Arrogance
The bigest lesson I ever learned in my life has stuck with me almost on a daily basis!
I used to be on a firearms team, and had an additional skill of being a sniper. (Rifleman). As well as normal AFO duties, I was on this small team. I was a good shot, loved the gentlemans sport of being on a point 400m from a target, working out my elevation and windage, and had recently done very well on a national rifle course. (Top shot!). Things were good, I was confident. Ha! read over confident!!
Not long after my national course, I went for a normal sunday training day. I was going through a bit of a shitty divorce at the time, and was feeling a bit grouchy that day.
'Today's discipline is principles of marksmanship'
'Oh, FFS, I can do this in my sleep .... body alignment, breathing.....eye relief...' Arrogantly, I struted about, still a bit tetchy and being generally cocky I suppose.
There is a strict discipline on a range, how you carry your weapon, how you walk with it, I was arogant and casual.
At the end of the shoot, I was called into the office and give a file note for my attitude and my weapon handling. I was gob smacked, It hit me like a train, Me!! A file note!!
About a week later, I was on another shoot. It was a rifle training day, animal destruction. The range was split in two, lanes 1-4 for one pair, and 5-8 for the other pair. Different animals would pop up at different distances and depending on what they were, dictated who took the shot. I had a pump action shot gun, my partner had a 7.62.
We were only to take on what was in our lane (5-8).
The command was given -'Watch and react, watch and react' after a pause a target turned, I can't remember what animal it was now, but it was mine - and in a jiffy I'd shot it straight through the hart from 30 metres. But so did the two guys on my left?? Why are they shooting? Oh feck, it's not my lane! It wasn't my target to take on ..
Because of my oblique angle, I'd shot straight through the card animal into the range wall rather than the rubber backstop.
Two days later I was in the office with my sgt and inspector. My permit was pulled, and I was suspended from firearms duties. I was one of the best shots in the whole garage, and here I was with the rug pulled from under my feet.
I was in tears! (Not in the office of course
) I felt as though my world had fallen apart. The whispering went round the garage like wild fire. 'Have you heard? Giles has lost his permit..' 'Feck..'.
I had a couple of weeks off, and had to re classify to get my permit back. During that time, I could barely lift my head up. I was
so gutted - gutted with with myself really. You arrogant, arrogant w4nker!!
Many many years later, I often think of that terrible time, and in particular, I think of it when things are going well, and i'm feeling good! And you know, I wouldn't change a thing about what happened, it was a brilliant lesson in overconfidence and arrogance and it was one of the best lessons I've ever learned in my life.
Now, when the roads are dry, I'm feeling confident, tyres are warm, maybe I'm out with the blokes, I always,
always!! pause, and bring myself back down a bit!!
'Go on, you go up front - I'll sit at the back for a bit....'