It's been 3-1/2 weeks since I last shot the 97B"E"...

[Joe L]

and I struggled today.  I held off for a few weeks waiting for some new progressive glasses lenses, and they were late due to Thanksgiving and the virus.  So, when I got out to the range in the mountains of New Mexico, I just couldn't get my eye/trigger coordination right.  The trigger felt too light and I couldn't hold the gun as steady as I could last trip.  I probably should have warmed up on a blank sheet of paper at 25 yards, but I didn't.  Went right to 100 yards.  I got nearly all the shots on paper, but couldn't get over half in the black.  I can usually get 8 of 10 shots in the black when I am having a good day. 

So, today I had 11 of 60 shots off the B-8c target by up to 3".  Also 24 of 60 were on the paper target but in the white 6-7-8 ring area.  I counted 25 of 60 in the black 9-10 rings.  When I have been shooting regularly, this would be maybe 1 or 2 off the target, maybe 10 on the paper but not in the black, and 45-50 in the black, for example.  Shooter needs work.

I did find one good 5 shot group out of the 12 groups I shot and I made a separate post on it with a 1 minute video.  That one was just a little luck plus the experience of the previous 45 shots.

It wasn't the pistol or the ammo.  Never is.  The problem is always me!  In this case, just lack of practice.  I tend to loose my touch if I don't shoot for over a week or so, and this layoff was just too long.  But I got some practice in, and tomorrow will be better.  Has to be.  I'll post tomorrow's results IF I actually shoot any better than I did today. 

Joe 

[Joe L]

As expected, when I returned to the range on Tuesday, I was much more comfortable shooting the pistol.  The rounds on Monday helped get me back in the groove again.  But the wind was bad on Tuesday so the results weren't spectacular.  I'm hoping to do pretty well next time out, either Wednesday or Thursday. 

My experience is this.  If one misses several weeks, go shoot, but don't get overly concerned or frustrated like I used to do.  I was impatient.  Now I am much less likely to shoot poorly due to a frustrated state of mind, and just accept that it takes a few rounds to get one's skill level back up to where it was, and there is no quicker or more efficient way to get back in the groove than to just be patient and learn something from every shot.  I pay attention to exactly what I am doing that isn't right, but I don't let myself get frustrated.  I try to analyze, correct, execute.  And I stop at about half the round count that I used to and go home.  Several short sessions over a few days seem to work better than one or two long ones.

Joe

[Europe]

I like this stoic approach very much. Very difficult to achieve this state of mind. I dropped practically recreational shooting focusing mostly on preparation before matches and refining my loads.