Coach Pat

Email posted to Bullseye-L

I look forward to a 2700 like Kevin just reported. My own first experience (last night) was on a smaller scale, but very enjoyable, and VERY educational. (I just stuck a note in my pocket that says “5-7 clipboard and calculator”. Thanks, Kevin.)

On the Monday after Christmas, I called Coach Pat [Dolan] at the phone number he’d given me during the Bullseye competition two months previously. I introduced myself, said I was very interested in taking him up on his offer of coaching, and asked when he might be available and what range was convenient for him. In thirty seconds we found that 1:00PM that same day was good for both of us, and that he preferred the facilities at the Phoenix Rod and Gun Club where the Bullseye Competition had taken place.

Background

After going pistol shooting with some co-workers, I became interested in target shooting. My first pistol was a Ruger New Model Blackhawk in .357 calibre with the stainless steel finish. I immediately liked the really big noise that it made and ran through a couple of boxes of ammunition before deciding that 1) this could get expensive at approximately $0.25 per “bang”, and 2) I wasn’t hitting where I was aiming except on rare occasions, and didn’t know why. Talking with my friends and the other shooters, I discovered what “flinch” meant, and I had it big time. I learned that as I pulled the trigger, I knew when the gun was going to go off and my body was reacting in anticipation, and in a protect-myself manner, just before the hammer actually fell. That reaction was pulling the gun away from the middle of the target and I was never going to hit what I thought I was aiming at with any semblance of regularity.