After a disappointing weekend, and a hard practice Monday, I did not waste an ounce of time jumping back onto a match. I was a little worn out, but after finding Monday that I was pushing the gun and as a result shooting low, I was anxious to get out, do things right, and get myself moving back in the right direction, especially since I just got my B card on Tuesday.
The stage got tossed out because the 2nd squad had issues where a a piece of steel would fall and inadvertently cause a clam shell to activate. Our squad had no issue with that, but it made sense. This was my first stage, and honestly my worst stage of the night. I took a mike on the clam shell. This was a 90 point stage potential, and I had 79 points, 10 penalty points for the miss, so I was accurate enough otherwise. I ran it in 17.68 seconds, and my hit factor put me in 8th place for Production, out of 16 Production Shooters for the night. There was a late re-load after the first array, and a few other things, but more than anything, I wanted hits tonight.
Stage 2: Looks Familiar (East 1)
Statistically this was my best stage of the night. 160 possible points and I shot 152 of them in 20.32 seconds. This was good enough for 2nd place in Production, but 6 seconds behind Les. I want to see some video of him running this. I know my cadence slowed down the further along the stage I went, so I need to make sure I can keep a quicker cadence, but I was thrilled to run this with 28 Alpha hits and only 4 Charlie. My time can be quicker to be sure, but the hits made me feel good. Again, work on moving reloads, and hey, for once I shot on the move...kind of...but still better than static positional shooting.
Stage 3: On The Periphery (East 2)
One word, slow. This was another 160 possible point stage, and I shot 146 points, so 25 Alpha and 7 Charlie. Points are good, but after the first array I really slowed down, and then moving into the final position I missed a reload, which is not good. The only good part is that I did not let it phase me, I got the mag inserted, and I finished with good hits. Don't let something derail you, keep rolling! Success! Still a lot of things I can do better, and keeping the cadence up is one of 'em.
Stage 4: CM 99-62 Bang and Clang
No Video.....
It's a shame, because I think this was my best stage. I was 4th in Production, and 5th overall, I ran the 4 steel, and single paper in 3.23 seconds (4th fastest time of anyone) my only point deduction was one Alpha, and one Charlie, and the Charlie was close. Running the hit factor into Classifier Calc, it's right about 75%, so one day after earning my B card, I may have just run my first A classifier. How 'bout them apples?
Summary
There was a little redemption here for me. Combined overall I finished 10th of 28 shooters, and that will actually go up a little when official results are submitted and the first stage (my worst) get's eliminated. I was 7th in Production, about 85.8% of the points that Les had (he won Production) and he had one stage he was just screwing around on, and that much distance between him and everyone else. I won't say it's disheartening, it's actually a little inspiring. The guy is a Grand Master for a reason, and I learn as much watching him shoot as I did in class.
It felt good to get accurate, and roll for a bit, I can get back on my cadence and push my time again going forward, as I'm obviously seeing my sights again. I need to keep grinding my draw, and moving reloads, but starting to shoot on the move is a good thing. I need to feel comfortable and practice. Here I did it, but I did not do it "right". I got away with it.
Plan B The Review
My progress has not stopped, and I did not reach my final goal, I took some steps, and I completed one phase of my progress, but today, having earned my B card, I've been able to sit back, and think about what it has meant to me. There has been a lot of progress, a lot of growth, and I'm not sure if it is always obvious to people.
That video was me shooting a stage a year ago. It almost hurts my eyes to watch how I shot back then, but it shows how far I really had to come. Never having been a gun person, not knowing the first thing about marksmanship, that's where I started. I had a lot of learning to do, and I had to get comfortable with something that was distinctly uncomfortable for me.
