Shooting on the move is one of the most useful skills in practical shooting, but it is also one of the easiest to misuse.
When it works, you can cover distance that already needs to be covered while continuing to score points. When it does not work, you may move too slowly, give up too many points, or make shots unnecessarily difficult.
The principle is simple:
Cover necessary distance while scoring enough points to justify the risk.
The goal is not simply to shoot while your feet are moving. The goal is to use shooting on the move when it improves the stage.
Shooting on the Move Is a Decision
Shooting on the move is both a physical skill and a stage planning decision.
A shooter can become very good at keeping the gun stable while moving and still use the skill at the wrong time. If you move so slowly that you would have been faster shooting from a stable position and then running, the technique did not help.
The same is true if shooting on the move costs enough points to erase whatever time you saved.
A useful question is:
Did shooting on the move improve the stage, or did it simply make the shooting harder?
That question matters more than whether shooting on the move looks advanced.
The Target Determines How Fast You Can Move
Shooting on the move is not one speed.
Large, close, open targets may allow you to move aggressively while still producing good hits. Smaller targets, partial targets, or more distant targets may require you to reduce your movement speed so you can obtain an acceptable sight picture. Some shots may require you to stop completely.
There is nothing wrong with that.
Your movement speed should change with the shooting problem in front of you, just as your shooting speed changes with target difficulty. The same principle from Visual Patience still applies: see enough to make the shot, then act without unnecessary delay.
The difference is that now you are managing your movement at the same time.
Keep the Movement Smooth
Good shooting on the move begins with controlling how much movement reaches the gun.
You generally want the lower body doing most of the work while the upper body remains as organized as possible. A slightly lowered stance can allow your legs to function like shock absorbers and reduce some of the vertical movement transferred into the gun.
When moving forward, many shooters find it useful to roll the feet smoothly from heel to toe. When moving backward, the pattern reverses. The objective is not a particular walking style. The objective is to avoid hard footfalls that create unnecessary movement in the sights or dot.
A simple practice method is to walk while carrying a cup of water. If the water is bouncing or spilling, your body is creating significant vertical movement. Learning to move more smoothly can make the gun easier to manage.
Technique Can Vary
People are built differently, so there is no reason every shooter's movement needs to look exactly the same.
One shooter may use shorter steps. Another may be comfortable taking longer strides while keeping the gun sufficiently stable. Some shooters may lower their stance more than others.
The principle matters more than the appearance:
Move in a way that keeps the gun stable enough to make the required shots while still covering ground efficiently.
Your technique may also evolve as your skill improves. A movement speed that produces unacceptable hits today may become completely usable after more practice.
That is another reason to avoid turning a technique into a rigid rule.
Learn When the Gun Is Most Stable
The gun will usually move more while you are walking than it does from a stationary position. That is expected.
Part of developing the skill is learning the rhythm of that movement and recognizing when the gun is most settled during each step.
Many shooters find that the gun is relatively stable while one foot is in the air and more disturbed when the foot strikes the ground. That does not mean you need to consciously time every shot to a foot being airborne. Instead, practice paying attention to how your movement affects the dot and learn when your own gun is most stable during the movement cycle.
Over time, the timing becomes less deliberate and more natural.
Do Not Use the Entire Distance Just Because You Can
One of the easiest mistakes is starting to shoot on the move too early.
Suppose you have fifteen yards to travel before reaching the next position and several targets become visible during that movement. The fact that you can see them does not automatically mean you should begin shooting immediately.
If you only need three or four steps to engage the targets, it may be much faster to run aggressively for most of the distance and begin shooting only as you approach the next position.
Starting too early creates several problems at once. The targets are farther away, the shots are more difficult, and you may have to move slowly for much more of the distance.
A better sequence may be:
Run hard, get close, then finish the movement while shooting into the position.
You still gain the benefit of shooting on the move without turning fifteen yards of movement into fifteen yards of slow walking.
Shooting Into a Position Can Be Especially Valuable
One of my favorite uses for shooting on the move is during an entry.
If you can begin engaging targets a few steps before reaching the final shooting position, you may eliminate the delay that occurs when you arrive, stop, settle, and then begin shooting.
