An Oasis of Sunshine For Shooting

As I headed west on Sunday morning for the November North Mountain Practical Shooters match I was wondering if I'd be able to find the targets once I arrived. The fog was dense, making driving difficult. As I crossed the mountains, suddenly the sky cleared and the sun shown brightly. Ironically, this change happened at the part of the drive where I usually run into rain, even on sunny day. The weather at the range sunny and warm for most of the morning.

The match directors put together a fun seven stage event, including four classifier stages. All the classifiers were newly added to the USPSA ranking system this year. But first up, was a non-classifier steel stage featuring a Texas Star and 5 small square plates arranged in a wall made from a wooden pallet. In an interesting twist, the shooting box was divided diagonally, and the shooter was required to move between sections between the star and the plates. It wasn't a large movement, but just enough to distract.

The next two stages were classifiers, and both required a break from the "2 on each" mindset we're so used to. "The Roscoe Rattle" consisted of two strings of fire. The first string required 6 hits on the center target, and the second string called for 6 hits on the outer targets with a mandatory reload between. "Too Close For Comfort," required just a single shot on each of 5 targets, one with a deceptively close head shot, followed by a mandatory reload and one more shot on each target. I started out too fast on this one and got my only miss of the match on the first target.

After those "stand and shoot" stages, it was time for the only stage requiring substantial movement. After shooting a plate rack, you had to run forward, up a slight incline to engage four paper targets set low to the ground. I found it interesting that some shooters opted to take one procedural penalty and shoot all the targets from the first position, rather than take the time for the 7 yard or so run.

We returned to the classifiers with "Disaster Factor." Six targets were arranged in three vertical pairs with no-shoots in the center. Starting facing up range, the shooter had to turn and put two shots on each target of either the bottom or top row, perform a mandatory reload and engage the remaining targets. "Double Deal 2" saw the shooter sitting with elbows on the table, holding two "playing cards," and the loaded gun set on the table. There were three paper and two mini-popper targets to be engaged.

The last stage I shot was another quick stage with just two paper and three steel targets. The steel targets were a classic pepper popper, a mini-popper and a 6 inch falling plate that were lined up behind one another. For added challenge, the shooting box was exceptionally small which made a standard shooting stance difficult.

All seven stages were completed in less than three hours. The new classifier stages are fun and challenging, as were the rest of the stages. Amazingly, soon after I left the range, the clouds and fog returned, making for a wet drive home. Indeed, the rest of the day was overcast. If I had not gone to the match I wouldn't have seen any sunshine at all on Sunday, so the brief weather change to a sunny morning was an added bonus. I was happy with my shooting, having just one miss and one no-shoot hit. The match was a lot of fun, and a great way to end the season of shooting at North Mountain.

North Mountain Halloween Match

There was "frost on the pumpkin" when I stepped out of my car at the North Mountain parking area for their October USPSA match last Sunday. Shiver! It was my first frost sighting of the season, and I'm really not ready for Winter, but fortunately the sun warmed things up quickly. As I glanced over at the range I could see that match directors Dan and Elaine were in a Halloween mood. Spider webs, goblins and pumpkins were the order of the day.

The first stage I shot was a "memory stage," consisting of 10 USPSA targets. After a bit of study, the challenge proved to be fairly straight forward, as long as you had your plan well in hand. For a Production shooter the stage was balanced with 5 targets engaged from two shooting positions, just don't forget any targets.

The next stage was not so Production friendly. With a minimum of 22 rounds needed, the options were to shoot from three positions, or engage all the targets from just two positions and do (at least) one standing reload. It was a interesting choice, on a fun stage. The steel plate "pumpkins" where perched above no-shoot "goblins."

Next up was an interestingly themed stage that had two shooting boxes. From the first box, the "pumpkin" plate rack was engaged. Moving forward to a second shooting box there were four paper targets guarded by two frowning ghosts. The fun, or evil part, depending on your point of view, is the targets were marked with black "spider webs." And those black areas were hard cover, meaning a hit in the black counted as a miss. 

The next stage had three "tunnels" through which we engaged the target arrays. The portals were placed such that we had to merely stoop for two of them, and the large middle obstacle required a deep squat or kneel to engage the targets. The first group had two paper and a steel popper shot through the open-ended barrel laid on it's side. After completing the end array, you moved to the middle tunnel which was a large black drain pipe set on the ground. Two pepper poppers were engaged which released two swinging paper targets. Shooting the steel and swingers from a knee was only part of the challenge — I had to then get back up in order move to the next position!