When Les started Plan B, I was not even mediocre, I was just starting to get comfortable with the sport, but I lacked any kind of consistency or basic fundamentals, and when things went wrong, I had no idea how to fix them, and worse, I was stubborn and resistant. I'm eternally grateful that Les chose to spend his valuable time teaching me. With what you see in the video, I'm not sure I was an ideal candidate, but I'd like to believe that he saw that I had enthusiasm, and I had a lot of desire, even if I had very little knowledge. We had a rough start in November, with my twisted ankle playing football with Kozy, getting sick in December, and the concussion in January. I switched platforms from Walther to CZ, but despite it all he stuck with me.
In late January, feeling I was behind, I put in more time, instead of the assigned time, I did what I had to do in order to absorb a lesson, and sometime around then the lessons started to click, and the light switched on for me. I was by no means perfect, but I could see progress, and I understood the lessons, and was trying to make progress. At the WIIT, I shot the best match I had to date, and when I watched the video's I saw tons of things I did better in other matches, or in practice, but I saw progress. It was at that match when I realized how much I had learned, and that my goal was possible. I'd been exhibiting progress in different phases, now it was time to start putting things together.
Confidence was something I'd been missing all along. All along people like Kozy have been telling me that I had it in me, I just had to execute, and I was able to believe. Of course I'd heard, and still hear from other folks who utterly dismiss me, that I'm just a "classifier" shooter, or that I can't put together a full match despite evidence to the contrary. Before then I know I heard it. Now? It doesn't matter. I know how far I've come.
Prior to February, I admit, I had a habit of zeroing a classifier that I did not think was a 60%, so there were plenty of classifiers that I did zero. From February until now, I believe I pulled that stunt one time, 7 of my last 8 classifiers make up my current 66% classification, so it's not "grandbagged", it's earned. Again, I hear from a couple of folks that it is not earned, that I gamed it. Bullshit, the facts say otherwise.
From February on, I worked harder, I believed, and I attacked class, practice and matches with intensity. I was a convert, a believer. When I came back from Kentucky, I could have been all upset and pouted about how I performed, but Monday night found me back at the range with Les and Kozy, working to get better. That whole concept of "I train so one day my mentors become my rivals" speaks to me, and speaks to how I want to work. Today I have a toolbox that is not empty. I have an idea how I need to practice, things I need to improve on, and sometimes, I can even see myself doing something wrong.
Monday Night
So today, I'm excited about earning my B card. I'm a much more fundamentally strong shooter than I was 5 months ago. I see tons of things I can improve on, and grind off rough edges and get better at. I don't think a B card makes me special, while I'm excited, I'm actually pretty humble. I know it does not make a better shooter, or anything like that, but the B Classification gives me motivation to work harder, to both earn, and prove that I should shoot at that level consistently. I think there is an added pressure now, because folks know that Les taught me, and I know my success or lack thereof is sometimes a reflection on him, so when I shoot, that's in the back of my mind as well.
That's shooting, but in this blog I said I was growing as a person, and I have not touched on that at all. I've always thought of myself as mentally tough, but there is a difference between rigid and tough. Something that's rigid may have a breaking point, and once snapped is broken, tough? Tough rolls with punches, takes the occasional bad, and is always standing. My biggest disappointment during this period was my match in Kentucky this past weekend where I reverted to my old ways, and was rigid. I let myself down, and I won't do that again.
Over the past few months, I've noticed I've tried to apply that patience and attitude to my life at home, and at work. It has not always been a roaring success, but slowly, day by day I find myself with more patience, more strength, and I'm tougher for it. Kind of like a B card, I may have the basics down, but I'm a work in progress too, just like I aspire to earn a higher USPSA classification, I want to better apply those lessons to me as a person as well.
At the range, I can be a gruff personality, I get on people to help, to paste, but my time with Les has changed me. In the past I was a little over aggressive about it, or I would say something true, but incredible rude to a person because I was angry. That has not happened, I'm not sure if it is because I spent the time with Les and seen how positive and polite he is, but when I go back to someone judging my shooting, and it reflecting back on Les as my instructor, it's the same thing. I don't want people saying "Les trained Luke, and he's an asshat." I want to reflect positively on my mentor, and friend.
