Calibre Press Newsline - December 20, 2007

A friend of mine by the name of Ikey Starks once said to me, "Shooting is 85% mental, 10% physical and 5% equipment." Ikey was an accomplished rifle shooter and used to compete in running boar competition as well as other shooting events at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, CO.

That phrase has always stuck with me throughout my competitive and law enforcement career as I searched for ways to improve performance. In sport and in gunfights there is an emphasis placed on the ability to shoot fast and accurately as well as general athletic ability.

The ability to control the gun and shoot precisely requires strength, eye-hand coordination, body awareness and proper technique. Doing different types of transitions well requires speed-strength, balance, body awareness and flexibility. General fitness is required to keep energy levels up when shooting all day long, especially when it is hot.

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Let's focus on body awareness and balance. What separates top shooters from other shooters is the ability to control their bodies and mind while shooting. The ability to stay relaxed while shooting, both mentally and physically, is a must if you wish to improve performance. Agility, choreography, and balance must be tuned in order to maximize performance.

Remember: It's not how fast you move, it's how soon you get there ready to shoot.

Many times I have heard competitors say "I can shoot just as fast as he can, how come he beat me by two seconds?" Being able to shoot fast splits does not make one fast overall. The ability to stay relaxed while shooting so that you can move the gun precisely from target to target without bouncing, to be able to control body movement/balance so that you are able to shoot sooner when you step into a room or contested area. To be able to leave a little bit earlier, moving your body imperceptibly towards another position as you are shooting. These are the things that contribute to saving time. The ability to accelerate and decelerate quickly will also help to keep you safe while moving.

Fill a cup of water to within an 1/8" from the top. The object of the drills is to stay loose and relaxed and develop a feel for perfect balance and smoothness while executing maneuvers. (and not spill the water!)

Put a series of small targets at random around your dry practice area. Taking the cup of water, filled nearly to the top, hold it at arms length and move it from target as quickly as you can without spilling the water. Learn to stay relaxed as you move the cup from target to target, pausing on each one. After you have done it with the cup of water, do it with an empty gun, striving for the same feeling of relaxation as you move it from target to target.

Standing in front of a shooting box about a step and a half away, extend the cup of water about halfway out in front of you and move into the shooting box without spilling a drop. Pay particular attention to the following points when doing this exercise.

1. Keep the head level. If the head is level then the gun stays level and does not bounce up and down. Lift your knees not your head.

2. Pay attention to how you transfer your center of gravity when you step into the box. Make sure the heel of the stepping foot is on the ground before you transfer your weight onto it. This ensures a smooth transfer of weight. If you step in with a long step, the center of gravity shift will occur before your stepping foot is on the ground, resulting in a fall and subsequent, time wasting, bounce.

3. After you have practiced the drills with the cup of water, use an empty gun. Strive for the same level of relaxation as when using the water.

Extend the cup of water into shooting position, pretend it is a cup of hot coffee that you don't want to spill. Bend your knees and, as in drill #2, pay attention to a smooth transfer of weight from back foot to stepping foot. Think shorter, faster, quicker, lighter when you are stepping. Keep the cup of water pointed at a target and watch for bounce.

Take a 4 x 4 post and stake it firmly into the grounds so that it is crossways to you. Practice running up to the post and then stepping up lightly, with perfect balance, and shooting an array of targets.

Draw a one foot square on the ground or use a piece of plywood with the same dimensions. From five yards away, run up to the square, step on it and balance on one foot while shooting a target array.

Using a barricade, put targets up so that you have to either tip at a good angle or balance on one leg while shooting around either side. Practice going from side to side as quickly and lightly as possible, keeping perfect balance.

Practice moving your body slightly towards the next position while shooting the last target on an array. Make sure you are shooting good shots, not just shooting.

Set up a series of small circle targets around your dry practice area. Set them up so you have to go under chairs, tables, around doorways etc. to see them. With an empty gun, practice moving from position to position, striving to flow from one position to the next, ready to shoot the moment you see the target. You can also do this at the range prior to live fire practice.

Draw a series of paint dots on various target arrays. Now, point your finger at a dot. Using your feet, ankles, knees and hips, move from dot to dot. Learn to push your finger without creating antagonistic tension in the opposite side of the body. When you stop pushing, the finger stops. Then do it with a gun. Remember, if you throw the gun from dot tot dot, you have to catch it, when you catch it, you create a bounce. You have to wait for the gun to stop bouncing if you want a precise shot resulting in wasted time. Think of this exercise as connecting a series of dots with a pen. The muzzle of your gun is the pen.

Along with these shooting specific drills you can play various games such as basketball, racquetball, various martial arts, mountain biking or any other sports that requires agility, eye-hand coordination and balance. Remember though, if you only have a limited amount of time, spend the time on exercises that are shooting specific to get maximum return for your time invested.

Practicing the above drills will build a much higher level of body awareness which is one of the key ingredients to improved performance.

Ron Avery is President and Director of Training for The Practical Shooting Academy, Inc. and Executive Director of the non-profit, Rocky Mountain Tactical Institute - both training institutions dedicated to professional firearms and tactics courses, higher police standards and training and use of force research.

Ron is a former police officer with many years of street experience, which he brings into the training environment. He is internationally recognized as a researcher, firearms trainer and world class shooter. His training methodology is currently being used by hundreds of agencies and thousands of individuals across the US and internationally.

For over 25 years he has consistently ranked among the best shooters in the world in national, international and world championship competitions, winning many different titles including two-time National Law Enforcement Champion. In 2002, he represented his country as a member of the first place, United States Practical Shooting Association's "Gold Team" in the Standard Division in the World Championships in South Africa.