Which is Harder - Overcoming Gobbling or Making GM?

[56hawk]

Stage 1 - What do you mean by "turning your body... instead of walking backwards?"

Look at what I do at 0:10 of course I didn't have to do a reload, but it would still be a little faster.

[Esther]

David - Showoff. But yes, that makes sense now. Thanks!

I finally got my ankle checked out by a sports medicine specialist yesterday. The doctor said it was good that I went in when I did, because otherwise I might have needed surgery and a lot of rehab. Basically, I have a lot of inflammation where my Achilles tendon meets my heel. There are three main tendons that connect there, any of which could be injured; or, it could be a bone issue. (I need to wait until I get to Virginia to have imaging done.) In any case, I need to immobilize the ankle for 6-8 weeks. She gave me a big boot ("a cast for your ankle") to wear in the meantime.

[TJ1911]

E-Glad you got that checked out. Do what you need to in order to get it treated and healed properly. I'm sure they gave you some RX anti-inflammatory meds, but I'd also stop in at a GNC store and get some Nopal cactus juice. It is supposed to do wonders for inflammation. Take care and travel safely.

[GuildSF4]

Esther, other things that work on inflammation and swelling are food enzymes on an empty stomach. (They also don't damage parts of the body as or after they work.) Bromelian - pineapple enzyme is a good one. YMMV

[lumpygravy]

I finally got my ankle checked out by a sports medicine specialist yesterday. The doctor said it was good that I went in when I did, because otherwise I might have needed surgery and a lot of rehab. Basically, I have a lot of inflammation where my Achilles tendon meets my heel. There are three main tendons that connect there, any of which could be injured; or, it could be a bone issue. (I need to wait until I get to Virginia to have imaging done.) In any case, I need to immobilize the ankle for 6-8 weeks. She gave me a big boot ("a cast for your ankle") to wear in the meantime.

Good you got it checked. Hopefully you can prevent an Achilles tendon rupture/tear, which I can tell you from first hand experience, is no fun at all.

[Esther]

Tim and Steve - Thanks for the suggestions!

Jon - Ouch. Hope yours is good as new now.



My friend Bo posted on Facebook about what he loves so much about guns and shooting. He wrote: "They're a complicated dance of pure simplicity."

It made me think of what my answer would be. Here are my top reasons, in no particular order:


1) Improving is REALLY fun, perhaps the most fun thing ever.

There are few physical limitations to shooting well. You don't have to be strong*, fast, or even especially coordinated. In shooting, it seems, you can be as good as you decide to be.


2) the people. Less than six months into practical shooting, I've already met so many smart, friendly, and/or helpful shooters, some of whom I hope will become lifelong friends.


3) is very similar to Bo's answer (though perhaps interpreted differently than how he intended). Shooting starts out complicated and becomes simple as you improve.

I love that all the hard work, attention to trigger press, transitions, movement, draw, grip, open up/give way to moments of pure shooting. I'm a total novice, and I can't say that I've experienced anything remotely like what Bo, Andy etc. have experienced - and I think they'd tell you that they're a ways off from experiencing what Eric, Vogel, etc., experience regularly - but I've tasted a hint of a hint of it.

As T.S. Eliot writes in "The Dry Salvages":

For most of us, there is only the unattended
Moment, the moment in and out of time,
The distraction fit, lost in a shaft of sunlight,
The wild thyme unseen, or the winter lightning
Or the waterfall, or music heard so deeply
That it is not heard at all, but you are the music
While the music lasts. These are only hints and guesses,
Hints followed by guesses; and the rest
Is prayer, observance, discipline, thought and action.

You give so much for those few, fleeting, and unpredictable moments that feel like pure gift.


3 rephrased) Shooting is (or can be**) artistic.

Borrowing a metaphor from Brian, I'm learning the vocabulary, the grammar, the punctuation of shooting, and in a few years (I hope) I'll start using them for creative expression.


4) Shooting is badass. Who doesn't want to be like Burt Gummer in Tremors?

