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RECOIL DOESN’T B’..B’..B’..B’..B’..BOTHER ME ONE B’..B’..BIT!

OK, I understand this,…….sort of. Many folks put shotgun aesthetics at the top of their list. No arguments from me. A beautiful shotgun is a joy to behold, a masterpiece of craftsmanship, function and form, making it a delight to hold. Few “tools” deliver anywhere near this level of pride of ownership. I own one for upland hunting. So I do understand,……right up until all those “dynamite” loads take a trap, skeet or sporting clays shooter down with flinching, head lifting, debilitating neck and shoulder problems.

The affects of recoil are cumulative. It’s a price we all pay, some more than others by the choices we make. So it’s in our own best interests to mitigate recoil every chance we have. First are ammunition choices. Here, Lite loads get it done,….all day,….every day. 2 3/4 dram loads will help you shoot better and do it more consistently.

Try as they might, some just cannot buy into lighter loads. If you are one of those, consider modifying your gun. Some semiautomatic shotguns are a worthwhile alternative. There is a ton of aftermarket solutions to minimize recoil. Adding weight to the gun is a good start. My favorite way to reduce recoil is to add a recoil reducing system to your stock. A good hydraulic system, while not the most aesthetically pleasing, can easily reduce felt recoil by 1/3 and more. That’s a lot! For those who place a very high priority on performance consistency and match scores, I recommend the Precision Fit Stock (www.precisionfitstocks.com). Mine has been totally reliable,…..allowed me to fine tune my fit to a very high level of precision,…..and makes time in the box a downright pleasure.

Every shooter I’ve ever talked to who owned a recoil reduction system in their stock absolutely loves it. If you’re like me and so many others who run not hundreds but many thousands of rounds through our guns in a year, do yourself a favor and take a hard look at reducing recoil,…..every way you can. Your performances and your scores will thank you for it.

The full article is located at http://www.paragonschool.com/sporting-clays-tip-07-2010.html

An Index of all The Paragon School of Sporting Sporting Tips is located at: http://www.paragonschool.com/sporting-clays-tips.html

WHAT’S IN YOUR SHOOTING TOOLBOX
September 2010 Sporting Clays Tip

Learning a new skill can be fun. And it should be. And once all the equipment has been purchased – ready or not – it’s finally time to step into the box and meet the clay target. While no doubt exciting – it may be a bit humbling as well. Not only do the targets provide all the challenge we want and more, we quickly learn the target doesn’t always break just because we want it to.

Don’t get me wrong – I applaud determination. But I also know that repetition in the box without the basics – without proper technique – is practice built more on hope than a well thought out plan. It seems, good shooting can be here today – then gone tomorrow. Consistently good shooting, on the other hand, is built on a strategy that includes the basics. It is not a mystery – nor is there some special magic some shooters have and others don’t. Every day – people just like you – move their shooting skills forward decisively and on purpose. They do this, primarily, with 2 things: 1) technique and 2 ) a commitment to those techniques – in that order.

Techniques – the building blocks that make up your shooting skills – all go into your toolbox. Because those who stand in the shooting box with the best strategy – who know the right techniques for these 2 presentations – always have the advantage. If consistency is a goal – Paragon Instructors can help you put those strategies – those techniques – and more self-confidence into your toolbox.

The full article is located at http://www.paragonschool.com/sporting-clays-tip-09-2010.html

An Index of all The Paragon School of Sporting Sporting Tips is located at: http://www.paragonschool.com/sporting-clays-tips.html

Breakpoints – Building a Strategy
November 2010 Sporting Clays Tip

Once we decide to get serious about building a complete shooting game, we quickly begin to learn just how many different ways there are to present targets.

Once a target leaves the machine, there are usually multiple breakpoints available to us. Which one is best? That depends on many, many different factors. Shooting style is one example, an important consideration when choosing a breakpoint that favors that style. A fast shooter might pick an earlier breakpoint – a more methodical shooter would likely shoot this same target a bit later.

On the other hand, one particular breakpoint might put the muzzle into an advantageous position for starting the swing on the 2nd shot. As it turns out, both shooters opt to break bird 1 in that exact spot, thus setting up their 2nd shot. This brings us to the next point here.

The breakpoint we choose will also have a lot to do with the shooting method we pick. Taken very early, the target will be faster as it just came off the trap. The shooting method we choose will have to handle that speed reliably and consistently. That same bird down the flight line further will likely be going slower. And the line will probably be changing too as gravity takes over. This slower, possibly curling or sliding target would suggest another shooting method altogether. 2 different breakpoints, 2 different shooting methods. So it would be fair to say that shooting methods are breakpoint dependent. And we’d be right.

