Worlds Collide: What Does a Test Prove?

So one of the things I love to do, being a competition shooter of course, is I love to test. Sure. So that's basically skill tested by accuracy versus time. Okay. So we've gotta have a timer to do that.

I know. All right, all right. You gotta have a timer. All right. All right.

And here's the validity for it. I need to know if I'm improving, whether what I'm doing, is it gonna give me the best possible score? And the only way I can do that is to know the time. Okay, you know the time, but what does that test prove? So even, even in competition, right?

I'll give you, let's just stay in competition land. If you're doing this repetition, repetition, repetition on on the clock, does that prove you're going to be able to do it in the game? Well, technically, without the testing process, I have no idea. So there's the value. If I'm going to do it over and over and over practicing, at some point I have to take responsibility, for the performance.

Sure. So that's what I need a match for. I need a match to tell me like, okay, well he can do this in practice, but he can't do it in match. Okay. What's made me competitive over the years, or excel, is my ability to do it in match.

It's part of that, wait a minute. It's part of that you know what you're capable of... Yes. ... in the drill.

Absolutely. So now you want to be able to emulate that, Exactly. in the match. Exactly. How much comes from being able to control the match, because you're a strategy guy.

You look at that thing and you figure out exactly where your foot needs to go and all that. Right. How much of that comes from really trying to control the match, versus your personal skill application? Well, I have to build a skill level to the point where I never think about it. All right.

Let's talk about, how do we do that? Right. How does that help us do that? This will, I'll show you. I've got to touch it?

Yeah. You have to hold it. You're going to run me. It's on instant. I'm just going to draw and shoot one shot.

Time me. Okay, so what's that time? Well it's the time it took you to shoot after the beep. What's the, I know how it works. What's the number?

It'll read out, it reads out digitally. Oh. Oh, 1.32. 1.32. So 1.32 , I drew and shot an A.

Do I need to be faster than that? Absolutely. I always, I don't know. The answer is always. I always need to be faster.

Okay. So let me do one more. All right, here we go. What's that one? I think you lied to me, first of all, about it being on instant, but that's okay, that's okay.

Is it not on instant? I probably did lie to you. 1.03. Okay. So I still got the same value over here.

Right. It was actually a better shot, Okay. in 1.03 seconds. So at this point, how much faster do you think I can get? If you watch the movement and everything?

Point eight. Probably small amount. Yeah, you can get me, I can give you a point eight. Fractions. Yeah.

So how much is that worth at this point? Not very much. How much time are you going to invest in chasing the time? In chasing the time. Probably no more for that thing.

Right. Now, one of my problems, and probably you see the same thing, is the guy that goes and shoots a match and he's an excellent shooter. For instance, I would never say I'm a great gunfighter. Well, I think being a great gunfighter, is an awkward phrase to use. I know, I like to use it, Are you?

because that comes from the competition side. We always call you self-defenders "gunfighters." Well, thank you. I appreciate it. You call us, you call us gamers. We call you gunfighters.

Okay, fair enough. I think that the trick is, what are you great at? Well, you're great at the technical performance. Right. And you also happen to be great at the strategy of figuring how to apply your potential.

Exactly. So the timer helps you understand your potential. Right. What I'm concerned about, is it builds false confidence on the defensive side. I agree.

'Cause you go to that match, and you get to really see, right? How close are you to your potential? What happens? I don't go out and get into a gunfight just 'cause I'm a gunfighter over here, Right. Right?

So I'm looking at this timer and I'm thinking, oh, well there are people that would see that and say, wow Rob Latham could drop the bad guy in 1.03 seconds, Right. from standing there looking inside Skittles, or "Three Musketeers". Right? And I know that's hard. It's both, it's both You, you don't choose you get them both.

Just get them both, and you've got to drop it. But that's not what that means. That's exactly correct. See, and I have a problem with that too. The timer is a way, let's say I was, I have a student, he's doing that in three or four seconds.

I've got a fundamental skill problem there Sure. where the guy can't operate quickly enough to be pertinent. Right. Cause at three or four seconds, even I'm going to get you. Oh yeah.

For sure. Even moving, No. With "The three Musketeers", with the three Musketeers, I'm going to beat you to other three Musketeers. So the point is it's valid for testing skill but what skill is it testing? Performance and isolation.

Correct. So my problem is not that there's, I don't have a problem with the timer. I need the timer to be able to grade. Right. But in no way, do I think that that will tell you what the outcome of a fight would be?

That's probably important.