TargetTalk

Long-winded post alert ~ read at own risk:

Just fresh from a very sub-standard performance at the 2005 Maine State Air Pistol Championship and wondering how my fellow shooters deal with lack-luster results at a big match. OK, I know some of you are chuckling to yourself about me calling the Maine States a big match, but it is my home-state championship, so it is big to me. Climb off your high horse.

Anyway, I am trying to keep positive and take the good from the event and let the bad go ... but it is tough, especially since the winning score was below my average. Ouch. So, here is what I have:

My match preparation was very good. I got a great night's sleep, awoke well rested and had a healthy breakfast a few hours before taking the line. My equipment was ready to go the day before the match with a freshly filled cylinder, full shaker of pellets that I inspected carefully, lenses cleaned on my shooting glasses, full water bottle, etc. What I didn't have was sight black, and I could have used it as the lighting was sub-standard in my opinion (bright light on target and no lights behind the line), and my focus kept shifting to the target where it didn't belong. I battled this for the entire match. However, on the positive side I was very patient and my time management was excellent, using 1:41 minutes to complete my match. I also feel that I did a fine job to overcome the many distractions on the range, which included noisy, active shooters and non-shooters at or near the line throughout the match. It is a "shoot as you arrive" system with no set relay times so it is very difficult to maintain concentration when you have people arriving during your third string and setting up on either side of you, dropping equipment, talking, etc. But, I was able to work through this and continue to try to do the best I could on an off day. Final analysis: My holds were just not there. Everything else was acceptable, but the holds were not.

So, in the interest of "moving on" from this; I am allowing myself one day to wallow (this post included, sorry) and then I am taking the positive points mentioned above and incorporating them into my routine and erasing the bad. The mantra that I was using: "I am a 550+ AP shooter" has been replaced by "Focus On Fundamentals." The prior affirmation, though it seemed positive in nature, actually had the end result of making me focus on score, which is always bad. The new phrase is performance oriented, which I believe will be better serving in both the short and long term since the importance of fundamentals never diminishes, no matter what level of shooting I may achieve in the future.

OK, enough rambling from me. Please chime in with your thoughts, techniques, methods, etc. Would enjoy hearing from anyone interested in replying, whether a club level shooter or a National Team member.

10.9s to you all,

Patrick

i feel your pain. at the ncaa sectionals i was on my school's air team and i shot the lowest score i have shot all year. it's frusterating, but looking back on it, everything felt fine. i had been working on my trigger pull all week long, and that's what i was focusing on. i wasn't nervous, my shots were just 9.8's and 9.9's instead of 10's. it was disappointing for me, but i worked hard for every point i got. i look at it this way, if i hadn't worked as hard, my score would have been even lower than it was. off days, while frustrating, happen. it's behind you now, so the next match you have give it all you got.

Patrick,
We all have off days and that's just a part of shooting, and anything else I guess. All you can do is take the positives from a bad shoot and forget the rest - although learn from them. As you say you didn't have sight black when you could have done with it (or perhaps a filter ?) That lesson will help you learn from what you've experienced and be better prepared. If I have a bad shoot I always feel good that I beared with it and tried 100% until the last shot. Sometimes that's enough to keep a mediocre score when it could have been much worse. Ditto with the strings; If you have good strings, finish strongly etc that's all something to take as positives. And even if it;'s worse than that just remember those real good shots that went technically well and pleased you - even in a rubbish shoot you can always extract something positive. And finally it should give you renewed determination to make sure you win the championships next year.

Rob.

I just had a similar experience with the NRA Conventional 3P sectionals. I just had one of those days. Part of it is what the match means to you - if you think it is a "big match", you will probably be a little more "concerned" with your performance. Not nervous, but aware that you can't have bad shots. It's just a part of life.

