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Obviously Not a Competition Shooter


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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J4_GlTzSLVU

This guy just does WAY too much nervous moving around of the gun during manipulation. Also gotta love the way the way he starts out with the gun pointed (1) uprange, (2) at his own hand and (3) the cameraman (but who cares, because it's unloaded, right), actually points it backward at himself while locking the slide to the rear (which you've gotta do to load the gun, of course), repositions his hand mid-string, then pats himself on the back for a 5-shot slow fire group at, what, seven yards that misses the entire huge bull's-eye once.

The more I watch USPSA and IDPA shooters, and then watch other people, the more I realize we are the GODS of safe and efficient gun handling. I just got through firing an IDPA state championship yesterday. 12 people on my squad, 13 stages all requiring movement, multiple target work and fast gun manipulation, and I didn't see a single piece of unsafe gun handling all day. No doubt about it, we rock.

I have to wonder if he's firing five rounds of the same stuff. Anyone else notice the big muzzle flash on rounds 1, 2 and 5, and complete absence of same on rounds 3 and 4? (Well, you probably did now that I mentioned it, right?) :D

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Yup. Considering he's on the right wall, he just swept the entire firing line and I saw another 2 targets out there in different lanes. Unfortunately the camera makes some people batty, even more so than the buzzer.

I don't know what framerate that was captured in, but it doesn't look that smooth, perhaps the missing muzzle flash was lost between frames?

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I used to go to an outdoor public range that opened at 9 AM. I was always there waiting at 9 because I knew that I could have a few hours there alone before anyone else showed up. When other people began to arrive, I left. The few times I decided to stay around....well, let's just say I've had loaded guns pointed at me more times on that range than anywhere else.

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Even IPSC and IDPA shooters aren't always perfect. It's interesting to watch competitive shooters go from a match under IPSC/IDPA rules to practice or "outlaw" matches.

I used to shoot an "outlaw" match a local indoor range holds every other week. About 1/2 of the shooters there compete in one format or another outside of this match. I was squatting by my bag loading magazines and glanced to my right to see one of the other shooters, a regular at IPSC/IDPA (he's even an assistant MD and RO/SO), "clearing" his gun with the muzzle about 8" away pointing at my head :surprise: It wasn't on purpose. But he was so focused on what he was doing he didn't notice me right next to him.

As a whole, competitive shooters are much more safety aware. We just can't assume we're the best and get complacent though.

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The few times I decided to stay around....well, let's just say I've had loaded guns pointed at me more times on that range than anywhere else.

Been there, done that, don't have the t-shirt....

The range I'm thinking of closed a few years ago. The phenomenon still exists at the current public range, but occurs much less frequently. There are still times when I leave early -- because I see or hear the warning signs....

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Even IPSC and IDPA shooters aren't always perfect. It's interesting to watch competitive shooters go from a match under IPSC/IDPA rules to practice or "outlaw" matches.

I used to shoot an "outlaw" match a local indoor range holds every other week. About 1/2 of the shooters there compete in one format or another outside of this match. I was squatting by my bag loading magazines and glanced to my right to see one of the other shooters, a regular at IPSC/IDPA (he's even an assistant MD and RO/SO), "clearing" his gun with the muzzle about 8" away pointing at my head :surprise: It wasn't on purpose. But he was so focused on what he was doing he didn't notice me right next to him.

As a whole, competitive shooters are much more safety aware. We just can't assume we're the best and get complacent though.

To me, that's a symptom of the "when rules aren't rigorously enforced, they are no longer rules" mentality—they have faded into the background rather than staying in the forefront of our minds where they belong.

Curtis

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Looks like the guy that was in the video is taking a lot of heat about his gun handling in the viewer comments, that's good.

On the absence of muzzle flash, it's due to the recording "frame rate" of the video. To get the flash on every shot, the camera would have to record at more than 30 frames per second. Considering the quality of the video, I doubt the camera was even capable of 30fps.

Edited by HighVelocity
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To me, that's a symptom of the "when rules aren't rigorously enforced, they are no longer rules" mentality—they have faded into the background rather than staying in the forefront of our minds where they belong.

Curtis

Safety is safety and a personal responsibility. As shooters we shouldn't have to rely on enforcement. Which was sort of my point about being complacent. Our rules provide a good structure and raise awareness. In general I would agree with the original post, on the whole we are better gunhandlers. But it's OUR job individually to put it into practice outside of a structured match.

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Safety is safety and a personal responsibility. As shooters we shouldn't have to rely on enforcement. Which was sort of my point about being complacent. Our rules provide a good structure and raise awareness. In general I would agree with the original post, on the whole we are better gunhandlers. But it's OUR job individually to put it into practice outside of a structured match.

I agree -- as well as being our responsibility to protect others from harm whenever possible.....

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