Shooting Pistol In A Wheelchair: Budi Explains The Difficulties And Challenges

[@DRNewcomb]

As an instructor and sometimes competitor, it is just not possible to give this all the likes it deserves.

[@OddBallPerformance]

I just would like to say thank you for sharing Budi and his story. As a person who suffered a back injury that left me with nerve damage to both of my legs, it is inspiring to see a person that has worked out how to keep doing the things he loves. It makes me more positive about my own journey.

[@genericpersonx333]

I was caregiver for a man who lost most of his right-side functionality to strokes, He was a man who made things with his hands, like crocheting a blanket for every baby in his church for forty years (around 500), and losing his right hand was just about the worst thing that could happen short of death. Nonetheless, he said, with the half of his mouth that worked, that he wasn't dead yet and so he just had to make do with what he had left. Never did make things with his own hands again, but he made very sure that everyone around him knew what they had and that they appreciated while they had it, leading to many wonderful things being made by their hands. Budi very much reminds me of that man, someone who doesn't let what he lost be everything and instead uses what he has masterfully. Cheers Budi, and may the weather be pleasant at your next competition.

[@DUKWAK]

Just imagine how salty and crass a person has to be to actually complain “this man in a wheelchair has an unfair advantage.” -_- Nice shooting Budi. Glad you did well at you competition. If someone is outshooting me I don’t blame them, I blame myself…. and sometimes the coriolis effect when shooting pistols past 20 yards.

[@jamesharding3459]

As a fully-mobile person who's given shooting seated a shot (please pardon the pun), and it is most assuredly not easier than shooting standing. You can do some neat things with a seated position and a rifle with a sling, but that's quite a different matter.

[@JoachimElmesioo]

Before watching this video I would 100% have thought "sitting" down was an advantage.

[@marcomeyerhofer1023]

I just realized that none of the ranges and especially the shooting cellars I know seems to be wheelchair accessible. I always had the impression that target shooting is really inclusive because doesn't matter if you are young or old you can be good at it. Hope the ranges get more accessible in future.

[@detritus23]

My father had polio and walked on crutches most of his life. He still shot skeet using 12 and 20 gauge shotguns. He frequently outshot his squadmates. Thank you for providing a forum for Budi’s story. It was both inspiring and brought back some great memories of breaking clays with my father.

[@Grim821]

This is downright fascinating. I would have never considered how hard it would be just to sit and aim. I'm a little inspired to get better, knowing he could do it. At the same time, a man who has no active control of his stance could absolutely trounce me in competition on my best day. I would love to see about what it would take to let him shoot other types of weapons in competition.

[@itsfonk]

This was neat to watch. I can appreciate Budi’s positioning, and chosen accommodations. Thanks for sharing! For those of us with certain challenges, achieving and maintaining stability can vary depending on our individual circumstance. For anyone who might claim such measures to be “unfair” in a competitive setting, I’d encourage them to attempt to replicate the difficulty by standing with knees straight, feet together, and added weight on each arm…

[@cedhome7945]

I've learned so much more when trying to understand something from a different view point . very interesting!

[@boba9253]

Wow, that was a great video! I learned so much, and really enjoyed hearing from Budi about how he manages to shoot. Thank you both.

[@onpsxmember]

YES! I waited for this! Thank you! That can really help out to understand the situation of wheelchair shooters and open the hobby to them. This is really rare information and again thanks to Budi for doing this.

[@ZeroKey92]

I didn't expect this to be THIS interesting. I was watching this on a second screen and had to stop, go back to the beginning and give it my full attention. Absolutely captivating!

[@LevittownDirtBag]

Thanks, this has been extremely enlightening, not just as it concerns shooting... Thanks Budi for sharing.

[@robertsmith4681]

As a disabled shooter myself, good job explaining the maybe not so obviouis balance and position challenges that bipeds need not worry about.

[@juanfootjohn2125]

I shoot C.M.P, and High power I lost my right lower leg 17 days ago.it was great to see how Budi has been able to adapt. I use a chair for standing slow fire. prone and sitting has not changed much for me. Im wanting to shoot a high power match in Dec. it will be with the m1 rifle. Great video thank you guys very much.

[@wesleygay8918]

As someone who shoots "praying mantis style" with my 92 FS and other automatics, I find it can be pretty precise, provided you lock and anchor your wrists as well as your elbows. It's not for everyone, but it's second nature for me from playing paintball competitively in the 2000's where compact stances were everything.

[@alanfhall6450]

Thanks, Budi. As an able-bodied person it's so hard to appreciate the fine detail of the implications for balance, particularly, of the absence of muscle control. You are an inspiration.

[@geebskerbal2771]

As a para myself this was a very good video. I have never done any shooting comps may need to try his technique.

