Sometimes it starts while you are waiting on station to begin your round. Possibly stepping into the box on the first or last field initiates it. For others, it may be constant during a tournament from start to finish.Attending a Zone shoot one weekend, a State shoot the next—re-packing—then attending another distant tournament, I see many familiar faces. There’s something else that is very familiar at competitions, regardless of sport, location or skill level.Body language, facial expressions and general commentary all reflect the fact that today is the day. Everyone has their game face on. This is serious. Every target counts and scores will be posted on the master score board later. For many of us, the atmosphere around us turns electric the split second our tires roll onto the tournament grounds. We are glad to be here or we wouldn’t have come. But the hard realization that our skills, patience and a host of emotions will soon be tested, often produces a well spring of palpable uneasiness.There are multiple causes of this phenomenon, and the degree of affect it has on the individual varies from person to person. I thought we could look at some of the causes and … Read the rest