Ask the Instructor: Why Do Slow Crossers Beat Me?

Q: I can smoke fast crossers, but the slow, floaty ones make me miss behind. It feels like I have “too much time,” and that time turns into doubt. How do I fix that?

A: Slow crossers expose the enemy: your conscious mind.

On a fast target you must stay athletic, stay visually locked in, and execute. On a slow crossing target, the tendency is to start negotiating subconsciously. You soften your acute focus to check lead just before you pull the trigger causing your hands and the gun to decelerate resulting in a miss behind.

With this scenario, breakpoints tend to be inconsistent. If you break the same target of a pair in the same spot each time, the speed, distance and angle of the target are the same. If not, you are shooting a slightly different pair each time.

As for techniques, sustained lead and pull-away are the most effective techniques for flat trajectory crossing targets. For sustained lead, insert the muzzle to the target line in front of the bird and to the lead. Match speed briefly, then execute the shot. Your eyes, with acute focus, stay on the front edge of the target. For pull-away, start by inserting to the target (not the lead), match speed for a fraction of a second, then accelerate forward and execute the shot.

Regardless of technique, the eyes must be acutely focused on the focal point on the target. Lead is created by the subconscious relationship you establish between gun and target while executing the move, not by measuring a gap between muzzle and target.

Both techniques require the same discipline: your visual focus must be acute and uninterrupted just prior to, and through, the trigger pull, and you must be disciplined and committed to your preshot plan.

On a slow crosser, like the one you described, pay close attention to the behavior of the target at the breakpoint. It’s possible that the target is “losing its line” and may not be on a consistent trajectory. A target transitioning at the breakpoint may require a different technique and approach than one that is holding its line.

Consistency comes from careful observation, planning, technique, and discipline, not from last-second math.