There is another thread rambling about who should post from an authoritative position and who should not. Another post on the thread speaks to coming to BRC and it taking time to sort out who to really listen to and what needs to be ignored.
A few years ago I stumbled into "benchrest" and BRC. Thought I was pretty smart, spent hours reading old and new threads. Also made some posts thinking I could contribute. After actually jumping into real registered "Benchrest" competition I quickly learned that I was taking my "1/4 mile dirt car" equipment and equivalent subject matter knowledge and trying to compete at the Indy 500. I now look back in embarrassment at some of my early posts. Had no idea how little I knew relative to those that were truly competitive in this extremely challenging game. To me, one of the greatest things about this sport is, if you pay the entry fee, you get to compete side by side with "Peyton Manning", "Tiger Woods", "Jeff Gordon", and some guy named Tony Boyer. At my first big match (East West 2009) my bench was right next to Jack Neary. (I'm concerned that I made him nervous. I think he came in 2nd.) My point is, it can be intimidating, but I don't know of another sport with this opportunity.
This site is is a great forum to recruit, motivate, and educate new as well as experienced shooters. Yet the nationally prominent shooters seldom post. How do we get them involved? I know many of them read the posts. I know a HOF shoot that doesn't post anything meaningful anymore because he's tired of being hammered by people that don't shoot competitively or might not even know who he is. He says all he was doing was telling what seems to work for him or opinions on a given subject. Might not be supported with the latest science or might defy logic, but they were things that he thought helped him. I want to hear those things. The idea or information might not work for me, but I'm all ears when someone that actually wins wants to share something.
What if some form of "credentials" were illustrated below the users name? HOF Member, X# of HOF points, X# of yardage wins, registered competitor X# of years etc........... Maybe truly successful competitors would post with some degree of confidence that they will not have to defend their effort to help from internet experts or those that have no clue who is posting. I am sure there are some very good regional shooters that may be posting that I am not aware of.
This is a tough sport with a brutal learning curve. But it is also the most enjoyably challenging sport I have ever competed in. How many people give up in frustration or stay away because of poor or no advise?
Mark
A few years ago I stumbled into "benchrest" and BRC. Thought I was pretty smart, spent hours reading old and new threads. Also made some posts thinking I could contribute. After actually jumping into real registered "Benchrest" competition I quickly learned that I was taking my "1/4 mile dirt car" equipment and equivalent subject matter knowledge and trying to compete at the Indy 500. I now look back in embarrassment at some of my early posts. Had no idea how little I knew relative to those that were truly competitive in this extremely challenging game. To me, one of the greatest things about this sport is, if you pay the entry fee, you get to compete side by side with "Peyton Manning", "Tiger Woods", "Jeff Gordon", and some guy named Tony Boyer. At my first big match (East West 2009) my bench was right next to Jack Neary. (I'm concerned that I made him nervous. I think he came in 2nd.) My point is, it can be intimidating, but I don't know of another sport with this opportunity.
This site is is a great forum to recruit, motivate, and educate new as well as experienced shooters. Yet the nationally prominent shooters seldom post. How do we get them involved? I know many of them read the posts. I know a HOF shoot that doesn't post anything meaningful anymore because he's tired of being hammered by people that don't shoot competitively or might not even know who he is. He says all he was doing was telling what seems to work for him or opinions on a given subject. Might not be supported with the latest science or might defy logic, but they were things that he thought helped him. I want to hear those things. The idea or information might not work for me, but I'm all ears when someone that actually wins wants to share something.
What if some form of "credentials" were illustrated below the users name? HOF Member, X# of HOF points, X# of yardage wins, registered competitor X# of years etc........... Maybe truly successful competitors would post with some degree of confidence that they will not have to defend their effort to help from internet experts or those that have no clue who is posting. I am sure there are some very good regional shooters that may be posting that I am not aware of.
This is a tough sport with a brutal learning curve. But it is also the most enjoyably challenging sport I have ever competed in. How many people give up in frustration or stay away because of poor or no advise?
Mark