Steps

I'm really pleased about the improvements I've noticed in my strength, balance, and movements over the last couple of weeks in class. In addition to my regular Tai Chi practice, I've been going to a lot of the Choy Li Fut basic classes for exercise and conditioning, and we're currently learning a form in our Qi Gong class which involves a lot of (slow motion) pivots and kicks. We've really been drilling on this a lot over the last few weeks, so I've had a lot of practice. I  notice that my balance is better, and I am able to extend and hold the kick without as much trouble as I had before.

I still have a lot to learn and work on, but, I'm pleased and excited to actually see some results. Sometimes it can be very frustrating and you feel like you aren't progressing or learning anything, but if you really pay attention to the little things, you'll see that you've actually come a long way-the progress is just in very small increments sometimes.

Several years ago, I met and chatted with a master gunsmith from Texas named Alex Hamilton. Mr. Hamilton was talking about the nature of his work in general, and mentioned an assignment he'd had in gunsmithing school. The story seems an appropriate analogy for my recent progress:

As an exercise and practice in cutting and shaping metal through using various types of files, each student was given a two-inch square block of solid steel. The assignment was to reshape this cube into a perfect smooth sphere by removing metal with an assortment of coarse and fine metal files-all hand work, no machining.

When I look at myself and perform my forms and exercises now, I can see the cumulative results of a lot of small changes. The sharp corners have been knocked off, and something (and someone) different is beginning to take shape.

Is "Practical Pistol" Shooting A Martial Art?

I’ve been studying martial arts (Tai Chi) since last June, and one thing I’ve noticed is there are a lot of similarities between traditional martial arts practice and my 25 or so years’ experience in the practical shooting sports. The Tai Chi forms are a world unto themselves, but conceptually I noticed similarities between what I’ve done on the range over the years, and what I’m now doing at the martial arts school-focus, concentration and awareness, balance, weight transfer, and so on. Sometimes when I was struggling to “get” something, I’d relate it to a skill I used in shooting (“this stance is like what I do when I’m shooting around a barricade”), and that would help cement the idea in my mind. It seemed natural to relate this to what I was learning in my classes.

As time went on, I began to wonder if in some way, I’d really been a martial arts practitioner and student for a long time, just in a different way. I began to wonder-is practical shooting (defined as competitions sanctioned by the United States Practical Shooting Association (USPSA) and International Defensive Pistol Association (IDPA) ) evolving into a martial art in its own right?

The more I considered it, I noticed a number of key areas common to both practical shooting and traditional martial arts, and specific similarities and differences. The main things that come to mind are lineage/ past masters, formalized competition and ranking vs. applications, conditioning, and traditions and etiquette.

Lineage and Past Masters: Traditional martial arts knowledge was typically passed directly from master to student through face to face teaching-in some cases, the student would actually live with the teacher during their studies. As interest in martial arts grew outside of Asia, larger and more formal schools were formed, which still trace their lineage back through a line of past masters. In a similar fashion, practical shooting has a lineage of past masters-Ed McGivern, Rex Applegate, Jeff Cooper, Ray Chapman, John Farnham, Chuck Taylor, Massad Ayoob, and Clint Smith are some who come to mind. Cooper has probably had the greatest influence, due to his scholarly approach, his establishment of practical competitions, and through his school at Gunsite. Most of the people I’ve listed were influenced one way or another by Jeff Cooper and the “Modern Technique”, as he called it.

Since practical shooting as we know it developed during the 20th century, the one on one student-master relationship wasn’t necessary to the knowledge transfer(although it is still the best). Many of the pioneers of practical shooting wrote books and articles in firearms magazines, describing their methods, techniques, and equipment. Some opened shooting schools to share their methods and knowledge with students. As video and online technology developed, these media opened other paths for the practical shooting masters to disseminate their knowledge and share their experiences.

Competition/Ranking vs. Applications: Practical shooting competition was developed as a testing ground for shooting techniques and equipment. Jeff Cooper felt that a competitive atmosphere was the best environment for discovering what worked and what didn’t, for shooters and equipment both. Is point shooting faster than aimed fire? What type of holster is truly practical for both all-day wear and speedy presentation?

In the early years, the focus was entirely on what was “practical” – what would work best in a gunfight, giving you the best odds of survival? A lot of thought, analysis, and experimentation went into all the aspects of the game, from guns, ammo, holsters, shooting techniques, to specific modifications to the pistol itself.

