Winning D class is like winning the special Olympics I heard one guy say to another once.  LOL

 

Nice!

Finished mine up about an hour ago and just got home. I think I did pretty well for being my first time out. The scores will be posted up in a day or two. I forgot about a target on the last stage, so I ended up with 2 mikes on that one.

Overall I definitely got more alphas than I thought I would have, and it wasn't as stressful as I was expecting either. Everybody was super nice and VERY willing to help and offer advice, so that made the experience more enjoyable. The next match is in October and there is another one just after that as a Toys for Tots fundraiser, so I definitely need more ammo ASAP.

One thing that surprised me was the age of everybody. I was by far the youngest shooter, and they seemed pretty exicted that college kids were out shooting USPSA. Apparently it's an old guy sport here.

Another shooter snapped a few pics for me on the last few stages:

Tactical Turtle!


(Raise your gun to your eyes, don't sink your head to your gun and tense up shoulders.  Be relaxed).

late to the conversation, but $0.02 anyhow.  

- tape targets, reset steel.  nothing makes a match drag like people not helping.  at all.
- if there is any doubt whether a target has been scored, don't tape it.  forced re-shoots because of a prematurely pasted target sucks.
- be social.  most people are happy to explain their equipment, or even let you give it a try after the match, etc.
- you need more mags.   like someone said, malfunctions or strategic reloads will leave you one short.   5 on the belt, one in the gun.   don't take mikes on a stage because you ran out of ammo.

good stage breakdown will improve your standings.  more so than all 'A' hits, i promise.  the way i explain it to new shooters is this - "hit factor" is just points per second.  if you can eliminate a reload, or improve a transition and shave off 2, 5, or even 10 seconds off your time, your hit factor will go up immensely.   for example, you're scoring minor, so 5-3-1.     take a simple 8 round stage.   stage points = 40.   if you shoot all 'A' hits in 10 seconds, you've got a HF of 4.0.   if you sacrifice some 'A' hits for 'C' hits, and trim off 3 seconds, say, for a total of 36 points.    now your hit factor went up to 5.14 - the 'C's, even if they're peripheral and just breaking the perforation didn't hurt you.    that isn't to say that you shouldn't strive for 'A' hits, but don't fret the 'C' hits, either.    'D' hits are bad and hurt your score in a fairly significant way, whether you're shooting major/minor.    (this is a crap example because there isn't much you can do to improve 'stage breakdown' on an 8 round stage, but the math is easy and it demonstrates the point... larger/longer field courses are where a good stage plan can help shave seconds off your time..)

on the topic of stage breakdown..  loading from slidelock sucks.  don't try to game a stage right down to the very last round. frequently it leaves no margin for error and the first missed steel or makeup shot tanks your stage plan.  USPSA stages can only require 8 rounds from any one location/view, so use that to your benefit.   also, don't be afraid to load the +1 from a pocket mag to create an advantage.   generally, if you're moving, you should be reloading.  don't do flat-footed/static reloads.  they're stupid and cost you match standing.   don't go into an 8 round array with 3 rounds in the gun.  (this goes back to "buy more mags").     if you CAN pick up an extra target or 2 with the "extra" rounds without impinging on the rest of the stage breakdown/strategy, then that's a smart move.

know what scoring mode you're in - comstock = shots unlimited, virginia = shots limited.    makeup shots are procedurals in virginia, but sometimes they're worth it in the case of a highly probably success.   for example.
you miss a shot.   you get 0 points for the score, and -10 for the miss.  Essentially you've lost 15 points on your total.    you make up a shot - that's 1 procedural (-10), but with an 'A' hit (+5), you're only down by 5, net.  better than -15.
but..  know when to quit digging.   if you tag a no-shoot, that's a no-shoot (-10), a miss (-10).    another shot adds a procedural (-10) and might incur another no-shoot hit (-10).   that's a quick way to zero out a stage, which brings me to my most crushing failure on a stage, ever...

