The reality behind "Slow is smooth and smooth is fast."

[ford.304]

It makes more sense to me in performance driving. You can only go around a curve so fast. What matters for your overall time is coming *out* of that curve under control, so you can hit the gas hard and go fast again. The rule of driving is to go just slowly enough on the slow parts to go faster on the fast parts. In that case, it is a hard and fast rule - if you hit the corner too fast, you *will* be slower overall. The mindset is that you can never gain time - you can only lose it.

I think that's what it's really trying to say with regard to shooting... but there aren't as clearly defined "fast" and "slow" parts. To me it means a "slow part" would be "make sure you have a good grip" or "make sure your gun doesn't have to go above the target and come back down on your draw," or "see your target and your sights." All of these things require you to slow down from the fastest you could be doing the actions in order to reduce your extra movement and be in a good position to hammer on the fast parts.

If you hit the corner too fast, everything else will be slow. If you draw the gun faster than you can actually acquire a proper grip and see your sights, everything else will be slow.

It was never supposed to have meant "go slowly all the time."

[Shawn Dodson]

I believe the correct phrase is, "Fast is slow, slow is smooth, smooth is quick."

I recall reading an article years ago regarding Boyd's OODA Loop that explained the difference between "being fast" as opposed to "being quick". Unfortunately I can't recall what the difference is.

[Failure2Stop]

I don't think that anyone is arguing against the advice to build speed by first learning efficient action and then accelerating that efficient action, or that an efficiently executed action is faster, relatively, than a jerky, fouled action.
It doesn't matter if you are discussing performance driving, enclosure clearing, drawing a pistol, or washing dishes.

My problem is with the phrase itself with regard to being "fast" in a competitive field.

Bring back the performance driving; if a turn and the course after a turn can support taking the turn at 60 MPH, continually "smoothly" taking the turn at 35 MPH is not going to put you in first place unless everyone else in the field either went too fast and wound up in the wall, or are going slower than you. The goal, in my mind, is to learn how fast you can go and ensure success. You don't get there without learning where the wheels come off. To go fast with success, you need to go faster.

One can merrily execute an inefficient motion slowly, never knowing that the action is inefficient. "Smoothness" is more related to comfortable habit than actual physical efficiency. People tend to do under stress exactly what they habitually do, and deviating from the comfort zone tend to lead to inefficient, jerky, and sub-optimal actions.
This is not news.

I do want to point out that interpersonal conflict with kinetic weapons is a competitive event (before anyone gets fixated on that), in which there is generally not a second place award.

[Failure2Stop]

It makes more sense to me in performance driving. You can only go around a curve so fast. What matters for your overall time is coming *out* of that curve under control, so you can hit the gas hard and go fast again. The rule of driving is to go just slowly enough on the slow parts to go faster on the fast parts. In that case, it is a hard and fast rule - if you hit the corner too fast, you *will* be slower overall. The mindset is that you can never gain time - you can only lose it.

I think that's what it's really trying to say with regard to shooting... but there aren't as clearly defined "fast" and "slow" parts. To me it means a "slow part" would be "make sure you have a good grip" or "make sure your gun doesn't have to go above the target and come back down on your draw," or "see your target and your sights." All of these things require you to slow down from the fastest you could be doing the actions in order to reduce your extra movement and be in a good position to hammer on the fast parts.

If you hit the corner too fast, everything else will be slow. If you draw the gun faster than you can actually acquire a proper grip and see your sights, everything else will be slow.

It was never supposed to have meant "go slowly all the time."

I prefer to break it down into "be fast" and "be sure" moments, as in: be fast to the gun, be sure of the grip, be fast to get the gun out of the holster, be sure of your sights. When it's time to be fast, nothing else will do, but only if the right things happened first.

[ToddG]

I do want to point out that interpersonal conflict with kinetic weapons is a competitive event (before anyone gets fixated on that), in which there is generally not a second place award.

So awesome.

[John Hearne]

"A shooting match is not a gunfight. But, every gunfight is a shooting match." - Massad Ayoob

[dbateman]

Meh the first time I heard the saying was in relation to driving, I like the saying but I do think most people don't understand it.

[PPGMD]

I believe the correct phrase is, "Fast is slow, slow is smooth, smooth is quick."

That suffers from the same problem.

fast = slow
slow = smooth
smooth = quick

Thus fast = slow = smooth = quick

Which also means
fast = slow - WTF?!?!
slow = quick - another WTF?!?!

At it's core there is nothing wrong with the statements, as it represents an idea that is sound. But people take it too literally, and assume all you need is to be smooth while being slow and suddenly you are fast.

[Shawn Dodson]

It seems many have missed the point I was making - according to Boyd there is a critical difference between "being quick" and "being fast". What it is I can't remember nor can I find the article he or one of his acolytes wrote that explains the difference.

On a different note, I recall hearing about police officers who, when engaged in a gunfight, clearly "heard" the voice of their firearms instructor telling them to slow down and focus on the sights. Once these officers slowed down they got good hits on their assailants that ended the fight.

"Doing it right the first time takes time. Doing it over again takes longer." -- unknown

"Haste makes waste." -- unknown

"More haste, less speed" -- unknown

[PPGMD]

I disagree, you are missing the point. I and most others have no problem with the core concept, I have an issue with the people that take the phrase literally.