Lessons Learned

Now that the euphoria of completing an entire match weak-handed has faded, I can take a look back at the videos and critique them.

First, my grip sucked.  I should have re-read our post on proper grip.  Being so right hand dominant, I can see that my discomfort with using my left hand impacted my grip.  I did not hold it like I owned it and it showed with feed failures.  I worked like crazy on getting the proper grip while in the holster and throughout my presentation (draw), which explains why I never had a feed failure while shooting my first magazine.  However, I obviously didn't maintain that grip during/after magazine changes (or, in the case of Stage 1, after switching hands back and forth).

Because I didn't have a proper grip, I couldn't control my muzzle flip, which increased my time to get back on target.

Second, as a general rule, I shoot using a Weaver/Modified Weaver stance (the differences between the two are so subtle, most people can't distinguish them).

When I looked at the videos, though, I noticed that left-handed, I gravitated toward the Isosceles stance.

The debate over which is the superior stance is a post for a different day, but my point is that it's not a stance I normally use, which also played a part in my slow-as-molasses-ness in acquiring my sight picture.

I had intended to shoot the match and be done with shooting weak-handed.  The problem is, I've got a lot of work to do.  Am I confident I can hit what I'm aiming at weak-handed?  You bet.  But can I do it in a timely manner? Not so much.  RCC pointed out last night, as he was watching the videos, that I need to work on speed.  The bad guys would have killed me five or six times over by the time I got my first round off.  He's right.

Questions for you: Do you work on specific skills when out at the range or do you just go out "to play"?  Do you set shooting goals for yourself?  If so, what are your shooting goals?

Defensive Pistol 9-4-11 (warning: long post, picture and video heavy)

I've been talking about shooting an entire match weak-handed for a couple of months, but hadn't done it yet.  The last month I planned on shooting weak-handed, the person I was going to borrow the holster from couldn't find one and I ended up shooting it strong-handed (I'm a righty).  Then I was at HCR for the following month.  This time, instead of planning on borrowing a left-handed holster, I just bought one.  I've practiced with it exactly twice.  Did I have a whole month to practice?  Yep.  Did I?  Just twice.  Have I mentioned I'm a procrastinator?

Nevertheless, this morning, I loaded up with my left-handed holster and left my right-handed ones at home.  That way I couldn't chicken out at the last second and procrastinate again.

Stage 1
Starting position: seated in pickup, handgun loaded and holstered,hands on steering wheel, seatbelt on.
Course of fire: remove seatbelt, engage P1 & P2 from inside the pickup; engage T1 - T3 from across the truck bed and P3, P4 and T4 from the back bumper. 8 total targets.

Here's the video.  Just a note, the gun wasn't malfunctioning - I was.  Every time it didn't go into battery was because I was limp-wristing it.  Totally my fault.  It only happened once or twice (or three or four times).  Each flipping stage.




Stage 2
Starting position: loaded, holstered handgun, standing in the shooting box, hands at side.
Course of fire: engage targets from either side in tactical order: right side standing behind cover; left side behind cover, shooting under the "wall".  8 total targets.

Here's the video.  I'm pretty happy that I was able to hit the steel plates that were hidden behind the good guys without hitting the good guys.



Stage 3
Starting position: shooter in box A, handgun loaded and holstered, arms at side.
Course of fire: shooter steps into box b (pink outlined area), engages T1 - T11 in any order; do not shoot the good (white) guys.  11 total targets.

This stage scared the bejeezus out of me!  Do you see how many good guys there are?  Nine good guys, eleven bad guys.  Yikes.



Stage 4
Starting position: shooter in shooting box, handgun loaded and holstered.
Course of fire: Three strings: 1) engage T1 & T2 in tactical sequence (one each and then clean up with a second round each), shooting free style; 2) engage T1 & T2 in tactical sequence, strong hand only; 3) engage T1 & T2 in tactical sequence from low-ready, weak hand only. 6 total targets.

This one looks (and felt backward) because my "strong" arm today is actually my weak arm in real life.



Stage 5
Starting position: shooter behind door, strong hand on door knob, handgun loaded and holstered.
Course of fire: open door with strong hand only, draw and engage visible targets in any order; targets hidden behind the "walls" must be shot in tactical order (slicing the pie). 11 total targets.

Yep, the limp wrist strikes again.  I like the beginning of this run, but I can't seem to get the rhythm after the magazine change.


Side match: Rifle
Starting position: shooter behind the door, rifle loaded, muzzle in a safe position.
Course of fire: open door with strong hand only, draw and engage visible targets in any order; targets hidden behind the "walls" must be shot in tactical order (slicing the pie). 14 total targets.

This is a long video - I was going to edit it down, but I had too much fun shooting the stage to want to cut any of it out.  Besides, I want everyone to see the beautiful head shot I had from the doorway and Mez video'd the scoring.  I kinda forgot one target, though.



