EricW Posted February 19, 2004 Share Posted February 19, 2004 It's time to say some nice things. I like: Front Sight Magazine - the best written gun magazine on the market. Freestyle Friendly, intelligent competitors Getting my comeuppance every match - right after my "killer" run comes out to be 68% of the big dogs Racy gear - Race gear is more fun Mondo Field Courses - "Haul ass from box A to box B, then engage the 40 yard targets..." Yeee Haw! Shooting for shooting's sake. I don't need a "reason" to be there. We can make it work. All we have to do is want it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rockwell Posted February 19, 2004 Share Posted February 19, 2004 AGREED! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carlos Posted February 19, 2004 Share Posted February 19, 2004 More things to like about USPSA: -Going on vacation anywhere with the ability to shoot a match within a few hours drive -Getting out of the city for a country drive & enjoying the outdoors in the warmer seasons -or- -Shooting indoors during the winter -shooting a completely different match each weekend & knowing you will never shoot quite the same match again -shooting & talking with others who reload their own ammo Anything else??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BSeevers Posted February 19, 2004 Share Posted February 19, 2004 Good people, Good fun, and Good competition. Keeps me coming back after many years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yeahyeah Posted February 19, 2004 Share Posted February 19, 2004 AGREED! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
warpspeed Posted February 19, 2004 Share Posted February 19, 2004 Good people, Good fun, and Good competition. Keeps me coming back after many years. Ditto Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jkmccoy Posted February 19, 2004 Share Posted February 19, 2004 Amen! The shooting is great, but ErikW and Carlos summed that up pretty well so there isn't much point in repeating it. But, for me it is the people that make the sport. I have been involved in various competitive shooting sports for 30 years. Although I've enjoyed all of the sports (indoor smallbore rifle, metallic silhouettes, USPSA, etc.) I like USPSA shooting the best. (I remember in the mid-70's desperately wanting a S&W M66 Combat so that I could compete in Combat shooting with Col. Cooper. Hard to earn that much money working minimum wage, or less, jobs during the summer.) In every competitive shooting sport I have tried I have found a group of people generally more friendly, more helpful, and all-around more pleasant than average. The people I've met shooting USPSA competitions are hands down THE BEST. How can you miss with a sport where people will lend you their guns, ammunition, spare parts? How many times have you been at a match when someone finds they don't have some essential piece of equipment (or breaks an essential part) and the other competitors are fighting each other to lend the hapless competitor the necessary component? I hope that everyone's experience with USPSA is as positive as mine has been. If it isn't/wasn't come to west Texas. We'll show you what USPSA ought to be and we put on some pretty darned interesting matches too! BTW - Although I know most of the members of the BE forum only from online conversations it appears that this group represents the creme de la creme. Of course that places upon you the responsibility of carrying forward the tradition and helping attract new shooters to the sport we all love. Cheers, Kelly McCoy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garfield Posted February 19, 2004 Share Posted February 19, 2004 How can you miss with a sport where people will lend you their guns, ammunition, spare parts? How many times have you been at a match when someone finds they don't have some essential piece of equipment (or breaks an essential part) and the other competitors are fighting each other to lend the hapless competitor the necessary component? Hmmm ... funny: I haven't tried many other types of sports shooting, and although I shoot IPSC, I thought it is NORMAL to lend your gear, ammo, or whatever to help someone out Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liota Posted February 19, 2004 Share Posted February 19, 2004 I have to echo The Professor, the people make this sport for me. I look forward to seeing friends I haven't, and probably won't, under other circumstances. The familial attitude of USPSA is definitely what kept me coming back after a couple of really bad experiences elsewhere. Not only will those people loan you ammunition and equipment, but they are competing in the same class and division as you. How cool is that???!!! Now, if the season will just start... Liota Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dminor Posted February 19, 2004 Share Posted February 19, 2004 Liota, What ever do you mean about the season starting? We have a match Sat., outdoors, right here in MN. There is only a few feet of snow on the ground with 1 to 3 inches forcasted for tonight. The freestyle element might be hapered a little, but shooting will happen. I expect to see a fair number of shooters/friends. The people here will get out and shoot in any kind of weather. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TriggerT Posted February 19, 2004 Share Posted February 19, 2004 Couldn't agree more, and I'm glad someone finially said it. USPSA is the most fun I have ever had while shooting, PERIOD. Is it always perfect, of course not, but if it was would it be as much fun? I doubt it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skywalker Posted February 19, 2004 Share Posted February 19, 2004 Liota,What ever do you mean about the season starting? We have a match Sat., outdoors, right here in MN. There is only a few feet of snow on the ground with 1 to 3 inches forcasted for tonight. The freestyle element might be hapered a little, but shooting will happen. I expect to see a fair number of shooters/friends. The people here will get out and shoot in any kind of weather. Ditto here in Italy. The League, starting in March and ending in october, is still to come, but we have lotsa local matches. Actually it's slighly snowing (maybe 2/3 inches) but we host matches as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tightloop Posted February 19, 2004 Share Posted February 19, 2004 Every shooting sport has its problems, this one is no different. From the bery beginning this thing was set up to be a trophy sport. True, some lucky few will earn a few bucks from doing it, some tiny few may be able to