What was your Ah Ha! moment when learning to shoot CAS?

[Madd Mike #8595]

good leather

 

also

what I teach is that pulling four shotgun shells, may not always be faster for everyone

especially if you shoot a S x S (LOL)

give it a try, then decide

 

use new brass in your rifles at all major shoots (split or bad cases in rifles cause train wrecks)

use new or perfect hulls at all major shoots if you use a S x S

 

use you guns for one minor match after a full dismantle cleaning before a major shoot (make sure they work well)

 

Hydrate (drink water) one glass per stage, and eat something just a tad bit every other stage or so (fruit, jerky etc)

 

side matches are a good test for yourself (alot of shooters do not do them)

 

Move at the start of the buzz, not the end of the buzz (the time adds up)

 

eyes: clear sites and fuzzy targets makes for more hits, than fuzzy sites and clear target (take a SHARP #2 pencil to the eye doc, with ya hold it up at arms length, you want to see the tip clearly, that is about the distance +- of your front sites

 

breath after the timer goes off

attend as many travel shoots as you can

donot always belive those that poo-poo other clubs and shoots (you may like them and get along fine)

 

have fun and make friends

[Cowboy Rick, SASS #49739L]

First epiphany was to always be doing something, ergo: transitions. Have your SG shells in hand by the tine you get to the SG. Pick up your rifle while holstering the last pistol (that stopped working when I started GF).

 

CR

[Straight Arrow Hombre]

I've had three Ah Ha moments that I can think of. Learning to load and unload the double (thanks Deuce). Putting slick's sights on my pistols (again thanks Deuce) and shooting a rifle that is 110% reliable (a premo spur marlin from the back of Deuce's safe) I owe this guy more than I can return!

The brass sights on the pistols were the biggest game changer for me. Kinda makes it hard to ignore that front sight.

[Attica Jack #23953]

Try to keep the fumbling to a minimum, keep it smooth, and try to eliminate, "Now why did I do thats'"

[Hoss]

Stop talking to yourself or the TO while shooting.

 

I once got a P on a stage, knew it 1/1000 of a second after I pulled the trigger. I commented "I just P'd myself" (thinking procedural) the TO giggled, I realized what I had said, started laughing, could hardly finish the stage. Since then, I try to keep my mouth shut after saying the line. Not always easy!

[Gunner Gatlin, SASS 10274L]

...and the most important tip is: Drink beer after a match (after all firearms have been put away)....laugh with pards....enjoy the moment...

 

 

GG ~

[Cowboy Rick, SASS #49739L]

...and the most important tip is: Drink beer after a match (after all firearms have been put away)....laugh with pards....enjoy the moment...

 

 

GG ~

 

Well crumb! All I have is single malt scotch

[Gunner Gatlin, SASS 10274L]

 

Well crumb! All I have is single malt scotch

Well...THAT is a better man' s drink. YES...you are good with that'un by a mile. Ivory Jack teached me what you say

 

GG

[Appalachian Alan]

not faster but aha, The more smoke the funner the shoot.

 

Really though, even though I personnaly choose the most smoke and fire I can, I also want to do it as fast as possable otherwise.

Listen to the above comments. I hear them over and over for a reason.

[Yul Lose]

At my first match on stage 4 I earned a MDQ. I put everything away in my guncart and asked if it would be okay for me to work the unload table. Every member of our posse while they were there at the table through out the rest of the match offered me encouragement and friendly advice. Had they not been so friendly I probably would have never pursued this great sport. That was my aha moment.

[largo casey #19191]

Maybe one of these days they'll let me use live amo...Largo

[Jerkline Jesse, SASS #64073]

For me, the single biggest revelatory moment was when looking ahead to the next target, then swinging gun and body together to follow started to come together.

[Bones Z]

I'm a relatively new shooter to CAS and am lookin for ways to go faster. So the question I have is what technique or learned trick caused a light bulb moment for you?

 

First match,first stage: handloaded Max load 357s slow you down and irritate the range owner. (one of the vets offered me some ammo to use for the rest of the match).

[Two Spurs]

1/2 seconds per stage count. I knew this earlier on but it didn't soak in until my last big match when less than 4 1/2 seconds separated 1st and 3rd place over 10 stages.

 

I'd shot clean, but immediately started thinking: a fumble on stuffing shotgun shells one time, etc.

 

Dry fire practice at home.

Stuff inactive shotgun shells at home.

Think about how you lay long guns down, etc.

 

Have fun with it all.

[sam slocum]

Mine is a bit different, I'd shot a match as a guest with guns loaned to me by Frenchy Yukon, and that squared the deal that I wanted to try it for real. So, a couple months later, I show up with Frenchy with my own Ruger Vaqueros, a Henry Big Boy in 45 LC, and a 20 guage SXS. Don't know if it was the second or third stage at the Circle R Cowboys range, but I'm at the loading table right behind Old Short Tom, well, he commences to shooting' that stage in 15 seconds. That's when Turkey Creek Edwards (Who's sittin' there in a chair supervising the loading table) looks right at me and offers these words of encouragement..."sucks to be you".

 

I was still laughing when I finished shootin', and knew this was something I could keep doin'.

 

As far as shootin' fast....still waitin' for that Ah Ha moment, but I've had a a lot of fun with the Ha Ha moments.

[Gil T Azell #62569]

True "aha" moment. Had a stage several years ago with a choice of starting positions, which determined which long gun you started with, and which one you picked up from vertical. Walking up to the loading table, Arizona Redneck asked "how are you going to shoot this?" I answered.

 

Then he asked another question I'll never forget: "Why?"

 

The light came on right then. I saw that there's more to this than just shooting fast. Plan the stage and plan transitions. That single word was a turning point. Up to that point, I knew nothing about transitions or planning a stage. I always pulled the right pistol first, regardless of the stage. I always placed long guns in the center of the shooting position. I always shot targets from left to right. I never really bothered with anything other than just trying to shoot faster and faster.

 

Several years later, I'm not shooting too much faster, but I've carved tons of time out of my transitions. Lots and lots and lots of dry transition practice helped, as did thinking about the stage.

[Parson Delacroix]

My ah ha moment happened when I decided to load up some full house 45 colt loads with black powder. I stepped outside my door and went into the back and loaded up the pistol. I cocked the hammer, aimed it at the target, and squeezed the trigger. WOW. From that moment on, I was hooked. I mean like a big mouthed bass being caught with a double trebble hook that you swallow. The speed and other stuff came when I upgraded my equipment from a rossi 92 to an uberti 73. With less malfunctions confidence in my equipment meant I didn't have to worry if it were going to work or not. All I had to do was think about the stage and shoot. But with black powder as a propellent. Have fun and more ah ha moments are on their way.

[Arcadia Outlaw, SASS 71385]

Alot of good stuff here but until you can shoot the stages subconsciously you will be in slow motion.

 

 

AO