It’s fun to hit the range and blast some ammo through our favorite guns. The most common type of “training” is to face off with a target and shoot for the bullseye. Trying to hit that bullseye gets addicting, and it’s fun to make a big hole where the bullseye used to be. But while we all want to be accurate shooters, we often overlook speed during our firearms training. This is why competitive shooting can teach us all something. Most competitions are centered around a combination of accuracy and speed. I’ve never been a competitive shooter, and most of my firearm experience is from my time as a law enforcement officer. But speed is just as important in both realms.
Even if you do not like competing with others, you need to compete with yourself. Every time you hit the range, establish a goal that forces you to do better than you did before. In the real world, speed and accuracy determine the outcome of self-defense incidents. I’ve heard many say, “Take your time and make the first shot count.” But, unfortunately, time is something many don’t have during life-and-death situations.
Why speed matters for self-defense
One of the oldest examples police use to demonstrate how fast an attack can take place is a training scenario at 20 feet. They select two participants and give one a rubber knife and the other a training gun (not a real gun). The person with the rubber knife (attacker) stands 20 feet away and is told to run up to the defender whenever they are ready. With the gun holstered, the defender draws the gun and points it at the attacker when they realize they are being attacked. Ideally, he can do this before the attacker is close enough to use the knife.
But even when the defender knows the attacker is coming, they seldom draw fast enough. According to the USCCA, 93.1% of shootings take place between 3-7 yards. If the attacker has a gun instead of a knife, how accurate do you think they need to be at 3-7 yards? Because it’s easier to be accurate at this distance, speed becomes a major factor.
When the target (attacker) is close, you want to back away as you extend the gun to fire. This keeps them out of reach of your firearm. Shooting from the hip allows you to return fire before you even get to that point. If your life is in danger, even a fraction of a second can determine the outcome.
What makes you faster?
What happens when you try to do something fast? I tend to fumble more, and it takes even longer than before. This is one reason people often say, “Smooth is fast, and fast is smooth.” There is truth to that statement, but another thing we can do is break down each movement to determine when we should speed up and when to slow down.
Let’s say you want to practice firing at a target: move towards cover while firing, and fire again once cover is reached. Blazing through the entire drill as fast as possible will likely cause most of us to miss a lot. Moving slowly and focusing on each shot will allow for greater accuracy but take a lot of time. So, here’s one thing to try. Move at different speeds during your drill. This sounds easy, but it’s not natural for the body. It likes to move at a steady pace.
This is a simple concept, but how often have you tried doing it? Like anything else involving guns, thinking about it and doing it are two different things. John Wick makes moving and shooting look easy, but unfortunately, it’s not.
Move: Slow-Fast-Slow
It’s hard to make ourselves change speed during any type of training on the range. We like to start at a certain speed and maintain it. The concept of slow-fast-slow, however, works with just about any type of drill. A great way to practice improving your time is to use a shot timer and compete with yourself. Keep track of your best time on each drill, and see if you can do better next time. Move faster when you’re not shooting, and slow down just a little when you are.
Mag Change Drills
A fun way to practice mag-change drills is to place one round in the first magazine and a full mag in the second. Put the first magazine in the gun and the full mag in your magazine pouch. Using your shot timer, see how long it takes you to fire one round, change magazines, and fire a second round. Now, remove the magazine that’s in your gun and put it back in your mag holder. Pick up the empty magazine from the ground and put it back in the gun (there is still a bullet in the chamber).
You have now reset the drill and are ready to start again. Check your time so you know what you need to beat. When I try to do the whole drill in one fast motion, I fumble. What helped me improve my time was to fire, drop the mag, and grab the second one as fast as possible, but slow down just a little as I inserted the magazine into the gun. I drop the bolt (or slide on a handgun) as fast as I can, raise it, and slow down again as I fire.
Shuttle drills on the range
If you ever played basketball, you most likely did shuttle drills (formerly referred to as suicide drills). In this drill, you fire once at your target, sprint to another point 5 yards away, and fire again. Sprint back to the starting point and fire, then sprint to the 10-yard line. This can be done as far out as you want to go. I like this drill for improving speed while maintaining combat accuracy.
This drill teaches you to move as fast as you can but slow down enough when firing to hit your target. Your sprint should slow, suddenly to a fast walk as you’re firing, and pick back up when you’re done. Time yourself, and deduct 3 seconds for every shot you miss. You can use this fun drill to compete with your buddies at the range or to compete against yourself.
Shoot like you wished you could
We always want to hit our target, don’t we? But a singular focus on hitting the target can keep us slow. We shoot as fast as we can while hitting the target, but that doesn’t seem to get any faster. Push yourself further than what you “know” you can do. Try for what you “want” to do instead. Sure, you will miss a lot at first. But when you move and shoot faster than you are used to, you eventually get better with practice.
It’s okay to stand and shoot at a target, but also incorporate some drills that will improve your self-defense skills as well. Determination is what decides how much you will improve. Make it fun, make it challenging, and make it faster!
