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overwork many vital organs, often when their best performance is needed for normal body activity.
The effects of the use of such substances depend upon how much is used and whether or not the
body is strong enough to repair the damage done.
2. In order to understand the discussion that follows there are certain terms whose specific meaning you
should know. A stimulant is a chemical which, when taken into the body, excites the organs to greater
effort. Depressants are chemicals which slow down body action but may also speed up body
functions by reducing the influence of the nerve centers which slow down body action. For example,
nicotine increases heart action by depressing the nerves that slow the heart beat, thus causing a
faster pulse. Depressants deaden pain and lessen discomfort and thus make us feel better without
removing the cause.
3. Much has been written and said both pro and con concerning the habitual use of alcohol, coffee,
tobacco, and drugs, their temporary and permanent effects on the human body, both mental and
physical. Material covering these subjects is available at any well stocked library. Part of the
information that follows was derived from this source but much of the evidence against alcohol,
coffee, tobacco and drugs that we are concerned with has been contributed by the shooters
themselves.
a. Although all shooters are not in agreement that complete abstinence by habitual users is the
solution, all will agree that these agents will in no way help to improve shooting performance or
scores.
b. To learn the fundamentals of pistol shooting is no great achievement in itself. Anyone interested
in becoming a pistol shooter can with persistency and training learn to shoot with some degree of
proficiency. What then, is necessary to become a skilled shooter ? The top shooters in the nation
today unanimously agree that control is the most important factor in becoming a top competitor.
Control can best be explained as the coordination of mental and physical effort, born in thought
and culminating in a concentrated, precise action. This effort must be natural, unstrained and
smooth flowing. Any habit or action that results in departure from perfect coordination will lesson
the degree of control and reduce the effectiveness of the action. In shooting, lessening of control
shows itself in lower scores and poor performance.
c. What can you the shooter do about sustaining control? The same thing you would do when
training for a match. When you find yourself having difficulty in maintaining your shot groups in
the center of the target, you analyze and make corrections, be it position, grip or sight adjustment,
etc.. Sometimes when control is declining, analysis may pinpoint some cause other than faulty
technique in employment of the fundamentals. What did you have at breakfast? Coffee, two cups
and two cigarettes. Enough to ruin anyone's control. Perhaps a few too many last night and a loss
of several hours of sleep. Whatever the reasons, they should be noted in your score book just as
you would enter unusual conditions at a match. In a short period of time, if you are honest with
yourself you will be able to piece together enough information upon which to take remedial action.
The most difficult person to convince is yourself. No one who habitually smokes or drinks coffee
wants to admit that such habits have the effect of destroying control. So they remain slaves to
habits which, in affect, they attempt to overpower by mental and physical exertion, often ending in
frustration and exhaustion.
The following paragraphs cover the effects that alcohol, coffee, tobacco and drugs have on control of
pistol shooting. If you have been plagued with a built-in error, it may be that the answer to your problems
lies herein.
B. ALCOHOL (ETHER)
1. Effects of alcohol on the human body:
The name alcohol is used for a number of organic substances some of which, like glycerin, are
necessary to good health. The scientific name for the alcohol sold for drinking purposes is ethyl
alcohol. Ethyl alcohol is generally considered to be a habit forming narcotic. However, in the strictest
scientific sense it is an anesthetic or pain killer like ether, which is made from it.
a. Alcohol taken into the body passes through the walls of the stomach and the small intestine and
thence into the blood stream. It is rapidly distributed through the body and promptly affects the
brain by decreasing its ability to take up oxygen. Even a small percentage of alcohol in the blood
may sometimes cause remarkable effects. Inhibitions and the corresponding cautions are
removed, reactions are slowed, coordination is impaired. The senses become less acute,
particularly that of sight. The field of vision is reduced - ordinary objects become darker and
indistinct - poorly lighted objects are lost entirely. Reactions are slowed down and concentration
becomes difficult.
b. A peculiar property of ethyl alcohol is its ability to take up water. It is a valuable dehydrating and
preserving agent. When used as a drink, alcohol produces a burning sensation as it takes up
water from the delicate mucous membranes of the throat, stomach, and intestines, thus causing
the drinker to become thirsty. Once alcohol becomes a part of the blood, its dehydrating
properties are much reduced.
c. Although alcohol is a source of heat energy, its depressing effect upon the nerve centers that
control the size of blood vessels causes the blood vessels of the skin to enlarge. So long as
alcohol remains in the blood to affect the brain, extra heat loss by radiation will take place through
the skin and prevent any benefit that might be derived from its oxidation and the resulting warmth.
For this reason, in severely cold weather, the man who drinks whisky to keep warm is in much
greater danger of freezing than the person who does not.
2. Effects of Alcohol on Shooting:
a. Contrary to popular belief, alcohol acts as a depressant rather than a stimulant. It dulls the
senses, lessens the desire to win, destroys coordination and lessens the shooter's ability to
concentrate. Alcohol taken at the proper time in the proper amount might possibly lessen the
shooter's anxiety but by doing so other effects are released that are far more harmful to the body
and detrimental to the shooter's score. No one can say what the right amount is or when it should
be taken. Some shooters may shoot a good score with a hangover. But, the second day is when
the after affects become acutely noticeable and the shooter's control may disintegrate on the
firing line.
b. Experimental research scientists using delicate tests and sensitive instruments, have been able
to demonstrate the adverse effect of even small amounts of alcohol on various isolated bodily
functions such as sensory perception and discrimination, reaction time, fine coordination,
judgment, alertness and efficiency of dexterity. The changes observed have no apparent
difference in quality, magnitude or expression from those due to fatigue, hunger, distraction and a
host of other environmental factors. These facts establish that one small drink of intoxicating
beverage places the shooter under an enormous handicap. The false feeling of well-being is
deceptive. Alcohol, and gun powder do not mix.
C. COFFEE (Caffeine)
What's wrong with drinking coffee? That is easy - caffeine. Each cup contains an amount equal to about
two pinches of salt. That doesn't sound like much, until you realize that it is one-third of the amount given
by doctors as a heart stimulant. With three cups of coffee you are getting a dose of caffeine calculated by
scientists to be medically effective for making a weakened heart work as hard and fast as a normal heart. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]