shoot

I love my lined shower cap. Got it at a kmart i do believe for a buck. the lined shower cap is worth the extra 25 cents. I remember laughing and having some fun with a pal that used one the first day of a wet nationals. My cmore looked like a sunset thus the joke was on me as he cleaned his dry cmore. I had a lined shower cap by the next rainy day of shooting. Hurry because they may be out of blue. Racing faded red works well also.

I wonder who will be desiging the stages this year? Correct me if I'm wrong but Russell is not doing the stage design. It could be very interesting.

Thank you everyone for a great match. The Stages were awsome to say the least. I only wish that we could have Ray oversee and pick the setup crew to put stages like this for Nationals ... from design to ground. Nationals deserve the best stages. I just hope at least some of the Stages at Nationals next year can be of this quality. It realy would make the next champion do some thinking outside the box. USPSA Champion should be challenged in this way to say he or she is the best. The Nationals deserve stages that are so imaginative it is just simply not only amazing but inspiring to us stage designer wannabe's to see the different combinations and variety of ways to shoot them. Don't get me wrong the National stages were good this year but linear and limited. Nothing requiring this degree of imagination. Ray and his crew have ways of truly making your mind frey at the variety of ways to shoot. Only one way will be the fastest for a particular shooters strengths. It's not only fun to shoot but it is just darn fun to watch. Nationals need a series of high quality stages like this. The best deserve the best and it would take a great shooter with a lot of imagination to find the best way through it's tangled web of combinations.

Trapping a handgun outside the course of fire Created: 9/14/11 Effective:9/21/11 Rule Number:10.5.14 App 3 Question: If my handgun becomes dislodged outside the course of fire, can I trap it so it does not fall to the ground without being disqualified? Answer: If a competitor's gun is partially dislodged from his holster while outside a COF, and the competitor "traps" the gun in the holster (trigger not exposed), he may do so without penalty. The competitor should immediately proceed to a safety area and address any necessary equipment issues. If the competitor's gun has left the holster (trigger is exposed), the gun must be treated as dropped. Even if the competitor is able to "trap" the gun before it falls to the ground, he must safely and securely lower the gun to the ground in accordance with 10.5.3.1 and call for an RO to safely retrieve it as per 10.5.14. Note that drawing and/or handling a firearm outside a safety area remain prohibited actions subject to DQ per 10.5.1 http://www.uspsa.org/uspsa-NROI-ruling-details.php?indx=50 The ruling will be in effect for the Limited and Production of the back to back nationals but not to the open,limited 10 and Revolver?

Rick Hebert Firearms out of Parker Colorado has built several guns for me. http://rickhebert.com/welcome.html I have had good experience with his work and recommend highly.

+1! ++1 PASA plus Ray and the great staff of seasoned veteran workers that flock to his side to make those stages from paper to ground a reality is simply amazing. POLO has a hard act to follow. I would vote PASA but more so for Ray because when he designes the stages I know it will be a WOW experience to shoot.

Buggins purchased at the local k-mart is what worked last year for me. Deet-free Vanilla Mint & Rose Don't forget the Tick spray on the ankles. The little buggers are famous at PASA just like the Gnats but at least they don't fly in your nose and eyes at the make ready. Buggins is simply amazing as you just forget about them other than watching the poor folk swatting helplessly. It does make everything kinda smell vanilla minty. Rain doesn't seem to slow the gnats down much at all in case you were wondering. If they are out of Buggins at K-mart just ask around and bum some off the first RO you see. They all know. There are some other products but Vanilla is the key Shoot

We have a lot of SS shooters and miscellaneous division shooters that remain loyal to SS. Friends here in the St. Louis region that will have no chance at a slot. 4 slot's mo and 4 slot's IL . I am telling those that ask that where they may have heard in the past it was not an issue to wait this year will be dependent upon a short window. An extra day or not decision will be very tough. I think getting the applications out quickly will be the key. I plan on handing out the applications and telling them now or never. This is going to be a great match to participate in no matter what division or even discipline you shoot in the rest of the year.

