Visualization/air gunning

[badchad]

At my local match local match I visualize and air gun my stages quite a bit. More than any other shooter from what I can tell. I generally walk up to a stage, put my card on the clip board, and start the visualization process, with a lot of air gunning of the targets from behind the line. I generally keep going over the coarse mentally until I’m ready to fire. Nobody there does it as much as I do, and I feel I have progressed fast enough to be happy, and thought this was probably a big reason why (though maybe it’s my regular dry fire practice, reading all the recommended books and watching all the videos).

However, I recently I started shooting at Rio Salado’s Tuesday Night Steel, where I could see Rob Leatham shoot, and I just saw Matt Burkett shoot as well. From what it looks like, I’m visualizing and air gunning the stages a lot more than the pros are too (I admit I can’t see what they are thinking, and the stages have been fairly simple, but they seem to be socializing more), so I wonder if I’m doing it past the point where it helps, and if there is a point where too much might hinder.

So how much is enough and how much is too much? I imagine this is one of those individual things, so how would you determine is enough for you? Also any differences for air gunning a stage vs. pure mental rehearsal?

[GentlemanJim]

I find it very helpfull in complex stage breakdown..

Simple stuff...no so much

Jim

[Catfish]

Keep in mind that the big boys have likely seen just about all there is to see as far as target arrangement, presentation, etc. They won't need to spend as much time with the preparation as it is very likely familiar to them.

For a newer shooter, you're likely seeing new stuff at every match and as such, your comfort level is going to be a lot lower.

Do what works for you.

[Chris Keen]

If it's helping you (and it appears to be) then keep it up. I doubt you could do it TOO much. Visualization is the key to being smooth & fast. If you are familiar with the stage, and where all the targets are, then you will not be consciously thinking about the COF while shooting it, and you can focus more on calling your shots & follow through.

[Neomet]

Now why didn't you use me as an example from last Tuesday? Ha!!! Personally I run the stage through from the moment I see it until I shoot it. I'm pretty much a newbie and need to completely ingrain every stage in my mind. I still get too excited a fair amount of the time and if I don't have the stage pretty much hardwired I am prone to run past ports, put one shot on steel instead of two... any number of very ugly things.

Maybe one day when I am a Zen master I won't need to do this so much but for now..... yep, I'll keep it up.

[G-ManBart]

The top guys get really good at quickly figuring out a stage and burning it into memory so they don't have to visualize it as many times as the rest of us do. I don't think it's possible to air gun/visualize too much....extra reps aren't going to hurt anything!

[AlamoShooter]

you don't want to develop a "crutch" Like if you had to shoot a stage first = would you feel like you were not ready if you only had 5 min to start shooting.

A crutch would also be if you look at 95% of targets shooting left to right. You want to be target ambidextrous.

Try planing out a stage on just the points to hit with your feet. you may find that the gun movment will take care of its self much quicker if you land with your feet in the best postion for the targets.

[Jake Di Vita]

The top guys get really good at quickly figuring out a stage and burning it into memory so they don't have to visualize it as many times as the rest of us do. I don't think it's possible to air gun/visualize too much....extra reps aren't going to hurt anything!

From my experience the top guys visualize the stage more than everyone else....which is one of the reasons they perform better.

[Catfish]

The top guys get really good at quickly figuring out a stage and burning it into memory so they don't have to visualize it as many times as the rest of us do. I don't think it's possible to air gun/visualize too much....extra reps aren't going to hurt anything!

From my experience the top guys visualize the stage more than everyone else....which is one of the reasons they perform better.

I agree with Jake, but with a caveat. The top guys look at a stage and develop a plan a LOT faster than us mere mortals. Which gives them more time to visualize, and less time trying to figure out what they are going to do.

[G-ManBart]

The top guys get really good at quickly figuring out a stage and burning it into memory so they don't have to visualize it as many times as the rest of us do. I don't think it's possible to air gun/visualize too much....extra reps aren't going to hurt anything!

From my experience the top guys visualize the stage more than everyone else....which is one of the reasons they perform better.

I agree with Jake, but with a caveat. The top guys look at a stage and develop a plan a LOT faster than us mere mortals. Which gives them more time to visualize, and less time trying to figure out what they are going to do.

The poster was specifically talking about the Tues night steel type stages and that he noticed TGO and others spending more time socializing rather than visualizing/air gunning....pretty simple stages for the most part.

The point being that on something less than a very complex stage they're going to be able to quickly look at it, burn it in and not have to go over it time after time. Once they've "got it" they've really got it and they can get to that point faster than the average bear. I've also noted that on some reasonably complicated stages you don't see those same guys going over it time and time again...sometimes maybe, but not always.

I like to walk through/air gun etc until I've got it and then close my eyes and run through it a few times when I'm on deck or in the hole...then just walk up and shoot it.

[badchad]

Thanks all. I guess I'll keep doing it until my insides tell me I have done it enough.

