Multiple Targets

Today’s Pro Tip is on Multiple Target Engagements with a Rifle. And we’re starting with the basics here, on how to hold a rifle. What I’m doing with my left hand is very important, so I’d like to give you a demonstration of that. One thing that is very important is to get the left hand forward, like this. The reason for that is when you swing into targets really hard, the further your hands are apart, the quicker you can stop the rifle, and the faster you can make the shot. So, its very important to get your arm extended.    You’ll notice that my left arm is pretty much parallel to the ground. That’s to try to avoid working under the rifle. There again, if you’re sliding into a target really fast, and you go to stop, and both hands are under the rifle, you have the tendency to teeter totter. And that’s not a good performance. So, we want to work with the hands, as much as we can, parallel to the ground, so when you’re coming in fast for a shot, it’s easier to stop. You can break the shot and have a good hit.    Now, that we got the proper hold on a rifle, the next technique that you want to be aware of is how to use your knees correctly. What you’re looking for here is to actually, act as a gun turret. You want to lock the rifle in, and you want to bend your knees. The reason for this, it keeps the same relationship of your dominate eye to the sight through the target engagement. It makes it a lot quicker, you don’t have to hunt for the sight, it’s right under your eye all the time.   Click photo above for enlargement. What I would like to cover with you next is good vision techniques. It’s probably the hardest to learn, but it’s the most benefit to the shooter. And what I mean by good vision technique is what exactly are you seeing in between targets? What you want to be aware of when you engage in multiple targets, is try to avoid target fixation. What that means is I’m just going to stay on that target long enough to get the point value that I want, and I’m going to get out of there. So, as I engage one target, I always want to be aware of where my next target is going to be, so I don’t have any hesitation getting there.  I have my rifle set up to benefit me the best I can. I have a red dot on it, so if I’m shooting multiple targets close up to about 50 yards, I’ll use the red dot. If the target is anywhere further than that, up to 400 yards, I’ll use the telescopic sight. So, with that in mind, this demonstrates the visual technique that you need with multiple targets.  One of the keys to multiple target engagement is, as you’re firing your second shot, you should be aware of where your second target is. So you can slam right into that second target and make your shot without any hesitation.   What I have here is a little practice drill that I do to sharpen up my rifle skills. I’m making this one target into two targets. So what I want to do is come up, and fire two in the A box, and then two in the head box. The critical thing here is the shot split times are all the same. So when the shot split is the same, that’s telling me my vision technique is ahead of the rifle, and it allows me to go from shot number two to number three with the same shot split.  To keep your shot splits the same, you really have to hustle, and find that head. It makes you acquire the next target before you fire that second shot. This drill will keep you honest, and its just on this one target, easy to set up. That last run was one point two seconds, so I’ve got some more practice to do. See you on the range.  CLICK HERE FOR PRINTER-FRIENDLY VERSION