2 cents Changing from high mount to 90 degree take's some getting use to. I can see exactly what people in this thread find problematic. Positive Going from open to iron sights and then back again is not an issue with 90 degree. If you shoot steel matches with a minor and then ipsc major the 90 degree does not require sight in. Hosing close head shot A's does not require thinking ... ie aim high etc. It is flat . I'm a righty with left eye dominance so open is my favorite but I have noticed both eyes open is not an issue except once in a while around a baracade (for me left side)or weak hand that it take's some getting use to and requires a iron sight type effort (squint) or I'll get a left eye full of custom gun work mount. I hate cross dominance. oh well. Single stack, production and limited are also just too much fun thus with a 90 degree mount I no longer even hesitate to grab whatever and compete. POA is the same so it's much more natural transition . With a high mount it was a problem for me. It took a lot of effort but more so to go from iron back to open. ie after single stack classic etc. I tried a 90 degree mount as a backup and found that going back and forth from 90 to high is a nightmare. Just like jumping back and forth from iron to open use to be. Thus I have 90 on my backup and primary open guns and don't need to sight in major to minor and I'm more confident about shooting both iron or dot in same weekend if need be. Thus I love 90 and will never go back. learning to love curve is a little rough if you have a love now of the high mount. I'd never have changed if all I shoot was open major and never shot iron.

What are the chances the 2 day format might be extended to a 3 day and an additional 100 or so shooters be added if there appears to be record number of shooters applying. I'm just anticipating a lot of interest compared to previous years with the anniversary etc. Even now a lot of my friends are finding little or no opportunity for the few slots available in our area. At a couple local match's this past weekend there was a little panic for some very good shooters that have shot it year after year in the past.

2 cents: The 90 degree mount makes it almost a seamless fun transition. open to iron

Looks like at least in 2011 staff shoots the 12th then work the next two days up to 200 shooters. I just didn't figure they would do the slots this year and wondered how it might affect the staff shooting the match. My understanding is it will be made almost impossible even with an earned spot to shoot/work the match after this year. Only one shooter even bothered to shoot the extremely limited RO match at the back to back Nationals. I just feel the terrific people that shoot and work SS nationals is what shooting at it's best is all about. It's also a great way to break things and game up the stages to find the issues early if you know what I mean.

What about CRO's and RO's that shoot SS. From my understanding you won't be able to do both after this year? I hope this isn't the case. It's almost a tradition to put up or have the rebuild performed (open/lim etc)while dragging out the old SS once a year. It will be sad to see the staff that love SS change so dramatically.

2 cents: Another prize table . There were plenty of helpers turned away. I wanted to help work the prize table as well as a few of my friends. I also shot open/lim10 and worked LPR . I was signed up to help but was turned away as not needed. That said for the prize table wannabe crew even though being all dressed up for the occasion in spiffy shirts after a frantic last stage and a quick shower we were turned away because there was just too much help for a single table. I had looked forward to picking up my gun at the the nationals prize table for years but gave up on ever getting to it for a trinket. My idea for the future would be for 2 prize tables. For lack of a better word the also shot group. There was plenty of help willing and able to make it happen. I would have liked a token prize but waiting for that long was very painful. The prizes for that second table were already separated out. We all knew what awaited us. Not scraps but you know the drill .. the lower level prizes. It would have made this thread much more up beat as well as gotten us maybe next year group a trinket for their efforts.

I would put airsoft right with 22lr. Both will murder your first couple stages if not careful. That said both are fun and help channel pre-match tension but grip technique is easy to lax up on and get sloppy when recoil moves sights and your rhythm is light speed. I like airsoft for draw speed times. (including off table, turn and draw etc) things that translate well. Movement and first entry A zone shot times. It's fun but the price you pay is the 1st stage when your adrenalin is churning and you have used improper technique but got away with it. Delusional is how I would compare airsoft speed to a real stage speed. Reality check can be harsh. But it is a hoot. I have airsoft and 22lr conversions for every gun. I set up stages and work on technique paying maximum attention to detail but have been burned many times trying to translate into the real deal.