What do you love about shooting?

* You have to be stronger than I am, but not (I think) stronger than I can be.

** I'm sure different temperaments experience shooting very differently. I'm not obsessed with guns or technique, and I enjoy competition; but for me the art is primary and the competition secondary. Not that I'm particularly good at either yet.

Edited July 19, 2013 by Esther

[lumpygravy]

...

4) Shooting is badass. Who doesn't want to be like Burt Gummer in Tremors?

...

Funny you should mention Tremors. This was on marathon mode yesterday.

Note my second sig line.

[TJ1911]

E- I like the art angle; I have been thinking along the same lines with kung fu since our tournament. Back later with what I love about shooting.

[GuildSF4]

Here are two of mine:

1.) I love the artistry, a good stage or a good shot has a lot of artistic elements in my opinion. When everything comes together in a stage it feels a lot like getting a song that you have been working on just right.

2.) I love the camaraderie (hanging out with people of similar interests).

[Esther]

Jon - Awesome! "Broke into the wrong goddamn rec room, didn't ya bastard?"

Tim - Looking forward to hearing your thoughts.

Steve - 1) . 2) Camaraderie is a great way to put it. I think it's that, as well as the people per se, that I'm drawn to.

With my ankle injured, I figure this is a good time to work on stand and shoot skills. A couple weeks ago, I tried Brian's eyes closed ninja exercises for the first time. I was pleased to discover that if I assumed a perfect grip, I could pivot in any direction and have my sights show up in alignment. Today I tried doing the same thing from draw.

When my sights weren't aligned, it was almost always because my grip was off, which often happened when I was tense. When I relaxed and tried to imagine myself as the eye of the storm, or like Brian drawing and firing two shots like he was strolling in the park, I got my sights aligned almost every time.

I've been paying close attention to form (e.g., getting a perfect grip on every draw, reacquiring a perfect grip after every reload). It's slower now but hopefully will make me faster in the long run...

Edited July 23, 2013 by Esther

[DonovanM]

With my ankle injured, I figure this is a good time to work on stand and shoot skills. A couple weeks ago, I tried Brian's eyes closed ninja exercises for the first time. I was pleased to discover that if I assumed a perfect grip, I could pivot in any direction and have my sights show up in alignment. Today I tried doing the same thing from draw.

When my sights weren't aligned, it was almost always because my grip was off, which often happened when I was tense. When I relaxed and tried to imagine myself as the eye of the storm, or like Brian drawing and drawing and firing two shots like he was strolling in the park, I got my sights aligned almost every time.

I've been paying close attention to form (e.g., getting a perfect grip on every draw, reacquiring a perfect grip after every reload). It's slower now but hopefully will make me faster in the long run...

This post makes me very happy.

[shilberry]

With my ankle injured, I figure this is a good time to work on stand and shoot skills. A couple weeks ago, I tried Brian's eyes closed ninja exercises for the first time. I was pleased to discover that if I assumed a perfect grip, I could pivot in any direction and have my sights show up in alignment. Today I tried doing the same thing from draw.

When my sights weren't aligned, it was almost always because my grip was off, which often happened when I was tense. When I relaxed and tried to imagine myself as the eye of the storm, or like Brian drawing and firing two shots like he was strolling in the park, I got my sights aligned almost every time.

I've been paying close attention to form (e.g., getting a perfect grip on every draw, reacquiring a perfect grip after every reload). It's slower now but hopefully will make me faster in the long run...

I recently tried this also and I believed it was slower, but it actually wasn't. The movements felt slower, and possibly were, but since I had removed wasted movement and was moving more efficiently the actual par time was better. Do you think this is possible for you?

Good luck with your ankle, hope it starts to feel better!

[TJ1911]

I like the history and lore of firearms-shooting, especially handgun shooting, has a lot of history. When we compete, we carry that on and develop it further.

I like the camaraderie of being at a match, or even just at the range. The "gun culture" is so much different than what's portrayed in the media.

