The question is did the junior shooter Williehitit choose his alias after seeing the movie "Seven Days in Utopia." To understand the question you need to see the movie and/or know the family. Williehitit gave me my first x in the 2019 Texas State Championship and he gave Quick Cal two of his four xs.
The movie is about a young professional golfer's growth as a golfer and a person. The movie will help you become a better gunslinger and maybe a better person.
This week on the mtn a young lady cut 300 milliseconds off her times by going from the extended follow through to shooting from the hip. Three hundred is just the beginning, 400 maybe 500 is possible. The questions is "Will she continue to buy what I am selling?" It is not easy to leave the safety of being an 80% shooter for the glamour of speed but remember for Alleluia shooters "80% is just average."
Also this week a veteran shooter, normally a low five shooter, shot down into the threes. He did this last week also. After the match he asked me "How did I do that?" I responded that he just got out of the way. We are all better shooters than we shoot if only we would get out of the way. Stop worrying about hitting the target. Your shot will go where you are aligned. Stop worrying about your speed. You are faster than have ever shot. Stop worrying about your opponent. It does not matter if the little ball goes in the hole. Bury your worries in Utopia, they are holding you back.
To demonstrate to a brand new shooter, we shot a three shooter match between myself, Shady, and Cort O' Whiskey. It was a classic shoot out. Later, I, Shady and Cort O' Whiskey did a three shooter Shady/Ruah speed run. In such a match because of the speed bias I have no chance, but to set the tone on the first shot I hit a .288. The question is "Was it anticipation or was it potential?" The draw came at least 80 mls after the light. Which was it, that is the question.
When I meet Williehitit again in May what do think my opening comment should be? "80% is just average," or "I ain't as slow as I look." Probably neither will work, he shoots with those Bushwhackers and I think some of them are on to me.
By the way Seven Days in Utopia is on Amazon Prime for free or you can rent it. It is worth the rental.
Thursday, January 23, 2020
Thursday, January 9, 2020
Three Shooter Match
At our mid-week practice we again shot a three shooter match. We had 19 shooters. We used a computer with 19.7 on it and again the CFDA program worked flawlessly. We are following CFDA rules to the letter as I will explain below.
The field: The field was our normal group of tough competitors of various speeds. About 1/3rd of the field were low 4 shooters. There were no shooters that routinely shoot into the threes.
We shot a three winning shots no x contest with a 1x Magnificent 19 shoot-off. Every shooter got a minimum of 6 rounds against 12 opponents selected by computer luck of the draw or by magnificent seeding. Shooting 1x shoot-off meant we were able to shoot more main match rounds. Last week shot 3 main match and a 2x shoot-off, this week we shot 5 main match and a 1x shoot-off. If we do it again we will poll the shooter which they would prefer.
Rule IV6: One shooter did not arrive until her match had been shot in the third round. In earlier rounds she received an x and a 33 with the program handling it correctly. We did not have anyone leave early, but I am sure Rule IV 6 would have handled that correctly.
The Sort: The sort again appeared to be good.
It is practice, man, just practice! Generally formats either have a gunfighter bias or a speed bias. For illustration, the CFDA Bye has a definite gunfighter bias. This three shooter match has a significant speed bias. It is simple math. If you match the best gunfighter against two speed shooters, in individual matches the gunfighter has the advantage. In a combined three shooter match, the simple math is that the two speed shooters will have a combined accuracy greater than 60% so the better gunfighter is probably going to lose.
This speed bias for a practice regiment is probably a good thing. If you look at the fastest time report you will find that four shooters shot into the 3s even though there were no three shooters in the field. Fastest times were a .358, others shot .389, .389 and a .398. (On a personal note, it is hard to take that .398 to .389 defeat at 2 to 2.) I know I shot my fastest competitive time in over a year and my guess is the others did to. Although it was not discussed we all recognized that there was a speed bias and you had to be quick.