Human nature being what it is, the shooters who thrived most on the pure competitive aspect of practical shooting soon began developing gun modifications like compensators, weighted grips, and other changes to the handgun to control recoil and allow faster “splits”, or time intervals between shots. In a sport where accuracy, speed, and power are equally weighted, these modifications offered an advantage and soon became common, leading to the “race guns” seen in the hands of elite shooters today.

As competition and participation increased, it became necessary to develop a classification system, ranking shooters by ability, as determined by their scores on standardized “classifier” events. Just as one would test for a black belt in karate, or the next sash level in the Chinese martial arts, shooters fired a required number of classifiers for the record, and then were ranked by ability, from D class to Grand Master (IDPA uses the traditional military style designations of Marksman, Sharpshooter, Expert, etc.).

As competition intensified and the sport grew, more debate occurred over whether the sport was still “practical”, and true to its real world roots. It became commonplace to hear conversations along the lines of, “you’d never leave cover without reloading in a real gunfight, etc.” This debate still goes on, but much less intensely. IDPA caters to the more “practical” contingent (who at one time were referred to as “Martial Artists” in a less than respectful tone). USPSA has diversified by creating divisions (Limited, Single Stack, Production), which required use of more basic, less heavily modified handguns.

The line between competition and applications is much less clear in practical shooting than in traditional martial arts. If you study a martial art like Choy Li Fut, it’s apparent from the beginning that you are learning/practicing blocking, punching and kicking for the purpose of striking someone (or avoiding being punched or kicked). You can spar with a live opponent. Obviously, this is impossible in practical shooting, but there are applications which transfer directly from the monthly club match to the street or your home:

• Foremost is handling your firearm under stress. Everything is on the clock in practical shooting, and it’s important to your score to shoot an event in the least time possible. This imposes a stress on the shooter that you wouldn’t get in casual target practice, or the traditional military style “bullseye” shooting game. Also, some courses of fire include moving targets, which increase the stress and challenge.
• Shooting multiple targets, and firing from unusual positions also test the shooter’s skill and ability to adapt and still make an accurate shot. These skills could transfer directly to a tactical situation. In my practical shooting career, I have shot events in a blacked out room with a hand held flashlight for illumination, fired through windows, doorways, and tunnels, and from behind walls. I’ve also fired guns from in and around cars and trucks, from a boat suspended on springs to simulate floating, and from a parachute harness suspended 8 feet above the ground. (OK, that part is not too practical, but it was fun)

So, while practical shooting competition is not tactical training (there are legal and political reasons you wouldn’t want it to be), there are skills learned and developed in its practice which would help you in a real-life self defense scenario. The late Jim Cirillo, who spent much of his police career on the NYPD involved in high-risk operations with the department’s Stakeout Squad credited his competition experience with helping him to survive numerous gunfights.

It’s also worth noting that a number of shooting techniques and equipment developed in practical shooting competition are now taught to and utilized by the military and law enforcement. .The Aimpoint optical sight you see on a soldier or Marine’s rifle today was the “next big thing” on the competition circuit about 1990.

Conditioning: Practical shooting does not require a lot of physical strength or ability, although it does help. Many of the top competitors are devotees of CrossFit, weight training, and running, as well as traditional martial arts. In contrast, the traditional martial arts student develops strength as part of their lessons and practice. The conditioning is integral to the study and practice-Tai Chi stance training, punching a bag, and slow motion snap kicks all serve to develop the martial artist’s fighting skill as well as condition their body.

Traditions and Etiquette: Traditional martial arts have a long tradition, and much more specific etiquette than practical shooting. There is an etiquette to conducting oneself on a shooting range, but it is largely devoted to safety, which of course is paramount. The Kung Fu studio or the dojo have specific rules and etiquette that students, instructors, and sometimes even visitors are expected to follow. One big difference between shooting and traditional martial arts relates to the martial arts tradition of showing respect to practitioners of different styles. Practical shooting, and the shooting sports in general, fall far short in this regard. Devotees of a certain grip, stance, or other technique will “preach” passionately about their shooting “doctrines”, ignoring the fact that their method may not be suitable for everyone, or that the shooter they are lecturing may be much more skilled and accomplished, despite using technique they consider outmoded or not sufficiently “tactical”.

So, the question remains-are these shooting games legitimate martial arts? I can only offer my opinion, and that is, in their own way, they are. As police officer, firearms instructor and author Massad Ayoob puts it, “We all agree that a shooting match is not a gunfight – but we all have to remember that a gunfight is a shooting match.”. Regular practice of these sports is a valid way of developing and maintaining some of the skill needed for this most serious of endeavors.

A big "Thank You" to my shooting buddy Esther Tsai for reviewing this piece and providing editing comments.