Coaches Take Your Time

Posted On: 05-05-2020

Coaches I know you all want to get back to the line and help youth shooters.  With recent restrictions on staying at home being revised, we can only hope soon even fewer restrictions will be in place.  Businesses will begin to open and with that ranges will once again become active with social distancing continuing. 

Now is the time to start to think about those first days back with your squad.  After a long lay off where do you start?   It will be enticing to return to the line and shoot 25 rounds, but perhaps a different approach might be worth exploring. 

First take the time to reintroduce everyone.  Ask what shooters have been doing and if they have been thinking and preparing to shoot.  Ask them to get their guns out and take some time with gun mounts.  Set a time limit, but have them mount their guns repetitively as you watch.  Make adjustments and don’t forget to have others critique and provide thoughts on each other’s gun mounts. 

Take a little time to talk about loads.  Help them understand the difference between shot sizes and power charges.  Recognize who can shoot heavy loads and who should shoot light loads.  What a great time to head to the pattern board. 

When it is time to shoot, discuss the sequence of events that will occur between arriving at the range and pulling the trigger.  Identify with your youth shooters where is all starts and finishes.  Share your understanding of knowing the range, weather, backgrounds, footwork, pre-shot routines and target acquisition.  In other words, it is very possible the first time with your squad includes very little shooting. 

Be gradual in shooting rounds.  Take the time to discuss each station, each angle and each shot.  Try shooting the entire squad on each station and work across the field.  Be supportive of the time it will take to get back to being consistent with hitting targets and help your shooters understand why they are missing targets. Be deliberate in growing to 100 rounds and make sure they are physically and mentally ready to be at 100 rounds.  Remember squads seldom are homogeneous shooters with the same skills and talent. 

Bottom line is, take your time.   Have a plan in place for each practice and set goals for each practice.  Break down each time you have with the kids into useable, coachable and object lessons they understand.  There is so much more to shooting than 25/25 rounds.  Good luck.

David R. Vaught

MYSSA Executive Director