Les and I, the day I iced it.
Les is going to come out of this bargain with a few thousand extra bullets, but I'm coming out of it a better shooter, and a better person. I think I got the better end of this bargain, There are not too many people who would or could inspire me to be better at both, but he's a unique combination.
So, now that this plan is complete, where am I going to go? I'm going to shoot, I'm going to dry fire, and I'm going to work even harder. I want to get competitive in B class this summer, and I'd like to earn my A classification by the end of the year. There is a fine balance between how much time and resources I can invest in going beyond that, I'd like to see how far I can go, but we'll address that commitment when I have to. I want to see Linda earn her C card, she's at 38.3%, so she's close, and I'm looking forward to shooting a Major with her this year. This has never been an ending, it's just a step on the path.
I'm hoping to do some work on another website, although the owner and founder has not yet found any of my submissions to be worthy, I'll stay on him. I'll don a jersey soon, and be a member of a team, and that means a lot to me. I want to be worthy of it, and I want to earn my way, and be able to contribute. I have a healthy respect for the team members, and I want to be a credit to them.
Friends & Family Like No Other
This all started as a hobby, something to learn about, a way to maybe be an outlet for my competitive side. It did start that way, but I became a part of a community that I genuinely care about, and what to help grow. I made friends like few I have ever made before. I've traveled, I've involved my wife, my daughter, and seen them welcomed. This "hobby" is so much more today, it's a big part of my life, of who I am. It's been a long time since I've been so involved in something, and the word "special" does not do justice, but personally, I've found a place I fit, with people I enjoy. I'm at home.
In my final blog about the match, I wanted to cover a few of the things I learned, because I think they will help me practice and prepare to be a better competitor for my next match and beyond. It was educational to watch Ben Stoeger shoot a few stages, Matthew Mink shoot a stage, and as always watching Les and Kozy shoot. I picked up a few things that I really need to work on.
1) Shooting on the move
I'm pretty much a position to position shooter. I like to post up, get a good sight picture, and shoot. The problem is that not shooting on the move costs me a lot of time. It was one of the last lessons that Les did for Dave and I, and I honestly have not spent much time working on it, so I'm not confident. A week ago I worked it a bit at closer range, and my hits were just "okay". I only executed it one time at the match, at a relatively close range, so I need to work that into my dry fire. I need to expand my base, and keep my feet out as wide as my shoulders, and get down and move, keeping the sights as steady as possible. I have a tendency to move high, and then the sights bounce, and I lose any accuracy I might have had. Posture and walk can be practiced in dry fire, then I can go validate it in live fire.
2) Grip / Accuracy
When I shoot groups, the fast I go, the more I lose my accuracy when I don't have a gorilla grip on the gun with my weak hand. I notice that as I start to go faster, I weaken my grip with my left hand, the gun bounces, does not cycle perfectly flat, and I shoot a lot of Alpha/Charlie. My first shot is where I aim it, the second shot is not accurate. With 150 Alpha and 74 Charlie this past weekend, I can fully admit I'm not gripping the gun as tightly as I should be. The "Two Alpha" call was rare for me. I'm going to work my draw, and get the ogre grip from the start, and then I'm going to go shoot some groups solo, and validate that I'm right about my accuracy issue from this past weekend. I could be wrong, but I know this was something I did not do.
3) Stage Planning
This was actually a plus. I walked on Friday with Kozy, and we both found ways thru stages that worked for us. I listened to him, but I made calls that worked for me. On one stage he wanted to take a target from 18 yards thru a port on the move, but I did not feel confident in that, and found plan that suited what I do well. Granted, we both watched a video of Ben shooting the stage, and we adapted that slightly for each of us. I was prepared for every stage I shot on Saturday. I've never felt that confident before a big match, and it was almost relaxing to know what I was going to do before we shot.