Imagine a target crossing from your 9 O’clock to your 3 O’clock. Target speed and the target line will be constantly changing as the the bird gets further & further from the trap machine. Whichever breakpoint we pick, watch very closely what that target is doing as it comes into that breakpoint. Based on that information – what the target is really doing right there – now choose the shooting method that will get us the X – consistently.

Learning various shooting methods will, of course, be very important. And it will be just as important to precisely match the correct method to each target in each breakpoint – 100 times – all the way around the match course. These are the skills needed to navigate a challenging course successfully.

The full article is located at http://www.paragonschool.com/sporting-clays-tip-11-2010.html

An Index of all The Paragon School of Sporting Sporting Tips is located at: http://www.paragonschool.com/sporting-clays-tips.html

Gun Mount and Swing – 1 Motion – Not 2
December 2010 Sporting Clays Tip

Please place one hand under your gun’s receiver – balancing the barrel on one side, stock on the other. Now gently push the stock UP and watch what happens to the muzzle. It, of course, goes DOWN. During your gun mount – this is exactly what happens if your trigger hand goes UP faster than the fore-end hand in charge of the swing. In slow motion – if the trigger hand snatches the gun to the face – the muzzle does a “dirt dive.” So – early in the swing – if the muzzle is going down and the bird’s flying across the sky at 60 mph – are the bird and barrel aligned? Are they together? No. MOUNTING the gun to the face too quickly has pushed the barrel down, well off the target line. The muzzle will now have to be pulled up, then chase after the escaping target. All of this is called MOUNT – then move and shoot – a costly, time consuming, 2 piece gun mount. Friends will happily tell you “where” you just missed – but the real reason “why” you missed took place way over there at the start of your swing.

When the trap fires – if your bird/barrel sight picture is out of order early in the swing, how will the muzzle get to the “right place” BEFORE the shot occurs in the breakpoint? Now you have no choice but to try to fix your sight picture in what’s left of the swing – before time runs out.

Here’s a better way. Have your trigger hand remain neutral during the gun mount. Have this hand work WITH the fore-end hand – so it doesn’t push the barrel/muzzle off line. This is called MOVE, mount, shoot.

Good shooters look slower – and are slower – because they are more deliberate with their gun mount. On purpose, BOTH hands MOVE their gun to the target, on line, so there’s no need to fix the sight picture before the bird gets to the breakpoint. A smooth, 1 piece gun mount puts our gun on the target faster – more consistently – and delivers more X’s. Guaranteed. All of this is covered in depth, in my 2nd book, To The Target.

The full article is located at http://www.paragonschool.com/sporting-clays-tip-12-2010.html

An Index of all The Paragon School of Sporting Sporting Tips is located at: http://www.paragonschool.com/sporting-clays-tips.html

Ascending The Peak Takes Risk

That I do work with a lot of students in a year’s time grants me an experienced opinion. And I am privileged to be included in each and every lesson. With one exception (Gunny) – I have never learned more from anyone than my students.

So I find it interesting to watch how many shooters are romanced and seduced by all the tangibles. Holding it in your hands, surely there’s something magical about it, surely there can be no doubt – this is THE one that will work better than any other. And it may. But down the road, many find this revelation: look not at what you have or where you are – but to step-by-step, consistent improvements.

The vast majority of my students fall into 2 categories: 1) new shooters who want to get started the right way. 2) more experienced shooters, frustrated because their current plateau has taught them that more shells at the range and self-taught shooting isn’t leading to real progress. Both are making a commitment to a new mindset where their ROI (return on investment) will be higher and more gratifying – repositioning their game for “CHANGE.” This requires taking risks.

If I can pass along the most important Tip of this year – or any year – it is this: If it isn’t working, change it! Taking the risk – with a little patience & tenacity – will get more done in the shooting box than 50 cases of shells, following the definition of insanity.

“To get what you’ve never had,…….. do what you’ve never done.” To Peak performances – take the high road. If at first you don’t succeed, consider taking the next Exit to a competent Certified instructor and consider Paragon’s Certified instruction as well.

