TargetTalk

OK, as a beginner I have the fun of getting to grips with a hundred different skills whilst still staying relaxed, focussed and sub-conscious. No sweat there! ; )
However, in an earlier post someone made the analogy of a box containing the shooting 'process' and you take bits out and fiddle with them until they are right. I see this and understand how it works conceptually. But here is the problem. As a beginner its hard to know which bit to change and which bit is OK because, at the end of the day, its all drawn back to my average. So, I fiddle with this, feel good about it, have a better 'feel' for the shot, get better at calling it, BUT my average hardly improves. In fact it has got worse since I stopped being "natural" and started adjusting my technique. I am NOT worried about this at all - I am sure my shooting is getting better (in the sense that I am building a much better mental picture of what I am doing). However, how do I know I am getting better? 10,000 shots was mentioned by Steve Swartz. Thats a long time to fiddle about with no real feedback.

I hope experienced people can recognise what my point here is, but let me spell it out.

Is there a specific sequence of skills one should work on and how do you know when you have reached the point of diminshing returns and should move onto the next skill? When should my score start improving?

I accept my naivety is probably blinding, but without a coach in my club I would appreciate any guidance...

Mike,
I'm going to have to leave most of that to one of the coaches here to discuss. I would imagine however that without a coach 'by your side' it is very difficult to give you much in the way of specific advice. I would approach it by looking at what problems you experience and work on ironing them out. One of the things you will find is that scores go up and down, especially as things change, the skill is to get them to go up as an overall trend. I also gather that the better you shoot the more difficult it is to improve (and probably the more you need the services of a coach).

I think the thing that we all need more of is a good coach - I know I do. If there's any way you can get the service of one or attend a training session run by your governing body then that is a very good start. Failing that try and talk things through with the more experienced pistol shooters in your club but you need to be a little bit careful accepting everything they may tell you.

Good luck,

Rob.

Forget the milliseconds and mental wzardry for now. There is not enough correspondence to help the coachless beginner.

Within that box though, are things you physically do that need work individually and together to learn them and to combine them. As you proceed, the relationships, physical control, and mental control will fall into place much easier than you might expect.

Eye - it must see the sight and discipline to stay unwavering on the sight.

Trigger finger - Straight back pull, etc. etc.

Hold, grip, stance - another box within the box to support, steady, align, and control the pistol. In my opinion NPA is not natural point of aim. It is Natural Position of Alignment To the EYE. You can shift the body anytime to orient the aligned pistol to the aim area.

Drill on elements at dryfire or live fire, but use a lot of blank backdrops so your eye stays on the sight. Learn to read the sight.

Alignment, steadiness, control, and maintenance of these, are the result of physical things you actually do. They are the building blocks.

Please note that I speak from a Conventional Pistol background.

Hi Mike.

It's a real problem not having a coach in your club but I'll pass on some advice I received recently from my club coach. Firstly however, let me tell you the mistakes I made.
I used to come to my session, grab a wad of cards and just go shoot. I'd shoot and shoot, getting very variable results, always shooting at the front of the target. At the end of the session I'd pick out the best card and say "Wow, better than last time!" and go home. Subsequently, I had myself fooled that I was improving. I asked the coach to watch me shoot a card and he spent the next twenty minutes pulling my technique (or lack thereof) apart. Here were the five big points that I have carried through.

Dry fire, do lots and make sure you keep the gun up and on the aiming area after the trigger breaks (follow through).

Shoot the back of some cards, with the black dot gone, you can concerntrate on your front and rear sight as a pair.

Dont hold your arm too stiff, too much tension will cause a jitter instead of a gentle roaming of the sights.

Rest the gun on the bench in the pre-raise position and practise dry squeezes on the trigger.

Stop trying so hard, allow the routine to take over.

I hope this helps. I have noticed real improvements with these points applied to my own shooting. I know I have reiterated some of the points made by previous posters but that just goes to show how important they are.