The final stage was the classifier, CM 98-03, "Six." This stage provided a fast finish to the match. Two on paper, a pepper popper and smaller US popper, followed by two more shots on paper. Three or four seconds and it's all over, for better or worse.

The November North Mountain match provided courses of fire that were fun to shoot and fun to look at. Kudos to the match directors for their time and imagination in setting up a seasonally themed shooting event.

North Mountain USPSA Match

It was still dark when the alarm went off Sunday morning. I could hear the sound of heavy rain falling, and I was sorely tempted to roll over and go back to sleep. But, I was signed up for the North Mountain Practical Shooters match, and if they were going to hold it, I was going to be there. When I arrived at the "apple orchard," the rain was light but steady. Fortunately, by the time we were shooting, the rainfall was intermittent, but frequent enough to require the targets remain covered with plastic bags.

In deference to the expected wet weather, five simple, but quite fun, stages were set up. Movement on the wet grass was kept to a minimum with the stages all shot from single or multiple shooting boxes. The first stage had three paper targets, backed or partially covered by no-shoots, and two US Poppers. It was a good, quick stage to get warmed up on. Next we moved to Stage 2, which consisted of 3 shooting boxes. From the first box, engage three paper and 2 Pepper Poppers; move to the next box and knock down three round plates; the final shooting position had three Pepper Poppers and two paper targets.

Strong-hand and weak-hand shooting came into play on Stage 3. The first string required one round on each of four targets, a mandatory reload, followed by four strong-hand only shots. String 2, from a closer box was a repeat with weak-hand shots after the reload. I had my only miss of the match when I pushed my last strong-hand only shot low, and my only D hit was on this stage as well.

Stage 4 was the largest course of the match. Starting from a box in the center, the shooter saw three paper targets and one US Popper to engage. One of the paper targets presented only the small "head" area. The shooter then moved to either end to enter another box, in my case the left side. There were four targets there, two on either side of a barricade. Then it was quick sprint to the opposite end and four more targets with a wall acting as a vision barrier between the two pairs.

The last stage was the Classifier CM 06-05, "Fluffy's Revenge 2." I felt I shot this one at a good tempo. Alas, I had Alpha-Charlie hits on all three paper targets, but needed no makeup shots on the steel. It wasn't my highest classifier score, but should still work out a bit above my current average.

Overall, I was very pleased with my shooting this day. I've been getting in some good practice lately, focusing on a harder support-hand grip and I think it paid off with better accuracy in this match. The event was a lot of fun and we finished shooting in about 2 1/2 hours. The cool temperature and cloud cover made for pleasant shooting.

It's been quite a while since I've been able to get to a North Mountain match. In fact, I last shot there in September 2012. After shooting this weekend, I'm reminded how much fun the matches are. I need to get back soon.

North Mountain Practical Shooters Match

I finally made it back to North Mountain for their monthly USPSA match last weekend. The last time I was there was when I had the knee blowout, but the long absence had little to do with my knee troubles, and everything to do with free time.

The first stage our squad shot had four steel poppers, three static targets and two swingers. The moving targets where activated by hitting the larger steel poppers. It may have been me, but those swingers seemed to be moving extra fast! Interestingly, the three static paper targets had only the head portion exposed; the rest of the target hidden behind a sheet of black plastic. The plastic was deemed soft cover, which meant you could either carefully aim for the visible head, or shoot where you figured the A zone on the target was. I believe everyone on my squad went for the "educated guess" shot.

The next stage included the dreaded Texas Star, which makes a regular appearance at North Mountain. It's also something I obviously never get to practice on. I was very happy to clear it, I believe, in 8 shots. In any event, I think it's the first time I've ever cleared a Texas Star without making a standing reload. Unfortunately I also hit a no-shoot target on this stage. However I did see it, and got off a makeup shot so I earned only the no-shoot penalty and not a miss on top of it.

Next up was a stage with a low-to-the ground plate rack and 4 "classic" (or turtle) targets. A mandatory reload was required between the steel and paper arrays. It took me a number of extra shots to knock over the plates. (There's this thing called the front site that was eluding me.)