Working out with El Poquito Diablo really helped when I was having trouble with the rifle; I had the extra oompf I needed to manhandle the 9.25# rifle.  After the stage, one of the other shooters told me that I was having problems because I was hitting my left forearm with the charging handle.  I didn't feel it, but you can see where I had the charging handle flush against my left wrist.

Steel Challenge 8-27-11

RockCrawlinChef, Mez and I shot the Steel Challenge last Saturday.  It was the first time I'd ever done it and it was a blast!  I've shot Defensive Pistol off and on for years, but hadn't bothered with the Steel Challenge.  In the interest of broadening my shooting horizons for my next application to Top Shot, I'm shooting anything and everything.

During a Defensive Pistol match, it's not unusual to go through approximately two hundred rounds, so I didn't realize how tiring shooting the Steel Challenge would be.  I shot it using my step-dad's Ruger MKII (.22 LR) and didn't think that two hundred plus rounds of .22 would be a big deal, since I normally shoot a .45 ACP.

The biggest difference, for me, is that the Steel Challenge feels like an endurance match.  Shooting the same stage five times, one right after the other, takes a lot more stamina than shooting each stage one time like you do in Defensive Pistol.

I wasn't sure I'd like it, since the stages never change month to month, whereas in Defensive Pistol the stages are different every month.  I can definitely see the advantage in being able to compare stage times each month - it's an easy way to measure improvement.

Another thing I learned is that I shoot better right to left than left to right.  Odd, isn't it?  If I hadn't shot the Challenge, I would have never known that.  For some reason, it's easier for me to pick up my sight picture moving to the left than to the right.

Since I videotape pretty much *everything* when I'm shooting now (more application footage), I have a video of some of the stages...



I think I've got Tara Janzen talked into shooting it with us next month - it's a good segue into shooting matches, something she's been talking about doing, but hasn't quite gotten there yet.

I took the Bosu out to the match, though I didn't shoot off of it.  When we were done with our stages, Mez and I asked if we could try to shoot the last stage from the Bosu.  Unfortunately, I ran out of memory on the video camera before we hopped up on the Bosu.  We both took a turn and decided that next month we'll be shooting from the Bosu, just to up the ante a bit.

Gun Powder Therapy - Pretty Much a Perfect Way to Spend a Sunday

July/August was a disaster for me; I traveled for work and then went to Julie Goodnight's place for a week to film her TV show, Horse Master with Julie Goodnight, made an appearance at RomCon and then raced up to the High Country Rendezvous.  The constant running around, even though it was only for about ten days, really cut into my range time, so it felt *fabulous* to be out on the range today.

Boss Man fixed my Para (it was the three-fingered spring - yay me for guessing that!) and I wanted to put a couple hundred rounds through it to make sure all of the ghosties are gone and that it'll be okay to take to the September match.  I'm all about challenging myself, so I decided I'm going to shoot the September match completely weak-handed.  I'm confident in my ability to shoot weak-handed, but I've never presented from a holster left-handed or changed magazines with my right hand.  I picked up a cheap Kydex paddle holster the other day and spent some time today working on presentation.  Holy cow, it was U-G-L-Y!


(Yes, Mez was nearby, just barely behind the firing line, but I was doing dry-fire practice with empty magazines.)



Throughout the day it got more smooth, but I've got just two weeks to get as comfortable as possible before I do it at the match.  That means even more dry fire practice at the silhouette on my bedroom wall.

Mez brought out his new toy, which for the life of me I can't remember the manufacturer, a .308 carbine (essentially a FN FAL, but Austrian-made).  That is a sweet shooting gun.  We had an 8" steel plate about 60 yards out and I hit it with every round I shot right-handed from an off-hand (standing) position.  My accuracy wasn't as great with my left hand; I only hit the plate about 50% of the time (but I did manage to shoot holes clean through the legs, which are much smaller than the plate, that ought to count for something, right?).

Of course, standing around plinking at paper's not a ton of fun, so we decided to add an extra degree of difficulty and set up our own carbine course.



Yep, pretty much a perfect way to spend a Sunday.

RomCon 2011

I was thrilled to be invited to be a "special guest" by Tara Janzen and Cindy Gerard during their 3-hour "Special Ops" presentation at this year's RomCon.  RomCon is a romance readers convention; there are no writing workshops or agents to pitch to, just romance authors and their readers.

L to R: Cindy Gerard, Tara Janzen, Cullen, me

Cullen, our master gunsmith from Colorado Gun Works, did a presentation on the "toys" he and Tara brought, which included Kid's rifle and Skeeter's shotgun.

Kid's rifle: Remington 700P chambered in .308 with a Schmidt und Bender PMIIK scope.

Picture by Terry Odell

Skeeter's Shotgun: Remington 870 with too many toys/customizations to mention. (Though I could if you asked.)

