Dan Schindler's Blog

Sep

2020

All Choked Up

This is a quick, roll-up-your-sleeves, common sense commentary on choke selection – what really does work in the shooting box – and why. No doubt there’s been at least 500 trillion opinionated words spoken on this subject, in ...

Sep

2020

Here's Your Paddle. Upstream or Down?

Seriously now, take about 10 long seconds and do this. Slow down and think about what it feels like to paddle a canoe upstream. Against the current. Go ahead. Please. Take your time. 1 Mississippi, 2 Mississippi, 3 Mississippi, 4.....OK, it's nice ...

Aug

2020

Speed of Light Shooting

Speaking of the obvious, humbly submitted, the speed of light in a vacuum is exactly 186,282 miles per second. Impressed? OK, maybe not – so what does this have to do with our shooting? Well, that number is a fact, an irrefutable truth. Just ...

Aug

2020

Why Are You Here?

“If you think nobody ever remembers you…try missing a few car payments.”Speaking of remembering. The tournament was about 10 years ago, probably more. Late morning, we were all early, standing at our designated Station shaking ...

Jul

2020

If Only Michael Jordan Had Taken Up Clay Shooting Instead…

“I couldn’t repair your brakes…so I made your horn louder.~ Steven WrightHere’s a better plan than Steve’s. While this article touches on skill development, the emphasis here is on winning. What it really ...

Jul

2020

The # 1, Highest Scoring, All Time Very Best Sporting Clays Method In The World

A day without sunshine is like, you know…night.~Steve Martin If I may, a few words about seeing what’s hiding in plain sight…In my work, I hear many different opinions expressed on what methods work best in Sporting Clays. ...

Jun

2020

Her name was Joy

Her name was Joy…and she was. Age? Joy was what some might call an “old soul.” Wise. Personally, I like the term, “sharp.” And she was, as a tack. When we first shook hands at the Club, her smile assured me we’d ...

Jun

2020

X - Detour or Destination?

The very first target we broke sealed the deal. Gimme another shell! Lots of people shoot for the camaraderie, without considering why we missed or why the bird broke. We hit it. Shooting for the sake of entertainment needs no explaining or ...

May

2020

Mr. Smooth

It was a Saturday years ago and I had a quiet weekend to myself. So–knowing the critical role of swing precision (gun management) in our sport–off I went to the golf driving range to confirm my theory that slowing my golf swing down by a ...

May

2020

The Turning...

Our recent series on the pre-shot, set-up Basics got us down in the weeds sorting out the specifics, the correct sequence of those Basics. Not just what…but when, where, how, and why each of those 4 steps (in Book 1, Take Your Best ...

May

2020

Luck’s Got Nuthin’ To Do With It!

If you're proactive, you focus on preparing your swing. If you're reactive, you end up focusing on repairing your swing. Daniel Schindler Basics series: Visual Focal PointIn our last article, I chose our “muzzle hold point” ...

Apr

2020

Here It Comes or There It Goes?

For the recreational shooter, the entertainment of shooting and sometimes breaking a target is comparable to reading this month’s copy of Field & Stream. For competitive shooters, however, a day at the range takes on a whole new meaning ...

Apr

2020

Preparing to Fail?

All the articles in this series on the Basics – your shooting foundation – are dedicated to Mr. Bob Lockett, Paragon Senior Instructor.It might have seemed strange to start this series of articles on the Basics with steps on the Mental ...

Mar

2020

Peak Performances…Easier Than You Think!

Being “In The Zone” is a state of mind that so many athletes aspire to reach. It is eminently achievable. If you’ve been there, you can credit your best performances to those days where you just COULD NOT MISS. Athletes, musicians, ...

Mar

2020

The Elusive Mental Game

Ever heard of it, the elusive mental game? Just kidding, of course you have…mental toughness; sport psychology; peak performance; in the Zone; Zen….I own a small library on this subject written by authors who’ve worked ...

Feb

2020

XXXX Where Art Thou?

A few truths first. Toto, I've got a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore. The target presentations we’re shooting now are definitely not the presentations of year’s past. Intentionally, today’s presentations are more complex, more ...

Feb

2020

Curly's Law: The ONE Thing

From the movie “City Slickers” Curly (Jack Palance) reveals what the secret of life is by holding up 1 finger. Mitch (Billy Crystal) asks, “What is that “one thing?” Curly smiles and says, “That’s what you ...

Jan

2020

The Wolf

XOOXXO on the same easy B bird. Carol asks, “Why do I do THAT all the time?” When asked what she was seeing over her barrel, she replied, “I’m not sure, but I thought my swing looked good.” That’s not a clue, ...

Jan

2020

Perception Versus Reality

When an entry-level shooter decides to work with me, I can almost always count on his or her open mind and eagerness to listen. That's because from their perspective of "why did that just happen," they have little or no experience to fall back on. ...