Archive for July 14th, 2009

Airsoft and its Utilization in Officer Simulation

Airsoft is a very cool sport that is extremely popular with both children and young adults alike. Part of what makes airsoft so intriguing is its highly realistic look and feel of actual armaments without the real potential of death or serious harm. Many of the airsoft rifles and pistols look so much like actual guns that they wouldn’t be seen as replicas, except for the bright orange tip that is required by law. This makes airsoft pistols in particular, a great tool for training men and women in law enforcement agencies. With the similar dimensions, weight, look and feel of a real handgun or rifle, the officer in training is receiving a good idea of what using the real thing is like.

Due to their close resemblance to actual handguns, officers can holster the airsoft guns just as they would a real one, and can pull and fire just like a real weapon as well. Gas airsoft pistols have an advantage above spring airsoft pistols here due to their ability to recoil (or blowback) after firing, just like a real gun. These guns are called blow-back guns, which mimic the recoil of the real thing. Of course, it goes without saying that the recoil you feel when firing airsoft pistols will be substantially less than firing an actual handgun, but it is beneficial to mimic the same action, helping officers in training to get used to the motion.

Now, you may be pondering, why use airsoft to train, when you can perform target practice with the real thing? Well that is a good question . But think about upper end police training, such as running scenarios dealing with psychotics, or terrorists, kidnappers, or any other high end thinking situations. Situations similar to these demand a life like training environment, where real people pretend to be the offenders, while the training officers move and think through the situation. You definitely don’t want to have actual bullets involved with this kind of training! Therefore, any one of these training scenarios are excellent opportunities in which airsoft pistols are the perfect equipment for the circumstance.

Grasp the game of golf and shoot low scores fast

Let’s have a look at the basics of the golf swing and what I mean by the pre-swing before you start spending to much time at the driving range without improving your golf swing or golf score.

You can’t afford to get the grip wrong – if you do it will cause the ball to travel to places where it will be impossible for you to par,or birdie the hole. An improper grip will cause the club head to impact the ball at the wrong angle of attack. A poor grip may also negatively affect your swing and balance because we can tend to compensate for a poor grip by wrongly adjusting our alignment and shoulder turn. For a right handed player, can you not see any of your left hand knuckles as your look down on your grip? Is the tension of your grip too tight or too loose? Are you not holding the club in your fingers but instead in the palm of your hands? These are questions you should be asking yourself.

Setting Up to hit the golf ball - Your stance to the ball can ruin your golf shots if you get it wrong! An incorrect address will have you hitting the ball to the wrong places to improve your golf score! At address you may be too close to the ball therefore inhibiting your swing, too far from the ball causing you to stretch. You may slouch over the ball too much. You may even dribble over the ball but if your address isn’t correct then you may as well dribble over your scorecard. How far do you stand from the ball? Are your feet, shoulders, hips and club face aligned to the target? Is your balance correct- the weight of your body should be more on the balls and middle of your feet rather than your heels. Is your body weight evenly balanced between your left and right feet? Ask yourself these questions.

Your Ball Position in stance - Your ball position is so critical to the destiny of your shot! Quite simply if the ball is too far forward in your stance or too far back then not only does that induce a slice or a push but can cause the rest of your swing and your stance to over compensate and therefore go horribly wrong. For a right handed player are you adjusting your ball position correctly in relation to your left heel and distance from your body as you go up or down in club? Ask yourself these questions.

How to Drive the Ball Long and Straight - Last but not least you need to learn how to drive the golf ball. Remember that the driver swing is just an extension of the shorter swings like the wedges. Be sure to stay loose and keep a light grip as this will help to promote a relaxed and tension free body which helps to promote the mechanics of the golf swing. Be sure to get the right kind of driver for your swing. If you have a high club head speed over 115 mph then go for a stiff shaft flex and a loft under 9 degrees. If your club head speed is less than 100 mph then stick with the regular flex with a loft greater than 10 degrees.