Seated Start

Seated Start trains a common competition start position — fully seated in a chair, hands on knees, with the draw and the stand-up happening at the same time. You sit in a folding chair (or any chair without excessive cushioning), pistol holstered. At the buzzer you draw and engage, standing up as part of the motion. The drill exposes two surprisingly hard problems.

The first is muzzle direction during the draw. As your body stands, the holster moves with you, which changes the angle of the draw stroke. Many shooters accidentally sweep their legs as the muzzle clears the holster — legal under USPSA rules but a bad habit. Train yourself to keep the gun pointed safely as the legs move. Some prefer to stay seated until the gun is in their hand, then stand; others go for the early stand. Pick one and rep it.

The second problem is gear catching on the chair. Folding chairs have a back that can hook the back of a competition belt, especially a mag pouch worn rear-of-center. There are real match videos of competitors carrying chairs across the stage after standing. In dry-fire, set yourself up against the back of the chair, fully sit, and practice the stand-and-draw without snagging. If you do snag, take the time you need to clear cleanly. A snagged chair is worse than a slow draw.