Placings: Placings in the shoot-off were determined by following the CFDA practice of placing the quicker timeout higher in the standings. We considered having shoot-off but elected to follow CFDA since there were no "recognized places" involved. (Since this is just a practice, had we decided to shoot shoot-offs of eliminated shooters, every shooter would had gotten a minimum of 7 rounds against 13 opponents. Something to consider.)
Overall Conclusion: The three shooter match is a great solution when you only have enough space for three targets and more shooters than two targets can handle. It works well with the CFDA program and the progressive elimination shoot-off fairly divides range time among all shooters. (Just this week I was told by an old timer how disheartening it was to drive so far to just shoot 4 matches and go home.) But in addition to that there may be additional value for training because of the speed bias. We shall see. Will we be seeing quicker shooters on Shady Mtn?
The field: The field was our normal group of tough competitors of various speeds. About 1/3rd of the field were low 4 shooters. There were no shooters that routinely shoot into the threes.
We shot a three winning shots no x contest with a 1x Magnificent 19 shoot-off. Every shooter got a minimum of 6 rounds against 12 opponents selected by computer luck of the draw or by magnificent seeding. Shooting 1x shoot-off meant we were able to shoot more main match rounds. Last week shot 3 main match and a 2x shoot-off, this week we shot 5 main match and a 1x shoot-off. If we do it again we will poll the shooter which they would prefer.
Rule IV6: One shooter did not arrive until her match had been shot in the third round. In earlier rounds she received an x and a 33 with the program handling it correctly. We did not have anyone leave early, but I am sure Rule IV 6 would have handled that correctly.
The Sort: The sort again appeared to be good.
It is practice, man, just practice! Generally formats either have a gunfighter bias or a speed bias. For illustration, the CFDA Bye has a definite gunfighter bias. This three shooter match has a significant speed bias. It is simple math. If you match the best gunfighter against two speed shooters, in individual matches the gunfighter has the advantage. In a combined three shooter match, the simple math is that the two speed shooters will have a combined accuracy greater than 60% so the better gunfighter is probably going to lose.
This speed bias for a practice regiment is probably a good thing. If you look at the fastest time report you will find that four shooters shot into the 3s even though there were no three shooters in the field. Fastest times were a .358, others shot .389, .389 and a .398. (On a personal note, it is hard to take that .398 to .389 defeat at 2 to 2.) I know I shot my fastest competitive time in over a year and my guess is the others did to. Although it was not discussed we all recognized that there was a speed bias and you had to be quick.
Placings: Placings in the shoot-off were determined by following the CFDA practice of placing the quicker timeout higher in the standings. We considered having shoot-off but elected to follow CFDA since there were no "recognized places" involved. (Since this is just a practice, had we decided to shoot shoot-offs of eliminated shooters, every shooter would had gotten a minimum of 7 rounds against 13 opponents. Something to consider.)
Overall Conclusion: The three shooter match is a great solution when you only have enough space for three targets and more shooters than two targets can handle. It works well with the CFDA program and the progressive elimination shoot-off fairly divides range time among all shooters. (Just this week I was told by an old timer how disheartening it was to drive so far to just shoot 4 matches and go home.) But in addition to that there may be additional value for training because of the speed bias. We shall see. Will we be seeing quicker shooters on Shady Mtn?
Friday, January 3, 2020
Testing the Limits
This week on Shady Mtn we knew that we would have a big turn out because of new shooters and mavericks. 24 shooters signed up for our mid week practice. Since normally we just have two targets we decided to add an additional target and to shoot three shooter matches. We had done this several times this last summer and knew that the CFDA scoring program worked well with it. The matches pitted three shooters against each other shooting three winning shots. Every match results in one win and two losses. All shooters got a minimum of 5 matches shooting against 10 other gunslingers. The CFDA program worked flawlessly.
