Posted: 11/13/2007 6:42:31 PM EDT
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I shot the IPSC match at Bullseye n Cumming tonight and made an interesting observation of my shooting, but I'll get to that in a moment. First the funy part where I laugh at myself. At the first stage, which was 48 rounds, I drew, aimed, pulled the trigger and nothing. I then clicked the safety off and was off to the races. It was the first time that I competed with a gun that had a safety. I then killed my time by missing two sets of targets and having to double back to get them. I don't remember what my scores were, but they were not bad. The second stage was 20 rounds and I did fine, 15 A's, 4 B's and 1 d. The final stage was 8 stationary shots at close range, 6 A's and 2 B's. I had a blast, literally, and look foward to doing it more often. I don't think I can do it weekly, but every other week shouldn't be a problem. Now for the interesting observation of my shooting. I pulled off the longer shots more accurately than I normally do when playing at the range and concentrating on my shots. :?: Why? At the match, I was paying more attention to my front sight than the rear. When I target shoot I concentrate alot more on both sights. Why would I shoot better when concentrating less? Could I be concentrating too much when just target shooting? More relaxed when shooting IPSC since I'm also thinking about my movements and what targets are next? Any other thoughts? |
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Was the "Ninja Boot" Rob Romero there? Hopefully you got to see him shoot. He is quite impressive. Welcome to IPSC.......it is a game that can take your level of shooting above most others. Make sure you make it to an outdoor match at South River,RiverBend,or Cherokee for an even more awesome experience. Check out Georgia IPSC for upcoming match dates. Hope to see you at one. I make it to pretty much every one of them every month......I'm an addict 
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Adam5, Congratulations on taking the blue pill and escaping the Matrix! There's no way I can explain in writing what you experienced, it would take too long, but understand that concentration is not the same as focus. You were concentrating on the act of shooting, but you were focused on the front sight. The traditional mantra of focus on the front sight, all the time is not quite accurate. It's a philosophy that most instructor's expouse because that's what they learned, but they really don't know what it means. I tell my students to "See what you need to see to make the shot." If you need a sharp, crisp focus on the front sight at 10 yards to make the hit, then that's what you need. If you don't, then you don't. As distance increases (especially with a pistol), stricter adherence to the fundamentals of shooting is required. How much adherence depends on too many personal and equipment factors to quantify, but generally if you extend the distance you need more focus not less. In your case, you perceived you were "concentrating" less, but in actuality you focused more on the front sight, which is what you needed to see to make the shot. The total amount of effort you put into the act of shooting was probably the same, you just shifted some effort from concentrating to focusing giving you the perception you were concentrating less and focusing more, but failing to understand the significance of it all. Now you see why it would take too long to fully develope this thread and as the saying goes.....this is just the tip of the iceberg. Welcome to life "off the grid." Don't worry, it's a good thing. You've started down a path of shooting enlightenment. At this point, the best advice I can give you is a quote from Morpheus, "Free you mind," and prepare to forget everything you have previously learned. Be sure to squad with 00bullet and I at the next local South River or Cherokee match. I look forward to shooting with you. VSP |
| From a guy that shoots both, don't rule out some of the IDPA matches either. Both are different games, but the fundamentals of shooting are the same just tested differently. Also look into the USPSA match at River Bend. It's a good match that's growing and not too far from Cumming. |