Be safe and Happy Holidays everyone 

The full, unabridged article is locate at http://www.paragonschool.com/sporting-clays-tip-01-2010.html

An Index of all The Paragon School of Sporting Sporting Tips is located at: http://www.paragonschool.com/sporting-clays-tips.html

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3 Steps Of A Lesson

A good teacher/instructor can’t just be a lecturer. There’s more to good teaching than just dispensing advice and information. When you register for a private lesson or a class with your friendly, local instructor, it is reasonable to expect your “mentor for the day” to be organized, look the part, and be truly attentive to what you have to say. It is also fair to anticipate that your instructor will take the time to ask why you are here today. He or she will listen to your specific questions and concerns – then tailor your lesson around those topics. Isn’t that why you signed up in the first place? Yes it is. A competent instructor will want to have this conversation with you in order to formulate the best lesson for you.

When the early Q&A portion of your lesson is concluded in the clubhouse, priorities shift. Headed out to your first shooting field, you become the listener. It is because your approach to your shooting is not working – you will be asked to do things differently in the shooting box than you are accustomed to. Your instructor is counting on your undivided attention and utmost cooperation. Following your teacher’s advice with an open mind and enthusiasm leads to a hugely gratifying and highly educational experience.

The final step is your following up by training at the gun club, using the experience and counsel provided during your lesson – because progress in the box can not occur through wishful thinking. For us to find the progress we want, each and every of us has to endure the rigors of reprogramming our old habits and thoroughly ingraining the ones our instructor taught us. May I suggest you pick up your copy of the February 2010 issue of Sporting Clays magazine. Turn to page 18. Marty regularly turns out practical, genuinely usable advice. Marty’s candid advice is spot-on and particularly applicable to what we are talking about here – steps that not only make good sense but put your game ahead coming into the 2010 season.

Until next time,…….hang in there,………warmer weather will be here soon.

The full, unabridged article is locate at http://www.paragonschool.com/sporting-clays-tip-02-2010.html

An Index of all The Paragon School of Sporting Sporting Tips is located at: http://www.paragonschool.com/sporting-clays-tips.html

The Hard Part

When people ask what I do and I explain, their eyes light up and they say “Wow,”….. or “Cool,”….. or something to that affect. Understandably, this reaction overlooks the everyday challenges of being a Coach. Standing inside the clubhouse, 2,000 miles from home with my disgruntled students looking out the window as the snow piles up and the wind howls, is nobody’s idea of a good time. Tomorrow’s forecast is the same and day 3 is their flight home. This we can’t control.

Fortunately, there are some things we can control.

Helping my student learn how to correctly move her gun from point A to point B is relatively straightforward. What’s harder is helping her “change” her approach to the next target. Why is it harder? Because of her fierce determination to get the X. It’s palpable. Wanting so much to succeed (X), she is totally focused on the outcome of the shot rather than the all-important change. Driving faster and faster, more aggressively down the wrong road won’t get her where she wants to go. I’m asking her to stop and make a turn. Understandably, she’s thinking, can I trust the “new way?” Overwhelmed by her intense desire to break this next target, will she step out of her comfort zone, take the risk and go the “new way” instead?

This isn’t easy. It never is. But it’s what it takes to move ourselves up. The hard part. Some how, some way, we have to dig down and find a way to make the needed changes in our game in order to gain the improvements and consistency we want. The first step is a conscious and deliberate shift in our attention from the outcome of the shot to the process of the shot. For example, all Paragon instructors are taught to help their students focus on 1 thing. That 1 important change will build more consistency into their student’s form. As each change is implemented, the form measurably improves and the X count starts to go up — right now — consistently. This, we can control and we can count on. It will not let us down.

 In training — the real truth is — how badly we want this target to break is infinitely less important than having the discipline to make that 1 small change in our game. That’s the hard part. That 1 change, added to the last change, and the next, guarantees better form, a better performance in the box, all resulting in higher scores. The rungs on the ladder of advancement are built of the hard part — in every sport and endeavor.

The full, unabridged article is locate at http://www.paragonschool.com/sporting-clays-tip-03-2010.html

An Index of all The Paragon School of Sporting Sporting Tips is located at: http://www.paragonschool.com/sporting-clays-tips.html

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100 TIMES BETTER

Last month we took a look at “the hard part.” In that discussion, I mentioned the “1″ change. Let’s talk about that a bit further.

First, it’s human nature to be in a hurry to get somewhere. I get that. Guilty myself. But in skill development, it just doesn’t work that way. Ain’t goin’ to happen. Like it or not, learning a new language, a new software program, shooting skills, let’s face it, some time and effort will have to be invested. So we head out to the range, fully determined to accomplish something good today. Here’s how.