4) Get Physical
I need to up my training. At the end of the day I was spent, and on Sunday morning my calves were killing me. Heck, it's Monday as I write this, and they are still aching. Diet is a positive step, treadmill is a positive step, but I need to up my game, and add some more stretching exercises to a morning routine so I stay loose thru a match. Those are long days, and I need to be as sharp on my last stage as I am on my first stage.
5) Get Mental
This was the biggest killer. No stage beat me, no other shooter beat me, I beat myself into the ground. Everyone is going to make mistakes, one big difference between a great shooter and a mediocre shooter is that the great shooter does not try to make it up, and does not carry it from stage to stage. Great shooters acknowledge mistakes and move on. I've been over this a lot, with Kozy and Les, and I thought I was moving past it, but this was a repeat of several matches last summer. I never want to repeat this error at a major match, heck at any match ever again. Time to get tough.
6) Strong Hand/Weak Hand
This did not bite me at the match, but it could have, and unless I practice it, it will. A couple of days a week I'm going to add some strong hand a weak hand to my practice routine. I need to up my game and bring it closer to the rest of what I do. I can't be so weak at something that it can entirely kill a stage for me.
Summary:
I have more skill than I demonstrated at the match, so that's a plus. I had some solid runs, also a major plus. I beat myself in a lot of ways, and that's all part of the sport. I'm never going to be as good a shooter as I want to be, until I learn to become a more mentally tough person. That one is correctable quickly, it's going to be some willpower, the other things, those will just take time and effort, both of which I'm going to commit.
2014 Battle in the Bluegrass Match
I wrote earlier how I went down this match to compete, and how that differed than from the past where I went to a few major matches just to shoot. The attitude, the mindset, and the elevated expectations were new to me. My initial thoughts were that I did not perform at the level I expected myself to perform at, and that I expect myself to compete at. Why I did not perform is going to be the subject of another blog, because I think I made some mistakes that I can learn a lot from, and work at not repeating in the future. With ten stages, there is plenty of stage breakdown and video for one blog.
The weather was mid 80's by lunch time, low 50's to start the day. The staff put together an amazing match, that I think everyone I spoke with enjoyed thoroughly.
The biggest thing that jumped out at me for the entire match, was an overall lack of accuracy on my part. I had 150 Alpha's, 2 Bravo, 74 Charlie, 23 Delta and 7 Mike. Combine the Delta and Mike, I've got 30 shots that were just not good, and frankly my Alpha to Charlie ratio was very low. I left a ton of points on the table. I'll present the video's in the order in which I shot the match, not the match order.
Stage 3 Run Around: No Video
I had some jitters, and my run here was 71st of 119 Production shooters. I just wanted to get thru it with no misses, and I had 2 delta's, My hits were not great 16 A, 12 C, 2 D, but it felt good to get past my first stage of the day.
Stage 4: "Y" You Mad, Bro?
I was 46th of 119 Production shooters, I had 23 Alpha, 5 Charlie, and 2 Delta. Since I shot a variation of this the weekend before I was comfortable, and the only disappointing part was the 2 Delta. I can clean up the load and rack, and I could have picked up the target coming across sooner, but, on the whole, I felt good about this stage.
Stage 5: Eights and Plates
I was 55th of 119 Production shooters on this stage, with a disappointing 11 Alpha, 2 Bravo, 7 Charlie, 4 Delta, and 8 Steel. I'm not sure if I was not seeing my sights, but the delta's were on the open targets, I slowed down and had decent hits on the partial targets at my 2nd shooting position. I almost took a miss on a partial, but the bullet hole broke just enough of the brown, majority was in the black. Lesson here was to take a little extra time, and make sure you get the head shot.
