One of the most common positions that people use when they go to the range, whether it’s for competition or training is the standing position. There are a few things you can do with your rifle standing position to make you faster, more accurate, more consistent, and maybe even reduce fatigue. Here’s a GunMag TV video lesson that can help you keep your shots on target in a more consistent way.
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This article originally ran in December 2019.
Rifle Standing Position
Like Shaw demonstrates in the video above, there are a couple of things to check
- Pull the buttstock back tight into your shoulder and push down with your face for good cheek weld.
- Avoid squeezing the pistol grip too tightly, because you want to maintain trigger-finger dexterity.
- Get better control of the pivot point by placing your non-firing hand thumb on the top of the handguard.
- Leaning slightly forward of the centerline of your body weight.
- Load most of your body weight on the left leg.
Trigger Finger Dexterity
“I don’t have too much squeezing happening in my middle finger because I want some dexterity in that trigger finger. If you make a fist and stick out a finger, squeeze that hand really tight, you’ll find that you lose a little bit of dexterity…If I release these fingers a little bit, I get a lot more dexterity in the trigger finger. It allows me to manipulate that trigger finger a little bit faster.
Control the Pivot Point
Shaw says that even though you can shoot with the non-firing hand on the magwell, handguard, or foregrip, you’ll get better control of the pivot point if you hold it by the handguard with your thumb on top.
Stance
Stand up in a tall natural stance, abdomen tight, with your body slightly leaning forward. Load most of your body weight on the forward leg. The taller you stand, the more information you gain which is key for better performance in a competition or a fight.
Shaw says, “I’m standing up tall. I’m not in some Groucho, super-duper swat stance, which is unnecessary—it’s actually counter-productive. The higher I am, the more information I get…I can see into and over dead space.”
Try out these tips next time you’re at the range and let us know what you think.
