bsdubois00
Head Honcho Emeritus
He bought the beers tonight. So your up next.
Eric Gambill Shooting Log
- Thread starter Airic
- Start date
Space City Challenge Match review -
Had 3 goals for this match and met all three. I wanted no misses or penalties, 90%+ accuraccy and a top 10 finish. The first two I could control and I knew that if I accomplished them that I had a good chance for #3. I've never shot a major without a miss, hell I think the lowest number of misses I had last year was 3. Accuracy wise, I shot 91% of the available points. I was happy that I met my goal but I felt like I could have been more accurate considering how easy the targets were at this match. The most challenging part of the match for me was the longer shots on steel plates and I only had a couple of extra shots on those. I think practicing on those small 6" plates I won here on Boomer Shooter really helped with that.
The good:
1. Steel felt like I could just throw a bullet in its direction to get it to fall
2. I saw every shot. My sight picture and tracking are the best it has ever been.
3. Movement felt quick and crisp, felt like I was on target quick after getting into a position.
4. I felt my confidence was at an all time high at this match
The bad:
1. Reloads were not as smooth as I wanted, felt like I lost some time there
2. Extra shots, although I probably took the least amount ever, they were still there.
3. I'm losing 1-2 seconds on the stage winners somewhere, I think the reloads have something to do with it but I also think its something else. I keep wanting to say that I need to lose more weight so that I can move quicker, but then I watch a video of Taran Butler and pop another beer. lol
On a side note, I noticed my thumbs are curling in my grip while watching my video. Now I've never had a "straight thumb" grip like a lot of people use but I didnt know I curled them that bad.
I had a great time. Got to meet some new people. Being squadded with Ben Stoeger was pretty cool, he's an amazing shooter. Watching him shoot made me feel like I have a lot of work to do before I can be competitive on his level. When I make GM, I dont want to be a paper GM. I want to have a chance to beat guys like Ben, right now that feels far off.
The after match get together was really awesome. Had a great time with Brandon and the other guys. It was a great way to let go of the stress. I'm sure we'll probably crank it up again at Double Tap.
Had 3 goals for this match and met all three. I wanted no misses or penalties, 90%+ accuraccy and a top 10 finish. The first two I could control and I knew that if I accomplished them that I had a good chance for #3. I've never shot a major without a miss, hell I think the lowest number of misses I had last year was 3. Accuracy wise, I shot 91% of the available points. I was happy that I met my goal but I felt like I could have been more accurate considering how easy the targets were at this match. The most challenging part of the match for me was the longer shots on steel plates and I only had a couple of extra shots on those. I think practicing on those small 6" plates I won here on Boomer Shooter really helped with that.
The good:
1. Steel felt like I could just throw a bullet in its direction to get it to fall
2. I saw every shot. My sight picture and tracking are the best it has ever been.
3. Movement felt quick and crisp, felt like I was on target quick after getting into a position.
4. I felt my confidence was at an all time high at this match
The bad:
1. Reloads were not as smooth as I wanted, felt like I lost some time there
2. Extra shots, although I probably took the least amount ever, they were still there.
3. I'm losing 1-2 seconds on the stage winners somewhere, I think the reloads have something to do with it but I also think its something else. I keep wanting to say that I need to lose more weight so that I can move quicker, but then I watch a video of Taran Butler and pop another beer. lol
On a side note, I noticed my thumbs are curling in my grip while watching my video. Now I've never had a "straight thumb" grip like a lot of people use but I didnt know I curled them that bad.
I had a great time. Got to meet some new people. Being squadded with Ben Stoeger was pretty cool, he's an amazing shooter. Watching him shoot made me feel like I have a lot of work to do before I can be competitive on his level. When I make GM, I dont want to be a paper GM. I want to have a chance to beat guys like Ben, right now that feels far off.
The after match get together was really awesome. Had a great time with Brandon and the other guys. It was a great way to let go of the stress. I'm sure we'll probably crank it up again at Double Tap.
The Antichrome
Moderator
Thats it, this topic is closed.
Just kidding of course.
This is one of the best threads on the whole forum.
Thanks for sharing the insights.
Thats an awesome compliment. Thanks!
I think i'm pretty much obsessed with improving my accuracy. I'm to the point now where it pisses me off if I dont shoot 2 A's on an open target, theres no excuse for it. We are presented with a scoring area on every target in a stage. It doesn't matter if there are no shoots or hardcover, we still have an open scoring area to engage. When I think of "tight" shots, like at a major match....I think of a no shoot covering 3/4 of the A zone or a hardcover target with the black bordering each side of the A zone. In each circumstance we are still presented with a good part of the A zone to engage. I want to push my live fire so that I can hit these smaller scoring areas faster and faster.
New idea: I will push my live fire practice to the point where I have trouble shooting a drill without a penalty. Smaller targets, more distance. I picked up a stack of 6" paper plates from the grocery store yesterday and these are my new targets. All my drills will use these and im pushing my distance past 15 yards. These plates are really no different than the examples I gave above. Its like someone walking up to a uspsa target and drawing a circle and saying "you have to hit here or you'll be penalized".