Beavis and Butt-head said once, "You need stuff that sucks in order to have stuff that's cool." If you never had a bad day, how would you know you were doing well?

sureshot007 wrote:Part of it is what the match means to you - if you think it is a "big match", you will probably be a little more "concerned" with your performance. Not nervous, but aware that you can't have bad shots. It's just a part of life.

If you do think like that then you're telling your subconscious about bad shots. Since it can't tell what you want from what you don't what it delivers those bad shots you'd told it about. One of the 'tricks' is to only think about what you do want. You want those tens and you want to repeat that. Keep it simple and you cant fail <yeah right ;) >
What I mean is focus on the technical aspects of delivering a good shot and then keep repeating it. You can't therefore have room for negative thoughts. We all know it isn't quite that easy but you practice the mental aspects just like everything else and it will come to you.

Rob.

I think too many people focus on match prep. Some of the best scores I have in Free and Air were after 4-5 hours of sleep or showing up to the match a few minutes before the start or forgetting to bring ammo/pellets.

Like me you may need something to take your mind off of the fact you are shooting a match so you will get your mind in a place where when start shooting you will be more inclined to focus on the BASICS.

If I let my mind wonder and have more than one thing to think about other than the match I will struggle. I tend to do better in matchs than practice because they are in the morning and not a lot has happend in the day to affect me. I tend to train at the end of the day after a full day of work and who knows what else has gone on durring the day.

At the end of the day I truly think it is all in our heads. Many of us have the abiltiy to shoot great scores if we could prevent our heads from getting in our way.

Luftrick wrote:Long-winded post alert ~ read at own risk:


My match preparation was very good. I got a great night's sleep, awoke well rested and had a healthy breakfast a few hours before taking the line.

just thought i'd mention something...

Do you usually get a great night's sleep when you shoot? how big was that breakfast, and how much sugar/bad stuff was in it? Do you usually eat a meal a few hours before practice?

If you don't:
I mean, i'm just kinda fishing around in the dark here, but I think that your match prep was off. Not in the equipment, or mental state, but your physical body condition may have been altered more than any other day. You may have changed your body's routine, and that could have affected how well you shot.
The meal is kinda what i'm getting at. When i was prepping for a match, i would watch my diet fairly closely. I ate lots of healthy stuff, etc, and ate lighter meals. I continued these eating habits through practices, and through the match. I tried to keep the match day as similar to a practice day as i could. I ate the same stuff, in the same amounts, at the same times. (assuming i was shooting at the same general time). I knew my body would be in the same state/condition that it was every day before it, and that nothing was different.

*now, i don't know how valid ANY of this is, because i've never researched it or anything, but it made sense to me at the time. ;)

Anonymous wrote:

Luftrick wrote:Long-winded post alert ~ read at own risk:


My match preparation was very good. I got a great night's sleep, awoke well rested and had a healthy breakfast a few hours before taking the line.

just thought i'd mention something...

Do you usually get a great night's sleep when you shoot? how big was that breakfast, and how much sugar/bad stuff was in it? Do you usually eat a meal a few hours before practice?

If you don't:
I mean, i'm just kinda fishing around in the dark here, but I think that your match prep was off. Not in the equipment, or mental state, but your physical body condition may have been altered more than any other day. You may have changed your body's routine, and that could have affected how well you shot.
The meal is kinda what i'm getting at. When i was prepping for a match, i would watch my diet fairly closely. I ate lots of healthy stuff, etc, and ate lighter meals. I continued these eating habits through practices, and through the match. I tried to keep the match day as similar to a practice day as i could. I ate the same stuff, in the same amounts, at the same times. (assuming i was shooting at the same general time). I knew my body would be in the same state/condition that it was every day before it, and that nothing was different.

*now, i don't know how valid ANY of this is, because i've never researched it or anything, but it made sense to me at the time. ;)

wow, i really hate it when i forget to sign in. ^ is me, in case you want to comment about my theory.

