Thinking not Doing

[TheCheeze]

First off I would like to say what a great forum, this has become a wealth of knowledge to me personally as I am just starting out in IPSC competition and this forum has definately allowed me to avoid some of the common pitfalls that can be experienced.

In the great tradition that this forum represents I would like to recount an incident from last weekend where a group of unclassified shooters, myself included, were given a couple of stages to compete in.  On this particular stage 1 target was visible from the starting box with 4 others hidden behind barrels, 2 shots at each target (total 10). After the walkthrough we were all standing around being very serious about how to complete this course when the seeds of a solution presented itself to me that was different from the way the group had discussed. As I was the second last shooter on this cof I thought that I had the one won as there was only one other shooter after me that would see my great solution.

My turn comes around and I tear through the course, heading out of the starting box towards the first target at 45 degree angle at a full run, firing as soon as a target became visible. By the time I reached the 7 yd line from the starting box I had fired on all targets finishing the course in a little over half the time the others had taken, problem was you can only imagine my surprise when the scorer called put a string of D's and misses. How was this possible when I had perfect sight pictures of all the targets. Perhaps it had something to do with my total lack of practice at firing at a running pace The wows of amiration from my fellow competitors at my amazing time turned to laughter when the scores were read out.... embarassing to say the least. To cut a long story short, the last competitor completed the stage by sprinting to the 7 yd line and engaging all targets from a spot where they were all visible from a stationary stance at point blank range, all things well within his ability. He ended up with 10 A's and only 2 seconds slower than me. Strange thing is he run the course exactly how I first 'felt' it should have been done, with my level of experience, before I started 'thinking' about it.  Big lesson learned.  

[Steve Anderson]

At the past two matches, I have debated shooting on the move and always chickened out.

I feel much safer running to a good spot and shooting shots I know I can make than moving and shooting hopers...

I just can't make myself do it. This is due to my live fire being confined to an indoor range...I need to get some stage practice to get comfy shooting on the move.

SA

[cpty1]

Thinking not doing.....hmmmmm.  Been giving some thought to this lately.  The FGNs was a match in which negative reinforcement (smile) allowed me to recall something I thought I knew or at least used to know.  That being, for me to shoot to the best of my current ability, I just need to program my mind to what I need to do, then just go on "automatic", if that makes sense.  I had a few stages, especially maybe the first stage of either day where I was too deliberate.   My best stages were those where I just shot, instead of thought about shooting, during the actual shooting of the stage.  I wasn't pushing the envelope mind you, I still saw what I needed to see to shoot the stage, but it wasn't a confirming and reconfirming type thing as I perceived my actions on some of my more deliberate stages to be.  Reminds me of the Bruce Lee quote in Brian's book, something about the greatest hindrance to any physical action is conscious thought.  Yep, I can relate.

[Steve Anderson]

I guess that's why I chicken out...when I go automatic, it doesn't happen.

The process of making a general plan w/ reload spots and then just going has been working really well for me lately, I hesitate to change it to accomodate shooting on the move...however I know I need to learn this skill.

Time will tell.

SA

[sfinney]

Wow, I can identify with this thread.... I just shot a 9 stage match (the Texas Open Championship, in Waco, TX) and I shot Stage 1 last... up until that point I had a pretty good match going, a few misses, but very fast times (for me).

The last stage of the match for me was Lateral Movement type stage, start on one side, and go to the other, @ 20 yds or so, with 4 sets of 3 paper tgts, and a couple steel, directly downrange @ 20 yds, set up behind hardcover vision barriers such that you could never see them all at once, and had to a little bit of memory shooting as you moved through the course and they became visible. I was feeling pretty confident (despite no being the best at shooting on the move) and decided to go for it at warp speed.

Man, I looked good, blitzed left to right, constantly moving and shooting, ending up with a very fast run. Imagine my surprise when we scored it with 5 mikes! (1 alpha, 1 mike, 5 targets). I figure that I as I broke the first shot on the A zones, my second shots must have hit just right of the targets due to my movement that direction..... not watching the dot for EVERY shot.

Nice way to end the match.... not!  I guess the moral is you have to walk beforeyou can run....  

[benos]

The "tricky transition" required to bridge the gap from practice to competition is one of knowing when it's not beneficial to think, and when it's beneficial not to think - and then actually applying that knowledge at the appropriate moments.

A good indication of the thinking mind's presence is manifested by any sort of "trying." Trying not to think, trying to slow down, trying to be accurate, trying not to try anything, etc.

Carefully calculate what you know you need to do (to be successful). Then, based on this information, create a moving video in your head (visualize) to mirror the ENTIRETY of your calculation. Then, when the moment comes, still your mind and allow your movie to guide your actions - without any effort to interfere on your part.

Trust - and thy will will be done.