[@joeyrusso7775]

I'm a recently disabled action pistol competitor and just found this video! Excellent tips for compensating the lack of lower support structure when shooting from a wheelchair. Thanks for posting!

[@In-Midnight-Clad]

This is a great video. I had never considered how not having the use of one's legs would make shooting a pistol so much more difficult.

[@m1911legend]

My brother had an accident last year at 19 years old that left him a quadraplegic with very little mobility in his arms, hes slowly managing to shoot guns again, thanks for posting

[@18robsmith]

BotR, please pass this on to Budi Thanks Budi for your explanation of the way you shoot and overcome the difficulties presented by life in a wheelchair with no useable legs. It is interesting how you have become "alterative able" so you can continue to enjoy your sport.

[@314299]

Interesting video. I always enjoy the video's with Budi clearly he is knowledgeable and capable shooter, with a real skill at explaining things.

[@jeanniebuchholz9923]

Thanks for sharing Budi with us; he's an inspiration. Good luck and God bless.

[@myrtlebeachmohicanxx]

Fantastic video! Thank you very very much for your time in making this video. There aren’t too many videos involving handicapped folks and firearms on this platform that I can easily find. Look forward to seeing more! Again, thank you very much!

[@matthewn4896]

This was fascinating, I really appreciate Budi speaking so candidly about the challenges he's faced.

[@myparceltape1169]

Budi is worth listening to. Really good. Thank you Budi.

[@johndilday1846]

I thoroughly enjoyed this discussion. It’s very nice to hear Budi speak his mind about his shooting challenges and his adaptations to overcome them. Budi seems so nice and would be welcome to shoot with me here in the US anytime. His story about the jerk complaining because he shot from a sitting position reminded me of a story my Dad told about his father: my grandfather had lost one of his legs as a child due to an injury, and used an iron peg leg as a prosthetic. In the small town my dad and grandfather lived in during the Great Depression, there was a guy who was a jerk and a bully who made fun of my grandfather and belittled him because he had but the one leg. So somehow things things came to a head where my grandfather challenged the bully to a foot race over a short distance and wagered against the bully that he could beat him. The bully, eager to humiliate my grandfather, accepted the challenge. On the day of the race, the two adversaries squared off at a starting line. A crowd showed up to watch, and as the start of the foot race was announced, my grandfather spun on his remaining leg and cracked the bully across the shin with his iron peg leg. The bully dropped, howling in pain. My grandfather then hobbled down the racecourse to an easy victory. The bully was humiliated and never bothered my grandfather again. My grandfather was the sort not to go around feeling sorry for himself, and he never gave up on anything he set his mind on his whole life. He felt he always had to work twice as hard as the next guy but never was bitter, almost always cheerful. So God bless you Budi, we’re with you!

[@StrangelyBrownNo1]

I’m completely able-bodied. Still, I learnt so much from this. Amazing video.

[@rainbow2710]

What an amazing person. Thanks for sharing. ❤️❤️

[@alun7006]

Thank you Budi for sharing this with us - fascinating and inspirational in equal measure. And thank you BOTR for giving Budi the platform to talk about it.

[@luissantiago5163]

Thank you both. This'll be really interesting and informative

[@danielaramburo7648]

Very inspiring. It would be an honor to shoot with him. If he is ever in Texas, I invite him to the range.

[@carbonq6610]

This was so informational and i loved it. Thank you so much for sharing!

[@Chlorate299]

I had noticed Budi's unique shooting technique previously, interesting to learn the mechanics of it.

[@enormhi]

Very interesting, thanks for showing Budi's story

[@Wylie77]

Great video! much love from Australia

[@DJFK777]

Very interesting to watch! Thank you Budi and thank you Bloke for sharing!

[@foxtrotromeo25]

Absolutely fascinating! I always enjoy seeing Budi on the channel.

[@REXOB9]

Thanks Budi and thanks Bloke, very interesting.

[@andygardner9219]

Great vid and Budi is a really nice bloke.

[@krisb6643]

Great vid, many thanks to Budi for sharing his experiences

[@blip_bloop]

Thank you for sharing this!

[@JaredAF]

I didn't even realize how much your lower body plays a role in keeping you upright while sitting and extending your arms out.

[@oldgoatpatrol5179]

Thank you Budi! Very interesting and very well presented.

[@avp5964]

Great video thank you. Always enjoy Budi's contributions. Interesting insight, cool pistols, and an ace of a guy it seems.

[@awomk]

Fantastic video what an inspiration Budi is such a great guy would be good to see some more on your fantastic channel

[@antongrahn1499]

I would never have thought of some of these factors at all, very interesting video. Thank you Budi for your presentation. Would be interesting to see a similar video on rifle shooting if possible!

[@M.M.83-U]

Very interesting, very informative.

