How sad is it that it took me all the way until the last weekend in September to shoot my second match of the year? That’s how it goes sometimes. (See description of my first match of the year here.) Family illnesses, family vacations, scheduling conflicts with classes I took, etc., all conspired against me […]
Suddenly and unexpectedly being called upon to coach little league baseball this Spring, with games EVERY Saturday morning for a few months, forced me to delay my first foray into competitive pistol shooting this year. Though it was fun to spend that time with my son and his teammates, I had really hoped to get […]
As I did last year, I thought it would be a good idea to look back at 2017 to see how many classes I took, how many matches I competed in, how much money I spent on those endeavors, and how many rounds I sent downrange in classes and matches. In 2017 I attended a […]
In my last article, I outlined some reasons why I do not believe that competitive shooting in general, and IDPA in particular, should be one of the first steps one takes in learning to use a firearm defensively. In that article, I provided my own definitions of “training” and “practice” and why competitive shooting falls […]
Well, folks, my progress continues in IDPA world. Two weeks ago I posted the results of my first match of 2017, which was my best to date. This time, shooting in a challenging match in which a lot of fellow shooters struggled–and in punishing heat and humidity–I reached a new personal best. Equipment My equipment […]
Kind of amazing that it took me until July to shoot my first match this year, but that’s the way it works sometimes. My schedule of classes, awful late spring weather, family obligations, and some construction at the club where I typically shoot matches really limited me to this point. So it goes. Readers who […]
In keeping with my post last week outlining a trip to the range, this week I thought I would post the results of my latest range session. As readers of this blog are probably by now aware, I am a huge fan of the writings of Claude Werner, “The Tactical Professor”. I find all of his […]
Those who love to mock the competitive shooting sports—especially IDPA—should be familiar with the concept of the “shoot me first” vest. While various versions exist, and I am not entirely clear about the history of these garments, the basic gist is as follows. IDPA requires shooting from concealment. No doubt, many matches are held in […]
Last year, I took the time to get some training/practice goals posted so then I could at least roughly evaluate my progress by year’s end. Frankly, as a teacher, I should do a better job of setting goals that are measurable and achievable within a year. For this post, however, I am going be more general […]
With the year coming to a close, I thought it might be a useful exercise to tabulate for our readers how much I spent this year on training. The after-action reviews (AARs) that John and I write tend to be among our most read articles, and I have received many “atta boys” for the information […]