The Scoresheets: By earlier testing we knew that 12 shooter scoresheets worked best with the printed sheet having the proper 1, 2, 3 lane assignments for the shooters. The only small issue is that the printed lines do not line up with the match, but once the scorekeeper knows that it is not a problem. The CFDA program handled the x count correctly for the entire match even though 1/3rd were wins and 2/3rds were losses.
The Main Match: We shot three rounds for the main match, each shooter facing 6 opposing shooters, except for a absence shooter, see below. It was a no x contest and a match standing report gave us the shoot off seeding based on x count and time out. This is standard here in Arizona for club shoots as will be explained below.
The Shoot-off: As is customary here in Arizona we did a progressive elimination shoot-off. At clubs shoots here we divide the field into three groups then do simultaneous magnificent shoot-offs. This allows all shooters to participate in a magnificent shoot-off and keeps the shooters engaged to the end which is important when you are taking down a range in 115 degree heat.
At Shady Mtn we did this but made it a 2x magnificent shoot-off. A proper name for it is a 2x Magnificent 24 shoot-off. We were able to do the 2x because we continued to use the 3 shooter match which results in 1 win and 2 losses in each match. It took about 1 1/2 hours to shoot this shoot off.
Housekeeping: Arizona announcers and scorekeepers will be familiar with the method of doing the shoot-off. You simply take the standing report and move from the bottom up crossing out the shooter being eliminated and assigning a place to that shooter. No computer is used and only one sheet of paper is used. To do a 2x progressive elimination you do the same thing except you make a second column for the 1x shooters and then progress up that column as well. I will attach a photo of this week's standing report to demonstrate.
For titled matches, 4 lanes are used, but for the Arizona club matches, since the shoot-offs are simultaneous only two lanes are available. If you are doing a 2x on 2 lanes, you simply rotate the winners and losers, or if you prefer the no x and 1 x shooters. Just remember you shoot winners, then losers, then winners, then losers until you get to two shooters. Or if you prefer you shoot the left column on the standing report, then the right column, then the left, then the right. down to two shooters. (Being an old youth sports coach, I am used to losers brackets and it does not offend me. I give more credit to champions that come from the loser bracket.)
The Sort: The sort visually appears to be good. Hi Strung defeated Shady Mike in two consecutive matches coming from the loser bracket. (Hi Strung is practicing hard for that FGA rematch and these come from behind wins may help him.)
The Absence Shooter: One of the 24 shooters failed to appear and rather than take him out and risk scoring program glitches we simply followed CFDA Rule IV.6. This worked well with the program moving him down in the standings as he accumulated xs and 33s. Since we were shooting three shooter matches where ever he was drawn just became a two shooter match. At titled matches, CFDA has tried to formulate SOP s that do not follow Rule IV.6 and it has never worked well. Rule IV.6 works so well and it is so easy to use, if only shooters would accept that a forfeited match is just luck of the draw. No different than drawing a shooter that misses all of their shots.
For Arizona Clubs: At all of our club events the data people make a big deal out of asking those leaving after the main match to come and tell them so they can be taken out of the match. This is just wasted effort and actually causes the scoring program to place them at the bottom of the standings. If you are shooting simultaneous magnificent shoot-offs it does not matter whether they are taken out or not. If they are not taken out, the announcer should just apply Rule IV.6 to give the absence shooter a forfeiture and move onto the next shooter. For The Association of Arizona Gunslingers, club rules require this procedure because of club points. Following Rule IV.6 is following CFDA rules.
Shady Mtn: I don't know if we will continue to use the 3 shooter range for our mid week practices. We generally get more than 18 shooters so it makes sense from the range time aspect but it takes some extra work on the hosts. This week we used my computer which has only 19.5 on it. If we do it next week we will use Shady's computer which has 19.7 on it.
Either way, if you come to Shady Mtn not only will you learn how to win, you will learn to score keep and run the computer with the CFDA scoring program.