[@Simon_Nonymous]

Shooting is one of the few sports I know which is accessible to just about anybody - I have seen blind target shooters* at the club I used to belong to, and a chap in a wheelchair with very limited limb control, but he was good once benchrested. When the world likes to make us out to be scary nasty people, I would just like to point out what a nice bunch of very accepting and pleasant people we usually are. (* using a light beam on a target that triggers audio responses in headphones to guide the shooter's aim to the bull.)

[@HerrJordel]

i had an idea... no idea if this would work but if you were to prop the legs up and straight(er) with a stool that would probably push the body a bit more backwards and tight against the back rest. Maybe even only a pillow under the legs...

[@memorarenz]

Really interesting stuff. Cheers

[@jmullner76]

Zero downvotes, as it should be.

[@armedandbroken]

Great to see another wheelchair shooter!

[@yosarianilivestech4018]

I wonder if wheelchair bound shooters would benefit from a cheek weld like recently shown on forgotten weapons

[@phinehasjacob9122]

I feel like that would work

[@onpsxmember]

That would be rad for Budi to review one.

[@yosarianilivestech4018]

@Enwurd Dindunuffin good point, certainly not for the competive shooting he does. I'm not that familiar with Swiss competition but I think I heard something about for competitions it's basically all centered around service arms

[@davidgillon2762]

Technical question: a lot of wheelchair users who use active user chairs (what the non-wheelie types would probably call a sports chair, but for everday use), have them set up to wheelie up off the front castors at the drop of a hat. Which is more efficient/agile for street use. But you can also set them up to resist that - mine's set up this way as my balance isn't great and I don't have a great fondness for ejecting myself out the back. Watching this made me wonder if active chair users who are also shooters or similar find themselves changing the setup of their chair between an unstable and a stable setup for street use vs range use (or just alternating between different chairs).

[@RuthMadisonAuthor]

This is such helpful insight! Thank you.

[@Wladislav]

Highly educational!

[@thomasa5619]

I was talking to a local high level ISSF judge the other day, found it fascinating that the local wheelie based shooter isn’t competing against most wheelie shooters, he has disease based weakness and not paralysis so he still had weak control of his core

[@davidgillon2762]

One big misconception wrt wheelchair users is that we're predominantly paras, I've seen estimates going as high as over 90% for wheelchair users with some ability to stand/walk, but all those people also have a disability significant enough that wheels are more enabling than walking at least some of the time. And even when sitting we're still dealing with the effects of those issues, whether that be related to balance, muscle strength, fine motor control or fatigue issues. TLDR: there's a lot more individual nuance to being a wheelchair user than people generally realise.

[@thomasa5619]

@@davidgillon2762 yeah I hear you, real life is way more complicated than most of us realise. Whether it’s this topic, sight, diabetes, etc Although in my defence, it isn’t really my business how most people arrived at their current condition. I don’t like to be nosey. Apparently this fellow does have enough strength to stand, drag his wheelchair in to use normal hotel rooms, and occasionally drive an unmodified car. But like you said, the wheels make everything easier for him We have a member of the club who’s recognised in australia, and is attempting to get international recognition for MS to compete at the paralympics

[@davidgillon2762]

@@thomasa5619 no criticism intended, I was just trying to amplify the variety of disability you'd touched on for anyone else who comes along to watch this and read the comments.

[@thomasa5619]

@@davidgillon2762 yeah sorry I didn’t mean to actually be defensive, I just meant it’s not really my business to know your/someone else’s condition. It’s personal and I leave it that way until someone is comfortable sharing.

[@myparceltape1169]

@@davidgillon2762 I can think of someone unable to straighten their knees, they had stopped at 90 degrees. Hence not enough power to walk.

[@davidgcalderone]

I tried the sitting on the bar thing, fell over when I extended my arms. I have no doubt it is harder for him to shoot because of his injury.

[@carlcarlton764]

A question for Budi. In the last episode you said you lack some hand strength. Judging by the size of your biceps you move your wheelchair without the aid of electricity. So all that strength from your upper arm muscles gets transmitted to the wheels by your hands. One would expect above average hand strength. What am I missing? BTW, good job all-around you and the Ersatz-Swiss. 🙂

[@sdivico228]

I did suffer some nerv damage/scaring of my spinal core above the actual fracture which affects the strenght in my left hand and even with intensive training does not let me build up some larger muscle mass in said hand. I manage only about half the strenght in my right hand compared to my left. However, it is enough to function normally with most tasks but gives me some trouble with heavy triggers.

[@davidgillon2762]

Pushing a chair doesn't require grip strength. You can do it by gripping the pushrim, I mostly do, but you can also use pressure from the palm or heel of your hand to transfer force to the pushrim (and we all brake that way), and if you watch wheelchair racers they actually use a punch technique as you can't safely grab the pushrim when it's moving that fast. In general, being a wheelie doesn't mean powerful arms, a lot of us also have some degree of arm disability that limits our ability to add muscle mass, but we can still push fine.

