know that its going to be hot, you can bring the neccessary things to keep your body functioning properly. knowing the range conditions will allow you to plan ahead.

Think to yourself, since I know this match is going to be hot. What do I need to bring to keep me competitive all day?

-Towel (cold preferably)

-Cold water, Gatorade (plenty)

Personally, I drink one of those big gatorade's the night before, and drink some cold water in the morning the day of the match on the way to the match. (Keep hydrated)

-shorts

-A shirt that will absorb the moisture and keep me cool all day.

-sunscreen

-chalk, or some sort of grip enhancement, to keep your hands dry.

-Umbrella(You will be suprised! Its just food for thought!)

I Know that they recently put limestone in the bays. so what are the range conditions?

-It will be a gravel type surface, with probably alot of dust, so I will need some sort of gun cover to keep my gun from getting dust in it. This will keep my gun running all day. A $.99 shower cap will do just fine.

-I have been to this range before, I know they have shade, which will keep me cool. If you have never been to the range find out what you need to know, this will eliminate guessing. Ask someone who has been to the range, or ask online, someone will answer your question.

-will they have water at each of the stages? if so, that will lighten the load of what I have to carry from stage to stage.

-Being gravel, I will wear cleats.

-make it a habit, before you shoot a match to go and look at the stages, but to check the range conditions. And if their is something that you need you can stop off at the nearest department store and get if before you shoot. While you are there you can watch the shooters shootin, and get ideas. Also see what they are doing to get through the match. If you see someone with a cold towel on their head, then you probably will have to do the same, so be prepared!

-Park your vehicle in a place that is close to the match and bays, even if you have to get their earlier. So if you have to make a run to your car to cool off or get something, its not a mile away. conserve your energy!

All of this is just common sense, but can be easily overlooked, and can keep you ahead of your competition and is just food for thought!

Edited June 7, 2011 by Sean Gaines

[Avezorak]

Just found this gem of a thread. Thanks Sean! Great info

[OpenDot]

Great Thread!!!

[Chris Keen]

I love this freakin thread man! So much good info. Keep it up Sean.

[Sean Gaines]

"Try different divisions"

I see this alot, there are people who stay in one division, and they grow roots and never leave, or try a different division. What I usually find is that they get to a peaking point and don't get any better than that. I remember when I first started shooting, there was a guy who was like 1 point away from being a GM in limited, I idolized him, he shot really fast and moved really good. I kept telling myself, "I want to shoot like him one day" Well anyways the years went by and the matches kept comming, and a couple of years later, I was consistantly beating him. He had reached a point where it was going to take some hard training to get beyond the level of where he was at.

One day I saw him shooting a single stack at a match, and he was shooting it really good! You must know that when he first started shooting thats all they had was single stack guns. He was doing reloads with lightning speed, and he had to shoot accurately due to the lack of bullets in the gun. He was knocking it out of the park! I approached him and we talked, and I mentioned to him that "maybe single stack is your game", not mean or anything like that, he said he was going to give it a try. 2 years later he has been a dominating force in single stack, and has won matches out right, and is having more fun then he ever did shooting limited.

My point is: If you dont try a different divisions, you will never know if "that is your game or not" shoot production, shoot limited 10, shoot revolver, you never know you may become the next Jerry miculek! lol, but you will never know if you don't go out and try.

Another thing. switching divisions will open your eyes to different shooting skills, that you have to do to be successfull in each division. Each division is a different game. Your breakdown of stages are different, acting on a whim is something you will have to learn when you don't have all those bb's in your gun. hitting your reloads becomes essential when you shoot the divisions with limited amount of bullets. All of these skills can help you with the division that you really like to shoot. I shot limited for the first 2 years, then switched to Open division and shot that for 2 years. When I went to open, everything seemed easy, the only thing I had to do was change my movement and being aggressive and efficient with everything. It actually came relatively easy for me. It actually got me in this zone of pushing the boundaries of everything.

Then I switched back to limited, wow! I took everything that I learned from open and applied it to my limited game, and I was shooting limited, like I was on fire! I easily made Master, in a month or two after switching over. But what happend was that when I was in open, all I had to do was see the dot and pull the trigger, everything else came down to movement and getting in and out of positions quickly, I had learned to do that in open, and then when I switched back to limited, I applied all those skills that I used in Open division to shooting limited division, and greatly improved my limited game.

In conclusion, try different divisions to help your overall game. You never know, another division might be more condusive to your shooting style and it maybe your game that sets you apart from everyone else. When you shoot other divisions it will open your eyes to different skill sets that are essential to be competitive in that division. Also this will help your overall game, when you do decide to switch back over. Also the talent pool maybe greater in a differnt division, so that you have more people to compete against, this will essentially keep you on your toes, you will have to fight for your wins. which is what you want to do! Nobody wants give me's, you want to be pushed all the time, thats the only way you are going to get better. Without competition this game wouldn't be any fun...

[jar]

What would you consider a good amount of time to stick with a division? The opposite of your guy who grew roots in Limited are the many shooters who shoot a different division every match and are C or D class in all 6 and probably always will be.

[Sean Gaines]

What would you consider a good amount of time to stick with a division? The opposite of your guy who grew roots in Limited are the many shooters who shoot a different division every match and are C or D class in all 6 and probably always will be.

Personally I would choose a division and if you shoot a match weekly and practice, at minimum 6 months to a year/season, consistantly shooting that division, without switching back and forth. than after 6 months to a year,then switch to your normal division, or switch to a different division. But it has to be a sufficient enough time, that you understand that division in and out, and if you went to a major, you would have confidence in that division.

If you just shoot a match once a month, and thats all you do. And you just want to hang out with the buds, then this post really doesn't apply to you.

What you essentially want to do is go to a different division to see if you are a better shooter in that division, and/or to build up your skill set, so that you can improve your overall game, because each division has different limitations, and require a different set of skills that will help you in other divisions.

This is a good example, alot of people shoot limited, and then they realize that there eye sight is not that good, so they switch over to open and they realize they can shoot a dot gun, much better, so they shoot open and they see their scores improve. they realize that open division is a better division for them due to thier eyesight.

another example, I am a limited shooter, and I can do reloads really fast and consistantly, I am not really fast on my feet, but I can shoot really accurate. maybe I would switch over to production or limited 10, and try those divisions.

You must evaluate yourself and be honest with yourself, before choosing a division to switch over to. It must also make sense! If you have bad eyesight, you are probably not going to want to shoot any type of iron sighted gun. if you are speedy and you are shooting L10, you can consider shooting limited or open division. You essentially want to look at your body type and your skills that you have to use that to your advantage when switching divisions.