Tips on Pistol Shooting

[airgun_novice]

off to RJ state shooting championships. will let you know the results on return.vaya con dios

Good Luck and do us all proud

[jitu sati]

hey agn. i am back . the score was 357. had a very bad first set of 84 with two sevens. had my heart beating loudly. but then calmed myself and scored 91,91,91. total 357. so . will be able to see you at GVM finally. thank god for that. now will put in more effort to improve

[airgun_novice]

CONGRATULATIONS bro - Your next target 367+ - right tirpassion ?

BTW, why aren't you trying for GFG at Pune (Sep 12-18) ? Forms are available - fill in and submit fast.

[tirpassion]

Congrats jitu!!!
thanks for your phone call also. Now the next target is the Nationals where the MQS is 365. We will definitely work on it.
Agn bhai, where are you with your grip and the 'Chamatkari Chasme'??? There should be significant progress with the progressive lens

take care!
tirpassion

[airgun_novice]

Taken following steps -

1. Filed the ridge off the grip - though faint red welt still appears, the deep cut with internal bleeding has stopped and also the pain. No range visit since.
2. Do a consistent effort with the progressive - have to change the stance a bit to reduce the double image to almost nil. Head throbs for a while after the practice.
3. Changed shoes. Not tried on the patch yet. No range visit since.
4. Changed the trigger setting to reduce the 'jerk' towards the fag end. No range visit since.
5. Went to the range only twice in last 10-15 days - no significant progress.
Need to visit the range a few times to see the change after the changes.
6. Still in the "process" of filling in the GFG forms.

Suddenly life has become very hectic and I have a plate fuller than anticipated.
And the day still has only 24 hours. I still try to slip the AP into my hand and do dry fire at home at home just to be with SA bda but nothing 'controlled'. This week continues to show drought in range visit. Next week on will bootstrap for sure.

But then tirpassion - are you not in Odisha right now ?

[jitu sati]

hey guys thx. it was a big burden off my shoulder. now to preppare for gvm. i dont think i can participate in G for G. wont be able to get myself spared. but will try to participate in north zone comp in oct before GVM. so two chances for qualifying for nationals.
though i did not hit as high as my prac, i realised a few things which i think i should write here so that i can get views on this.
1 first set went horribly wrong and hit two sevens. but i could limit the damage when i completely concentrated on the SOA instead of the wrong shots.
2, once i concentrated on the SOA and my breathing came into the prac pattern i could recover and score better in the balance sets.
3. when things started going smoothly my thoughts again wandered in the last set and i again hit a seven. i need to tell myself to mentally concentrate before each shot. self talk before each talk will now become a part of my SOA.
4. i realised that after all the hue and cry that i ended up scoring as much as my usual average. not as the high accidents nor as the low accidents. so need to improve my overall average score by concentrating on the basics taught by guruji and upacharya.
5. finally what helped me incredibly after the first set to recover was pranayam. so brihaji a big thx to you .
so now back to prac and improvement

[jitu sati]

hey gurujan
pl advise now how to improve from here on. what additionall things should i do

[brihacharan]

hey gurujan

> Finally what helped me incredibly after the first set to recover was pranayam.
so brihaji a big thx to you .
so now back to prac and improvement

> pl advise now how to improve from here on. what additionall things should i do

Hello Jitu,
> Looking back on your performance, there appears to be palpable improvement in your performance. Congrats!
> However your focus & concentration needs control (Am I right tirpassion / agn?)
> Continue 'Pranayam' + if you recall I had suggested concentrating your inner vision (when you are doing your pranayam) to focus on a 'perfect score target' & retain it throughout your pranayam session.
> Patience Jitu - You are on the right track - It's a matter of time! You'll do it!
Briha

[brihacharan]

Hi Jitu / tirpassion / AGN,
> A strange thought occurred to me ...however I stand corrected if its not the done thing.
> Are there any rules / restrictions on holding the AP prior to pointing it at the target?
> What I mean is 'I've seen shooters holding the AP facing / pointing down along the hip & thigh and then slowly raise it to point & aim at the target.
> My view is that 'Raising the arm holding the AP requires more effort & the distance traveled is also more as compared to holding the AP pointing up at shoulder level with the elbow being at 'right angle' & then lowering it to point & aim at the target. Raising an arm (holding the AP) requires more effort than lowering it.
> This way the travel distance is much shorter & thus less fatigue to the shoulder, forearm & wrist muscles.
> Hope I've conveyed my theory correctly ...what is your take on this?
Briha

[jitu sati]

hey brihaji will take your advise on continuing pranayam and keeping the inner vision. thx
however i am not sure whether holding the AP pointing upwards from shoulder is allowed. i think there is a restriction on moving the AP above a certain height even while raising it in the classical fashion. only the gurujan can comment on the rules

[airgun_novice]

Dear Brihji,

On concentration, you are right - but can't comment much on how to improve as am severely a laggard there myself. The only two things I can concentrate on are better performed inside the bedroom and best if outside in the open - in the divinely inspiring environs of Mother Nature. One of those two is reading a book. That is where I think the mental strength training ought to come into picture. The quest is on...

