Home/Practical Shooting/Shooting on the Move

Shooting on the Move

MovementLevel 3 — Advanced

Prerequisites

GripCadence / SplitsPosition EntryTarget Focus

Unlocks

FlowingMounted vs. Dismounted Movement

What It Is

Engaging targets while physically walking or running. The goal is to maintain accurate fire while moving at near-maximum speed -- not creeping slowly with a "roll step" but putting the gas pedal down while still hitting A-zones. At the highest level, shooting on the move looks like "continual shooting" where movement and engagement are not separate activities but one fluid process.

Correct Execution

  • Moving at near-running speed while engaging targets
  • Upper body isolated from lower body movement -- legs absorb terrain, torso stays level
  • Gun stays up at eye level, tracking from target to target during movement
  • Knees bent, acting as suspension to dampen vertical bounce
  • Smooth movement that minimizes vertical oscillation -- the head travels in a straight line
  • Shots break based on sight picture, not on stride cycle -- the trigger is untethered from the feet
  • Eyes stay on targets, not on the ground or path
  • Shoulders lead in the direction of travel
  • No false steps, no coiling, no drop step
  • Gun stays on the eye-target line -- if not actively shooting, do not stare at the sight or it will induce sight staring within about 1 second
  • "Don't sacrifice foot speed for gun handling" -- the gun handling happens at movement speed, not the other way around

Progression Levels

Diagnostic Tree

Coaching Cues

  • "Move at just about a flat run and still hit A's" -- That is the goal. Not a careful walk, not a jog -- a near-sprint with A-zone accuracy. (Stoeger, Skills and Drills Reloaded)
  • "Conservative roll step is too slow -- put gas pedal down" -- The roll step is a learning tool, not a competition technique. (Stoeger, Skills and Drills Reloaded)
  • "Gun stays up high, at eyeline, looking to next target during moves" -- Non-negotiable. (Stoeger, Skills and Drills Reloaded)
  • "Untether your trigger from your feet" -- Shoot when the sight says go, not when the feet say go. (Stoeger, "Ben Stoeger on movement basics," 2024)
  • "Don't sacrifice foot speed for gun handling" -- Movement speed is the constant; gun handling adapts. (Perez, "Dry Fire Movement and Gun Handling Practice," 2019)
  • "It's continual shooting" -- Stop thinking shoot-move-shoot. Think of one continuous engagement. (Stoeger, "Ben Stoeger on movement basics," 2024)
  • "If you feel fast, you're probably out of control" -- Smooth, efficient movement doesn't feel dramatic. (Stoeger, "Movement Basics," 2023)
  • "Your legs are shock absorbers, your arms are a stabilizer" -- Two halves of the body have different jobs.

Common Errors

  1. Roll step trap: Exaggerated slow movement technique that feels safe but is not competitive. -> Comfort zone, coach-taught technique taken too far. -> Push speed aggressively. Roll step has a place in learning but should not be the final technique.
  2. Shooting between steps only: Only breaking shots when both feet are on the ground. -> Trigger-foot coupling. -> Untether trigger from feet. Shoot at any point in stride when sight picture is acceptable.
  3. Looking at the ground: Eyes on the path/terrain instead of on targets. -> Fear of tripping or terrain awareness. -> Know your path from the stage walkthrough. Trust your peripheral vision and foot placement. Eyes on targets.
  4. Vertical head bob: Head bounces with each step, making sight picture impossible. -> Stiff-legged movement, level changes during steps. -> Bend knees, absorb with ankles and knees. Head should travel in a straight line.
  5. Sight staring during movement: Gun is on eye-line and shooter stares at the sight while moving, losing track of targets. -> Gun up on eye-line for too long without shooting. -> If not actively shooting within ~1 second, take the gun off your eye-line. Or better: keep shooting continuously.
  6. Sacrificing foot speed: Slowing down to accommodate gun handling. -> Sequential thinking. -> Movement speed first, gun handling fits into that speed.

Related Skills

  • position-entry: Shooting on the move during deceleration into a position
  • position-exit: Shooting on the move during acceleration out of a position
  • short-moves: Short moves at high skill levels become shooting on the move
  • mounted-dismounted: Determines when to keep the gun up vs. break it down during movement
  • grip: Consistent grip connection is essential for the gun to track back predictably during movement

Edges

⚡ Conventional Wisdom Is Wrong

Flat Run, Not Roll Step

movementshooting-on-move →

The "roll step" -- a deliberate, exaggerated heel-to-toe walking technique -- is widely taught as the way to shoot on the move. It is a beginner learning tool that becomes a permanent speed ceiling. The actual goal is near-running speed ("just about a flat run") while still hitting A-zones. The roll step is too slow to be competitive and creates a comfort zone that shooters rarely escape because "it works" at the cost of massive time.

What most people do
Learn the roll step, get comfortable with it, and never progress beyond it. Accuracy is decent but movement speed is walking pace or slower. The roll step becomes a permanent technique rather than a stepping stone.
What the best do
Move at near-running speed with knees as shock absorbers, upper body floating on a gimbal, trigger untethered from the feet. Shots break based on sight picture, not on stride cycle. "Don't sacrifice foot speed for gun handling."
Why it's an edge: A blended position at flat-run speed saves 1.3+ seconds versus a fully stationary approach (Perez benchmark). Across multiple movement-intensive stages, this is 5-8 seconds per match. The roll-step shooter is giving away this time on every movement-heavy stage.
How to exploit: Establish a par time for pure movement (no gun) on any stage. Then add the gun work while maintaining the same par time. If the gun work slows your movement, you are sacrificing foot speed. Push until you can shoot at movement speed, not move at shooting speed.
Cross-domain parallel
In software development, the "waterfall" methodology (plan everything, then build) is the roll step -- safe, controlled, and too slow for competitive markets. Agile (ship continuously, iterate fast) is the flat run -- messier but dramatically faster. The waterfall team never transitions to agile because waterfall "works" -- at the cost of being slow.
Stoeger, Skills and Drills Reloaded, 2018; Perez, "Stationary or Blended Shooting Positions," 2020 -- 1.3s delta demonstrated

Sources

  • Ben Stoeger, Skills and Drills Reloaded (2018) -- "Flat run" goal, roll step critique, gun position during movement, aggressive speed philosophy
  • Ben Stoeger, "Ben Stoeger on movement basics" (2024) -- Continual shooting, untethering trigger from feet, form intent to shoot early, sight-driven shooting not body-driven, vision barrier technique
  • Ben Stoeger, "Movement Basics" (2023) -- Full power movement, athletic stance, no false steps, gun up early, feeling fast vs being fast
  • Charlie Perez, "Dry Fire Movement and Gun Handling Practice" (2019) -- Par time method, don't sacrifice foot speed for gun handling
  • Charlie Perez, "Stationary or Blended Shooting Positions" (2020) -- 1.3s time savings from blending, stationary vs blended decision framework