Nimitz Posted April 18, 2013 Share Posted April 18, 2013 Now that my buddy just finished building me the steel & stands to be able to setup any single SC stage I'm ready to start incorporating SC training into my USPSA training schedule. I'm looking for some specific drills to do besides just practice the stages ... I've come up with a 'first shot " drill to practice indexing & getting to the first plate as fast as possible & also a "transition 1st & 2nd plate" drill where I setup the 1st 2 plates of a stage and practice shooting just the first 2 plates to work initial index and 1st transition. Anybody got other drills to specifically target SC skills? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amish_rabbi Posted April 19, 2013 Share Posted April 19, 2013 other than your draw practice to get used to the start position there isnt really a better way to practice than just do the stages. each stage has a different cadence (softer vs harder transitions, pauses to confirm hits, ect), starting index and even foot position (ok only some have a specific foot position). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andreas Posted April 22, 2013 Share Posted April 22, 2013 Nice that you have access to steel to set up any of the stages! I'm not geared up that well, but one thing that I like doing is setting up steel at greater distances than I'll have to shoot at a match. It's a real confidence booster to step into the shooting box on match day and think: "Those targets sure look bigger than the ones I've been shooting in practice." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nimitz Posted April 22, 2013 Author Share Posted April 22, 2013 yeah, once I started training with plate racks at 20 & 25 yds it was amazing how easy they were to shoot in a USPSA match ... I was hoping that there might be some specific drills to work on as well but I guess when a match is always the same 8 stages the best thing to do is simple just shoot the stages over and over ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RocketCity1911 Posted April 22, 2013 Share Posted April 22, 2013 You might want to shoot the stages (or portions like 1st and 2nd plates) with a par time. Doing that helps build confidence in knowing that there is a time that you can beat no matter how bad things may get. Also, you can set the par time lower and lower until you can't shoot without one or more misses. This is sort of like practicing unitl you can't do it wrong. When you reach that breaking point, then you have to figure out what you are doing that is causing you to lose time and how that can be fixed. Steel Challenge is a balance between speed and "good enough" accuracy. On stages with 10" plates, like Pendulum or Five To Go, you might want to bullseye shoot those plates to emphasize accuracy while enforcing visual discipline to snap your eyes to the location on the target where you want the sights to be before/during breaking the shot. In this drill, edge hits are not acceptable and you'll find out real quick which plates you are not respecting enough. Do this without the timer and then with the timer as well as the par time to determine what you need to improve upon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlamoShooter Posted April 22, 2013 Share Posted April 22, 2013 most shooters at Steel challenge focus on the first shot to feed the ego. and thats fine but the second most important shot in the stage after the stop plate is the Trap target like #4 on Five to Go = If the shooter indexes for the fist shot on five to go they are out of position to swing in to the stop plate. and not in the best shooting stance to hit the most difficult target on the stage #4 I am not a very talented / skilled person. so I have to work very hard at reaching the bottom of the top level in the shooting games. So practice indexing for your last shot or the trap target that you normally end up with two shots to hit and thin train for your first and second shot. I have seen many mid-level "Talented" shooters make a very fast first shot only to hit the second or third target with hesitation. But thin I may not know any thing , I could be just another washed up old guy Jamie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nimitz Posted April 22, 2013 Author Share Posted April 22, 2013 Using par times is a great idea for training and will definitely help push the time I can complete a stage without missing ... It's what helped me finally develop a sub one sec draw ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nimitz Posted April 22, 2013 Author Share Posted April 22, 2013 I'm still pretty new to SC having only shot 3 matches so I'm not sure I understand what you mean but the 'trap' target on a stage? The 2 drills I'm currently doing are 1st target drills and then 1st and 2nd target drills to ensure I can make a fast transition after the first shot. I've discoved that when I shoot a fast string it's usually because I've made a great transition to the 2nd plate. If I don't get a great index to the 1st plate and/or the 2nd one the string is usually not too good ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlamoShooter Posted April 22, 2013 Share Posted April 22, 2013 Trap = is the target that most shooters don't give the proper respect like #4 on five to go , the far right target on Roundabout -if you start on the left side. third target form the left on Accelerator. A "Trap" its the target that you -think- can be shot with the same focus as all the others. Every stage at any kind of match has something that will entice or trap the shooter into a quick shot. when a stage with lots of targets and walls with have a target that can only be engaged from one place would be the "Trap" Or a target that can be shot at from every position is a trap because it -traps- you into shooting at it several different times. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nimitz Posted April 23, 2013 Author Share Posted April 23, 2013 got it, thx! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoCalNoMore Posted May 3, 2013 Share Posted May 3, 2013 Using par times is a great idea for training and will definitely help push the time I can complete a stage without missing ... It's what helped me finally develop a sub one sec draw ... SC is a lot of muscle memory. Keep doing what you are doing and include the par times. I am relatively close to you if you need a shooting partner at your nice practice range :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nimitz Posted May 3, 2013 Author Share Posted May 3, 2013 Are u shooting the match tomorrow Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoCalNoMore Posted May 3, 2013 Share Posted May 3, 2013 Are u shooting the match tomorrow Not sure what match is tomorrow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nimitz Posted May 3, 2013 Author Share Posted May 3, 2013 US Steel Challenge Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoCalNoMore Posted May 3, 2013 Share Posted May 3, 2013 US Steel Challenge Sorry Nimitz, I am a bit lost as to what Steel Match/location you are referring to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nimitz Posted May 3, 2013 Author Share Posted May 3, 2013 we now have a monthly US Steel Challenge match the first Saturday of every month. We can only do 6/8 stages due to bay restrictions but we rotate them every month so you still see all the stages ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MadMadWorld Posted May 27, 2013 Share Posted May 27, 2013 Using par times is a great idea for training and will definitely help push the time I can complete a stage without missing ... It's what helped me finally develop a sub one sec draw ... SC is a lot of muscle memory. Keep doing what you are doing and include the par times. I am relatively close to you if you need a shooting partner at your nice practice range :-) Par times help, working on a smoking draw is good. I have found that hard transitions help with steel. What I mean by hard transitions is a drill that Steve Anderson recommends for both steel and USPSA. I will set up two 12" squares at fifteen yards. I will place them about 10-12 yards apart and work on transitions from left to right then right to left, one shot on each. Just my thoughts, seems to help when I actually do it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jkrispies Posted June 25, 2013 Share Posted June 25, 2013 most shooters at Steel challenge focus on the first shot to feed the ego. and thats fine but the second most important shot in the stage after the stop plate is the Trap target like #4 on Five to Go = If the shooter indexes for the fist shot on five to go they are out of position to swing in to the stop plate. and not in the best shooting stance to hit the most difficult target on the stage #4 LMAO-- I read this awhile ago and agreed with you 100%. Then shot the WCSC this weekend and totally did the opposite of what you said when shot rimfire rifle: indexed on the first play for the draw and and twwwiiisssttt around for the stop plate. Totally screwed up my whole game on that stage!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stick Posted June 25, 2013 Share Posted June 25, 2013 Ken, How many show up for the SC? I haven't shot one yet, but I was thinking about it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nimitz Posted June 25, 2013 Author Share Posted June 25, 2013 we've yet to have more than 30. Last month we had 3 squads of 9 each so there was an empty stage between each squad at the start. This guaranteed that no squad had to wait for any other squad to finish. I was driving home by 12:20 ... These matches are a lot of fun and it certainly helps with your transitions. And if you shoot rimfire all you need is your gun, mags & ammo. There is no draw in rimfire div, just start from the low ready Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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