Range Practice

One of the things that Tara and I do out at the range is practice presenting from the holster.  A wise man (well, actually a couple) drilled it into my head that the first step in proper grip begins while the gun is still holstered.  Getting a good hold on the gun while it's still holsters ensures that you won't have to do any last minute juggling while trying to find your sight picture.

You'll notice in the videos that both Tara and I keep our off hands close to our bodies while drawing from the holster.  The reason for that is so that we don't inadvertently cross ourselves with the muzzle.

Also, you'll see in my video that there's what looks like a slight hesitation before I bring my gun up.  What I'm doing at that time is verifying my target before I bring the gun up into my line of sight.  In competition you can hardly notice the hesitation and my draw looks more fluid, but it's pretty pronounced during practice time when I'm trying to be slow and methodical.




Tara's draw is smoother, without the hesitation (well, it's there, it's just much less noticeable than mine).  However, you'll notice right at the very end of the video that the gun doesn't fit her hand very well and she has to readjust her off hand.  This is her son's gun and his hands are slightly bigger than hers.  That being said, she shot the feces out of this gun.  For a gun that doesn't fit her hand, she can really drill holes with it.




Here's our mental checklist for presenting from the holster:

• Right hand to gun, get a good grip
• Left hand to body
• Pull gun straight out of the holster
• Rotate the muzzle so that it's parallel to the ground
• Add left hand to right on the grip
• Safety off with right hand, thumb settles on top of left thumb, both thumbs pointing at the target
• As gun comes up into the line of sight*, the booger hook slips off the frame of the gun into the trigger guard and we're ready to push the bang button.

*Bring the gun up into the line of sight, you should be looking at your target and your gun should come up into your vision.  Don't drop your head down to look for your gun.  You know where your arms are on your body.  You know your gun is securely in your hands.  Therefore if you raise your arms, with the gun in your hands, you will bring the gun up into your sight picture and won't have to go looking for it.

You Asked For It

Here's the video y'all were clammoring for.  There have been some comments about how Tara should wear her purse and whether or not a purse carry is appropriate.  The point of the video (and the practice) is get competent with presenting her weapon from the position in which she carries it.  How she carries her gun is her choice (just as it's any of our choice).

What I'm impressed with, besides how smooth she is, is that she's taking the time to ensure that she's competent with it and that she didn't just throw her gun in her purse "just in case" like so many women do.




We were out practicing with multiple weapons that day, so no comments from the peanut galley about why she didn't draw from her hip :)

Practice, Practice, Practice Part II

Last week, after I had an abysmal day at the range, I put up a post about practice.

Friday, my friend Tara (aka GunDiva II) and I went to the range for some of that desperately needed practice. 

She has a little five-shot revolver that she now carries in her purse and we decided that she needed practice drawing and firing from her purse.  While I'm a big proponent of strapping your gun to your side, so that you always have control over it, there are a lot of women who are much more comfortable carrying in their purse.  That's fine as long as you spend the time learning how to draw and fire from your purse, just like you do learning to draw and fire from a holster.  You can't buy a gun (or take the one your well-meaning significant other gives you), throw it in your purse and expect to be able to find and use it when the feces hits the air circulating device.

The first thing we did was take a look at how she normally carries her purse.  She carries it over her left shoulder, hanging straight down.  She's a right-handed shooter, so in order for her to draw from her purse, she had to perform a cross draw.  Luckily, the zipper on her purse had two pulls, so we arranged them so that one pull was secured to her strap and only the other pull would work to open her purse.

Once we had it arranged the way we thought we wanted it, she practiced holding her front strap with her right hand, while pulling open the zipper with her left.  With her left hand out of the way, and her purse open, she then slipped her right hand into her purse and grasped her gun.  She was careful to never cross herself with the muzzle of the gun while she drew from her purse.

Now this is where attitude comes in.  Without even realizing it, the moment her hand closed over her gun, her whole demeanor changed.  She took a step forward as she presented her gun and continued to move forward as she squeezed off all five rounds.  No matter how big you are; if you're a predator hunting what looks like easy prey and that prey attacks back, you're going to re-think your choice.

Over and over, Tara practiced presenting from her purse and dry-firing at the target until she felt comfortable to go live.  Her first run-through from beginning to end took less than three seconds.  That's three seconds to secure and unzip her purse, get a good grip on the gun, present and squeeze off all five rounds while moving forward.  Were all five rounds in a nice half-inch circle?  Nope.  Were all five rounds in center mass?  You betcha.

