2004 will be our first Steel Challenge

[Carmoney]

My 11-year-old son Sam and I are getting ready to send in our entry forms for our first ever Steel Challenge. We are both planning to compete in the Iron Sight Revolver Division (with Sam eligible for Pre-Teen and Junior status, of course).

We have been shooting the SC format at a local club the past several months, and have been really enjoying it (and doing fairly decently--for a kid and an old pin-shooter who recently came out of "retirement"), but we have some general procedural questions for those in the know:

1. We are probably going to fly in Thursday afternoon and just shoot the main event match on Fri. and/or Sat. Will we need equipment for any other side events those days? I'm a little confused by the official "rules" posted on the ISI website--there seem to be several cut/paste errors with last year's dates being used, etc.

2. We are planning to fly back out on Sunday afternoon. How long does the shoot-off and prize ceremony typically take? When will everything be completed on Sunday?

3. What is the "match hotel" and where is it located? Any ballpark idea on the nightly hotel rate? Is that where we should stay, or are there better options?

4. We figured we would bring our guns in our checked luggage, but were not sure how to handle the ammo situation. Can we bring enough ammo on the plane, or will we need to ship our ammo in advance to the hotel or directly to the range?

In addition to the questions listed above, Sam and I would really appreciate any general advice that might be useful for a first-time Steel Challenge shooter, particularly one who is (a) flying in for the match, and ( has an 11-year-old for a shooting partner! :-)

Thanks,

Mike Carmoney

[shred]

Ok, here's some off the top of my head (I never did get around to writing up that trip report last year):

#1- The Steel Challenge is more than a match, it's an Event. Spend a little while checking everything out, meeting the cool and wildly varying folks and don't stress too much about the shooting part.

Flying in: No problem for me. Burbank is the closest airport in the LA basin, but check 'em all as rates vary widely.

The shootoffs/prizes will take until dark on Sunday if you're not on the first page of results (even if you are, you'll be there until 5:00). Last year we couldn't get a late flight and stayed Sunday night at a hotel right by the airport. Mucho less stress than the nail-biting folks waiting for their shot at the prize tables before their planes left (and the prizes are definately worth waiting for-- I think even the last place box of stuff was $300+ last year)

Ammo: the match is between 170 and 340 rounds max. If you get there early enough, bring some extra to shoot on the warm-up stages (nearly exact copies of the stages, set up down the road for a practice-all-you-want fee). You can get at least 300 rounds of Super in under the 11-lb per-person rule. If you ship ammo to the range, do it well in advance and ship it with tracking-- we almost lost some last year due to confusion that only a tracking signature solved.

Side events: Everything was provided.

Match hotel: Nice. Should be for $92/nite this year. Lots of hotels nearby the match hotel, scant few nearer Piru (plan on 30+ minutes hotel->range). All somewhat pricy due to nearby amusement park. Likewise in good traffic, it can be an hour-plus to parts of LA from there.

Bring sunblock and hydration fluids. Lunch/snacks are available at the range, but not all day. The gas-station at the turnoff to Piru is the last stop for ice & cold drinks.

Plan for dust and lots of it.

Watch Cal's fast-draw show if possible.

Some pictures and video at http://www.shred2.net/~shred/ipsc

[Carmoney]

Shred--thanks for taking the time to write that up--very helpful stuff.

I can't resist the chance to shoot that rimfire event, so we'll be arriving Wed.

Sam's first day of school is Monday, so we will have to take off Sunday afternoon. We'll have to figure out something if either of us finishes "in the money."

[bigbrowndog]

Carmoney, shred and i roomed together last year, and he is correct, in that the match is an event.

i normally send my ammo to the match hotel, and have the person in charge of handling SC coordination there at the hotel sign for it, and hold it for me till i arrive

i call before i leave to ensure that it has arrived, and all is well. in the past i've not had a problem, and will probably do it again this year. the hotel staff is very friendly and helpful with the shooters.

trying to leave on a plane after the prize table is a very stressful situation, it is much better to try and leave on monday, if you can swing it.

if you have any other questions, i don't know if shred will make it this year, but i will be there. feel free to come up and introduce yourself, its always good to make new friends. i'm normally attached to a big brown dog, who seems to have more friends at shooting matches than i have, everybody seems to be glad to see him, and couldn't care less that i made it.

good luck and hope to meet you there.........trapr

[DougCarden]

A few questions about flying in with gear. I am planning on going out with Mike and Sam, providing my lovely wife and infant son dont change their minds....

