It’s Friday night. You’re shooting a match tomorrow. And you’re scared of something. Whatever it is, you can’t fix it before tomorrow. But, if you really dig deep and figure out what’s got you scared, you can fix it before it happens the next time. Maybe you’re just generally nervous about the match. You’ve shot matches before so it’s not the first timer’s jitters, but you just can’t shake the feeling that you’re anxious. You’ve packed your bag, you’ve chamber checked all the ammo, the guns are spotless, the magazines are already loaded. The car is packed, the coffee is … Read More
Changing Direction
One of the things that I’ve been thinking about since making GM is the past, or particularly, my past. I shot my first match 8 years ago, an indoor IDPA match with a borrowed 1911. I originally classified as SSP Novice. I joined USPSA four years ago, and initially classified as Production C. What’s interesting is that none of those really matter. How bad I was to start doesn’t really matter. That I started in IDPA doesn’t really matter. My past only matters insofar as it gives me knowledge and experience to help me make decisions today. But I don’t … Read More
The Initiative
I’ve been thinking a lot recently about the concept of the initiative. The initiative is the idea that, in a two-sided conflict, it is better to be the one acting first and forcing your opponent to react. You set the tone, you drive the tempo, you set the priorities. This lets you choose things advantageous to you while your opponent has to react to limit the damage to them of your choices. In chess, each player makes one move at a time. You move, he moves, you move, he moves. If you are spending every one of your turns reacting … Read More
The Importance of Reproducibility
When I look back at 2016 and try to distill the actual lessons I learned specific to shooting, the one that most stands out to me is the value of repeatability. In matches, consistency is key. Stage wins are largely irrelevant to match wins. You can take second or third on every stage and win the match because the guy who wins half the stages drops out of the top ten on the others because of his risky plans. I know this. But somehow I never made the connection to practice. My practice was very unstructured. I never consciously planned … Read More
Missing Your Goal
In December 2015, I set the goal to become a GM in 2016. At the time I was a high-A close to making Master. In Mid-December 2016, sitting at 93% and grasping at straws to try to make the goal happen, I shot a classifier match. Of the six classifiers, one was GM, one was low but counted, and four were too low to count. Embarrassing, right? No. Even though I didn’t achieve the goal of GM in 2016, I don’t regret one bit setting it or pursuing it doggedly, because it gave me a sense of purpose. Every daily … Read More