The end goal of this is that I want 93-95% of the available points at my next major match. I think I'm gonna go shoot right now....lol
Got a small practice session in this afternoon. Shot a dot torture drill, full match speed at 3 yards. Scored a 49/50. I dropped one out of dot #7 because I broke the shot earlier than I intended, was riding the reset pretty hard. I was running the timer but I didnt record any times, just used it for a start signal. I really think this drill is helping me out a lot and I am gonna continue using it just about every session.
Set up a Stoeger drill on one of my 6" paper plates. I modified the drill so that I'm just recording times and hits, I'm not going to use his scoring method. Anything outside the plate doesnt count. I didnt have to get very far into it to realize this was exactly what I'm looking for, its hard. My string times skyrocketed and I was dropping some shots. I think I'm gonna get some real measurable improvement out of using these plates.
The other thing I found out is this type of practice is not "fun". I'm not going out there and having a real great time like if I was plinking or something. Its frustrating. I believe this is going to help me achieve my goals so I'm sticking with it. If I wanna have fun, I'll break out the shotty on some steel for stress release.
Set up a Stoeger drill on one of my 6" paper plates. I modified the drill so that I'm just recording times and hits, I'm not going to use his scoring method. Anything outside the plate doesnt count. I didnt have to get very far into it to realize this was exactly what I'm looking for, its hard. My string times skyrocketed and I was dropping some shots. I think I'm gonna get some real measurable improvement out of using these plates.
The other thing I found out is this type of practice is not "fun". I'm not going out there and having a real great time like if I was plinking or something. Its frustrating. I believe this is going to help me achieve my goals so I'm sticking with it. If I wanna have fun, I'll break out the shotty on some steel for stress release.
Bunchies95
Active Fanatic
So basically you want an IDPA target with a smaller -0 circle.
It was great watching your squad shoot the stage I was working at Space City (Powerhouse). You guys lit it up, but then the SVI Open squad burned it down.
ya, its a concept used in a lot of other sports. I remember baseball practice in high school, the pitchers used to throw golf balls in the batting cage at about half rhe normal pitching distance. Increased speed and smaller target. Made a baseball look like a beach ball.
I was with the SVI squad sunday (watching), I used to shoot with a lot of them when I lived in DFW. Open is a whole different ballgame than production.
I was with the SVI squad sunday (watching), I used to shoot with a lot of them when I lived in DFW. Open is a whole different ballgame than production.
Bunchies95
Active Fanatic
It is still impressive watching them burn it down in 11-12 seconds compared to the 14-16 of the production shooters. Those two reloads really slow the pace down a bit.
Practice has been sporadic in the last week, been pretty busy. Wife's birthday last weekend kept me from getting any range time, got mothers day this weekend but I will get to the range. Would have liked to get more dryfire this week but the times I did, I felt like I made improvements.
This came in the mail today:
Just in time for the state match.
Need to order more bullets. I've been shooting J&K 147 9mm's because the price is right. Last year I shot Bayou 160's and that load setup was super soft but at $85 per K, I wasnt going to get as much practice in as opposed to $61 per k on the J&K. Found some 158gr .357 RNFP on the J&K website that I am going to test later on this summer to see if its a cheap ($62 per k) replacement for the Bayous. The glock chamber is pretty loose so I'm thinking the couple thousandths on the outside diameter might not be that bad. We'll see.
This came in the mail today:
Just in time for the state match.
Need to order more bullets. I've been shooting J&K 147 9mm's because the price is right. Last year I shot Bayou 160's and that load setup was super soft but at $85 per K, I wasnt going to get as much practice in as opposed to $61 per k on the J&K. Found some 158gr .357 RNFP on the J&K website that I am going to test later on this summer to see if its a cheap ($62 per k) replacement for the Bayous. The glock chamber is pretty loose so I'm thinking the couple thousandths on the outside diameter might not be that bad. We'll see.
okie-carbine
Well-Known Fanatic
what is the turnaround time on the jerseys?
300 rounds of live fire today....finally. I feel like I havent shot a live round in forever (its been over a week). I really pushed the difficulty level up today and it was definatley a learning expierience.
First up was dot torture on 2 inch dots at 5 yards. Full speed. I shot 37/50, which is absolutley terrible. SHO and WHO really killed me. I look forward to trying this one again at that distance.
Next I did my modified Stoeger drill on the 6" paper plate. I havent taken a look at my note book yet to see if I made an improvement from last time but I'm pretty sure I shot like 55-60% hits. Again SHO/WHO was killing me on the small targets. I also felt like I was rushing follow up shots and hitting high, not allowing the front sight to make it all the way down into the notch.
I spent the rest of my bullets on small movement drills and bill drills at distance. I was quite frustrated by the end of the session. My grip is absolute garbage and I believe its causing me miss shots on these small targets. I am still fighting a lot of tension in my arms and grip. I guess I'm going to have to try working that thumbs forward grip that everyone else uses. I have a lot of work to do before I can shoot 95% hits on these plates at 15 yards.
Its gonna be a busy week. I have a LEO shoot on wednesday and the state match in Pryor on Saturday. I've been teaching Active shooter and low light classes the last two nights at work which is always a fun night.