Stage 6: Speed Demon
This is where things started to unravel. First thing to notice, is I switched hats. I put on the white Automatic Accuracy hat, so I'll blame that! Actually, I had a very good run, but we came to score the first array, and found it had not been pasted. There were 15 Alpha's and 1 Charlie, had it been an Alpha, run would have counted, but with the 1 Charlie, I had to re-shoot it. I had one shooter go before I had to re-shoot it, and from the get go, I was not right. I looked at the target, and did not look at the gun as I picked it up. I missed my grip, resulting in me not having my sights, and at a 3 yard target, that was bad news. Second array after I sprinted over, I broke a shot early, knew I did it, and kept going. I had 23 Alpha, 8 Charlie, and 1 Mike, I was 83rd of 119 Shooters. I let that single Mike bother me for awhile, and it dragged me down, lack of mental toughness hurt.
Stage 7: Crash Factor
I was 84th of 119 Production shooters, 8 Alpha, 5 Charlie, 2 Delta, 1 Mike, and 6 Steel. In my mind, I was thinking about the earlier stage, that if I just shot faster, I could make up the miss. Reality is you don't make up a miss, you leave a miss with the previous stage, and shoot this stage on it's own merits. My miss was on the 3rd position, closest target to me. Unreal, but a lack of focus cost me.
Stage 8: Cluster
First stage after the midday break, and I was 58th of 119 Production shooters. I had 22 Alpha, 7 Charlie, 2 Delta and 1 Mike. This was a stage I felt confident coming into, I had walked it, had my plan, and knew what I wanted to do. The Mike was on the first position as I turned to the left, long shot, and I was transitioning to the next target. The truth is that even with the miss, the run was not horrible, but 3rd stage in a row with a miss and some Delta, and it was really in my head. We had a long wait before the next stage, and I thought too much about what happened, as opposed to what I needed to do.
Stage 9: X
Worst stage of the day, 9 Alpha, 6 Charlie, 7 Delta, 2 Mike and 8 Steel. Starting loaded but no round in the chamber meant 10 rounds to start, not 11, and with 5 targets to take, that meant shooting until slide lock. It also meant I had to shoot accurately and be confident of my hits. I was okay on the first array, but looking back across the x, thru a port to targets, I was not. I dove into the steel and with misses actually shot until slide lock again. My plan was to take the targets to the left, but I turned right, knew I did it wrong, rushed without any sight picture thru the targets to the right, and back to the left. My last port was more about "Oh hell, I just really screwed up", and I had horrible hits. This was the nadir of my match. I walked off after shooting angry at myself, and tried and failed to shake it off.
Stage 10: Knock Knock
88th of 119 Production Shooters 12 Alpha, 10 Charlie, 3 Delta, 1 Mike and 6 Steel. I was tired, mad, and more or less felt like I was sleep walking thru this stage. I did an awful lot I wish I could have re-done on this stage.
Stage 1: Theorum Pythagoras
It was a long walk from Stage 10 back to the beginning. During the walk I finally cut loose from my earlier issues, and left them behind me. I made a conscious choice to shoot the last two stages as if only they mattered, nothing else had happened. What happened? My best stage of the day, 42nd of 119 Production Shooters. 12 Alpha 6 Charlie, and 9 Steel. I actually did not need to make the last reload, and could have shaved a little extra time from my run. It would have meant shooting to slide lock, and I wanted to be safe, rather than have to re-load in the port, but when I focus, I should be confident that I can get hits. I did.
Stage 2: Can You See Me Now?
14 Alpha, 8 Charlie, 1 Delta, 1 Mike, 2 Steel and 71st of 119 Production Shooters. My plan was baller, and my failure to execute here was the 3rd position on the long shot after the awkward angle steel, and then after the run, I had a the delta on the turn back to my left. Excellent plan, and I wish I would not have had the Delta or the Mike, but I can live with it.