I learned to get gun running well prior to season or it can be a nasty year. A good gun smith is critical or your going to be miserable with death jams. (2 broken slides primary and backup... finally got guns back day before nat's) ie 3 gunsmiths later not fixing issue... Guns go back to a master gun smith (Thanks Rick Hebert Firearms you saved the day) Airsoft practice will get you in trouble. Big time ... Speed of airsoft does not translate well to nationals so when you get your guns finally running it's a good idea to slow the heck down the first couple stages. Main thing I learned is that it's a marathon. Shooting fast A's amongst the forest of no-shoots and hard cover means having sight's on as you break the shot. That means every shot. Sounds like a no brainer but not being in Kansas any more with Todo it's easy to 0 an early stage.. too easy. Especially that first day. I'm not talking about trigger freeze it's a matter of calling the shots threading the needle. ugh I learned to go to war on first and every entry target. Move fast ... shoot fast A's. Main thing I learned is suck it up when you stink up an early stage or 2 (ugh) Learn from the GM's and M's when they say "fast A's". What seems slow in local match with few no shoots but at Nat's it's a marathon. Pick your spots to fly and get A's. Next year .... grr ... I may still go nuts at home and local clubs as it's a hoot to hose stages but come nat's next year ... Shoot A's .. move fast

Picture in picture of course but specialized stages for money. Yes big money for top shooters that make a cut (top 10) who move on to specialized made for TV stages. High stress ... That means prime time interest and stages designed for the television audience. Sad to see pro's winning the prize tables of us lowly amateurs at the matches. It's sad they aren't making real money as prizes.. ie so they can make a living and send the kids to college etc . Money also gains public interest if done right. Me ... heck I don't care about them winning the prize table but it just makes me sad to see the best of the best scavenge off such slim pickings and or surviving off of sponsorships that are hard for the public to understand. TV audience understand piles of green cash for the fastest gun alive on that day. That means making as much stress as possible .. something the audience can feel. Shoot off ... I think something like 4 stages . Not a single shoot off stage like a plate rack but big time stages made for TV. A match should end with the fastest and best 10 or so to advance to the shoot off . Made for TV excitement for the dough. I would like to think that on a good day an amateur could make that cut for the chance of a lifetime. TV loves that kind of intrigue. The shoot off can be multiple stages. long and short. Very advanced but easy to understand hogan alley type stages. Stages designed for showing off skill and speed but made for TV. my 2 cents

Thank you this is perfect.

What is a good DVD training Armorer program. Specifically for keeping my open gun running. Or online classes or work shops in the St. louis region. My gun smith has moved and I need to step up and learn my sport. Question: is there a good Armorer DVD for the 2011...

This 9mm SS is sure fun. Made by Rick Hebert Firearms. Makes weight and fits in box. She's a beauty. Kart barrel triglide trigger insert koeineg egw sear hammer STI front and rear checkered frame Teckwell grips magwell tri top sti slide dawson front ed brown safeties

It was quite a comeback for Robbie after that mike on stage 4 the first day. He never gave up and worked his way to the top. I am in awe. That was simply an amazing victory. Congrats to all the winners.

I would love to shoot BC but as long as they have the grip safety rules it seems they don't want shooters. OPEN is open ... Let people compete with the guns they use and will use the next weekend and the next etc in Steel/USPSA/IDPA or whatever. How many safeties are enough on a 2011 and when does the rule become ridiculous.

+1 on sticky targets indoors but some ammo works better than others. Darn bio's that I use outside don't stick well at all on sticky targets. Outside the biodegradable are great. Airsoft steel challenge I like paint can lids painted white when out doors where I use the bio's. With sticky targets it helps keep the lions share of 23gr std BB'sstick 99%. Hitting another bb will send fragments around the room though. It took a while to figure the bio's don't stick worth a hoot on sticky targets. Now I can set up course of fire and leave a minimal mess. What you gain competitively is arguable. I think it helps some things and hurts others. Dry fire is funner with a little trigger time thrown in.

I sure don't want to beat a dead horse here but I do appreciate this thread as a new RO. It makes perfect sense to make sure the firearm is secure before ending the COF. 8.3.8 “Range Is Clear” – This declaration signifies the end of the Course of fire. Perhaps the issue is one of the definition of holster or what a RO should see prior to 8.3.8 but an RO is at fault for being premature. It's not the rules that need to be changed. I like the declaration as is. Not vague and a dropped weapon prior vs after should require the RO to only make that determination as to the rules that pertain to during or after the COF. It's not vague now. It's clear and not vague. It might be a hornets nest if they tried to patch it up. Holster = hands off ? That won't work because one must constantly protect from getting bumped etc while pasting, picking up brass, setting poppers etc. Maybe a command like what the heck are you doing? I for sure will try to take this thread to heart but a change in the rule might be problematic. There has to be an end and it was the RO's declaration that ended the COF. No grey area is kinda nice for once. It is the responsibility of the RO to make sure it's clear and as safe as a cold range can be.