Recieved Orders to Keesler AFB MS, talk to me about matches

[North]

I have 96 days to out process Holloman AFB NM and get relocated to Keesler AFB MS, got to love short notice assignments.

So if any of the South Mississippi/Gulf Coast shooters could give me a snapshot of the local shooting scene I would appreciate it. I have been dormant from USPSA the last 3 years with elbow problems, but I'm planning on coming back in USPSA single stack and any 22LR pistol/rifle matches.

[Will_M]

My local club is "Team Magnolia" in Byram, MS. www.teammagnolia.com matches the first Sunday of every month.

There are a few clubs further south as well, particularly near the coast and near Hattiesburg.

I'm sure some of the local guys will chime in soon. Glad to have you.

[chbrow10]

Hi,

I live in Ocean Springs, MS, which is the next town over to the east from Biloxi. From my house, there are USPSA matches three weekends a month within a 75 minute drive. There are also some USPSA-like matches.

• 2nd Saturday is a USPSA-like match at the Gulf Coast Rifle and Pistol Club (http://gcrpc.com/)about 25-30 minutes from me. They use USPSA targets, but the scoring is a "time-plus" system. I think the fee is $5.
  
• 2nd Sunday is a USPSA match in Poplarville, MS. Website is http://www.smsps.com/SMPSA.htm The club is MS10. This is a 60 minute drive for me. Match fees are on the website. See the website for the details on teh 3-gun match they put on as well.
  
• 3rd Sunday is a USPSA match in Pearlington, MS. The club is MS14. This is a 60 minute drive for me. Match fee is $13
  
• 2nd and 4th Saturday is a USPSA match near Epworth, Alabama, club AL03. Website is http://mpsa.us/. This is a 75 minute drive. Match fee is $15
  
• 3rd Saturday is a 3-gun match (not sure of the rules) at the Gulf Coast Rifle and Pistol Club. Not sure of the fees. This club also has a rimfire silohoutte match.
  

There are 3 Level II matches, Gator Classic in October (www.lagator.com), The Mississippi Classic in May in Byram, MS, and the Alabama Champs in Birmingham, AL.

PM me and we can exchange phone numbers or emails. Always looking for carpool/training partners for matches. I shoot single stack as well.

Edited July 8, 2010 by chbrow10

[North]

Thanks guys, that is great to hear. chbrow10, is there a local range/shooting club that allows USPSA type practice? I will definitely be getting in touch with you when I get settled in. I'm looking at a place in Gautier on a few acres that borders the sand-hill crane wildlife reserve, are there any area/thing I need to know to avoid?

[DBChaffin]

I think the above posts pretty much have you taken care of as far as matches go, but I am the Section Coordinator for Mississippi and if I can be of any further help or provide any additional information, please don't hesitate to send me a PM or email through the forum. I am not the best person to ask about practice areas down that way or other Coast-specific issues admittedly, but I don't think the practice area will be a problem.

I live in the Hattiesburg area which is about an hour or so North of the Coast and look forward to shooting with you at a match sometime.

Bryant

[chbrow10]

The MS Sandhill Crane refuge is on my side of town, so those times will apply to you pretty well. The Gulf Coast Rifle and Pistol Club has one open bay that I usually use for when I want to practice shooting on the move or more freestyle shooting. They are talking about turning that into another covered bay, but it is anyone’s guess as to when that will happen. Even when they do, you can still move in front of the tables if you have the range to yourself. That club costs $200 a year to join. Otherwise, you can join the club that hosts the Poplarville match ($25 a year), which is on leased land from a hunting club which is in turn leased from the lumber company…meaning it is open forest with a few pits dug that form a backstop. You can pretty much go “Wild Wild West” out there. You can shoot at night, whatever gun you want, etc. That club even has night matches that go all night long. I never practice there because it is too far for me and I have to drive past the club I already belong to in order to get there.

I know of some people that live on land adjacent to the refuge that shoot on their property into a backstop, but I don’t know if that is specifically allowed by the refuge. I suspect not seeing as how there are only ~100 of the birds left…

The Pearlington match is on a private club that only allows 100 members, so there is always a wait list, but you can try…

When you get here, PM me and I’ll take you to my club (Gulf Coast Rifle and Pistol) as a guest and you can see if you like it. I’ll also be happy to take you to the other matches I go to and introduce you around. The matches have an interesting mix of Deep Southeners and New Orleans city-slickers.