[Al Capizzo]

Try planing out a stage on just the points to hit with your feet. you may find that the gun movment will take care of its self much quicker if you land with your feet in the best postion for the targets.

This is very good advise, and something I'm going to try and work on the next few matches.

Is there a way to practice this, outside of a match?

[SKR]

Believe it or not I practice in my house room to room. I place my target arrays on the fridge, on the end tables, or what ever works for you. I then work from one room to another using windows or doorways as props. You can work on high/low engagement, strong/weak hand, or just foot work. I have learned a lot about keeping the gun up in front of you and not to get to close to props unless you have to. Only thing is be sure you clean you mess up before the wife or girlfriend gets home, sometimes they just do not understand.

[Shawn Knight]

I think the Delicate ballet of a GM is quite fun to watch. I may have to make a compilation video when I get enough GM footage. As for me I am quite like Neomet and Airgun the heck out of everything.

[Tactical Timmy]

I dont think the visualization isnt over till you are able to go over the stage in your mind, and watch it like a movie.

So there is no guessing where targets are and shooting the stage is subconcious.

[Shawn Knight]

I dont think the visualization isnt over till you are able to go over the stage in your mind, and watch it like a movie.

So there is no guessing where targets are and shooting the stage is subconcious.

I was told once to go over a stage at least 10 times in my head before I shot the stage. I still try to do that. It works very well.

[Jake Di Vita]

That's the minimum I do for very simple stages. For the more intricate ones, I'll visualize it 30 - 50 times...hence a reason why it is good to scope the stages the day before.

[Shawn Knight]

That's the minimum I do for very simple stages. For the more intricate ones, I'll visualize it 30 - 50 times...hence a reason why it is good to scope the stages the day before.

Do you make notes on the stage diagrams before you get to the matches? I tried it and it helped me remember the stages better for Area 5.

[Jake Di Vita]

I usually don't because I don't leave the range until I have every stage memorized.

[Neomet]

Chad's airgunning is paying off. He was rippin' it up at Tuesday Night Steel.

Hey KOL, welcome back to the world! When did you get back?

[Shawn Knight]

Chad's airgunning is paying off. He was rippin' it up at Tuesday Night Steel.

Hey KOL, welcome back to the world! When did you get back?

Just last Friday. Long flight.

[badchad]

Chad's airgunning is paying off. He was rippin' it up at Tuesday Night Steel.

Thanks.

One thing I noticed is it only takes me a few times of going over the course to memorize it. But then depending on the match I may have 5 minutes to 30 minutes before I’m up to shoot. I tend to keep on visualizing/airgunning as I figure I don’t have anything else to do with my time and it will just drill the stage in better. However, sometimes when I repeat the mental process I will mess it up and put a mag change in the wrong place and I then have to work to erase the image of my mental mistake, which may or may not show up for real when I shoot the stage for real.

I tend to run through my visualizing pretty fast and at Spring Steel Matt Burkett said I should do it in slow motion to ensure no mistakes and that the subconscious can’t tell the difference between slow visualizing and real time visualizing. Then I saw Angus between waiting for a stage and it looked like he was just taking a nap.

[badchad]

I think I may have found out what too much visualization/airgunning is.

When it starts to make me shoot a cadence rather than shooting my sights or even a good index.

When the whispering of "pa pa… pa pa… ting" (paper paper steel) steel during a stage breakdown started invading my dryfire practice, at about the same time my match performance started tanking, in spite of the fact that I was dryfiring a lot more. When I start subconsciously letting loose on steel before my sights are lined up because that’s when I felt, rather than saw, I should shoot and when as much as I try to break shots only on centered Alphas, my actual shots (only recently) are sometimes two Charlies one on either side of the Alpha.

Anyway that’s my theory. My subconscious started shooting a cadence in spite of my plan to be more visual. I don’t think the visualization is necessarily the culprit, but doing so repeatedly combined with airgunning/sound effects is (maybe).

Any thoughts?

[rupie]

6 ways to know your air gunning/visualizing to much.

1. you can see the a zone on everyone face when you are talking to them.

2. you poke someone in the chest with 2 hands every time you turn a corner at work.

3. You answer your phone at work pa pa ting

4. you start noticing larger people have bigger A zones

5. You scare people in the grocery store when you attempt a el prez on a box of Wheaties

6. when you are being intimate with your spouse you attempt a reload

[Adrian_Sorah]

6 ways to know your air gunning/visualizing to much.

1. you can see the a zone on everyone face when you are talking to them.

2. you poke someone in the chest with 2 hands every time you turn a corner at work.

3. You answer your phone at work pa pa ting

4. you start noticing larger people have bigger A zones

5. You scare people in the grocery store when you attempt a el prez on a box of Wheaties

6. when you are being intimate with your spouse you attempt a reload

:roflol: :roflol:

That is all.