One of the things you do need to try and do is to keep everything as similar as possible. Unfortunaetly that is more often than not, not possible. For example I'd bet 99% of us train in the evening and some w/e's during the day. Our competitions are more often than not in the morning, never in the evening. So that's one big difference. I usually travel the day or evening before a competition so as to minimise any travelling on the day. I will also get up two hours or more before a comp (which can be a pain for an 8am comp!). That gives me a couple of hours to have my breakfast before the match and settle myself down (and do a bit of dry firing).

Another thing I see is people listening to music or reading a book trying to keep the match out of their mind. That's great until they have to start shooting when all of a sudden there's a match in front of them (and I bet they don't do that in practice sessions). The best approach is to get used to the idea of the match and practice eliminating the nerves.

Rob.

Papi][ion: Actually, I am a total creature of habit when it comes to my diet. I eat the exact same thing for breakfast every day of the week with very few exceptions. No sugar or bad stuff at all: A hard-boiled egg, 3oz of cheese, 4oz of turkey or ham and a small handful of almonds. One cup of black coffee, one multivitamin., and water. That is it. I got the same 8 hours of sleep that I normally get. So I think my physical match prep was correct.

Mr. Stubbs is spot on though, and I realized it yesterday afternoon when I was rethinking my practice schedule. I do 95% of my practicing between 8PM and 10PM. When was the last time we took the line for a relay at 8:30 at night?! I think that I am simply out of synch between my practice and my matches. Just think of how much our bodies change over the course of a 12-hour workday! So, I have gone back to square one and I am starting today with practice on my lunch hour (11:30 to 12:30) which will more closely replicate my physiological state during a typical match day. I won't be able to get in the same quantity of practice during the week as I had been getting with the night sessions, but I will focus on the QUALITY of the time I have available to me at the more correct hour and pay particular attention to working on my holds to minimize my arc of movement.

I appreciate all input and thoughts given thus far, I think it has been a good discussion and useful for all shooters, especially those just getting started.

10.9s to all,

Patrick

Luftrick,
Everyone is giving good advice on shooting matches and shooting in general. I think the key to your match problems in this case was setting your self up for failure.

1. The match was important to you.
2. You knew you could easily win.
3. You did everything you could to prepare for the win.
4. You had no adversity to overcome, you just had to shoot your average.
5. This is a recipe for putting yourself under pressure.
6. Nothing is worse than wanting it too bad.

I could be wrong but I think you just let it get to you. Thinking about a score or average is always bad. Shooting is an unnatural sport in that to do it correctly you must go against all your instincts, habits and reactions.
You know you have to focus on the process not the result but it's normal to be goal oriented and think of the result.

I've talked with a number of very successful shooters and with the odd exception of one who really didn't care enough to be bothered by match pressure the majority spent time learning to cope with match pressure. Most would work with a shooting partner who would try to distract them while they were shooting or bet on each shot. A couple would exercise to get their heart rate up prior to firing a shot. A couple played mental games imagining that each shot was the last in a final.

Avoiding match pressure by focusing on the process usually works but not always. You need to spend some time learning to cope with the pressure by putting yourself under pressure and working through it. The day will come when you are in THE big match and you realize that you are only a few easy tens from winning the whole thing.

Doug in Virginia

Here's another, simpler take: You say your holds just weren't there. Sometimes our holds just aren't there! Doesn't have to be a reason. There are days, and parts of days, when we just don't hold well. What to do? Well, the champions advise versatility. When we find we can't hold we have to alter trigger technique to something more aggressive. Falling back on fundamentals is almost always the right thing to do but we must also be open to trying something different if what we've practiced isn't working. I think the ability to bring out different trigger techniques for different conditions is what separates the champions from the rest of us.
(Disclaimer: This is the first post of a fairly experienced rifle silhouette shooter who appreciates all the info I've gleaned from lurking here.)