Next week when we go to the range, I'll be sure to take my video camera.  Until then, keep on practicing.

Practice, Practice, Practice!

Girls, do yourselves a favor.

Don't ever pass up the opportunity to go to the range.  Shooting is a perishable skill and takes constant re-inforcement.  Muscle memory is all well and good, but there is nothing like putting lead down range.

I, myself, have been remiss in partaking in much-needed practice.  When I was shooting regularly a couple of years ago, I finished in the top ten (often top five) in our monthly Defensive Pistol competitions.  At one point, my instructor said that I could draw almost faster than the eye can see.  I was good.  There wasn't a gun that I wouldn't shoot and I was always first to the line to try something new.  The key word in those preceding sentences: was.

I went to out with RockCrawlinChef and his work buddies today for a day of shooting.  It was fabulous - eventually.  I limp-wristed my pistol and had some feed problems; I slapped the trigger and threw my rounds; I second guessed my sight picture; I made mistakes I haven't made in years.  And why?  Not enough range time.  Lack of confidence.  Used to be, I *knew* that I was one of the best at the range.  I know, that even without range time, I can kill whatever I point my gun at.  However, I'd like to do it with only one or two rounds, not one or two magazines.

Last year for a wedding present, one of my shooting buddies gave us a Remington 700 in .223.  It lay dormant under our bed until today.  Last year for my birthday, RCC gave me a 12 gauge Remington 870.  It stood dormant in the closet until today.  The GunDiva of old would never have allowed two perfectly good guns to go neglected for a year. 

I don't know what happened to the old GunDiva, but I'm ready to have her back.  I'll be making a point to get to the range as often as possible - at least once a week between now and September because I'm headed back to Defensive Pistol competition and that's going to take a lot of trigger time (and, sadly, some knuckle push-ups to get my wrist strength back) to not embarrass myself.

So here's today's lesson: Practice, Practice, Practice.

Time to get my booger hook out of my nose and onto my bang button.

Call Me Paranoid If You Want.... But At Least I'm Not Shot

We all like to think that we're *safe* when we are at home. We can kick back, relax, get nekkid, and just veg out on the couch watching Stupid Movie Saturday on the tube. Or we can crash in bed after working a long, tough twenty four hour shift.

Paramedic Pru thought she was safe at home on Thursday night, too. She lived in a "safe" part of town, where there had not been any "crime" to speak of in over twenty years. No break ins, no car theft, no shootings, no stabbings, no drug dealers on the corner.. nothing. In many ways, the neighborhood appeared to be a Haven.

Looks can be deceiving, folks.

Paramedic Pru was resting up, after her long shift. She heard the doorbell ring several times, and got up to answer it. Apparently, who ever was on the other side had no clue Pru was home, as he reflexively shot her- in the face- as he was fleeing. Lucky for Pru, the bullet went in one cheek, broke her jaw and took out all of her top teeth, and exited the other cheek.

Paramedic Pru will heal physically. She's tough as nails. Got balls made of titanium. But that did not stop some jagoff from shooting her.


Home invasion. Be aware folks. Don't get complacent. Don't "assume" that you are "safe" just because you live in a "safe" area. Look before you open the door. If you don't know who it is, back off and make a plan. Don't just open the door anymore. Have your phone in reach, in your hand, in a pocket, somewhere, and have your WITS about you. LISTEN to your gut. A gun in hand would not have saved Pru, unless she was willing to shoot first and ask questions later. (Which by the way-- Castle Doctrine would apply [in our state] had the Bad Guy broken into Pru's home. Then she sure could have smeared him all over Kingdom Come. KNOW YOUR STATE LAWS-- not just for carry-- but for home defense!)

So the next time someone sneers at me, and asks why I feel the need to carry, or if I'm a badass, or any of their other little snide remarks, my answer will be thus:
"Why? You got a problem with a woman who is ready, willing, and ABLE to defend herself using deadly force? Seems kind of odd to me- what are YOU planning?"

SA so you can CYA, y'all.
~MM

Just a little tip...

Boys, if you're gonna go into a gun shop and try to impress the people working there, please, please, please know the name of the gun you're trying to brag on.  Coming into the shop and bragging about how well you shoot your "Smith and Western" will get you plum laughed out of the shop.

Weapon Presentation (Test Video)

Dear Husband has agreed to be our teacher. This first video is a test, for me to learn how to accomplish this complicated task.