The next stage also used the "classic" target and put our strong hand and week hand skills to use. I actually like shooting these types of stages. I do practice shooting one-handed frequently as I feel it's an important skill; both for competition and self-defense. Two strings were required on this course of fire. Shoot one array, a single hit on each target, then a mandatory reload, finishing with strong hand only hits on the remaining array. The next string made use of the weak hand. Obviously we all chose the closer array for our one handed strings.

The final stage was the classifier "Mini-Mart." Since I had already claimed a no-shoot earlier in the match, and this stage would not count for me as a Classifier since I had just shot it in August, I decided I would go for broke and shoot it as fast as I could. I didn't get a good grip on the gun at first, but had a really good run nonetheless, with 11 A's and 1 D. It looks like it would have been a low "B" classifier, instead of the low "C" I fumbled through last month. It's a bittersweet run since it won't count for my classifiers, but it was certainly satisfying to shoot the stage well.

I ended up 5th out of 15 Production shooters. But what was most exciting for me was that I hit 86.82% of the match points, 89.18% before the NS penalty. That's a personal high for this year. Overall it was probably one of the best matches I've had all season. After shooting the match, I recall just how enjoyable the North Mountain matches are. Match Directors Dan and Elaine put on fun matches and always manage to fit five interesting stages into a small space. (Photos of four of the stages are here.) North Mountain is unique, among the places I shoot, in that there's grass on the ground, rather than dirt or stone, and it always seems just a bit cooler there. It's a couple hours travel each way, with a stop for coffee, but the trip is pleasant and easy. Cranking up the 80's satellite radio station made the drive time pass even quicker. I was even home in time to get in some chores before relaxing with a refreshing post-match pint of Starr Hill Jomo Lager.

There's that star! And the No Shoot.

KGAS Labor Day Match

The newly formed King George Action Shooters held their first USPSA-style match at the Northern Virginia Gun Club on Labor Day, September 3. The match served as an introduction to the club members to the sport, and to show how these events could benefit NVGC members. Even as a non-sanctioned match, it was a good opportunity to get in some fun practice, and to support the new club. I had just participated in the Fredericksburg USPSA match the day before, but I sure wasn't complaining about shooting again so soon.

Sixteen shooters showed up, despite the threat of rain in the forecast. Everyone pitched in to help set up the four stages in two of the gun clubs' new pistol bays. After a safety and rule briefing we got down to shooting. Most of the shooters were new to the sport. We all shot in one large squad in order to best accommodate the many new shooters. Fortunately the rain held off for most of the match, with just a few intermittent showers.

I enjoyed the stages put together for the match. The first stage, "Fore!," had 6 paper targets and three small steel poppers. With three walls strategically placed, the short stage offered a quite a variety of options for the shooter. The next stage was the "classic" El Presidente, taken from the USPSA classifiers.

"Fore!

We moved to the next bay for "House of Barrels." This course of fire incorporated the Cowboy Action prop house. We started seated in the house, emerging to engage the first eight targets well-hidden among a line of barrels. Four more paper targets and a steel popper where waiting at the end. This was a fun stage as it offered the opportunity to move fast and still get off some narrow shots. I was pleased with my performance on this stage, even though I ended up with one miss. The last stage was another one taken from the USPSA classifier book, "3-V." I should have done well on this stage, I've gotten better at shooting around barricades, but alas, after the mandatory reload I ended missing the next target.

"House of Barrels"

After the match I realized I have some work to do on my reloading skills. All of my misses were immediately after a mag change. That tells me I need to take better care to recover the grip on the gun before shooting again. Interestingly, at the class a couple weeks ago I heard the instructor telling another student to take a brief moment to refocus after the reload. I've been doing a lot of mag change practice in dry fire, and I think it's helping, so perhaps it's time to focus now on the followup shots.

This was an enjoyable match and I'm glad I got the opportunity to go, and to learn from it. It was fun to shoot with friends, as well as to meet some new folks. I spent a lot of time talking with the new shooters about USPSA and IDPA, and shooting in general. I hope they'll continue to participate in USPSA matches after this introduction.

This is a great venue with new deep, and high bays, with close in parking. Dan and Elaine Chandler who run the matches at North Mountain Practical Shooters generously brought the steel targets that were used. And major kudos go out to Alex Melnichak who spearheaded the drive to bring USPSA to the club and worked tirelessly to organize this match. I wish Alex much success with his efforts and look forward to seeing many more matches put on by King George Action Shooters in the future.

