Squad Rhythm

Posted On: 07-23-2024

I love watching teams shoot in rhythm.  Each shooter gets dialed in and across the five-member team something really cool starts to happen.  Each shooter is feeding off the shooter to their right and left.  Just like any sport teamwork will assist in higher scores, more consistent shooting and a result representative of a team effort. 

To gain rhythm a few things must happen, and they begin at practice.  Often, we think of rhythm as only the time between each shot, but there is more to it than just a singular timing.  It can be referred to as pace, but to get there all five members of the squad must be prepared. 

Let’s begin by realizing each shooter has a routine they do before each shot.  I have seen these sometimes like the person that stands forever over a golf shot before finally making a move on the ball.  I believe it was Rodney Dangerfield in Caddyshack who says to Judge Smails, “Let’s go while we are still young!”  I mean the pace of the team can be adjusted, programmed or timed with some coaching.  Everyone must recognize how much time they have to make a shot so as not to be disruptive. 

To get this pace, the pre-shot routines need to be tight, consistent, short and to the point.  Next everyone has shells at the ready and can load a gun over and over without any interruption of the process.  No dropped shells, no fumbling, no awkward movements to disrupt. 

It takes about 15 minutes to shoot a round of trap.  Consider that 15 minutes divided by five shooters, and you have about three minutes each to shoot 25 shots.  Take 90 seconds and divide that by 25 and each shot takers about 3.6 seconds.  I agree with the math because I know in using a Garmin Zero S1 that shooters have about 0.7 seconds to make decision to pull the trigger.  The extra 3 seconds or less is their contribution to the pace of the team.  I do understand some time is used in changing stations, but overall, the round is still about 15 minutes. 

I can assure you taking some time to establish a rhythm as a team can pay dividends.  Often though teams change from week to week.  The “A” squad might have a new member, of the other squads may gain a new shooter.  That is even more reason to take the time to work with a squad before events on rhythm.  They build a cohesive bond in knowing each other’s timing and how that contributes to the team’s overall score.  It also goes a long way to establishing a team as a group of individuals not just individuals. 

Give it a try at the next practice.  Have your squads shoot a few rounds and use a timer or stopwatch to monitor the pace.  See if the squad can duplicate the pace and watch what happens to scores when you introduce a disruptive shooter.  Find a team member and ask them to be that disruptive shooter.  Have them drop shells, struggle with loading and see just how easily that gets the focus of shooting away from the targets and on each other.  Not the best way to win.