Regular training is generally essential in order to consolidate skills and make progress. This also applies to shooting sports. However, to provide new training incentives over a longer period of time and stay motivated, the team at Eichenwerk has come up with something special: a monthly training subscription. We put it to the test.
In theory, it’s not that difficult to stay “in shape” while shooting, is it? You just get drills from somewhere on the Internet, print out a few targets and go to the shooting range. Maybe. And maybe you do it with motivation and even regularly at first.
Challenge: Solo shooting training
But at some point a few problems may become noticeable. Sometimes the page format in the printer doesn’t fit and larger targets have to be laboriously glued together from two sheets of paper. Then the instructions are also missing – quickly watching a YouTube video at the shooting range is not very practical either. And finally, you also want to reshoot certain drills that you learned in course modules on the original targets, but you don’t always know what they are called or where to get the material from. It’s all quite tedious.
So this is not a solid basis for training, at least not one that allows for consistent training. Perhaps that’s what the team at Eichenwerk thought, including Amy 9×19 and Heinz Eichingerwhen they developed the training subscription. In any case, they have created a low-threshold and motivating concept with the monthly shooting targets.
Monthly motivation boost
The concept supports everyone: beginners and professionals alike can get to know and practise drills in a monthly subscription. An envelope arrives in the post with everything you need for training (except, unfortunately, the ammunition …). The target media (A3 and A4 formats) are enclosed, along with precise and easy-to-understand instructions. You also receive a note with the safety rules – it never hurts to take a look at it, you can’t be that experienced.
The print quality of the slices is very good. The contours are clearly visible. The thickness of the paper is also excellent so that the targets can be used more than just once. This is also a big difference to self-printed target media and a real bonus.
In the test
Freshly motivated, the Ranger team went to the Leobersdorf Shooting Park, hung up the targets and got started. There is no specific order in which the drills are to be shot. This can be both an advantage and a disadvantage. From our point of view, however, the advantage outweighs the disadvantage, as you only know where you are and what you want to train. If you don’t know that, all the better, because then you’re jumping in at the deep end and simply learning something new. Either way, you’ve only won.
The exercises have different levels of difficulty, but they are not categorized as “easy” or “challenging”, for example. You know your own limits or get to know them through the drills. However, you should not be demotivated if you try something but are simply overwhelmed by the requirements. For quite a few people, for example, it will be a challenge to hit an oval target at a distance of five meters with twelve shots in just five seconds – including drawing from the holster! – to hit the target. This is a tough test for advanced shooters. However, it only makes sense to take on such a challenge if you have already learned the individual techniques involved.
After all, challenging exercises can also be motivating – with the right attitude. You can see what is still possible and have a goal in mind. Ultimately, courses that teach the necessary techniques can help. At the same time, “simple” shooting exercises can also be a challenge for experienced shooters. Who likes to insert static precision drills into their training routine when they are actually working on speed or shooting on the move? In principle, we only see advantages here too if you are confronted with different levels of difficulty.
Conclusion
The Ranger Magazine team likes both the concept and the execution of the training subscription from the Eichenwerk. The drills are very suitable for incorporating into shooting training either together or individually. It definitely made us want to do more, even if the results were what we had hoped for – you know that the training subscription has given you the right training materials to improve and that motivates you.
Ranger tip: There is also nothing to stop you from collecting the targets you shoot at and documenting the hits using your own system. For example, two targets were supplied with one drill – ideal for practicing the same exercise with two different pistols and documenting the results on the board for the next (dry) practice session. Timer times were noted, trigger errors identified and subjective impressions recorded, for example if one grip was more comfortable to hold and the results differed as a result. When you leave the shooting range, you usually don’t remember these details for long. Documentation is important when learning, you simply cannot avoid a certain amount of self-reflection. But that’s also how you learn in solo training.
