Really shooting on the move

I'm sure many on here have watched as much footage of actual shootings or other armed assaults as they can find with an eye toward common actions on the part of the attackers. Something I have seen is the movement by both/all parties involved.

Personally, the vast majority of my shooting on the move practice has been "offensive" in nature, such as room clearing and fire and maneuver, but this is, of course, due to my job. I really don't practice shooting on the move like I should in my defensive practice, so I have a couple questions about incorporating this stuff in defensive pistol training.

I am familiar with shooting while taking a step or two off the line of attack, but what about firing while moving rapidly in the oblique or in an arc? I can see the training risks involved with moving like that, but if you are lucky enough to have a facility that allows that type of training, then maybe it's worth trying.

The other thing I wonder about is whether this type of training should be put to use in the real world, mainly because of the fact that if you are moving around, you are changing the backstop and may be putting others in danger. I know the real world isn't a square range with a 180 firing line, but are the risks worth the reward of being proficient in shooting while moving in this manner?

By LAV's pistol 1 / carbine 1 classes, you are doing shooting on the move drills that have you shooting while moving in various oblique directions both forwards and backwards. Things like threading two barrels backwards and forwards in a figure 8 while engaging multiple targets down range. In our course, I believe the angles got as shallow as 45 degrees to the line of fire.

I can only imagine how much more involved the shooting on the move drills get in higher level classes that he and others teach.

Regarding real world safety ramifications, to quote Larry - "the safest backstop for your bullet is your enemy's chest cavity".

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Originally Posted by evanhill

By LAV's pistol 1 / carbine 1 classes, you are doing shooting on the move drills that have you shooting while moving in various oblique directions both forwards and backwards. Things like threading two barrels backwards and forwards in a figure 8 while engaging multiple targets down range. In our course, I believe the angles got as shallow as 45 degrees to the line of fire.

I can only imagine how much more involved the shooting on the move drills get in higher level classes that he and others teach.

Regarding real world safety ramifications, to quote Larry - "the safest backstop for your bullet is your enemy's chest cavity".

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I might have to check these out. I've seen his shooting show a few times and he obviously knows what he's talking about. As far as the safe backstop, I agree, but even a guy famous enough in the shooting world to be known by his initials has to have missed a shot or two in his life. I guess it's just up to us to make sure we've done everything we can to not miss, huh?

I'm not in a position to comment on the real world application of that philosophy either way.

Suffice it say that a guy with lots of experience sees fit to train his students -- mil, leo, civ -- in that way of thinking. His accuracy standard for all drills is a fair amount smaller than an IDPA A zone with the idea that accuracy will halve under stress and you will then be shooting IDPA A zone.

How would I apply that thinking myself? The more I shoot, the more I develop a feel for shots that I know I can make and shots where I have doubt. The mindset that I try to cultivate is that, regardless of outside stressors, I will put my bullets where I want them. Period. If that means passing on a low percentage shot, fine. If that means taking some pain in the process of taking the time to settle in for a harder shot, fine.

Going back to the original question of shooting while moving, it's a lot harder than it looks if you've never trained it, but it's a lot easier than it seems once you learn how. Just like static shooting, there are ranges and speeds at which I have a lot of confidence in my ability to shoot on the move, and ranges and speeds at which I don't. Always working on both though.