the myth of the "fastest gunslinger" being the best is alive

and well, thanks to tons of Hollywood movies and a dozen

t.v. shows back in the 50's and 60's.

  but "fast" had nothing to do with survival in the Old West.

in fact, the slow and steady shooters were by far the most

deadly (and long-lived) oponents.

  let's consider just two pieces of evidence.

  first, according to Franz Alm, a sheriff in the Yukon Territories

during the gold rush, and the person with the highest tally of

killed men in the Old West, here's what to do:

"Hold the gun with both hands. Aim carefully. Pull the trigger slowly.

 That's how you kill a man."  Source.

   Strange words indeed, if one believes the myth of the

fastest gunslinger: "both hands; carefully; slowly."  But

there you have it.  Not a single word relating to speed

or being first to draw.

   Second, here are the words of Wyatt Earp, of Tombstone

fame.  Earp was, of course, one of the participants at

the infamous gunfight at the O.K. Corral.  Here is his

description of the start of that particular fight:

  "When I saw Billy and Frank draw their pistols,

I drew my pistol.  Billy leveled his pistol at me, but

I did not aim at him.  I knew that Frank had the

reputation of being a good shot and a dangerous man,

and I aimed at him."   Source.

  What??? Are you telling me that one of the legendary

gunfighters of the Old West saw someone was

aiming at him and decided to shoot at someone else?

  Yup... speed to the draw meant nothing.  Accuracy

meant everything.  That's why Earp decided to take

Frank McLowery out of the fight first: he was "a good shot."

Earp survived the fight.  Neither of his opponents did.

  .... of course.... by now you know how this relates

to diving, right?

Small eel in Roatan, Honduras.  I've never would have seen it except that I was going

 very slowly, just drifting by, letting my eyes fall on this and that.

    well, in lots of ways, "fast is last" when it comes to diving.  have

you noticed how slow and deliberate really experienced divers are

in and out of the water?

    first of all, they take their time to set up their gear.  slowly and

carefully they put it all together -- once, the right way.  then, there's

gearing up.  again, they are not in a hurry.  they save their energy.

they don't get winded fighting with a BC. 

    as they enter the water, again they are unhurried.  they have

made sure that their air is on, that they have everything they need.

no shouting to a buddy in the front of the boat to hand them

x, y, or z.

    and in the water?  here's where a good diver really shines.

good divers are slow.  they are not swimming to and fro, spending

all that precious energy.  remember, water is 800 times denser

than air, so every bit of effort costs you energy, and using

energy uses air.

    you've heard it before, but it's true.  you can see more

in ten square feet of reef if you just hang back and relax

than you can see racing up and down 200 feet of reef. 

    so... i guess my (rambling) point is that as divers, it

pays to slow down.  slow and sure is best.  it's not a race

to get into the water, and it's not a race when you're down

there.