Full Match Video:
Review:
I could sit here and be negative, but that's counter productive. There were certainly elements that went my way, and I think the biggest thing I need to address is my tendency to let mistakes get under my skin and then carry them to the next stage. I've shot watching Les and Kozy for a year, and I don't often see them do that. I know something bothers them, but it's done and over before the next stage. I heard Ben Stoeger say he had two misses, but it did not bother him, he did not try to make anything up, he just went out and rocked each and every stage he shot. If excellent shooters manifest that trait, why do I insist on carrying that load with me? I know better.
I dry fired on Monday morning for 30 minutes, and I'll live fire again. There are plenty of things that I'll take from the match, it'll help me work on my deficiencies, and the mental aspect will be something that I'm just going to have to HTFU, and do. If need to learn and move on from mistakes. In a match I can't fix 'em, I can just keep shooting my best.
I had a great time, excellent squad, and I'm confident that my next Major match will result in a better finish. I am however a better competitor for this experience.
Last year I shot three major events, one IDPA, and two
USPSA, and my results were not exactly stellar. As I was making the 6.5 hour
drive down to Kentucky
on Friday I considered that last year I went to shoot, and because I thought it
would be fun. This year, I was approaching the first major of the season with
the attitude that I was here to compete, it’s a subtle change, but significant
at the same time.
With an early, 5am start, my co-pilot, and I were down the range
early. The Bluegrass Sportsman’s League is a sprawling outdoor complex at the
end of some winding roads that made me feel as if we were going to go careening
out of control at any moment. The benefit to arriving early was that we were
able to walk all 10 ten stages, and I took copious notes on how the stage
layout different slightly from the match book. I was able to see walls, look at
angles, and build a preliminary stage plan for each and every stage. The other
enormous benefit was being able to watch some of the Friday competitors shoot
stages, and in particular it’s always good to watch Ben Stoeger shoot. I was
shocked to hear him say that he had 2 “mikes” on the day. He mentioned it to
Kozy as if it was an afterthought, and for him it was, a lesson that did not
hit home for me until Saturday night.
The entire group headed out to City BBQ in Lexington where we were staying, and were
treated to some mighty mediocre barbecue. Despite the great reviews, the end
dish was nothing all the special. There was a an air of excitement for the
match, but I also had a chance to see how calm some of the more experienced
shooters were, while I know it was more than a “club match” to them, they were
not too keyed up. After dinner we headed back to the hotel, and Kozy and I got
some dry fire in the room, and he cleaned his gun up a little, and we called it
a night feeling excited for the match.
We were up before the sun on Saturday, a little dry fire,
some breakfast, and it was time to hit the range. The match itself was fairly
wide open, only eight partial targets, and I don’t believe there was a single
no-shoot target out there. For the first match of my outdoor season it was a
good set-up, nothing terribly challenging. Nothing that I felt I could not
handle. In the back of my mind I kept thinking that there were a lot of “hoser”
stages, but while there was nothing extremely complex, there were some long
shots, and some stages that rewarded those who shoot accurately on the move.
The match director, and the R.O.’s were great. Professional,
accurate, and they kept everyone moving. Our squad was short a few people so we
kept moving fast. Despite how I initially thought the stages would be, I found
myself not shooting as well as I wanted to. Last year just shooting was the
reward, and this year I had some expectations for myself that regrettably I did
not even come close to. Personally, I let some mistakes get to me, and I
compounded them by thinking I could actually make-up for them on subsequent
stages, which led me into an ever deepening hole of my own making. I know
better, I’ve had plenty of advice that oftentimes I can be my own worst enemy.
I paid more than lip-service to that advice, but for the first time, I really
understood it. It was on a long walk from Stage 10, to Stage 1 and 2, where we
were to finish that I got back on my game, and proceeded to shoot my best stage
of the match. I don’t get into what would have been, but here and now, that’s a
mistake I won’t make again.
Post match we drove to the clubhouse, and got to visit with
some of the sponsors, and let me tell you, the sponsors donated over $24,000 in
prizes, so it was great to visit with them, and it was nice to know that
Automatic Accuracy and Bayou Bullets, both products I use, were sponsors there.
