3 Key Takeaways from Two Years of Competing
Coming from the “tactical” side of training, the biases and expectations I went into competition with have been pretty much shattered.
Competing in both USPSA and PCSL has revealed deficiencies, highlighted strengths, and shown me a clearer path to competency and confidence with my gun, regardless of context. It’s been invaluable and has changed my personal and professional approach to shooting in significant ways.
I’ve now been competing for two years, with 24 matches under my belt, augmented with training and shooting with USPSA GMs. Here are three key takeaways:
Honest and realistic understanding of what good looks like and what it takes to get there. Going into my first few matches, up against some high-level shooters, I naively overestimated my skills and had expected I’d quickly achieve Master class. I was wrong. Only now, after two years of dedicated, focused and consistent work, is Master class within my reach.
The stress and pressure to perform on demand does impact performance. I use data to track and measure my performance. There’s a difference in the numbers I achieve in dry fire vs. live fire practice vs. competition. As stress and pressure ratchet up, performance can become inconsistent. That’s why it’s critical to over-develop skills, so that I have plenty in reserve.
Practical shooting skills have direct crossover utility for defensive shooting. Shooters are missing a great training tool if disregarding the role competition can play in defensive training. Self-defense is my priority, so slow fire target shooting at comfortable distances, one round at a time, has little practical utility and fails to reveal any weaknesses in my shooting skill. It does not prepare me to shoot with any urgency under stress.
Competition has proven to be a very effective tool in my own development. And the experience and knowledge I gain in competition informs my classes, where I work with students to build foundational skills to a very high level, then pressure test at speed, with accountability, under time constraints. This approach better prepares students to use their guns under pressure.
The core purpose of my training will always be self-defense. But leveling up in competition is a very rewarding by-product. And it’s the best way, right now, for me to get a very realistic gauge of my current skill set.
I’m continually holding myself accountable to a very high level of performance. I know, based on experience and pressure testing, that I can perform on-demand. That I am competent to carry a gun.
Run my EDC Assessment and see how your skills stack up.