We recently published Guns for Beginners: Practice Shooting One-Handed. A Lot. TTAG reader JN tells us that not doing so can leave one in a bit of a pickle.
I’ve had a concealed carry permit for a while. I’m pretty scrupulous about routine practice and training within the limits of what is available to me in my area of upstate New York. I liked to think that I was reasonably well prepared and competent with my handguns. But there was one kind of practice I neglected. That was weak hand shooting and gun manipulation. In my case . . .
this was a particularly peculiar omission, since I’m not strongly handed. I’m not truly ambidextrous, but I have a relatively high amount of dexterity and coordination with my weak hand. The few times I tried weak hand shooting, I did well enough that I should have been encouraged to continue, but I didn’t. I was bothered a little, somewhere in the back of my mind, I knew I should have been doing that.
I justified the omission to myself in all kinds of ways. I am a middle aged fat white guy, if I got hurt in a fight on my strong side, I was probably toast anyway. What was the chance I’d be in a fight anyway? But the truth was, weak hand practice wasn’t fun, it was work. I could do so many other things with my limited range time that were much more fun. So I never practiced weak hand.
And I never, ever expected what actually happened. I broke my shooting arm in a freak accident. I thumped the roof of my car and broke the ulna, clean through. And now, I’m in a cast for eight weeks, facing reconstructive surgery, and endless physical therapy down the road. And I’m totally defenseless because I was too lazy to spend an hour here and there practicing.
Trust me, the last thing on my mind now is learning one-handed weak hand shooting. My medical expenses will consume my shooting budget for the next 3-4 months, minimum. And having appliances on my strong hand, and the pain, and the discomfort, all these things really kill my motivation, and my treatments will consume my time. Now, I can’t pursue one of my favorite hobbies, I can’t defend myself, all because I was lazy.
That, my friends, is the real message here. Don’t be lazy, because you really never know what tomorrow will bring.
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