Shooting is one of the last places where you can be around a lot of people who are skilled with their hands-gunsmiths, machinists, and even avid reloaders are people who know how to make something.

Shooting is relaxing and an exercise in controlled aggression at the same time. You're dealing with something powerful and need to keep it under control. I'm reminded of what race car driver Danny Sullivan used to tell himself before each race: "Danny, don't go too fast-but don't go too slow."

[GuildSF4]

I've been paying close attention to form (e.g., getting a perfect grip on every draw, reacquiring a perfect grip after every reload). It's slower now but hopefully will make me faster in the long run...

Yes, smooth is fast. Having to re-adjust costs time.

Hope your ankle is better soon, good that it gives you time to dry-fire.

[Esther]

Tim - Excellent points re: the history/lore and being around people who are skilled with their hands.


I'm still alive. And still shooting (getting back into it). My ankle is 95% healed. I shot a match 2 weeks ago where I DQ'ed (again!!) for having my finger in the trigger guard during a mag change and accidentally firing. I worked hard on my mag changes in dry-fire and now subconsciously keep my index finger flat against the frame. My mag changes are smoother and closer to subconsciously competent, too.

Last weekend I shot my first full USPSA match since Richmond. I had a lot of fun and learned a lot, even though I didn't shoot especially well.


A while ago, Fr. Richard (a good friend of our parish priest, Fr. Nathan) gave a homily that I remember. He preached on Luke's narrative of the miracle of the loaves and fishes, when Jesus feeds 5,000 people with 5 loaves and 2 fishes. Fr. Richard pointed out that when Jesus asked the disciples to give the people something to eat, the disciples looked outside of themselves and protested that they could not buy enough at the store to feed so many people. They forgot that infinite good was already present to them.

Like the disciples, I often focus on my (perceived) lacks:


"I don't live-fire enough." (I average ~100 rounds/week, and that's including matches.)

"I don't know the right people, and when I do, they don't..."

"Am I making progress towards writing good and lasting things that will affect/change/touch people?"

"I waste so much time."*


and I forget, "Esther, you have everything you need. The kingdom of God is with you, within you."



* One thing I love/appreciate about history is that studying it gives me perspective. Sometimes I find it so hard to forgive myself for the time that I've wasted thinking about gobbling, planning to gobble, gobbling, recovering from a gobble... I think, "Champions don't do this. People whose lives are dedicated to something good don't do this." But then I think of even more horrible things that have happened - like armies laying siege to and slaying entire cities, like the Mongol warriors building towers of skulls - and I believe that all of these things can be redeemed, so that has to be true of me despite my failings and faults as well.

Edited September 7, 2013 by Esther

[TJ1911]

E-Glad to hear you're shooting again. I'm hoping to get out to a match at the end of the month. Still scrounging for powder and primers.

I like your thoughts about redemption-I get down on myself for wasting time, too. I try to remember that those people who are super disciplined (usually) weren't born that way; they had to learn it and I can, too. And I like your historical perspective. We are all worthy of redemption in the eyes of God.

[Sleepswithdogs]

Esther, my "Uncle Bill" use to say, "Thy shalt not should on thyself or others." Very, sound advice.

As always, my best to'ya,

Tar

[toothguy]

Esther, the bible is full of stories of God using totally imperfect people to do his work. Moses and King David had huge flaws yet they were used to do great things. Shooting is just something you do, it's not who you are. Keep thinking externally and moving forward.

[Esther]

Tim - Yeah. You already know this, but Max and I visited the Holocaust Museum in DC this weekend (it's very well done and I highly recommend it), and one of the thoughts that crossed my mind was, "Wasting time is less bad than productively doing evil."

Jim - Thanks!

Tim (toothguy) - Thanks for the reminder.

My friend Russell accidentally left his camera running and recorded

at the match two weekends ago. (I'm on 1:27 to 1:40.) I got decent hits and shot a 65% classifier, but I lost a ton of time on the reload. Andy and Donovan gave me some very helpful tips on what to improve, but if you see anything else, let me know!

