When it comes to shooting and practicing with our firearms many of us fall into the category where we do not do it nearly as much as we would like to. Sometimes that can be a result of us working too much, being involved with our families, or maybe it’s a rainy day and Mother Nature is not cooperating. Should you really take a day off on account of the weather though?... Probably not.
If you think it is too hot, too cold, too rainy, or too snowy that should almost motivate you to get out and shoot even more. While I would never advocate for someone to train in dangerous weather (Ex. Tornado warnings being issued), but getting out and shooting in poor weather can be very beneficial because it shows us where our skills and equipment might begin to break down and where we should look to improve ourselves and our gear.
One point of concern is dexterity. If there is moisture of any kind from rain, snow, or sweat our grip might become compromised and we need to figure out ways to negotiate around that and keep shooting. This can be accomplished through multiple routes. You could add stippling to the grip of your firearm if it is a polymer handgun or AR-15. There are also different adhesive grip tapes you can use. Another trick of the trade is to use something like Petzl Power Liquid – a form of liquid chalk. You simply put a couple drops on each of your hands, wipe it around until dry, and your hands will be tackier than ever! Olympic weightlifters use chalk to lift heavy weights so why not use chalk to mitigate heavy recoil? A final option is to use gloves, but gloves can retain moisture and create similar dexterity problems as your bare hands. Gloves are most advantageous when it is really cold out.
Another reason to shoot in inclement weather is to test your gear. Does the lens of your optics fog up? Can you still shoot? If not, what could you do to improve the situation? Possibly add a back-up set of iron sights to your AR-15. Or, apply a coating to your optics so they are fogproof and more resistant to bad weather.
You could also notice cycling and performance issues that only manifest during poor weather. This is critically important to observe and resolve because our firearms are extremely important tools. If you are in the middle of a competitive shooting match, have drawn your firearm in a dire self-defense situation, or are hunting and your firearm has mechanical problems, that is a horrific situation to be in. Especially, when it could have been prevented.
While it might not be high on everyone’s priority list to go shoot in the rain and get their gear wet, you might want to give it a try. Like, we mentioned it can expose a lot of potential problems that you could easily fix for more reliability and confidence in the future. As always, let us know all of your thoughts in the Comments below. We love it when you participate in our articles and keep the conversation going!