Internal Derangement & Degeneration

Subtitle: Growing old isn't for sissies.

Last weekend I participated in the monthly USPSA match held by North Mountain Practical Shooters. I was looking forward to the match as I haven't been able to shoot in a match since the July 3 Fredericksburg event. This match would also be the last chance to practice before the USPSA Area 8 Sectional next month.

The afternoon started out with some light rain, but later the sun came out making for a warm, humid day. Personally, I would have been happy with the cloud cover and light rain! I started out a little slow, racking up some no-shoots and misses early on. I eventually got into my groove and was happy with how I was shooting. The highlight of the day was a good run on the classifier stage. After some disappointing classifiers the past couple of matches, I was pleased to shoot well on this one. I finished 8th out of 22 Production shooters on that stage, and I think my score will boost my classification average slightly. I ended finishing three stages in the top 10, but that's not what I remember most from this match.

On the last stage of the match, after engaging the first couple of targets, I was leaning way out to see around the wall when my left knee suddenly gave out, and down I went. I managed to get back up, but was feeling a lot of pain and my knee felt like it might give out again. I waved to the R.O. and "surrendered." What a way to end the match.

I was looking forward to shooting that particular stage and had asked a squad mate to record me, so I did get a video of the incident. Trying to see a good side to this non-finish, I was pleased to see that I maintained a safe posture at all times. My finger came off the trigger and the muzzle remained pointed downrange. It is very satisfying to see something we practice kick in subconsciously.

I can't say enough about my squad mates that afternoon. Everyone was very helpful in getting me to my chair, providing an ice pack, helping me stow my gear safely, and even bringing my car down from the parking area. Walking was quite difficult and all the assistance got me on the road back home.

Almost a week later, I'm still feeling some pain, and the knee is unstable. The primary diagnosis was labeled "internal derangement." Initial results from x-rays and an MRI show no obvious tears to ligaments or cartilage, which is a good thing. I'm told there is some "degeneration." I will be seeing an Orthopedist soon, and am hoping for some good news on treatment.

Oh yea, that Area 8 match coming up next week? I'm still hopeful that I can participate, but am taking one day at a time. I certainly don't want a repeat of the fall or the pain of last week.

April Shooting Thoughts

As alluded to several times recently, I've been anxiously awaiting the start of USPSA matches this Spring. One of the main reasons is this will be my first full year of matches. I "discovered" USPSA last July after shooting a few IDPA and steel matches. My main accomplishment last year was figuring out the rules, and getting my nerves under control. While the latter will never be conquered totally (nor should it) this year I intend to focus on improving specific skills, and at the same time learning how to better plan my strategy. I'm still new at this game; sharing some highlights here will help me to track my progress.

The month started off with the season opening match at Fredericksburg Practical Shooters. I helped set up the match the morning before, which was actually a very enlightening experience. Sure, I got to see the workings of the mind of the match director as he strove to place targets and barricades just right to force the shooter to move and to really think about how the stage should be shot. It gave me some things to think about as I figured out my own strategy of attack.

Next up, the monthly match at Black Creek Steel Shooters in Richmond. There's just something extra fun about shooting at static and falling steel. The immediate feedback is also a great training tool. It forces you to really focus on aiming and trigger control. On paper you might score fewer points for being off just slightly; on steel you may simply miss the target all together. One of my meager attempts is shown in comparison with better shooters here in a video made by another competitor. In a rare treat, Colleen was able to come along to this match and video my shooting. Watching those videos pointed out a number of things I can work to improve, which is great. But even better was having her along for the day!

My final match in April was the highlight of the month for me. The match at North Mountain Practical Shooters was one where things just seemed to flow well. I shot a lot of A's, with just two misses the entire match. I think I scored my second highest percentage ever on a classifier stage. I also had my best finish to date in a match, even finishing one stage 5th out of 15 shooters in my division. There were things I could have done better, sure, and I will next time. Overall, a very, very fun match.

Next month I'm participating in the VA/MD 2011 Section Championship, held right here in Fredericksburg. I'll get in a few more practice matches before then. I'm looking forward to testing myself on the same course of fire with a large cadre of expert and more experienced shooters.

And, if you see me at any local matches, be sure so say "hi." Look for the shooter in the craft beer t-shirt.