[ChrisStock]

I had a tremendously sucky match this past Sunday...everything that I could have done wrong, I did. Everything piece of equipment that could fail, did. The equipment failures have been addressed, and I was conscious of my mistakes as I made them. The thought that struck me as I drove home worn after looking at the final scores was "wow, that was fun, even if my scores sucked".

Yes, it was one of the most fun matches for me personally,regardless of the final outcome, as I was 28th out of 40 shooters, which is definitely below my normal output. I enjoyed the stage setups, the ball busting between shooting stages, and the information and pointers shared with other shooters. I think the fact that I was cognizant of my errors as I made them helped a lot as well.

I am a competitive person in all that I do? Yes. Type A personality? Yes. Aware of my limitations at this point? No...working on matching speed and accuracy still...it's a damned fine line that's all too often blurry for me. Can I shoot a sub 4 el-prez? Yep, If I want half of my hits to fly off in the dirt missing the paper completely.

At any rate, it sure as hell beat a good day at the office, and if I left the range with a smile and more knowledge, I guess that's what matters most to me now

[RePete]

Lighteye67, on Dec 4 2007, 11:47 AM, said:

I had a tremendously sucky match this past Sunday...everything that I could have done wrong, I did. Everything piece of equipment that could fail, did. The equipment failures have been addressed, and I was conscious of my mistakes as I made them. The thought that struck me as I drove home worn after looking at the final scores was "wow, that was fun, even if my scores sucked".

Yes, it was one of the most fun matches for me personally,regardless of the final outcome, as I was 28th out of 40 shooters, which is definitely below my normal output. I enjoyed the stage setups, the ball busting between shooting stages, and the information and pointers shared with other shooters. I think the fact that I was cognizant of my errors as I made them helped a lot as well.

I am a competitive person in all that I do? Yes. Type A personality? Yes. Aware of my limitations at this point? No...working on matching speed and accuracy still...it's a damned fine line that's all too often blurry for me. Can I shoot a sub 4 el-prez? Yep, If I want half of my hits to fly off in the dirt missing the paper completely.

At any rate, it sure as hell beat a good day at the office, and if I left the range with a smile and more knowledge, I guess that's what matters most to me now

I always say "A BAD DAY OF SHOOTING IS BETTER THAN A GOOD DAY AT WORK"!

[EZ Bagger]

Sounds like you shoot with a fun bunch, and that always helps.

[gunsablazin]

If I could not learn from my mistakes I would know nothing! I love to win one once in a while,but if I stop having fun I quit. Sounds like you have a great attitude, the desire to be a winner or to improve does not mean you can be a bad sport.

Robin

[Madcap Magician]

No worries on having a "non stellar" match. We all have those days where the planets aren't lined up right.. The biggest thing is to learn from your experiences, and take a practice session to work on what went wrong.

Lighteye67, on Dec 4 2007, 11:47 AM, said:

working on matching speed and accuracy still...it's a damned fine line that's all too often blurry for me.

When you find the exact line you be sure to let us all know...

And like Robin said, if you ever stop having fun, just quit unless you have someone paying you to be there.

[L9X25]

The mind cannot work properly unless the gun does too.

If the gun is malfunctioning, the mind is trying to anticipate the next malfunction and you are not focusing on what you should be ... the sights and your plan.

Once the gun gets back to 100%, and your mind accepts that, you will back on your game.

[DonT]

You pretty much summed up every Sunday's local match for me. Especially the part about matching speed with accuracy

I could slow down and get all my hits but it's just alot more fun to go fast. To push yourself beyond your abilities. To try your best to keep up with your mentors (even though they are getting their hits )

And the best of all, to run a speed shoot as fast as you can go and when you hear "hammer down and holster", you realize that you can breathe now

I'll never make GM because I don't want it bad enough to put in the effort that it would take to achieve it. I do this because it's fun. Period.

Life is good

DonT

This post has been edited by DonT: 05 December 2007 - 07:09 AM

[boz1911]

Irregardless of my personal performance the people will always make me want to shoot another day!

[racine]

I think that your personal needs supercedes what you may "think others" expect over you. I took a break from USPSA and any shooting this last 1 1/2 yrs simply from because I wasn't having as much fun. I disliked my relocation to a new club that seemed to played favorites and had members with hair tempers. I haven't hardly practiced this last year and when I do shoot it's primarily for getting out and fresh air. I don't expect much and am not concerned I don't shoot in my class as I more for just having fun and some camarderie. My quest for A is on hold while I take up golf and get back in shape. Worry not and pursue your needs...
Racine
DVC-for fun

[Paul Burtchell]

Just a scientific wild ass guess here, but I predict you kick ass at your next match. I've found if I have a poor match it makes me refocus and train harder and invariably I'll do much better the next match.
You've got a great and as far as I'm concerned correct attitude. Glad you are having fun.
Let us know how you do next time.

[ChrisStock]

Update:

My pistol, after a slight overhaul, ran like a sumbitch. I, on the other hand, was hot-cold-hot-cold-hot-cold the entire match. I attempted to pull off some shots that I am not quite capable of hitting, and it hurt me atrociously in time and points. I pretty much said "to hell with it, let 'er rip" and had a blast. The 3 odd numbered stages I did ok , the 3 even numbered stages I ate dirt. I think I'll push it again next match and see where it leads. Enough of the conservatism...time to see where the redline is and rev this mother up.

I also obtained a goal I have been pursuing since last June, which was to beat a local shooter in overall score, and for the first time, I succeeded I had beaten him on a few stages over the last 7 months, but never when everything was combined. I guess it stems from my very first match when he was loudly bitching about how bad new shooters are, how slow, how inaccurate, blah,blah, blah. I shrugged it off that first day, filed it away, and got sweet revenge this past weekend. I never forgot it, and even my wife , who heard that drivel, has been faithfully checking the scores after each match and cheering me on as I closed the gap in skill. Now to pick another shooter to get after....

So little practice ammo, so much to learn and train on....Damn, this is FUN.

[mr1911]

I have sooo been there, last month I finaly shot a stage and scored with the top shooters...super fast, super accurate.... the very next stage you would have thought I was a blind man moving in slow motion, I went from the very top to the very bottom, unbelievable.........

Just goes to show you what happens when you loose focus and your "relaxed agression" goes to "tense distraction", LOL.