When called to the prize table, I tried to take a piece of firewood, but was
denied, and that’s when I finally felt like I’d completely shaken off my
mistakes. There will be plenty of time to break down the video, and learn from
the match.
Despite being exhausted, we went out to Saul Good in Lexington, and had some
Fried Chicken and Belgian Waffles with Maple Syrup. I don’t want to think about
the calories, but what an amazing good meal! My trip was complete. I spent the
6.5 hour drive home on Sunday just enjoying the scenery, and thinking about
some of the good stuff I did see. I watched Ben Stoeger shoot a couple of
stages, and I learned just watching him, I saw Matt Mink shoot a stage, and I
saw things differently that I had approached them. As usually, I watched the
amazing shooters in my own squad, Les and Kozy, and saw how they worked. I
actually felt prepared for the match ahead of time, and no matter how I did,
I’m walking away a lot better for the experience.
Considering how good the stages were, the mid 80’s weather,
the R.O.’s, and the reasonable drive, I’ll definitely be making Battle in the Bluegrass a
regular match. Next year I expect to do better, but I’m already looking forward
to the town, and the match.
Pine Tree Pistol (The Warm-up)
This morning we headed out to Pine Tree to get a warm-up match in before I head to Kentucky next weekend for Battle In The Bluegrass. I shot on Wednesday at MISS as Limited 10, and I did the same thing today, same rules, but out of Production just to insure that I stay where I think I am, and earn my "B" card this month. We rolled up with Kozy and Les, and somehow we did not get put in the same squad together, so there was no safety blanket. It was a good experience to not have a crutch to lean on, but being honest it was a real challenge today.
The struggle today was that we had 2 R.O.'s in our squad, and Linda and I were the only two people who knew how to work the Kindle to keep score. That meant I ran or scored every single run today, I never got to just watch a run, or get my bearings straight. I pretty much ran/scored/pasted and then had to jump to the line to shoot, which was a bear. We had 3 re-shoots on Stage 5 because people were not pasting, including one absolute tool, Steve L., who walked down the range with a tape gun, and did not tape a single target, but when asked said "I got 'em." After the third re-shoot in a row, I handed him a roll of pasters and told him that since the gun was too complicated, just take "one of these, and cover the holes after I score the target." I get that he was up there with his wife and father-in-law, but dude was completely useless, and not just useless, a real hindrance for everyone else. We had to work harder because of him. Linda and I for several stages had to carry pasters with us, and I would call out the scores, she would record, and then we were the only people to be pasting. Short version, I really don't want to shoot with that guy again, while I kept polite, and kept asking people to help and paste, it was a very frustrating experience.
First string was just fine, second string I missed the re-load, and ended up throwing a couple of mikes. This was actually the last stage we shot for the day, and I was happy to be done, but I realized, and you'll see on the 2nd target in String 2, I pulled the trigger before I was back to the target. Inexcusable error.
Luke Stage 2:
I'll be honest, I was not looking forward to this stage. A low squat, and a very high steel, but I ran it clean much to my own surprise, and I attribute that to my going a little slower, and being sure of my sights, plus I made an effort to squat low so I could get the good sight picture. I sure won't complain about this stage.
Luke Stage 3:
This was the first stage of the morning for us, and I had someone on my case because originally I was supposed to shoot earlier, but since I had to R.O. I pushed myself down, because John was loading his mags for the next stage. The shooter who got bumped threw a shit fit at me and kept it going all thru the stage on how he should get a re-shoot because he was not ready, and instead of preparing, he had been sweeping brass. It's times like that I want to look at someone and say "hey, even if you had time, I still think you'd blow it," but you can't do that. So I took it and apologized.
My own issues stemmed from a lack of accuracy, I threw a mike, and I missed steel, I just never got on the front sight myself.
