Classifier questions for first match.

[calebj06]

So my first uspsa match is Saturday. Just found out that out of 7 stages 2 of them will be classifiers!!  Sweet. So I went ahead and got my membership and I'm ready to go.

 

the two classifiers are "tick tock" and "lightning and thunder" 

 

can anyone give give me some tips on these two stages?  I read the discription and will watch some videos as well. Just wanting some input from here on the boards. 

 

Thanks 

caleb

 

[Trent1k1]

Treat both of these like regular stages.  If you get all nervous because they are classifiers you are screwed mentally.  Just can't have Mike's and noshoots on classifiers.  Given that it is your first 2, you have nothing to lose.

 

Tick Tock.  Go as fast as you can see your sights.  Draw one one of the open targets.  You do need a little speed, but on the noshoot target make sure more than anything that you have 2 good shots.

 

Lightning and thunder. 5 second par time.  If you have a 1.5 second draw, that gives you 3.5 seconds for the other 5 shots (.75 per aimed shot)

 

Aim.  If you go too fast, you will miss and drop points or Mike.  Patience for a good sight picture and good trigger pull at the 25 yard range.  2nd string, make sure you hit your reload.  Need to be a little quicker on this string, but not crazy fast.  1.5 second draw, 1.5 second reload only leave 2 seconds for the 4 remaining targets.  Still, .5 seconds at 10 yards is pretty doable

 

3rd string, strong hand only.  Spend a little time dryfire and making sure you get a good grip with only your strong hand and good sight alignment without your weak hand to correct the grip.  Good trigger pull without yanking.  On strong and weak hand shots, I concentrate on not putting too much of my finger through the trigger guard which is a good way to pull to the side.

 

Relax and have fun.

[calebj06]

Thx Trent. So far on the videos of lightning and thunder no one has gotten through the reload on the second set before the buzzer.  That should be an interesting one. 

 

Oh oh and the strong hand will be interesting with a red dot (CO). I've never practiced one hand shooting. 

[Trent1k1]

oh, red dots...

 

You MUST dryfire with a red dot (in CO or Open).  We will do weird start positions, weird shooting positions and if you haven't practiced the perfect grip and finding the dot we will all know as you will be doing the "dolphin" with the gun looking for it.

 

I practice on a pretty regular basis:

1. Relaxed hand draw (2 hands, Strong hand and draw to weak hand)

2. Surrender draw

3. Draw and squat down for low ports

4. Draw and lean around a barricade (wall) both left and right sides

5. Freestyle, reload, back to freestyle (most common occurrence so needs to be rock solid)

6. Reload from Freestyle then transfer to weak hand

7. Hands on barrel or table, then draw

8. Hands on wall at eye level in front of you, then draw

9. Hands on wall to either side

10. Draw while running 2-3 steps to the front, the side, going backwards.

 

Dots are fun but you will need to put more work into getting a perfect grip (which helps regardless) so you can find your dot.  I have found that while leaning around a wall, if I don't extend the gun, I loose the dot.  See if while you are trying to work through all of this if that helps (extend your arms)

 

Welcome to the fun!

 

[Ck867]

I would mention that with 5 second par times, you have a lot more time then you think. When I first started, I would blast off rounds and finish in less than 3 seconds when it just wasn't necessary and have terrible hits.

[MikeBurgess]

On fixed time stages (Lightning and Thunder) concentrate on good hits, remember 1 A is worth more than 2 D also at minor,  more than 1C+1D, so AIM! 

also remember in fixed time there is no penalty for misses (think shots not taken) so on string 2 having 3 good hits and not even trying to reload is better than rushing 3 bad shots and trying to get the reload done so you can make 3 more bad shots. its all about what YOU can do in the time allotted, don't worry about what the other shooters on your squad did or say they will do, just shoot what your sights tell you you can.

[motosapiens]

it is very worth setting your par timer for 5 seconds and dry-firing lightning and thunder to figure out how much time you have to shoot given your current skill at draws and reloads. It can also improve your draw and reload times, and that can't be a bad thing. But mostly..... ignore the classification thing and just shoot. Worry about everything else.

[Eureka1911]

I'm shooting my first match in a very long time this Sunday. All I am focused on is being safe and not being DQ'd. Have some fun, don't worry about where you finish, how fast you shot, classifiers, etc.  The two things to focus on are having fun and being safe!! Shooting competitively is a journey, not a destination. Slow down and smell the gunsmoke!!

 

[jnkill]

On 4/13/2017 at 10:18 PM, Trent1k1 said:

Treat both of these like regular stages.  If you get all nervous because they are classifiers you are screwed mentally.  Just can't have Mike's and noshoots on classifiers.  Given that it is your first 2, you have nothing to lose.

 

Tick Tock.  Go as fast as you can see your sights.  Draw one one of the open targets.  You do need a little speed, but on the noshoot target make sure more than anything that you have 2 good shots.

 

Lightning and thunder. 5 second par time.  If you have a 1.5 second draw, that gives you 3.5 seconds for the other 5 shots (.75 per aimed shot)

 

Aim.  If you go too fast, you will miss and drop points or Mike.  Patience for a good sight picture and good trigger pull at the 25 yard range.  2nd string, make sure you hit your reload.  Need to be a little quicker on this string, but not crazy fast.  1.5 second draw, 1.5 second reload only leave 2 seconds for the 4 remaining targets.  Still, .5 seconds at 10 yards is pretty doable

 

3rd string, strong hand only.  Spend a little time dryfire and making sure you get a good grip with only your strong hand and good sight alignment without your weak hand to correct the grip.  Good trigger pull without yanking.  On strong and weak hand shots, I concentrate on not putting too much of my finger through the trigger guard which is a good way to pull to the side.

 

Relax and have fun.

Trent’s right, don’t get all worked up over classifiers or they will get the better of you. I shoot every week with Trent and “try” to apply his advice whenever he gives it, doesn’t always work(me not him) lol

[Part_time_redneck]

^^^^^^^^^ See above. Classifiers are just another stage. Don't give them any more or less respect than you give the other stages. Also don't worry about what the other guys do, just play your game and do the best you can.  Job #1 - be safe. 

 

IMO the classification system does a pretty good job of unmasking skill level. Some stages are skewed a bit one way or the other but they balance out. As your skill set improves your future classifiers will reflect