Competition and combat. At this point, much like the debate over an instructor’s experience, you would think we’d have this sorted out. But we obviously do not. On one hand I see guys who’ve never been in a gunfight that claim that competing will somehow be detrimental to their development of martial skill. On the other hand, I know competitors who think that because they are fast and accurate with a firearm that automatically gives them the ability to apply that skill in an armed confrontation. Neither point of view is accurate, and both examples are doing themselves a disservice.

Nothing spurs the development of shooting skill like competition. Specifically action shooting competition. Once you are exposed to what is possible with a firearm, once you start measuring your performance against those metrics, your skill will increase. Provided you put in the work. I have had the good fortune of being exposed to armed professionals of the very highest caliber throughout the three decades I myself carried a gun for a living. Without exception, the best shooters from those ranks that I have known, whether special operations personnel or SWAT officers, were competitive shooters. And no one who didn’t compete, regardless of combat experience or level of training, could match them. And the very best shooters I have ever known are competitors who have never been in a gunfight, and probably never will.

Your shooting skill drives your tactics. Without the ability to deliver accurate shots quickly under stress, all the tactical wherewithal in the world will not be enough. But, there is much more to fighting with a firearm than just pure shooting skill. Fighting involves conflict and the other fighter gets a vote. Without the ability to best utilize the environment, without an understanding of how to press the advantage on a determined opponent or recover from a position of disadvantage, all the high level shooting skill in the world may not be enough to win.

The arguments against competition as training for gunfighting don’t hold water when looked at objectively. SMUs regularly bring in world class competitors to learn shooting skills from. Many of the most respected names in the special operations community also advocate competition for skill development. If you carry a gun defensively, one of the best and most cost effective ways to train your shooting skill is action shooting competition. Just don’t fall into the trap of thinking that is the all of it. Gunfighting is still fighting. Just as there is more to winning an empty hand fight then just your striking ability, there is more to winning a gunfight than your accuracy and speed. Shooting and tactics both matter, we need to train for and understand that.