tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5420886806115679313.post8211002078144173993..comments2023-11-15T19:12:11.313-06:00Comments on Push the Pull Door: USPSA Lessons LearnedDonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15824445546892392815noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5420886806115679313.post-82003208020322381992014-09-22T21:43:24.976-05:002014-09-22T21:43:24.976-05:00Purpose? I thought that getting to the range and ...Purpose? I thought that getting to the range and having fun sending lead downrange was the purpose! <br /><br />On a serious note, anything and everything you do in firearms makes you a better shooter. One of our firearms instructors only shoots once or twice a year, yet he qualifies at 98% or higher every time. I practice and practice, and I can barely break 92%. But I know that due to all of my practice that I'll shoot just as good when I'm moving or crouching or what have you because I've practiced it on a regular basis. (I may have slacked on the match circuit but I've taken a bit of advantage of a few LE tactical ranges and training.) <br /><br />Why do you have a gun? For self defense, hunting, or competition? Me? I'm getting old. I'm done with worrying about what other people think. I do what I think is fun. I do what makes me happy, even if it's breaking out the 5 shot snubbie just to watch all of the gamers' have heart attacks. <br /><br />The rules... Yeah, you got bit by an obscure one. I'm sure that got a few other people also. (Now if the scorer enforced these rules is another story.) I can't give you an answer. I am working at increasing my speed and accuracy, and maintaining my safe handling of firearms. In my honest opinion, your two possible goals are not incompatible. Over time, I get on target faster and my accuracy increases. (I get a lot of Alpha/Mikes, so I need to work on my follow up shots.) By working on getting better at the entire game, you can work your way to an A shooter. To paraphrase Robert Pirsig, it's the sides of the mountain that supports life, not the top. Gladornhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13036666575371011307noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5420886806115679313.post-27152788164696622852014-09-22T09:25:43.440-05:002014-09-22T09:25:43.440-05:00(And . . . . do I know my purpose?)(And . . . . do I know my purpose?)Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09809185132585728692noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5420886806115679313.post-67744503961559969502014-09-22T09:25:30.001-05:002014-09-22T09:25:30.001-05:00Exactly. I've been thinking a lot about my cla...Exactly. I've been thinking a lot about my classification for a bit, but someone mentioned on the Brian Enos forums the other day that he didn't understand the race to be classed higher. If you practice classifiers and exclude the rest, he argued, you're basically practicing standing gun manipulations and marksmanship. Those aren't bad skills, but they don't capture everything it takes to win in USPSA, so why bother? No sense, from his point of view, in rushing to be a black belt if you can't compete on a level playing field with the black belts--and conversely, no shame in being a blue belt if you're doing well as a blue belt. The classification will come with time, and it's of no real value outside USPSA anyway.<br /><br />That's where I think I was differing from him . . . I wanted to be an A shooter for the sake of being an A shooter. But I am not one, and the question is, should I bother to chase that, or just learn the game and have fun getting better at the entire game? Which one suits my purpose better?Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09809185132585728692noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5420886806115679313.post-15932304776458977422014-09-21T20:37:59.252-05:002014-09-21T20:37:59.252-05:00I'd been out of shooting for a bit and thus I&...I'd been out of shooting for a bit and thus I've not been to any USPSA matches in years. That changed this weekend. <br /><br />I did fine, not excellent. I learned that when shooting through a window (or any other type of barrier) to not have my pistol come in contact with the wood. I kept getting jams and I thought it was the magazine. (My local club has never put on such an extravagant course, so there were a few things missing.) <br /><br />I don't stress over too much about what class I am in, or what score that I get. I'm there to have fun and to get some practice in. We've all broken the 180 at some point. Just another learning experience. Gladornhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13036666575371011307noreply@blogger.com