Luke Stage 4:
So, before my run, I was scoring and setting up the star every single time. Second stage of the day, and I had an inkling of what a lazy bastard Steve L. was, because he grabbed a second broom and was going to "help" sweep brass, two people paste, and same two people (R.O. and scorer set-up the star.) Okay, enough venom! What went wrong? I'm an idiot! I missed my first shot, and inexplicably I moved down, and started shooting at the bottom of the star. If you start at the top you minimize movement, in my case I made the damn thing go faster and faster. To my credit, and you hear me exclaim when I shot it, I stuck with it, and finished it. Kozy mentioned I should have taken a mike on the last steel and kept moving, he's right, and in hindsight, I learned something. From there, the rest of my transitions were not bad, I took another mike when I broke a shot early on the last array though. My other improvement from The WIIT, is that I kept my gun out of the tube, and did not crowd myself in. Hey, it isn't much, but I can be positive about that.
Luke Stage 5:
Hands down my best stage of the day. I was 3.6 second behind Les, and I'm going to attribute it to a few things. I did not shoot on the move which cost me a second or two. I'm sure Les was faster getting down to the 2nd position than I was, and if you notice, after the second port, I almost slowed down an extreme amount before taking the last target. I'm not saying I was slow, my point is that I transitioned like a boss. You can see the results of working on this a week ago with Les. I'm much more confident that close.
Summary:
Not a fabulous match, but there were some real positives, Stage 5 alone was a win, Stage 2 was my best effort in a long time with an uncomfortable shooting position, and to a small plate with a high elevation. I was not on my front sights so I did suffer some mikes that I should not have. It's amazing, 6 months ago I expected to have mikes every match, now it surprises me, and I'm better able to call them when I do, I can see a moving sight, or something else. Now I just need to bear down on that front sight and get moving.
Battle in the Bluegrass is next weekend, so I'm going to get at least one day of live fire, may have to chrono some rounds because I did not make minor power factor on Wednesday. I'll check the powder drop, and it's not a big deal, it was very close, but considering the expense of a major match, I'm going to insure that I'm good to go. Going to hammer some fundamentals in dry fire this week, and make sure that my draw, and my reload are in tip top shape. I'm probably not comfortable enough to go 100% shooting on the move, and I'll probably go position to position. I know Dave is going to read this, but I'll say it, I'm going down to Bluegrass with every intention of shooting my best major, and winning first place in C class. It'll be my last match there, and when I jump to B, I'll be bottom of the heap, so if I'm going to bring a "finish" home, it starts next weekend. I'll put in the work, and while I'm realistic about my ability, I'm going down with confidence.
As far as Captain No-Help, the truth is, I was annoyed, not mad, and I'm glad I kept my cool. More than anything, I really appreciate the people I normally shoot with. The fact that they contribute, help, and that we all pull together makes for a fabulous shooting experience. Today it was just about the shooting, and I miss the camaraderie.
Linda Conquers The Texas Star
We trekked up to Pine Tree Pistol Club this morning for a match, and we more or less kept from Linda that she would have to shoot the Texas Star, oh, did I mention that it was not wide open, and that she had to shoot it from in a tube? Yeah, good thing I did not mention that to her either, but as Brad, Kozy, and Les all made sure to let me know, she kicked my ass on the stage. I inexplicably shot the bottom first and suffered, she shot it smart. She get's a well done!
Yes, she zeroed that one like a pro! Who is the gamer now? Somehow, I missed the video on stage 2, I know why, and that's a whole 'nother story for my blog.
Linda Stage 3:
Linda Stage 4: (She Conquers the Texas Star!)
Linda Stage 5:
It was an up and down match, and she found things she needs to work on, stage plan, reload, but most important something that I still struggle with as well, keeping her composure on a stage when something does not go according to plan. It cost her some standing reloads, but on the whole it was not a bad match for her, and she should find plenty of confidence in what she did on the star!
