Just got done with an indoor/outdoor match here. For those who live in warmer climates and are fortunate enough not to know what that means 
, in the winter months here we shoot from a heated hut onto outdoor targets at 200y. We shoot 20 shots offhand, then the targets are collected and scored. Nice way to spend a Sunday morning (everyone hangs out in the hut, chats, waits for their relay, etc.)
So like most of you probably do, I refine my technique in a round-robin fashion- I work on the weakest or most unknown part of the equation, shoot a bit, get better, then the next weakest link exposes itself, I refine that, etc., coming back around once all have risen a certain degree. Forums like this one and of course dry firing have been instrumental in this process.
Anyway, my big new "fix" this time around was NPA. I had always known about the concept, and practiced it haphazardly at best. Well, over the past few months I've really gone to treating every shot as its own self contained entity, which, most importantly, includes reforming my shooting position so that the NPA is spot on. With 20 minutes for 20 shots, I got to experiment today with timing and just how long I could take to reform and get a perfect PoA, and it's surprisingly giving.
Now, as I was refining this during all the dry fire sessions, before I'd even fired a single shot, I really got to thinking how it's so obvious how important this facet is to the equation, from a geometric perspective. I would actually venture to say it is the most senior element of them all. With a truly proper NPA, you perform like a mechanical device. There's no fighting the muscles, no struggling, no refocusing. Look, calm, pull. And when it's not spot on, the angular issues can be murder. I don't think it's an intuitive element at first, so you need to wrap your head around how patient you need to be and how much value can be had by making every shot "an easy shot"
So, how did I do?
Well, first off a bit of very important info- as some of you might remember, I shoot highpower with a very limited set of equipment - no glove, no coat, no 1907 sling. It's a personal preference thing, and I compete mostly with myself for score as I'm well aware the disadvantages it gives me. I also haven't had the chance to start hand loading yet, so use factory loads. I'm explaining this to show what a big improvement I saw with good NPA.
I shot a 184-1, placing me in 7th out of 31 shooters. Now, the 24 below me (and pretty much everyone above me) were nearly all shooting with the full highpower "regalia", hand loads, weighted rifles, custom rifles, the works. And yet, with good fundamentals I was able to best the majority.
For me, good NPA took it much more from a sport of tension and variability to one of patience and consistency. I daresay it almost becomes too easy when you follow the rules. Now, there are certain liberties I've taken with the classic doctrine to match my shooting style (mostly around breathing and trigger), but this one was a no brainer, and boy did I reap the benefits.
So, moral of the story. You've just taken a shot. Break it down, close your eyes, breath, relax, unwind. And get set up fully anew. How does the saying go? There's no previous shot, there's no next shot, there's only THIS SHOT?
So like most of you probably do, I refine my technique in a round-robin fashion- I work on the weakest or most unknown part of the equation, shoot a bit, get better, then the next weakest link exposes itself, I refine that, etc., coming back around once all have risen a certain degree. Forums like this one and of course dry firing have been instrumental in this process.
Anyway, my big new "fix" this time around was NPA. I had always known about the concept, and practiced it haphazardly at best. Well, over the past few months I've really gone to treating every shot as its own self contained entity, which, most importantly, includes reforming my shooting position so that the NPA is spot on. With 20 minutes for 20 shots, I got to experiment today with timing and just how long I could take to reform and get a perfect PoA, and it's surprisingly giving.
Now, as I was refining this during all the dry fire sessions, before I'd even fired a single shot, I really got to thinking how it's so obvious how important this facet is to the equation, from a geometric perspective. I would actually venture to say it is the most senior element of them all. With a truly proper NPA, you perform like a mechanical device. There's no fighting the muscles, no struggling, no refocusing. Look, calm, pull. And when it's not spot on, the angular issues can be murder. I don't think it's an intuitive element at first, so you need to wrap your head around how patient you need to be and how much value can be had by making every shot "an easy shot"
So, how did I do?
Well, first off a bit of very important info- as some of you might remember, I shoot highpower with a very limited set of equipment - no glove, no coat, no 1907 sling. It's a personal preference thing, and I compete mostly with myself for score as I'm well aware the disadvantages it gives me. I also haven't had the chance to start hand loading yet, so use factory loads. I'm explaining this to show what a big improvement I saw with good NPA.
I shot a 184-1, placing me in 7th out of 31 shooters. Now, the 24 below me (and pretty much everyone above me) were nearly all shooting with the full highpower "regalia", hand loads, weighted rifles, custom rifles, the works. And yet, with good fundamentals I was able to best the majority.
For me, good NPA took it much more from a sport of tension and variability to one of patience and consistency. I daresay it almost becomes too easy when you follow the rules. Now, there are certain liberties I've taken with the classic doctrine to match my shooting style (mostly around breathing and trigger), but this one was a no brainer, and boy did I reap the benefits.
So, moral of the story. You've just taken a shot. Break it down, close your eyes, breath, relax, unwind. And get set up fully anew. How does the saying go? There's no previous shot, there's no next shot, there's only THIS SHOT?