get your hits.   the fastest time ever won't do diddly if you're missing or tagging no-shoots every other shot.   the stage i am thinking of had 4 no shoots flanking 3 metric targets arrayed like NS-T1-NS-T2-NS-T3-NS creating a 'thread the needle' effect.  the headshots would have been the smart option to minimize the impacts of  misses, but i went for it.   all in, misses, NS, procedurals, my score was so far beyond zero that it was laughable.  lesson...  misses aren't a crime, sometimes you've got to go for the safe shots.

if you get more into it to the point where you're competing/competitive, learn the rules.  knowing the rules and what you can/cannot do, how things are supposed to be scored, etc., will help you in the long term.


good luck with your next match.

 

My head actually isn't really lowered down as much as my shoulders are pulled up. I always make a conscious effort to bring the gun up to my level rather than lowering down to it, and that goes for rifles and shotguns as well.

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He has a red dot 12" over the bore

Figured you'd say that... loook again.


Go watch videos by jerry miculek, max michel, todd jarret, etc.

And stop turtlin.

Controlled pair.

Good for you, OP.

Way to go!  The old guy thing is a constant problem.  A lot of shooters are not the most social of creatures and add in the "stigma" of being a gun owner means they don't often talk about what they do at work or invite others out so we only get newbies by accident.

I try to make a conscious effort to invite new shooters of any age out and especially try to get the younger shooters (men and women) involved.

Don't shoot the white guy

 

Post them here if you dont mind

How do yall practice shooting quickly and accurately? What kinds of drills can I do at home that will help get better at that? I can shoot quickly, and I can shoot accurately, but when I put the two together, my shots get a little squirrely.

Complete bullshit

 

Lots of dry firing and shooting matches. The speed will come. Focus on the front sight & shooting only "A's"

There was nothing at all like that. You just drew and shot like normal. That's it.

What live fire stuff can I do that will help? Is there anything specifc to do or focus on that will help?

My favorite is the "Bill Drill" & "El Prez". A Steel challenge match will also let you know if you're pushing to much.

The classifier at the one I shot was exactly that.

I'm not a member of any clubs. I just shoot on my land.

There were a few steel targets mixed in with the paper, and I felt like I did better on those. I normally shoot steel, so I guess I was just used to that or something. The classifier was a derivation of an el presidente drill, but it involved shooting it once with strong hand and once with weak hand as well. Never tried a bill drill before, so I'll give it a try this week.

The first stage I shot was tough. I had never shot a Texas Star before, so that turned into a quick lesson on shooting a moving target.

The only club around that holds matches is this one I shot USPSA at, and they only do it once a month unfortunately. Each week is something different--the other three weeks are steel challenge (except its rimfire only), IDPA, and cowboy action.

 

I will when my new debit card comes back. Screw you, home depot.

I'm sure Bens stuff is GOOD! I come from a different era Robbie & Jerry VHS tapes

Did the other shooters help you or let you earn your stripes Engage the Star top- bottom , not bottom to top.

He told me, but as soon as the buzzer went off, I forgot everything he said and just started blasting anything white and metal. I started with the top, then shot the rest in some random order. The last two were swinging like a pendulum, and those took about 8 shots to finish off.

 

When playing MD, I put the T-star in front of the PP-rack

ORSA?

Edit:  yep, I was there too. Squad 3 I believe.  Hope you had a good time and that you come back.

Yup, I was in Squad 1 with the other new guy (that 7' asian with hair down to his back).

I'll be back next month for the club match and the T4T match as well.

I've shot with a guy named Sturdivant who I think shoots at ORSA.  That guy is a baller.

Gotcha. I remember seeing that guy in the staging area. Pm me if you guys want to squad up next month.   We should be there given the UT game is away.

Agreed,  Paul's (sturdivant) a good shooter. I got squaded with him my prior 2 or 3 matches this year.  ORSA has several good shooters at that level.