VAshooter: I appreciate your input, but I honestly don't think that match pressure was an issue. I didn't feel that at ALL through the match, or leading up to it. My heart rate was fine throughout, I had no random mental lapses or the like ... I just had a very wide arc of movement and I am 99% certain now that by training at night I was setting myself up for an issue. I didn't know anybody's score (including my own) until after I was finished with the match. The one thing I remember distinctly was that I thought I wasn't hitting many 10s, but beyond that I was just working to hold still. And I never think that I can easily win a pistol competition in Maine, there are some fantastic shooters up here in the woods (Larry Carter for one) that can post very good results on any given day.

Oh well, I had a great practice session at lunch today and it is onward and upward from here. I have four more matches I am competing in (all with noon relays) before heading out to Ft. Benning to enjoy shooting at the Nationals in June. Can't wait for that and I am looking forward to continuing to improve as the weeks and months progress.

The process of discussion and analysis has been very helpful to me throughout my shooting experiences. I want to again thank all who have chimed in thus far.

Patrick

Luftrick,

Long range coaching is always hit or miss. No pun intended. Work on the process and the results will be there. As one of the other replies mentioned. Some days are just harder than others. I think we learn more from the hard times than the easy ones.

Doug in Virginia

wow, good luck with that. Hopefully next time will be more of an "on" day for ya.

* i'm glad that you are consistent in your eating. I know a few junior shooters who chomp down pizza just before matches sometimes, and their scores certainly reflect it.

What is wrong with some pizza?

For years I have been shooting matches at the local range. Every match I shoot free in the morning and then I go grab a slice of pizza before I shoot air. My scores have been all over the map including my PR.

Patrick,

I do not think your night training is directly realted to your performance at your last match. I know there are some people who have hang ups to the point in making all pratice sessions as close to a match as they can. I really think you are over thinking this. You had a bad match. We all do! Take a look at the scores from the 3x air match and look at the top people and look at the range of the scores they shot. People have bad days. It happens to all of us. Even the best people in the world have bad days. If I never had a bad day then I would always shoot scores within a 5-10 point range. Who knows what the range would be but I would not show up at a match and shoot 25 points below my PR if I never had a bad day.

If you find you stop improving then I would start to be concerned and look to find some thing different to do in your training or what ever it may be you need to do.

I think your training and matches can be completly different. If you shot in a local match it will be very different than going to Benning and shooting. You will find it hard to have the same meal you are used to, you will be sleeping in a different bed, the time you get up will be thrown off, and the list goes on. Find the stuff you can control and work on those items. Match prep after you show up at the range before you start shooting is one item.

This great sport ours demands so much mental effort. This is what makes or breaks us. The people who can take the mental out of this sport will stay on top and will shoot consistant scores.

Great input Chris, thanks for your take.

Patrick

Patrick,
Besides all the foregoing comments, one additional consideration would be the lighting at the range.
You mentioned, "...lighting was sub-standard in my opinion (bright light on target and no lights behind the line)..."
I have found, as you did, that in lighting situations like this, it can be very difficult to focus on the front sight - one's focus being drawn to the brightly lit target. Additionally, because the sights stand out starkly against the bright target, it is much too easy to think one has the front sight in focus when, in fact, one is "mid-ranging" (that is, focussing somewhere between the front sight and the target). This can be difficult to detect under such lighting conditions, but there are two clues: one's group opens up, and one perceives more movement in the sight picture (wobble or arc of movement). You experienced both symptoms - which leads me to suggest that for many shots your focus was not truly on the front sight but somewhere down-range.
I've tried a couple of tricks to overcome mid-ranging and get my focus on the sight: I've painted a tiny white dot on the front sight blade as a point of focus. I've focused on the hairs on the back of my hand and then tried deliberately to shift my focus forward gradually, first to the rear sight blade, and then through the notch of the rear blade onto the front sight itself. If you think focus (or lack thereof) was a factor in your match results, perhaps these tricks would work for you.
Other shooters may suggest their techniques for ensuring the front sight is in focus in these dim-firing-line/bright-target illumination situations