Reducing overall time

[-JQ-]

I know this may seem simple-minded for you advanced shooters...that's why I put it in the Beginner's section.

I started shooting local practical pistol matches in october of last year (07) and I guess there are some things that have to sink in before they make sense.

Something I was doing was trying to go for too many points. This is the hit factor thing and my brain would glaze over most of the time when I tried to figure it out. (I won't go into HF here with the following excpetion)...wait to hear me out before telling me you need all the points.

Here's my issue:

When finishing up a COF (course of fire) I would then scan the targets looking for where I could have done better...d hits versus a's. So here I am taking the time at the end of my COF looking at the targets and then taking the time to decide which to shoot then ...bang seconds later. Maybe this took a couple of seconds but maybe more - for only a point or two.

So, shoot your best as fast as you can and be done with it.

Maybe this doesn't make sense to anyone but me...that happens a lot too.

ymmv

[G-ManBart]

That sounds reasonable. I like to think of it as "shoot A's as fast as you possibly can". If you try to do that you're still going to have a few C's here and there since you're pushing to the edge or acceptability for an A...and things should work out well if that's what happens. R,

[Matt Cheely]

Go for clean and consistent. Call your shots, and never go back after you're all done, that just tacks on unneeded seconds to an otherwise good run.

[BSeevers]

True but it will come full circle and someday you will be able to shoot A's as fast as anything else.

Making up misses by "scanning" targets is not usually a good practice. Calling your shots and making it up in .30 seconds right then can be.

[J.Wedge]

try to take the extra tenth between shots and try to cleen a stage, I bet your overall stage time will be better than taking 2 or 3 seconds to look back and shoot again.

[Jman]

Shoot A's as quickly as you can. Movement to and FROM shooting positions saves the most time. Be fluid. The best shooters are always moving some. Momentum. Your position on the last target in an array should enable fast, fluid movement toward the next array. Make up mikes the moment after you called a mike. FWIW. Have fun. Keep it pointed safely.

Jim M

[Chuck Merriam]

Start every stage with a simple plan. Execute it with finesse and cadence. And before I forget, don't get too caught up looking at your sights (except for the long shot) this is what most call calling the shot. You can also call it confidence and it does get better with practice and learning your gun. I see too many beginners waiting for a perfect sight picture for a 7 yrd shot. Also if you own more than one gun...only shoot one...it will help you learn it faster.

[nphd2000]

Amen to the 1 gun thing. Shoot it and learn it.

[leam]

I just think of it as getting twice as much shooting time as everyone else.

Leam

[-JQ-]

I just think of it as getting twice as much shooting time as everyone else.

Leam

That's what I told people when I used to play golf....

[leam]

That's what I told people when I used to play golf....

I was so bored I almost started playing golf, then the wife of many years relented and agreed to have a gun in the house. I'm still trying to turn my "disadvantages into advantages", window shopping on Burkett's book yesterday. This has been on my mind for a while, I generally come in at the bottom 15% of the speed based shooting lists no matter how long the list might be. IDPA and Cowboy; the latter has seen me beaten by energetic tween ladies.

A couple weekends ago I shot full load Black Powder substitute at a CAS match. Fun, lots of recoil, and on the double taps I had to guess where the target was. Of 116 total rounds I missed 2; even firing Zen like into the cloud. I also took, literally, nearly twice as long as the lead shooter and the COF wasn't that involved. Somehow this has to be a disadvantage I can turn into an advantage, but at the moment it's just souring into a discouragement.

Suggestions welcome, encouragement encouraged.

Leam

[mdstihl]

Rule # 1 - Have Fun. Shoot as well as you can, but don't worry about what everyone else is doing. Have Fun. Shoot your best.

Rule # 2 - Read these forums. There's TONS of great info here, and (for me) just reading and letting it sink in, will help your shooting tremendously. Your practice sessions will be more meaningful because you'll know what you're supposed to see. (hint: watch the front sight)

Rule # 3 - Have Fun.

[Matt Griffin]

See the sights, break the shot. If you do that, then little factors will give you Cs like an iffy trigger pull or movement, but you won't throw seriously bad shots. It's when you start blazing on index that the trash happens. Other than that, I rarely break a perfectly clean bullseye-type shot unless it is at a 25yd plate or it's a last-target last-round situation.

H.

[JDBraddy]

Being a D-class shooter, I'm certainly no one to give advice, but I have noticed that I do better when I slow down just enough to make sure I don't fail to enguage any targets. I'd rather risk a C or D hit, than get a no-shoot or take a miss by accidentily hitting hard-cover on a partially hidden target, If I miss a steel, and taking an extra shot will require an extra reload, I'll leave it, but if it doesn't require an extra reload, then often I'll plan on taking a couple extra shots on an array of steel, swinger, or disappearing target when I'm formulating my plan of how to shoot the course.

Edited May 18, 2008 by JDBraddy