.22 Caliber Cross-Training

When the Summer Olympics took place in Rio de Janeiro the entire world focused on the myriad of sporting events on display. One of the techniques many of the athletes use is known as “cross-training.” Wikipedia defines it as “Training in two or more sports in order to improve fitness and performance, especially in a main sport.”

Professional handgun competitors use some of the same techniques Olympic athletes use, such as visualization, nutritional support, mental discipline and cross-training. Some shooters tend to focus on one sport. Bullseye competitors tend to only shoot Bullseye matches in order to maximize their scores and techniques in that sport. Bullseye takes a great amount of concentration and precision. I know. I shot it for four years with the Army Marksmanship Unit, and received the NRA 2600 pin, my Distinguished Pistol Shot badge, and achieved the President’s Hundred Tab. To shoot other types of matches like USPSA or Steel would be detrimental to a Bullseye competitor.

Precision Is Paramount

There’s one hard and fast rule with any type of shooting sport. Accuracy is king. No matter if you shoot competition or are a weekend plinker, if you can’t shoot good groups you won’t be successful.

Many competitive shooters think they need to shoot fast to win, and to an extent this is true. But accuracy is equally important. You can improve your level of accuracy by incorporating a bit of precision marksmanship into your practice, instead of the usual run-and-gun shooting. This will reinforce the fundamentals of sight alignment and trigger control. I’ve been to many IPSC matches where shooting prone at a 65-yard silhouette was common, so precision applies to all disciplines, even practical matches.

One drill is to place a paster on any type of target and step back 3 yards. Put a tan paster on a white IPSC or IDPA target. Then start from the low ready position to fire a series of five single shots with no time limit. As you get more proficient, start adding the time element to the drill, getting the shot off within three seconds, then two. All shots must be inside the paster. Work on fundamentals.

Another drill is to set up a 25-yard target with about a 3″ aiming circle. Fire one shot every 10–15 seconds — either one-or two-handed — from the low ready position. The addition of distance to the drill adds a level of anxiety. Look for a uniform group, anything outside the group means you probably broke concentration and forced the shot. This type of precision practice can be accomplished with both iron sights and red dot sights. And since you’re using the 22, you can get in quite a bit of inexpensive shooting without getting as fatigued as you’d get with a centerfire pistol.

Get Rhythm!

A key to successful shooting — of any kind — is to have good rhythm when firing multiple shots. This allows equal time for the proper application of the fundamentals for each shot, and it keeps you under control. Very few things rattle a shooter more than hesitating and interrupting his rhythm when firing a string of shots.

Why? Once you hesitate you tend to rush subsequent shots and end up spraying the targets. This can happen during a stage like the Plate Rack at a GSSF match, or a multiple target array at an IDPA or Steel-type match.

Practicing rhythm requires a shot timer to record the time between shots (“split times”). If you don’t have one there are Smart phone apps capable of serving the same purpose.

Two drills help with rhythm and timing. First, if your local range has a plate rack, use it! Firing at a plate array with a .22 pistol allows you to concentrate on keeping your finger moving and picking up the sights quickly without having to fight the effects of recoil. If you don’t have access to a plate rack, a second option is to set up some IPSC or IDPA targets with a large, blank, square target placed in the center. Set up an array of three to five targets at various distances and spread them apart. Fire two shots at each target and work on lowering both your split times and overall time.

The most important aspect of firing a series of shots is to get the first one off. Many shooters hesitate on the first shot. This will destroy the rhythm and cadence needed for proper application of the fundamentals.

Reloads And Malfunctions

One of the keys to executing a proper reload after the last shot is fired is to bring the pistol back and hold it at an angle in front of your face to “look” the fresh magazine into the pistol, while at the same time hitting the magazine release button to drop the empty one.

First, bring the pistol back as your weak hand goes for the fresh magazine. Second, insert the magazine, making sure you hear it seat and “click.” Third, pick up the sights again as you extend both arms back toward the target.

You can practice this drill over and over much more inexpensively and just as effectively with a rimfire, especially with the Ruger 22/45.

Malfunction drills really need to be performed with a shooting buddy. Your partner can load the dummy round or rounds into your magazine at random. Not only is this a great way to become proficient at clearing jams, but by using dummy cartridges, you can also work on getting a surprise break when working on double taps, or when working with the plate rack and multiple target arrays.

Have your buddy place a single dummy round into the magazine without your knowledge. When you drop the hammer on a dummy round without knowing it’s coming, you may either jerk or heel the gun. It will be immediately obvious. This drill reinforces the concept and skill involved in a surprise break — one of the keys to accurate shooting.
The next time you head to the range, take your .22 pistol and work some of these drills into your routine. It’s an inexpensive way to get in a lot of solid practice to increase your skill level quickly. And it’s fun.

For More Info:
Bluegrass Sportsman’s League
www.bgslinc.com

Ruger Firearms
www.ruger.com

C-More Systems
www.cmore.com

Caspian Arms Ltd.
www.caspianarms.com

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