Well, since Gmoats got started I'll chime in too.
I really believe that the reason "gamers" get such a bad rep is that nobody understands what they're doing....They just think "I can't hit a target that fast, so nobody else can either".
Sure, some folks spray-n-pray, but not the winners. In Production Division of USPSA the winners are hitting a 6"x11" target with 90% of their shots, regardless of the distance.
And they're doing it with guns that are nearly identical to carry guns, with the exception of barrel length. A lot of the carry guns posted here wouldn't be legal. So don't blather on about "race-guns".
And yes, they are reliable. As least the winners' guns are reliable. I beat someone at a match last year by 0.03 seconds, over six stages. A few months later I was beat by 1.5 seconds over six stages. ONE malfunction in a match is enough to ruin you. Sure, the losers are fighting their guns. But that's because they're losers. People who take the sport seriously don't have malfunctions. And when they do, they lose.
And yes, the stress is simulated. But until people are shooting at you in anger, the stress will be simulated. Even in the holy-grail of simunitions training, the stress is simulated. I do a lot of simunitions training and I've never, ever felt as stressed about it as I do in a competition.
For the weekend warriors, and there's nothing wrong with that, who shoot a local match with their friends a few times a year--I'm sure the stress can be somewhat ignored. But I've even seen those people, people with tactical training and jobs that require them to deal with stress on a daily basis, with hands that couldn't stop shaking just before a stage starts because the thought of having to shoot in front of everyone, and have everyone know exactly how well or how poorly they can shoot, absolutely terrified them.
I don't mind shooting in front of people anymore. I shoot in front of strangers on a nearly daily basis. But when you've invested $400 into a match, taken time off work, spent two days away from your family and have people who've invested money into your shooting expecting you to do well, there's a whole different kind of stress that comes up. There is no practice, there are no do-overs. You step up to the box and you can either perform on demand or not.
And the value of that stress, being required to perform cold and on demand with the whole world knowing if you sucked or not, cannot be over-emphasized.
In my opinion, the people who compete with the attitude that "it's just training" and DON'T try to win are doing themselves a tremendous disservice. I can "train" all by myself and work on specific weaknesses. DEALING WITH STRESS is the most beneficial part of competing. And when you deny yourself that stress in the name of "training", what you've done is denied yourself the most useful training you could get out of the entire day.
Double yes.
Clark
