What did you take away from the Nationals?

[Hoofy]

That an RO really can make a difference. One worked his a$$ off clearing soup from the shooting area between

squads on one stage. True dedication!

Short squads are at the disadvantage. Without the help of "spectators"- our entire squad would not have shot as well as it did.

We have some VERY talented juniors. Absolutely amazing to get schooled by the 2 on my squad. :rootbeer:

Get the points, get the points, get the points. Especially in a mud bath of a match.

Extreme conditions bring out the best in some, the worst in others. I'll take my squad over others, everytime.

[Matt Griffin]

Positives: My revolver bits and pieces (draws, reloads, etc.) are pretty good. However, I have to work on my short range splits and my trigger weight, I just can't throw two into close targets fast enough.

Negatives: I can't seem to force myself to shoot carefully with the Glock. I become too speed-oriented and it creeps up from my movement into my shooting. I think this year might be a production year, to teach self control.

Also, my long range accuracy is crap. The standards course was embarassing in both matches.

H.

[kevin c]

What I learned about myself:

-That I can be accurate if I focus properly (high percentage A hits), but that I lose focus too easily (too many dumb axx mikes and noshoots).

-That I don't practice movers nearly enough, both in terms of getting good hits on them, but also the engagement sequence and timing of arrays with statics and movers (an A/Master class skill I need to have).

-That I no longer can function optimally jet lagged and with less than six hours sleep a night.

-That I need to consciously pick up my pace and turn up the aggressive attitude.

-Stay hydrated.

What I learned about my equipment:

-Gortex is good, but plastic bags are almost as good.

-Low top Gortex shoes do not keep out mud or water, but booties, while silly looking, will still keep the toes pink and dry.

-Muddy Glock magazines run fine wet, if rinsed out in the pond, but not if they dry out overnight (they get gritty).

-My OEM bbl is plenty accurate enough for the Nats, and that means anywhere.

What I learned by watching others (the Production, Limited and L-10 Super Squads):

-The GM's don't really do it different, they do it better - they execute the fundamentals every time, flawlessly and quickly.

-The GM's do take the time to get the shot - the time to acquire the target, and the following split is what it needs to be, and that isn't usually 0.6s on the draw and a 0.12 split.

-Ted Puente's ability to break an accurate shot as he brings up the gun from any position is something I need to learn to do.

-Youth, strength and natural speed help, but even with two bad knees, TGO's experience and skill got him two top ten finishes, and he's still a threat to take it all. I might never get so close, but I can always improve.

eta:

-While it's great meeting new people, it's better to squad with your friends.

-It is possible to eat too much pork and beef...

Edited September 19, 2008 by kevin c

[CenTX]

I learned that when you shoot L-10 bring AS MANY MAGS AS YOU OWN. I actually own 12 mags for L-10 but only brought 9. Not that 12 would have gotten me through the match but it would have let me help paste and reset the stage instead of cleaning mags. Then I could clean the mags later at the hotel.

Just a suggestion - clean the mags after every stage, regardless Everyone understands in those conditions that it might take a little longer... You don't want that mud propagating to anything else in the bag, or having to worry about which mags are which or whatever. Just take the extra moment and do it...

I did Dave, that's what I mean. In fact I had a large plastic Ziploc bag as a 'dump bag' for dirty mags. Only really used it on the last day. I cleaned every dropped mag, after every stage ... regardless. You never know what you may need on the next stage.

But in the end ......... I'll never shoot another L-10 NATS. Heck I almost thought about loading up to capacity (21) and just letting myself get bumped into open in order to clean less mags.

There was at least one Open Shooter doing tactical reloads to avoid the mag cleaning issues.

[kevin c]

I saw one poor Open shooter drop his gun into the gunk. Mud was oozing out the comp as the CRO picked it up. I wonder how long it took to detail strip and clean, or even if it was possible to do that at the range...

[CenTX]

I saw one poor Open shooter drop his gun into the gunk. Mud was oozing out the comp as the CRO picked it up. I wonder how long it took to detail strip and clean, or even if it was possible to do that at the range...

One Open shooter dropped his gun jumping over a ditch by the parking near the vendors area. He finished in 32nd place, after cleaning out the mud, he then did tactical reloads on at least one stage.

edited for spelling and clarity

Edited September 18, 2008 by CenTX

[XD Niner]

One thing I didn't take away was any spent casings. This gave new meaning to the term "lost brass match!" I know the ROs were supposed to get all the spent brass and they are certainly welcome to it. I just can't figure out how they recovered any. After you shot a stage you could often turn around and not see any brass behind you. It had all sunk into the mud in just a few seconds.