American Handgunner Nov/Dec 1981

safety rules require the muzzle to be positionedso that no part ofthe shooter's bodylies within an imaginary 90-degree coneextending forward from the muzzle andcoincident with the pistol's bore. This isgood advice for anyone.Positions, basically, are prone (bellydown), supine (on the back) and sidewinder(lying on the left or right side).The elemental principles are common toall positions and simple enough.First, don't choose a position that's notcomfortable. You can't do well whenthere's pain gripping your body-nomatter how well this particular positionworks for the local hotshot. Not everY0!.1ebends the same way. Those with ampletorsos or thick thighs will find it difficult toassume the supine Creedmoor position.That's okay. Try something else. Flopdown on your family room floor and wormaround until you find a comfortable positionthat will allow you to shoot the legs offthe TV stand.Second, the position must be one inwhich the pistol is not supported by muscletension. To provide a solid hold, the supportingbody elements must be relaxed,rather than held tautly in position. Theshooter's skeletal structure provides thesupport, bone-to-bone or bone-to-ground,with only flesh and cartilage separating thehard parts and the pistol pointed at thetarget. Muscling yourself into battery isfatiguing, difficult to maintain and, at theworst, subjects·the pistol to the steady beatof your heart.Third, pay attention to your head positionfor a clear view of the situation.Prescription lenses will provide a distortedor out-of-focus view of the sights andtarget, as the line of sight can be far fromthe optical center of the lens. Even plano- .lensed shooting glasses displace the targetwhen the line of sight is not perpendicularto the curved surface of the lens. Prone orsupine positions move the line of sightfarthest from the center of the lens andthus require extra effort to bend the neckto its limit to minimize the problem. (Youcan't eliminate it.) Sidewinder positionsallow a view through the center ofthe lens,albeit at 90 degrees to normal. Ifyou needprescription glasses, get a set ground foryour selected position-everyone else canbend or otherwise adjust their glasses toreduce the displacement.Fourth, the pistol is steadier when heldsolidly, as when pushed into the thigh in aCreedmoor hold. At rest across the expanseof the body, the pistol seems to bobaround more than is necessary.The prone position was one ofthe first tobe used in freestyle. It is a classic, solidhold for rifle and pistol shooters. It'sfavored by revolver shooters because thathellfire blast from the cylinder/barrel gapContinued on page 66JOHNSPILBORGHSPo. BOX 40529SANTA BARBARACA. 93/03SPECIALIZING IN6·.4~ LONG SLIDEMakes removing dents in shotgun barrelseasy. Use our one bronze expanding plug in·59-E50stead 01 several exp