Many of us will decide to work on, let’s say, 4 things. OK, those 4 things, we’ll do them 25 times each. We’ll ratchet up our focus and get down to some serious work on those 4 changes. That’s 100 shells, 100 targets over an 80 minute period. Here’s what we really did. We divided our 80 minutes of attention into fourths. We actually spent only 20 minutes and 25 shells on each change. Not bad, but could it be better?

I am a firm believer in building methodically, in smaller increments in order to build reliability and repeatability. Here are 2 other training choices. A) Reduce the number of changes to 2 instead of 4. That gives you more time (40 minutes) and 50 shells (instead of 25) on 1 change. Same goes for the 2nd change. 80 minutes. B) Spend your entire 80 minutes, undivided attention and 100 shells on 1 change.

I vote for B.

All of this of course assumes the change is the right one and executed with a best effort to do it properly. With those 2 assumptions in place, solidifying 1 change in your game firmly and consistently is a whole lot better than making 4 changes in your game,….sort of, sometimes.

In my experienced opinion, the value of 1 X 100 really does exceed 4 X 25 by a wide margin. And 100 times for 1 change is a starting point, not an ending. More about this in an upcoming article. Thanks for joining me here today.

The full, unabridged article is located at http://www.paragonschool.com/sporting-clays-tip-04-2010.html

An Index of all The Paragon School of Sporting Sporting Tips is located at: http://www.paragonschool.com/sporting-clays-tips.html

Shifting Into Granny Gear

Excessive gun speed, swinging the gun too fast is all too common in my lessons. It’s the opposite of gun control. Russ Vowell called it, “blazing barrels.” There are a hundred reasons for this, mostly having to due with wanting to break the target–with a fierce determination. Going too fast though has a price.

After the first 5 minutes of the lesson on the course, we’ve got 0000 and a well-intentioned swing out of control. To slow my student’s swing down, drastically, I ask if he’s ever driven a tractor. Ever heard of granny gear? He says yes. Granny gear speed is a crawl. At this point my student is thinking, “This ain’t going to work. Not happening. I’ll end up shooting way over there.” Despite some serious doubts, he cuts his swing speed by at least 50%, maybe more. Swing speed now matches the bird speed. This is real – effective – target crushing gun control. XXXXXX. Nope, he isn’t breaking it way over there. He’s breaking this crosser right out in front of the box. 

Not only that, but more successful repetitions actually begin to move the break point back, closer to the trap, not further away. Illogical as it sounds, that’s a fact. Gun control does that. Guaranteed .

Granny gear is a mental image that creates a hugely improved pace in the swing, putting the control of the shot in your hands, not the target. For those of you who hate our rabbit presentations, put your swing in super slow-motion and watch the magic trick, the disappearing rabbit.

3 things to remember:
    The X is your destination.
    Your swing is the trip.
    There are penalties for going too fast.

The full, unabridged article is located at http://www.paragonschool.com/sporting-clays-tip-05-2010.html

An Index of all The Paragon School of Sporting Sporting Tips is located at: http://www.paragonschool.com/sporting-clays-tips.html

Excuse me,…. I think you dropped this.

Sunday evenings and Mondays can be busy answering calls and emails from my students around the US. Typically, we’re discussing this week-end’s tournament – play by play – and results. Listening, I hear a Field by Field account of what happened and why.

It is worthwhile to do a post-game review of stations – provided we don’t get caught up in replaying certain misses too many times and reinforcing those particular images – which we really don’t want to do.

But there’s one very important part of this review process I don’t always hear in these discussions. So I ask this question after hearing the report: “What (specifically) did you learn from this match – that you can take to the next match?” If we’re not asking ourselves this question, it’s likely we’ll make the same mistakes over and over again. Sure – if we make that mistake enough times – eventually – we’ll “get it.” But why eventually? Are we driving off and leaving valuable lessons back at the tournament grounds?

If we are serious about stepping our game up to the next level, that makes the question above all the more important. I’m suggesting we look a little deeper at our tournament “wrap up” until we find at least 1 good lesson for our next few training sessions, before the next match. Unquestionably – in contrast to the trial and error method – this more focused approach is shorter, faster and a much more reliable strategy to build the performance improvements so many of us seek. I recommend it highly.

The full article is located at http://www.paragonschool.com/sporting-clays-tip-06-2010.html

An Index of all The Paragon School of Sporting Sporting Tips is located at: http://www.paragonschool.com/sporting-clays-tips.html