The important part is choosing the right point to begin. Start too early and the targets may be unnecessarily difficult. Start too late and you may arrive at the position before you have gained much advantage from shooting while moving.
This is exactly the type of problem that belongs in your Shooting Knowledge Base. Practice different starting points and determine where the balance of movement, points, and time works best for you.
Sometimes Running and Stopping Is Faster
Shooting on the move should never become the automatic answer.
There will be stages where the better solution is to shoot from a stable position, run aggressively, and shoot again from another stable position. There will also be times when the better choice is to take a longer shot rather than moving closer at all.
Target difficulty, distance, movement direction, your personal shooting ability, and the next required action all influence the decision.
The only reliable way to develop that judgment is to test the alternatives. Do not assume the more complicated solution is faster. Measure it.
Compare the Options in Practice
A useful practice session is to set up the same shooting problem and solve it several different ways.
For example, place four targets downrange and begin at twenty yards. Shoot them using three different approaches:
- Shoot all four targets from twenty yards.
- Run to ten yards, stop, and shoot all four from a stable position.
- Run toward the ten yard position and begin shooting on the move a few steps before arriving.
Compare the total time, points, and consistency of each approach. You can also repeat the drill from a longer starting distance, where closing some of the distance may become more valuable.
The purpose is not to prove that one technique is universally best. It is to learn when each solution works best for you. Sometimes the answer may be to shoot from where you are. Sometimes it may be to move aggressively and stop. Other times, shooting during part of the movement may produce the best overall result.
Direction Matters
You may also discover that your ability changes depending on the direction of movement.
Forward movement may feel different from backward movement. Moving left to right may feel easier than moving right to left. Lateral movement may be easier when the targets progress in the same direction you are traveling.
When possible, stage plans can take advantage of those preferences. If the targets flow naturally with your direction of movement, the shooting may require less unnecessary body and gun movement.
But do not practice only the comfortable direction. Practice forward, backward, left, right, and diagonal movement. Matches have a way of finding the skill you avoided practicing.
Keep the Gun and Eyes Organized
The visual requirements do not change simply because your feet are moving. Your eyes still need to find the aiming point, and you still need to obtain an acceptable sight picture before firing.
You also need to know what you saw when the shot broke. That is the foundation of Calling Your Shots, while Visual Patience addresses how much visual information a particular shot requires.
Movement simply adds another variable to manage.
That is why shooting on the move practice should not become nothing more than learning to walk smoothly. Smooth movement helps stabilize the gun, but the movement exists to support the shooting.
The points still matter.
Do Not Sacrifice Movement to Prove You Can Shoot
There is another common trap: slowing your feet so much that you can shoot comfortably.
At some point, shooting while moving can become a bad trade. You may be proud that you shot an entire array without stopping, but if your movement became dramatically slower, the stage may have been faster with a short stable shooting position followed by aggressive movement.
This connects directly to Minimize Time You Are Not Shooting.
Shooting on the move is valuable because it can overlap scoring with distance you already need to cover. If performing the skill causes you to cover that distance inefficiently, the benefit begins to disappear.
Do not shoot on the move simply because you can. Shoot on the move because it helps.
Practice the Decision, Not Just the Technique
You need repetitions to become physically competent while moving, but the larger skill is judgment.
Practice different distances, target difficulties, and movement directions. Compare shooting on the move with shooting from a stable position. Change the point where you begin shooting during an entry and record what happens.
Over time, you begin building reference points rather than making guesses during a match. A stage designer may create a problem you have never seen exactly before, but you have enough experience with similar decisions to make an informed plan.
Let Your Options Expand With Your Skill
As your shooting on the move improves, your stage planning options will expand.
Targets that once required a complete stop may become practical while moving. You may be able to begin shooting earlier during an entry or continue shooting later during an exit. You may cover more distance while scoring without giving away unacceptable points.
That does not change the underlying principle. The objective is not to shoot everything on the move. The objective is to know when shooting on the move produces a better stage for your current skill level.
Run when you need to run. Stop when the shot requires it. Shoot on the move when it actually saves useful time.
That is how shooting on the move becomes a performance skill rather than simply a technique.