The Scoresheets: By earlier testing we knew that 12 shooter scoresheets worked best with the printed sheet having the proper 1, 2, 3 lane assignments for the shooters. The only small issue is that the printed lines do not line up with the match, but once the scorekeeper knows that it is not a problem. The CFDA program handled the x count correctly for the entire match even though 1/3rd were wins and 2/3rds were losses.
The Main Match: We shot three rounds for the main match, each shooter facing 6 opposing shooters, except for a absence shooter, see below. It was a no x contest and a match standing report gave us the shoot off seeding based on x count and time out. This is standard here in Arizona for club shoots as will be explained below.
The Shoot-off: As is customary here in Arizona we did a progressive elimination shoot-off. At clubs shoots here we divide the field into three groups then do simultaneous magnificent shoot-offs. This allows all shooters to participate in a magnificent shoot-off and keeps the shooters engaged to the end which is important when you are taking down a range in 115 degree heat.
At Shady Mtn we did this but made it a 2x magnificent shoot-off. A proper name for it is a 2x Magnificent 24 shoot-off. We were able to do the 2x because we continued to use the 3 shooter match which results in 1 win and 2 losses in each match. It took about 1 1/2 hours to shoot this shoot off.
Housekeeping: Arizona announcers and scorekeepers will be familiar with the method of doing the shoot-off. You simply take the standing report and move from the bottom up crossing out the shooter being eliminated and assigning a place to that shooter. No computer is used and only one sheet of paper is used. To do a 2x progressive elimination you do the same thing except you make a second column for the 1x shooters and then progress up that column as well. I will attach a photo of this week's standing report to demonstrate.
For titled matches, 4 lanes are used, but for the Arizona club matches, since the shoot-offs are simultaneous only two lanes are available. If you are doing a 2x on 2 lanes, you simply rotate the winners and losers, or if you prefer the no x and 1 x shooters. Just remember you shoot winners, then losers, then winners, then losers until you get to two shooters. Or if you prefer you shoot the left column on the standing report, then the right column, then the left, then the right. down to two shooters. (Being an old youth sports coach, I am used to losers brackets and it does not offend me. I give more credit to champions that come from the loser bracket.)
The Sort: The sort visually appears to be good. Hi Strung defeated Shady Mike in two consecutive matches coming from the loser bracket. (Hi Strung is practicing hard for that FGA rematch and these come from behind wins may help him.)
The Absence Shooter: One of the 24 shooters failed to appear and rather than take him out and risk scoring program glitches we simply followed CFDA Rule IV.6. This worked well with the program moving him down in the standings as he accumulated xs and 33s. Since we were shooting three shooter matches where ever he was drawn just became a two shooter match. At titled matches, CFDA has tried to formulate SOP s that do not follow Rule IV.6 and it has never worked well. Rule IV.6 works so well and it is so easy to use, if only shooters would accept that a forfeited match is just luck of the draw. No different than drawing a shooter that misses all of their shots.
For Arizona Clubs: At all of our club events the data people make a big deal out of asking those leaving after the main match to come and tell them so they can be taken out of the match. This is just wasted effort and actually causes the scoring program to place them at the bottom of the standings. If you are shooting simultaneous magnificent shoot-offs it does not matter whether they are taken out or not. If they are not taken out, the announcer should just apply Rule IV.6 to give the absence shooter a forfeiture and move onto the next shooter. For The Association of Arizona Gunslingers, club rules require this procedure because of club points. Following Rule IV.6 is following CFDA rules.
Shady Mtn: I don't know if we will continue to use the 3 shooter range for our mid week practices. We generally get more than 18 shooters so it makes sense from the range time aspect but it takes some extra work on the hosts. This week we used my computer which has only 19.5 on it. If we do it next week we will use Shady's computer which has 19.7 on it.
Either way, if you come to Shady Mtn not only will you learn how to win, you will learn to score keep and run the computer with the CFDA scoring program.
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