Wrt to the posture -

1. REMEMBER -> THE GUN IS TO BE POINTED DOWN THE RANGE AT ALL THE TIMES - so your option to fold the pistol arm is ruled out. Should anyone even attempt to do otherwise (s)she shall be disqualified. No stands allowed either - like those AR shooters.

2. What can be done is that the AP can be put down on the table (if it's not loaded) with action open and you can do whatever you wanna do to relax. Sit, drink, eat, do pranayam etc. etc. In this case it helps to take a break every now and then - hence the 3-shot cycle (as I once did) or the 4-shot cycle (as Jitu does) or the 5-shot cycle (as I do now) followed by most shooters. You can massage your palms and blow air as advised by tirpassion. However, if the AP is loaded and you feel the pain or the fatigue - do whatever to get that shot off and only then you can put the AP down and break off. Ah! And how do you put down the case ? It should be put down in such a fashion that the gun inside is also pointing down the range and when you open it and take out the gun, it's in same fashion!!! I was very kindly informed of this "rule" at Capt EZ at MRA by a good guy there last year. Being a right handed person, I had put the case on my rhs with hinges to the left and the latches to the right - so the AP inside was naturally pointing towards me!!!

JFK's assassin - the Great Magic Bullet - must have made everyone extra cautious since.

3. Many shooters in between the shots rest the pistol on their pistol case or on the pulley machine. That takes considerable stress off the arm. But for taller guys like me (6'+) - that posture also tends to induce newer strain in the waist, the lumbar, the neck and the knee. It also spoils the stance, especially the leg placement. That pain is further accentuated if the shooter is endowed with "party-pack" abs-belly like mine.

Guruji and Upacharya et al - Hope my thoughts above are right. Now almost being 2330 of a Saturday night, I have to get going to do the two tasks that command my absolute concentration - shall start with reading .... till the kids are awake.

BTW, Bon Voyage tirpassion - have a safe flight back to Paris. Update from me - done with filing in GFG and NRAI forms with the MRA finally. So unless "some house-fly sneezes" (as Marathi idiom goes), I will be at Pune in mid-September this year.

[jitu sati]

hey hvj where r u?
tir, pl get to paris fast and rejoin the advise session. we are waiting eagerly

[brihacharan]

Hi AGN,
> Tks for the enlightenment on "Hold"! I stand educated.
> It finally boils down to -
* Concentration
* Focus
* Mental balance
* Physical fitness / Muscle coordination
* The will to WIN (Attitude)
* 3 Ps - Practice - Persistance - Patience
* Lastly exchanging 'Gyan' with those who can contribute +vely.
Briha

[tirpassion]

Dear friends,
I am back at last in Paris today after a 'must forget' experience with Qatar Airways, world's best airline as they claim to be. My foot!!!
My first flight with them. Outward journey (Paris/Kolkata) the connecting flight could not be assured resulting in a 24hour stay in Doha. Inward journey (Kolkata/Paris) the bagage could not be assured in the connecting flight so we were off loaded again and were obliged to stay one more night in Doha . Doha may be nice to many but I prefer Paris and Kolkata, hotels in Doha are luxurious but I prefer my own bedrooms in my homes in Paris and Kolkata (with all the mosquitos and the panic of dengue). I am just pissed off with this airline. Inefficient, unprofessional and so on...

Well, I am back with you all and happy to be so . I will have more time now.

2. What can be done is that the AP can be put down on the table (if it's not loaded) with action open and you can do whatever you wanna do to relax. Sit, drink, eat, do pranayam etc. etc. In this case it helps to take a break every now and then - hence the 3-shot cycle (as I once did) or the 4-shot cycle (as Jitu does) or the 5-shot cycle (as I do now) followed by most shooters. You can massage your palms and blow air as advised by tirpassion. However, if the AP is loaded and you feel the pain or the fatigue - do whatever to get that shot off and only then you can put the AP down and break off. Ah! And how do you put down the case ? It should be put down in such a fashion that the gun inside is also pointing down the range and when you open it and take out the gun, it's in same fashion!!! I was very kindly informed of this "rule" at Capt EZ at MRA by a good guy there last year. Being a right handed person, I had put the case on my rhs with hinges to the left and the latches to the right - so the AP inside was naturally pointing towards me!!!
.

- If you have loaded the AP and you want to rest, do not force the shot to lay a big SH*T on the target. Take the pellet out. All top shooters here carry wool knitting needles made of aluminium to take the pellet out of the chamber. It happens sometimes that a shooter forgets if he/she has put the pellet in chamber or not, or may have wrongly put 2 pellets one after another having forgotten the first. In that case or in case of doubt, they can push the pellet out of the chamber with that needle by inserting it from the muzzle.
- Yes, one has to put the handgun case in such a way on table that the muzzle should point towards the range even if the weapon is inside the closed case. So one must know the orientation of the weapon inside the case and act accordingly.

best regards
tirpassion

[jitu sati]

hey tir
welcome back. now pl advise on how one should proceed from here on. what addl things , if any, to be done to improve more so that i can achieve the next step to qualify for the nationals. i have smsed hvj also to vis the thread and give this suggestions. looks like he is very busy