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Posted: Thu Nov 04, 2010 4:37 pm
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The original question raised some interesting and important points that I'd like to return to, while acknowledging some of the other comments that have been made.
1. In a number of posts on this forum, advice is often given to "ask your coach" or "talk it through with your coach".
2. For aspiring shooters in the USA who live long distances away from experienced coaches, the only way to see them in person is to drive for dozens of hours each way, or get onto a plane. Either option is expensive and time-consuming. Hence for some, visiting a coach in person, on a regular basis, is not an option.
3. As Spencer pointed out, advances in technology are opening up new possibilities for coaching. High-speed internet connections and wireless make it possible to stream live video from a webcam on a laptop PC, via free software such as Windows Live Messenger. Digital cameras are inexpensive, come with many phones, and make it possible to email photos of targets or short video clips of oneself shooting to a coach. With a camcorder, I can film myself shooting for an hour and send that, as a DVD via regular mail, to a coach to review.
4. While the initial period of coaching focuses on the physical aspects of shooting, over time the mental aspects become more important. Sharing a shooting journal, with insights into your mental processes, via email is as easy as sharing and discussing it in person, and allows for two-way dialogue with the coach.
Based on the above, and my personal experience over the past two years, virtual coaching has worked well for me and I recommend it to anyone who lives too far from their coach to receive regular, in-person coaching. Is it the optimal way to be coached? Probably not. But it is a viable alternative and a better option than no coaching at all? Most certainly.
Russ – While Air Pistol and Free Pistol share some similarities as "slow fire" disciplines, they are separate Olympic events for a reason. There are enough differences for it to be very reasonable for a coach to concentrate on just air pistol vs. "slow fire" in general.