I've been dry-firing a lot of reloads. And it feels like I'm constantly re-working my technique. It took me two weeks to learn to instinctively keep my trigger finger flat along the frame, and now I'm working on bringing the gun in a straight line from firing position to where it receives the new mag.

Arg. Well, onward!

[Sleepswithdogs]

As far as learning and re-working, in Karate we use to say, "Practiced until it is forgotten." The conscious mind is much to slow for Karate and many activities, so we practice until the sub-conscious is able to do it without conscious thought.

[GuildSF4]

As far as learning and re-working, in Karate we use to say, "Practiced until it is forgotten." The conscious mind is much to slow for Karate and many activities, so we practice until the sub-conscious is able to do it without conscious thought.

So true, same with music. Had a friend ask how do you make that sound on the guitar, my inital reply was 'I don't know', I had to make the sound at about 1/2 speed and watch what my fingers were doing to be able to explain it.

When you have the reloads down the only muffed ones will be the ones you think about.

[Esther]

Jim and Steve - I'm working on it!

Shot a USPSA match at Summit Point, WV, yesterday. I didn't have any brain freezes, zero misses, and 3 D's over 6 stages. I shot more C's than I would have liked. When I started competing in USPSA, I was super slow and shot all A's because I waited for a perfect, stopped sight picture on every target. Then I realized how close most of the targets in matches were, and how little of a sight picture I could get away with, and now it seems I'm forgetting to use a more precise aiming method on harder targets, especially mid-long range open ones. (Somehow a far target with hard cover or no-shoots triggers the part of my brain that wills me to aim.)

Here's video from two of the stages:

Things I need to work on:

1) consistent mag changes (sigh... this is a perpetual one)

2) aiming and breaking a shot sooner - you can see this especially when I reach the first far position in stage 2 and when I come up on the first target of the third array in stage 6. I can see that target through the soft cover, too!

3) drawing in a straight line to the target without slowing down - Chris pointed out that I stop when my weak hand joins the gun.

4) transitions - Andy pointed out in my last video that I let the gun recoil before transitioning to the next target. I need to shoot the next target as soon as the sight starts to lift off the first.

5) shooting around barricades and from awkward positions. I didn't upload video of this stage because it gives me a headache to watch the extra shots I took at steel from around a barricade, but yeah... I need to dry-fire shooting from funny angles more.

6) setting up in a position so I don't have to shift my feet to hit all the targets

7) weak hand transfer after a reload

Edited September 30, 2013 by Esther

[Sleepswithdogs]

Looks good to me! You do seem a bit deliberate, but I think more speed will come as you keep working.

One thing that I saw that I think you could address... SANDALS??? Really??? LOL, I don't think you will ever be able to move as quickly in those as you could in a good pair of say... running shoes. MB or Merrill's (Sp) are very light yet will protect and support you far better. Nike makes some really light an awesome shoes too.

Edited September 29, 2013 by Sleepswithdogs

[Esther]

Jim - LOL. Ando says I am the only person he knows other than Andrew Tuohy (Vuurwapen blog) who wears sandals while shooting. I figure that I wear sandals all the time everywhere (I hiked Half Dome in these sandals), so I'll probably be wearing them if/when I encounter a situation where I need to shoot back.

I actually don't find that I have any less traction in sandals than I do in running shoes. But yeah, I'll probably upgrade to cleats someday...

[TJ1911]

E-If the sandals work for you, I wouldn't change. That being said, if you continue to have issues with your ankle, you may want to consider a mid-or-high top shoe for more support (maybe keep them in the car and change if the ankle starts to bug you). Do you tape or wrap the ankle when you wear your sandals?

I've never worn cleats, but people who wear them tell me they can take a long time to get used to.

I'll leave the fine points of transitions, etc to others-I thought overall you looked very smooth. One thing that concerns me is your belt-it looked like it might be sliding around a little. You really want to keep everything secure on your rig, especially with the weight of full capacity magazines.