Picture by Terry Odell

During the course of Cullen's presentation, he asked the crowd to guess how many weapons he had on him.  The guesses ranged from three to thirty-some.  They kept count as he pulled guns off of his ankle, out of a shoulder holster, out of a pocket and knives out of his tie, pockets and god-only-knows where else.  All guesses were wrong.  The right answer, and the one I hope everyone remembers is: ONE.  He had one weapon with him, his brain; the rest were merely tools.

If you never remember anything else from this blog, please remember that your brain *is* your weapon.  Use it.

During the course of the presentation, we were asked to demonstrate a Wingate maneuver, which both Tara's and Cindy's heroes have used in their books.  Unfortunately, since I was busy being "killed", I don't have any pictures of the demonstration, though I do still sport the bruises from the rubber knife.

Spending three hours with Tara's and Cindy's fans was a good time - it was wonderful to see so many women take an interest in the weaponry and feel like they had a safe place to ask questions without being ridiculed.

For a participant's take on RomCon, click over to Terry's Place and see what she had to think about it.  Terry's an author whose blog I've followed for a couple of years; I had the opportunity to hang out with her at Writers' Police Academy last year and was thrilled to see her at RomCon.

A Couple of Quickies

I'm so sorry for being behind.  I've still got lots of posts in my little brain, but need to get them from my brain to my computer.  In the meantime, I've been shooting as much as possible even though I didn't make the cut for Top Shot this time.  I still plan on working out and shooting everything I can get my hands on to apply for the next season.

Anyway, I've got just a couple of quick videos to share from last time we went out.  Deejo (my brother) finally made the move from Arizona to Colorado (yay, Deejo!) and I'll get to shoot with him more often now.  But first we have to get him back into shooting shape.  Mez's .45-70 kinda kicked his butt.  Well, his shoulder.  Take a look...



I fared much better in the shoulder department when I shot the rifle, but could not stay on the Bosu.  I guess that means that I've got a lot more core abdominal work to do in order to stay up during the recoil.  I also sort of made a mistake.  We had a dueling tree out with us.  It was out thirty-thirtyfive yards, a reach for the handguns, but just right for the rifle.  Um.  Yeah.  The dueling tree lost.  Big time.



In the video, when we're looking at the plates, you can hear me say, "I didn't do that".  On playback, you can see that I very clearly did do that. 

Anyone know where I can buy new plates for the dueling tree?

Why The Gun Is Civilization

This was sent to me in an email from a fellow GunDiva...I thought I'd pass it on...

by: Maj. L. Caudill USMC (Ret)



Human beings only have two ways to deal with one another: reason and

force. If you want me to do something for you, you have a choice of

either convincing me via argument, or force me to do your bidding

under threat of force. Every human interaction falls into one of those

two categories, without exception. Reason or force, that's it.



In a truly moral and civilized society, people exclusively interact

through persuasion. Force has no place as a valid method of social

interaction, and the only thing that removes force from the menu is

the personal firearm, as paradoxical as it may sound to some.



When I carry a gun, you cannot deal with me by force. You have to use

reason and try to persuade me, because I have a way to negate your

threat or employment of force. The gun is the only personal weapon

that puts a 100-pound woman on equal footing with a 220-pound mugger,

a 75-year old retiree on equal footing with a 19-year old gang banger,

and a single gay guy on equal footing with a carload of drunk guys

with baseball bats. The gun removes the disparity in physical

strength, size, or numbers between a potential attacker and a

defender.



There are plenty of people who consider the gun as the source of bad

force equations. These are the people who think that we'd be more

civilized if all guns were removed from society, because a firearm

makes it easier for a [armed] mugger to do his job. That, of course,

is only true if the mugger's potential victims are mostly disarmed

either by choice or by legislative fiat--it has no validity when most

of a mugger's potential marks are armed. People who argue for the

banning of arms ask for automatic rule by the young, the strong, and

the many, and that's the exact opposite of a civilized society. A

mugger, even an armed one, can only make a successful living in a

society where the state has granted him a force monopoly.



Then there's the argument that the gun makes confrontations lethal

that otherwise would only result in injury. This argument is

fallacious in several ways. Without guns involved, confrontations are

won by the physically superior party inflicting overwhelming injury on

the loser. People who think that fists, bats, sticks, or stones don't

constitute lethal force watch too much TV, where people take beatings

and come out of it with a bloody lip at worst. The fact that the gun

makes lethal force easier works solely in favor of the weaker

defender, not the stronger attacker. If both are armed, the field is

level. The gun is the only weapon that's as lethal in the hands of an

octogenarian as it is in the hands of a weight lifter. It simply

wouldn't work as well as a force equalizer if it wasn't both lethal

and easily employable.



When I carry a gun, I don't do so because I am looking for a fight,

but because I'm looking to be left alone. The gun at my side means

that I cannot be forced, only persuaded. I don't carry it because I'm

afraid, but because it enables me to be unafraid. It doesn't limit the

actions of those who would interact with me through reason, only the

actions of those who would do so by force. It removes force from the

equation...and that's why carrying a gun is a civilized act.