First up was dot torture on 2 inch dots at 5 yards. Full speed. I shot 37/50, which is absolutley terrible. SHO and WHO really killed me. I look forward to trying this one again at that distance.
Next I did my modified Stoeger drill on the 6" paper plate. I havent taken a look at my note book yet to see if I made an improvement from last time but I'm pretty sure I shot like 55-60% hits. Again SHO/WHO was killing me on the small targets. I also felt like I was rushing follow up shots and hitting high, not allowing the front sight to make it all the way down into the notch.
I spent the rest of my bullets on small movement drills and bill drills at distance. I was quite frustrated by the end of the session. My grip is absolute garbage and I believe its causing me miss shots on these small targets. I am still fighting a lot of tension in my arms and grip. I guess I'm going to have to try working that thumbs forward grip that everyone else uses. I have a lot of work to do before I can shoot 95% hits on these plates at 15 yards.
Its gonna be a busy week. I have a LEO shoot on wednesday and the state match in Pryor on Saturday. I've been teaching Active shooter and low light classes the last two nights at work which is always a fun night.
Was not happy with my performance at all but I came out on top again at the AFOSI National Police Week Shooting match.
The bad: I had a miss and two extra shots.
The good: I pretty much rocked stage 2 with a time of 3.03
I'm kinda glad I had this match because I got all the non shot calling/non sight watching crap out of the way before the state match.
The bad: I had a miss and two extra shots.
The good: I pretty much rocked stage 2 with a time of 3.03
I'm kinda glad I had this match because I got all the non shot calling/non sight watching crap out of the way before the state match.
dennishoddy
Moderator
Congratulations! With all the work you put in, it's well deserved.
Thank you. This whole new way of practicing is an experiment for me. I'm really hoping I see results in the accuracy department from it.
I had a very uplifting dryfire tonight. I was planning on a live fire session and I had the time... something just told me to stay home and dry fire. My weapon manipulation has made leaps and bounds. For the first time (in dryfire) I made 5 consecutive "perfect" reloads. In live fire I have been averaging 1.5 sec shot to shot on reloads...which is terrible. "Perfect" reloads have been 1.15-1.20 shot to shot. One of my new goals is to get that down under 1 second shot to shot (alphas of course).
I leave for the L10/Production state match in the morning. I'm interested in seeing how the stages look on the ground, on paper they look super fun. I was going to post a pre match brief but after analyzing the posted stages I'm thinking its pretty simple:
1. Minimize extra shots
2. Dont miss
3. Shoot alphas
So in a nutshell, make sure I call every shot. I want 95% of the available match points, no misses and no penalties. If I accomplish that, I believe I will finish well.
Been home a day from the L10/Prod state match. First off let me say that it was an awesome match that I believe was well tailored for the 10 round divisions. ATA staff and the RO staff did a great job and the match ran very smooth. Its been a long time since I've run into something at a major match that I've never done or seen before, this match had two. I've never shot at a windmill target before and I've never gone prone. I enjoyed tackling two new challenges.
The Bad: My match performance was....dismal at best. I achieved none of my goals. I had 24 extra shots and two mikes. Most of the extra shots were on plates. The two mikes were disappointing but a little bit funny. The first one occurred on a hard cover target, my second shot dropped into the black low right (Funny why? it was still an in the A zone in the hard cover). The second mike came on an open paper target on stage 7, I still won the stage. While reviewing my videos it was crazy how much time I was losing on the extra shots. Two seconds, four seconds, six seconds, its killing my stage times.
I ended up shooting 89% of the available points. I also made some stage planning mistakes that cost me time. I also just generally felt like I was in slow motion all day.
The Good: I felt like I positioned myself well on every stage. I also felt like my reloads were very consistent. On stage 7 (my stage win) I shot two targets at a distance of 23-25 yds and put both shots close in a group together.
Thats about all the good I could come up with from my shooting performance. I finished well, 4th overall and 2nd master (or last master, considering there were only two of us lol).
Overall, I have a lot more improvement to make which means I have a lot of work to do before Double Tap.
The Bad: My match performance was....dismal at best. I achieved none of my goals. I had 24 extra shots and two mikes. Most of the extra shots were on plates. The two mikes were disappointing but a little bit funny. The first one occurred on a hard cover target, my second shot dropped into the black low right (Funny why? it was still an in the A zone in the hard cover). The second mike came on an open paper target on stage 7, I still won the stage. While reviewing my videos it was crazy how much time I was losing on the extra shots. Two seconds, four seconds, six seconds, its killing my stage times.
I ended up shooting 89% of the available points. I also made some stage planning mistakes that cost me time. I also just generally felt like I was in slow motion all day.
The Good: I felt like I positioned myself well on every stage. I also felt like my reloads were very consistent. On stage 7 (my stage win) I shot two targets at a distance of 23-25 yds and put both shots close in a group together.
Thats about all the good I could come up with from my shooting performance. I finished well, 4th overall and 2nd master (or last master, considering there were only two of us lol).
Overall, I have a lot more improvement to make which means I have a lot of work to do before Double Tap.
