That’s A Cold Shot, Baby

Man, that’s a drag.

One of the less-than-fun things about my job is moderating the comments on a Facebook page with over 2 million followers. Some of the comments are insightful. Some are… not so insightful.

A common thread running through all the less-clueful is a sure and certain belief in one’s ability to shoot, which in turn in usually based on “best case” performance. For instance, one time, many years ago, I out-shot Rob Leatham on a stage. Ok, so his gun decided to take a powder and as a result, he received no score for that stage, but who cares? That PROVES I’m a better shot than he is.

We like to remember the times we excel, and forget the times we screw up. Ok, that’s fine, but that doesn’t help you figure out how good you really are. That is figured out by your cold performance. What can you do, right now, with no warmup?

That’s why the most important shots in any practice session are the first dozen or so rounds you send downrange. That’s what you can do at the moment in time, not the great shot you made later after you’re warmed up.

This is why my first shots during practice are a measured, standardized drill. Right now, I use the old Bakersfield PD pistol qualification, but there’s also my shortened version of the Federal Air Marshall Drill, or the Gunsite 250, or the Wizard Drill, or the F.A.S.T., or any number of short round count, comprehensive drills.

“Know your enemy, know yourself, and you will be invincible.” – Sun Tzu.