Duane Thomas Posted December 15, 2001 Share Posted December 15, 2001 Elsewhere on the Forums there is a link to the Sky Marshall qualification test, which is supposedly the toughest of any pistol qual in federal service. So I'm out at match a few weeks ago and one of the stages is this test. The first two strings of fire are to draw from concealment and hit the target somewhere in not more than 1.65 seconds. Now I've maintained many times over the years that since I've put in the time to master the concealed draw, I DON'T need to wear a jacket every time I draw at a "tactically oriented" pistol match. The technique has been so acid-etched into my nervous system I could do it in my sleep, so during the dog days of summer I'll go for the comfort of not broiling myself inside a jacket or vest as I'm going about my business on the range. So there I am facing an IPSC target at seven yards, jacket on, cocked and locked .45 ready to go, and it looks like I'm gonna get a chance to put my money where my mouth is. And my God, it's been so frickin' long since I'm done or practiced a concealed draw..... My first shot is 1.35 seconds, I'm pushing it so hard I hit right under the A-zone. Realizing I have all the time in the world, I slow down the second run, I come in at 1.46 seconds, the bullet hole is just to the right of the A-zone. Heavy sigh. In order to pass this test you have to make the times and have no misses on every one of the strings. Of the 37 shooters at that match, there was only one person who passed the qual. Of course, modesty prevents me from mentioning who that person was.... (Edited by Duane Thomas at 1:13 pm on Sep. 9, 2002) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flexmoney Posted December 15, 2001 Share Posted December 15, 2001 DT, Let us know how the new job goes. Keep in touch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
et45 Posted December 16, 2001 Share Posted December 16, 2001 What is the link to the tests?. I have not been able to find it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron Ankeny Posted December 16, 2001 Share Posted December 16, 2001 Keep in mind that the COF is intended to be shot on turning targets so the times are very misleading. For all practical purposes, you can add a second to the times if you use a stationary target. The course is at: http://www.mail-archive.com/cybershooters@...m/msg02157.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duane Thomas Posted December 18, 2001 Author Share Posted December 18, 2001 You mean I did it to a "minus-1 second" standard and still passed? WHOA! Stand back - Ego Inflation Area At Work. IT COULD BLOW ANY SECOND!! (Edited by Duane Thomas at 6:26 pm on Dec. 17, 2001) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nik Habicht Posted December 18, 2001 Share Posted December 18, 2001 Duane, Make sure you carry a pin everywhere you go this week in case you encounter narrow doorways or confined spaces...... Seriously though, good job. And here I thought that I was the only fascinated by various "qualifiers" to see if I could pass too.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bonedaddy Posted December 22, 2001 Share Posted December 22, 2001 Duane, a 1.35 draw from concealment is impressive! (Especially under the pressure of a match.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duane Thomas Posted December 28, 2001 Author Share Posted December 28, 2001 Thanks, dude. Surprised the hell out of me. It's been so long since I've done that. It was one of those really weird experiences where you just sit back afterwards and go, "Huh....I didn't know I could do that." Maybe there's something to this whole "doing IPSC matches to improve your shooting skills" thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shooter Grrl Posted December 28, 2001 Share Posted December 28, 2001 Maybe there's something to this whole "doing IPSC matches to improve your shooting skills" thing. Ummm - this has always seemed like a no-brainer to me - do the other shooting sports see it differently? Or am I being blonde and missing something again? ;-0 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duane Thomas Posted December 29, 2001 Author Share Posted December 29, 2001 It's called "irony," i.e. the intended meaning is the exact opposite of the literal meaning. I know IPSC match participation can improve your shooting skills. It's a joke. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shooter Grrl Posted December 29, 2001 Share Posted December 29, 2001 D'oh! I thought so (really I did!). I hate having my blonde moments verified! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nik Habicht Posted December 29, 2001 Share Posted December 29, 2001 SG: Maybe you should change your tag line to read: I should have been born a blonde? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
et45 Posted December 30, 2001 Share Posted December 30, 2001 Quote: from Ron Ankeny on 12:04 pm on Dec. 16, 2001 Keep in mind that the COF is intended to be shot on turning targets so the times are very misleading. For all practical purposes, you can add a second to the times if you use a stationary target. Why would the times be slower for a stationary target?. (Edited by et45 at 9:01 pm on Dec. 29, 2001) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shooter Grrl Posted December 30, 2001 Share Posted December 30, 2001 Quote: from Nik Habicht on 9:54 am on Dec. 29, 2001 SG: Maybe you should change your tag line to read: I should have been born a blonde? My family SWEARS that I was born blonde. (of course, they still call me Kathy Klutz too!) We've negotiated an agreement that I inherited my beautiful RED hair from Auntie Loreal :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nik Habicht Posted December 31, 2001 Share Posted December 31, 2001 A redhead? That means you're related to my wife..... She swears all redheads are related...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shooter Grrl Posted January 1, 2002 Share Posted January 1, 2002 Ohhhh - I like your wife :-) She's a redhead and she got you hooked on Princess Bride - my kinda grrl! Does she shoot too? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nik Habicht Posted January 2, 2002 Share Posted January 2, 2002 She runs circles around me in the accuracy department ----- but then she should since she takes 3-4 times longer than I do. However, she has no interest in competition, but she'll go to the range with me occasionally. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patrick Sweeney Posted January 2, 2002 Share Posted January 2, 2002 The actual exposure times are longer for turning targets, because you see them turn. Unless the rangemaster running things uses the turn time as part of the shooting time in his/her calculations. You see the target start to turn, so your reaction time happens as the target turns. Once it is facing you, time "starts" for the run. I was once shooting two different indoor leagues in the winter (1985)in Michigan. Tuesday was a high-speed IPSC-derived course, and wednesday was PPC. (Curiously, I was shooting a revolver in the IPSC league, and a 1911 in the PPC league.) One wednesday evening, I'm on the line for the first string. PPC then had you at the 7 yard line, for 12 shots in 25 seconds. I must have been daydreaming, as I see the edge of the target start to turn, and I draw and shoot. I punch a dead-center "X" hit while the target is still at a 45 degree angle. I then remembered that the PPC turners there took over a second to fully turn. Thus, by their cacluations, it was 25 seconds. By IPSC calculations, it was actually almost 28. (Still an eternity.) So, if they were running the Sky Marshal course on that range, each turn would be exposed enough for us to hit for nearly three seconds, and the first half-second of movement was "free time" to react that wouldn't count against your shooting time. Including the free time, over three seconds. A faster turner would cut that down to 2.5 or so, but still plenty slow for us high-strung types. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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