make a living from this and attendant other activities, but the rest of us shoot for fun. SASS has its share of internal problems, that unless you know someone who is involved, you never hear about. I think most of that growth is due to the fact that more importance is placed on how you DRESS than how you shoot. People who don't shoot, spouses, kids, whomever, can all dress up and have a big time in the outdoors while the guys who LIKE to shoot, do so. I shot Clays in a big way for about 7 yrs, and unlike this sport or SASS, you can earn a living from shooting shotguns. It is very expensive, moreso than pistols, and while money is there to win, just like in USPSA there are a group of PRO shooters who win the $$. So what it boils down to is if you just can't stand it anymore, get out the golf clubs or the fishing pole and do something else. Don't overstay your welcome and whine about it constantly to all that will listen. Negative people have short term acceptance in groups of upbeat and positive people. Like most of the folks I have run into while shooting handguns, we all have a few gripes along the way, due to a bad call, confusing ruling, what have you, and we need a sympathic shoulder to cry into, but after that is over, get on with life. Don't make a career of joining something and them trying to find fault with it, noone likes that. It really hurts me to see such controversy surround this sport and the other one which is so nearly like it. I know, I know, I don't live in a glass house for just that very reason, but I have looked at the ebb and flow of the conversations about the two sports and SURELY there can't be anymore to say about the differences. Volumes could be written and I don't think it would matter in the least. There will always be differences. Just like Jeff Cooper, you either really like him or you really don't, same here. I have said it B4, this sport is not for everyone and you should not expect to have the numbers of members that SASS does for example. Face it, you can't be a passive person and do this for more than a month, you'd kill yourself. So, if we are all agressive to some degree, there is bound to be some squabbling, and infighting, but try not to take it seriously, and get past the conflict. Now if emphasis was on something other than the actual shooting and the shooting was second place, USPSA might have 50K members too; but then it probably wouldn't be as much fun as it is now. Sermon over, now open your hymn books... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuck D Posted February 19, 2004 Share Posted February 19, 2004 ...IPSC is STILL my first Love. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chp5 Posted February 19, 2004 Share Posted February 19, 2004 The thing that has always impressed me about USPSA is the willingness of many good shooters to teach and mentor the less experienced shooters. These shooters teach - not because it benefits them personally – but because it is the spirit of our sport. There are at least two BE forum members that I regularly shoot with and who have taught me a lot about the sport. I’m just a run-of-the-mill A class shooter, but I wouldn’t be B class without their help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EricW Posted February 19, 2004 Author Share Posted February 19, 2004 I forgot one more thing I like: Speed! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
schmitz Posted February 19, 2004 Share Posted February 19, 2004 And: What I like is: getting up early in the morning, knowing that you still have the possibilities to drive down to your home range, unpack your gun and start your trainingsession. Knowing in the back of your mind that it could end in our country within several years is a dark cloud and I'd like to chase that away DVC, Henny, The Netherlands (EU) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vince Pinto Posted February 19, 2004 Share Posted February 19, 2004 Hi guys, Let me tell you about "love". I spent 14 days in 1999 at the World Shoot in Cebu and another 14 days in 2002 at the World Shoot in South Africa, without firing a single round at either match. Do I want a medal? No Sir. I just wanted to tell you that despite not firing a single round at either match, I still had an absolute ball at both matches spending quality time with my dozens of old friends from all over the world, and making a whole bunch of new friends. I'm involved in a few international organisations, but nothing compares to the worldwide IPSC community. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dajarrel Posted February 20, 2004 Share Posted February 20, 2004 Ah, Nothing like the smell of gunpowder early in the morning. Nothing like your friends congratulating/razzing you on burning up/tanking that stage!!!! I have been involved in many pursuits over the years. I cannot think of any one of them that I would spend Friday, Saturday and Sunday in order to participate for less than five minutes on ten stages. Can you??? dj Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthew_Mink Posted February 20, 2004 Share Posted February 20, 2004 I've met more than a couple of lifelong friends in this sport. Even the guys that I don't get to see but once in a blue moon are counted as some of my closest buddies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liota Posted February 20, 2004 Share Posted February 20, 2004 Denise and Skywalker, We shoot year round here, but I don't count the "season" until the first major match of the year. Y'all can keep the snow, though. Shooting the mornings at the Nationals last year was enough to convince me I really do not like standing around in the cold. Liota Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skywalker Posted February 20, 2004 Share Posted February 20, 2004 Shooting the mornings at the Nationals last year was enough to convince me I really do not like standing around in the cold. If you have your open blaster with you, the comp will provide all the necessary heating blows... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
schmitz Posted February 20, 2004 Share Posted February 20, 2004 Wise words my friends, not any government should take our sport away! Because..... you make friends on a range, and...... love the smell of gunpowder in the morning, we keep shooting those targets and we keep striving for perfection!! I'm a pessimist of nature, in the Netherlands I foresee the end of IPSC-shooting within 5 'till 10 years and there's nothing I can do about it. DVC, Henny. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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