[@lizb7271]

This was very interesting, he drew attention to aspects of shooting I hadn't considered before. I do wonder if an ambulatory wheelchair user would have fewer difficulties.

[@nirfz]

Very interesting, thanks for the insight! The first thing that came to my mind was a sort of belt attachement to hold the upper body to the backrest which could eliminate the need for balancing. (I remember when i was in a rehabilitation hospital after an accident, when the wheelchair basketballers asked me to tightening their belly belts. They had a harder time doing it themselves as i had at least one healthy leg to brace against teh backrest to have enough pulling strength for what they wanted. ->To this day the most brutal sports i personally have seen live. And it was just a "fun" game. Gladly i haven't seen competitive wheelchair rugby live!) But from what was said about the rules i guess such a belt system won't be a usable help. For me as someone with two somewhat healthy legs who has seldom time to visit the range, the only thing i could have seen as an advantage for someone in a wheelchair are the upper arm muscles, not the fact that they are sitting down. My biggest problem is keeping the outstreched arms steady, which would be the same when sitting.😁 But with the need for balancing the upper body, big upper arms will not be an advantage either.

[@davidgillon2762]

*Looks at flabby arm muscles* Definitely not a universal advantage for wheelies! :) Not even when I was using crutches full time for a couple of decades. I suspect my major limitation shooting would also be holding my arms forward, even in Budi's compressed stance, rather than anything else.

[@SuperRonnyo]

Sometimes i get the same response. So I invite them to try-out a session with the same advantages as I have. Then...silence or "yes but, no but".

[@PenDragonsPig-Jam_on_Top]

I can walk, and go up stairs, and crouch, and lift light weights but I have barely enough strength or energy to keep myself upright for very long. I look distinctly very un-disabled.

[@roflchopter11]

Fascinating. Is it much better for those with control of their thighs?

[@refusesack4897]

With LSR in the UK there seems to be a belief that wheelchair bound shooters have an advantage. I do wonder what the truth is.

[@davidgillon2762]

Given the preponderance of arm and shoulder issues among chair users, I suspect it's a lot less obvious than people think.

[@tommystone4563]

I'm in a wheelchair and I still shoot...

[@rickansell661]

Makes a sort of twisted sense that a Paraplegic would shoot well with a Parabellum. :)

[@infinitee3065]

whats the name of the sight glasses

[@BlokeontheRange]

No idea what brand he's using. Probably Knobloch

[@infinitee3065]

@@BlokeontheRange found it they are called International Standard Shooting Glasses Patch Eye Mask Archery Aim Assistance

[@Kvikr_ginnung9921]

That luger though got dman son

[@keithplymale2374]

I admire and respect people who exemplify when life gives you a lemon make the sweetest lemonade they possibly can. Budi is that kind of person. The Second Amendment is for everyone. It does not put any restrictions on "the people" at all. And if you read the original documents from around the time the Constitution was debated, written and enacted "well regulated" refers to the militia's arms and equipment. I have one of the reproduction American Eagle Luger's. I found it to be the most natural pointing and holding pistol or revolver I have ever held. Let's go Brandon! #FJB

[@alwolf2325]

Is that a Yugo accent?

[@BlokeontheRange]

No...

[@alwolf2325]

@@BlokeontheRange Cool, thanks fer answering. He sounds like some of the U.S. Serb/Croat/Bosniak acquaintances of mine and kinda looks like TBH, so I had to ask. All the best from a fellow wheelchair shooter, appreciate yer content.

[@ivanovskyivanovich7860]

Those glasses are hella cool and there should be a link for them

[@onpsxmember]

Those are usually from optometrists that have an own interest in shooting sports. Lots of different setups mostly used in bullseye/olympic style shooting competition. If you wear glasses there are covering attachments to flip up to clamp on the pair you wear and some add it to their cap/visor.

[@maximilianmustermann5763]

These types of glasses are used a lot in .22 lr olympic pistol and rifle competitions, as well as air pistol and air rifle. Depending on the competition rules, you can also add an iris aperture to the right eye which helps a lot with depth of field. I have never seen these glasses in center fire competitions though (here in Germany), because usually you have to wear more protective eye gear with larger calibers. A lot of people still use an eye cover for bullseye shooting with centerfire calibers. One advantage over closing one eye for aiming is that when the cover is transparent/frosted then both your pupils don't open up. If you close one eye in dim lighting conditions, your brain thinks its even darker and opens the other pupil (your aiming eye) even more - bad for depth of field.

[@enormhi]

Does Budi shoot rifles?

[@sdivico228]

Yes I do.

[@peterclarke7240]

"Today we're going to talk about disabled people shooting..." Um... That could've been worded better, Bloke... 🤣