Carnegie Hall Advice for Your EDC

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When I was in high school, a friend who was intent on becoming a classical violinist came up to me one day and asked, "Do you know how to get to Carnegie Hall?" I said, "No, I've never been to New York City." He replied, "Practice, practice, practice."

Today I discovered how important that advice was for maintaining proficiency with my every day carry Shield 45. For a variety of depressing reasons, I had not shot it in nearly two years. But I'd shot it so well, (it's a great carry gun) that I figured I was still pretty good with it. I took it to the range today and got a rude awakening. My accuracy was way down, and my grouping was way big. During the first several years I'd owned it, I'd shot it twice a month, and had put around 7,500 rounds through it, so I'd had plenty of practice. However, just like musicians, you can't rest on your laurels. By not shooting it recently, my EDC Shield became a less accurate weapon.

The target photos below show how badly I'd slipped. The one on the left is from the last time I'd previously shot it, in July of 2021. The one on the right is from today. Both were shot at 15 yards, and both used the same ammo (American Eagle 230g FMJ). Can you see the difference, boys and girls? I think you can!

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So if you haven't shot your EDC of late, get it to the range, and practice, practice, practice.

(BTW, my high school friend did get to play at Avery Fisher Hall at Lincoln Center, which replaced Carnegie Hall as NYC's primary concert venue, so I give him credit for making it to the bigs.)
 

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shooting pistols is a funny thing, different than riding a bicycle as one does forget how to shoot.
Shooting a pistol is the easiest thing to do, get the sights lined up, get a good sight picture, and pull the trigger without disturbing the sights.
the easiest thing we will never master....and when you think you have it mastered you find that you still can get better...
your friend was right when he said practice, practice, practice...
I however like to say train, train, train then practice what you trained to do..
 
Not exactly the same kind of shooting but...

Used to be heavy into skeet shooting. Like 2-3 days a week for a bunch of years.

Got into other things, mostly rifles, sold my skeet gun and reloader, took a couple years off.

Decided to get back into it.

First line back- 14
Second line- 16

Yup, I was rusty

Took a few lines to get back to my old self, but once I remembered to swing my shotgun, I was good again
 
Pat Rogers told us in class that the USMC, I suspect Force Recon, had found that there was a deterioration in skill after 7 days. I think he was right.
 
There is a quote from the book "Seven Habits Of Highly Effective People" about a concert pianist that is similar:

"If I don't practice for a day, I can tell. If I don't practice for a week, my wife can tell. If I don't practice for a month, everyone can tell!"

Off to practice this week, maybe twice. :)
 
Pat Rogers told us in class that the USMC, I suspect Force Recon, had found that there was a deterioration in skill after 7 days. I think he was right.


Could be, but I think the USMC Security Force Battalion shoots as much if not more. The Course of Fire that I learned while there was developed with Jeff Cooper's help and the initial Instructors were trained at Gun Site by Cooper and his crew.
 
I have noticed that shooting skills are highly perishable, and it seems like I need to learn all over again with each trip to the range. Probably not a good thing for someone interested in practicing defensive shooting. The first cylinder full is the most important one. There are no Mulligans in a gun fight.

73,
Rick
 
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