When is the right time to shoot on the move versus plant to stand and deliver?

[42ATK]

Trying to figure out this nuance as I continue getting better at USPSA and I realized I'm trying to take too many targets on the move now and was curious about the hive mind's recommendations

[shred]

Depends on the hit factor you can achieve shooting each way.  That's the genius and pain of Hit Factor scoring; its different for everyone. 

 

If you can get good hits, and can move faster than a crawl, moving often get you a better score.

 

 

[whan]

Also depends on division you're shooting. When I was shooting single stack minor, probably better to plant and shoot for a multitude of reasons. Limited capacity, using movement to reload, minor scoring requires better hits (shooting on move less accurate), irons on the move being more difficult than dots given more sight alignment error. Think if you shot something like open, and to a lesser extent CO, definitely shoot on the move for the opposite reasons

 

 

Closer / easier targets that require more positions, shoot more on move. More difficult targets or can all be seen between two positions, may be better to plant, especially if the distance between those two positions is large. Larger the distance, the more time you spend at top running speed and can optimize for that vs. leaving or coming into position which requires acceleration/deceleration. 

 

Edited April 26, 2023 by whan

[ColoradoNick]

Different styles for sure. In my experience shooting and moving feels slower but is significantly faster in *most* scenarios!

[motosapiens]

The best way to answer This question is to set up different scenarios and practice and shoot them both ways and compare the results. I have seen many elite shooters achieve similar results with drastically different strategies so it depends on your personal capabilities and preferences. in locap divisions if you are going to shoot on the move, you need to Hella fast reload.

[konkapot]

Work on shooting/moving in practice. If you can only shoot and move at 5 yds, then anything beyond 5 yds call for a hard setup. 

 

It's a little different for everyone; largely based on your skillset. 

[RangerTrace]

For me it largely depends on if the targets are wide open or surrounded by hard cover/no shoots.  

[Racinready300ex]

You probably should ask yourself why your shooting on the move? and, What is it gaining you? For every target you're considering doing it. 

 

In theory you probably should shoot as little on the move as you can. Everyone can shoot faster and more accurately standing still. But obviously you can't shoot everything standing still. Find targets you can hit moving that will help to eliminate dead time getting from one place to the next. Anytime your not shooting your hit factor is dropping.

 

Lately it seems stage design has gone in a direction where you'll find yourself with the gun up the whole stage and shooting on the move a lot. Last match I shot I shot on the move some in ever stage. Most of the stages I shot at least half the targets moving. 

[waktasz]

Depends on the club and the flavor of the matches, and your skill level. At the matches I've been shooting, once the buzzer goes off I'm never stopped, but the less skilled guys are definitely not doing that. 

 

[MikeBurgess]

This will be a moving target for you for the rest of your shooting career. As your skills change the targets you can shoot while moving will change. When you practice set up mini stage sections nothing huge or complicated as simple as shoot this target move to point B and shoot that target (or the same target) try to mimic presentations you are seeing in matches. shoot the "stage" in different ways and see how the timer and targets say they worked. when you look at the timer look at more than the final time, really look at where the time went. 

 

 

[StefVanHauwe]

Shooting on the move is very situational on the stage design and the competitor's level. Sometimes it's not advantageous to shoot on the move and beter to shoot in/static or out of position.

 

I think first and foremost it's important to understand and being able to efficiently/consistently execute the technique for shooting on the move (with/without pause) down range, up range, left and right on attack targets at close distance (depending on division: somewhere between 8 and max. 15 meters). Then you can either increase the distances and/or add control targets (NS/hard cover) and test what is doable for your level. Mind you that in competition the distances to shoot on the move usually decreases from training. Conclusion: test it in practice conditions to get a reference and built confidence! 

 

Blending targets and/or positions is part of your stage strategy and, as stated by someone else earlier, the hit factor.

[Ron Ankeny]

How explosive are you getting from point A to point B and are you ready to shoot as soon as you get to point B?  I have aways shot on the move when ever possible.