[Technique] Shot Calling - What it is and why it’s important

I wanted to touch on a training topic that isn’t that often covered or talked about as much, and that is Shot Calling. Just as an aside, this is more of an intermediate to advanced level skill, so for newer shooters there are probably other things you can work on that will pay more dividends in your overall abilities like developing a good grip. That said, it is nice because you can develop Shot Calling even at relatively restrictive range setupsIn the context of handguns, Shot Calling is essentially the ability to know to a reasonably close margin where your shots are going on the target, solely by watching your sights, and without having to actually look at the holes in the target. At practical handgun distances (25 yards and in), bullets essentially travel in a straight line from the barrel. Wherever your sights are at the exact moment the gun fires, right before the gun recoils and your sights begin to lift, that’s where the shot is going to end up. If you thought the sights were initially aligned when first aimed at the target, but the shot ends up off, it’s because you’ve moved the gun off the initial aiming point at the last moment. With enough practice you should be able to see this movement, and “Call” your shots just by your vision aloneI want to link this older video that includes footage of both the sight picture and the target to show what I mean.https://youtu.be/krRAOgD2DZA?t=77It can be pretty subtle, especially with iron sights, but compare the first vs. second and third shots he makes using irons. Did you notice how the front sight seemed to jump up a split second before the gun fired for the second and third shots? The video doesn’t have any shots that went very low, but it is typically more noticeable for shots pulled low (as is often more common), as the sights briefly move in the opposite direction right before lifting in recoilThe skill is easier to develop with a red dot as it’s easier to track and more noticeable. In the later footage with the red dot and target, the shots are better, but it’s easier to notice the red dot move slightly before firing as well. Take the first two shots (footage starting at 1:55) - can you see the red dot blur slightly to the right for the first shot, and then slightly low left for the second shot?So why is Shot Calling important? Admittedly this is often most relevant in practical shooting like USPSA, where this allows you to make up bad shots (misses, or Ds) almost instantly instead of having to look for holes in the target, which may not be feasible and is generally a bad habit anyways. But outside of competition, knowing why your shots may be off helps build confidence in your abilities. If you saw that your sights dipped low left and ended up with a shot that went low left, you can instantly know that you likely jerked the trigger on that specific shot. Being able to connect what you see, what you’re doing, and the result together is extremely helpfulNow, I will note that this can be a difficult skill to develop. For context, I’m an upper A class USPSA shooter in both irons and red dot divisions (SS, CO) and for me, shooting at speed, the fidelity of my shot calling still isn’t that high. Often times during an actual stage, I’ll mostly only notice if shots are significantly off (say a D or outside C at 15 yards). But shooting an 8” plate rack while static at 10 yards, I can almost always tell if it’s going to be a hit or miss based on shot callingAs far as developing this skill, the main thing is to really start paying attention on the sights (but not necessarily eyesight focus) through the entire firing sequence. I’m linking a video below from one of my favorite instructors, Tim Herron, who has done a deep dive into it, as well as exercises to develop the skillhttps://youtu.be/av1UjwZ1NXE via /r/CCW https://ift.tt/0UnPKjw