My open, ltd, and rimfire guns will be in my checked luggage as they are supposed to be, but what would the best way to get the rest of the gear there? I can get everything else in my shooting bag(belts,holster, mag pouches, ears, glasses, mags, cleaning kit, you know the drill...) but do I chance taking them and checking them as baggage as well? I also dont want to dick around with TSA employees. No offense to them, but I will follow the regs to the letter, but I also know that some employees dont follow regs as well. Another option is to ship out my ammo and shooting bag with mags, ears, shooting glasses prior to my arrival. Any thoughts or assistance will be greatly appreciated. DougC

[shred]

I usually pack all my other shooting gear in the bag with the hard gun case (see the 'flying with guns' thread for details on that). That means I have to take a small, collapsible shooting bag, but it means so long as that one piece of luggage shows up, I can shoot.

Others have had OK luck packing all their incidental supplies in their shooting bags, zip-tieing the zippers and checking it.

[DougCarden]

I think that I will do the same. Thanks Shred, DougC

[Penny]

For what it's worth, TSA folks at LAX last year were great. My husband and I gave them a copy of the Steel Challenge rule book last year, and a couple of the guys seemed interested in checking out the match.

I think the most important thing for getting in and out of there is to pack your stuff within the rules, and give yourself plenty of time to get through the screening without too much stress.

Carmoney - sounds like you'll need to leave after the shootoffs so Sam gets to school on time. Maybe DougC or somebody can stay over and pick up your prizes for you -- you just have to give them your name tag.

Also, w.r.t. packing ammo -- we ran into a little problem with interpretation of that 11lb/person rule on American Airlines. They only allowed 11lb/bag because one bag can only be assigned to one person. They also didn't want to let us put ammo in the same bag with the guns, even though the guns were in separate, locked hardcases inside a hard suitcase. Eventually we got it all worked out by rearranging stuff and getting a supervisor involved, but our typical "Steel Challenge Travel Plan" usually involves us checking 3 suitcases for two people. We also box up our mags, tools, holsters, etc. in the checked luggage -- it's just not worth running into problems with the carry on stuff. Another tip for open guns --- take the batteries out of your scope before the plane ride. Temperature changes can do weird things, even to fresh batteries. I pack the batteries in my carry on luggage -- the bright sun on white plates can make a dim dot seem even fainter.

If you're shooting both Open and Ltd, I don't think you'll be able to check enough ammo. You could ship it to the match hotel. Another option is to contact Mike and Linda Roberts who own "Keep It In the 10 Ring", in Fillmore. Phone is 805 524-3660. 263 Central Ave., Fillmore, CA 93015 They help at the match each year and will be doing the FFL work.

Have fun at the match! Shred and that guy with the sweet dog are right. It's a great event, and can be a fun vacation trip. Plus you get to shoot a lot too! Stop and say hello!

Penny

[ErikW]

What's this year's discount code for the Hilton Garden?

[johnlt3]

For the $94 rate, the code is STC. However, when I called the 800 number I just told them it was for Steel Challenge and they gave me the rate anyway. The direct number at the hotel is (661)284-3207. If you have a problem ask for Alina Green.

[38stupid]

I want to thank you folks for the great advice. I am going to my first

SC this year and I am really looking forward to the EVENT!

I do have a couple of questions;

1) The (6) Special events - how much do they cost to participate in?

Para challenge / The Zone / Warp speed / Etc.

2) I want to use my Browning Hi power for Limited class.

Can I remove the magazine safety - Its a pain to load a mag

to pull the trigger after showing clear and dropping the slide.

3) It seems if I want to shoot both the Semi-Auto Optics and Limited,

I would fall into Bracket 1 of the application. If so, do you shoot

(1) gun on friday and the second gun on Saturday? I hope that

you dont have to mix up different guns in one day.

4) If you shoot the (3) events (rimfire pistol, shotgun and rifle) is it

hard to do all this on Thursday?

I look foward to a great time (beats work any day) and meeting a bunch

of great people.

Bob

[warpspeed]

38,

1) I think they were like $5 / turn and you can enter as many times as your budget allows

2) As long it falls into the rules of USPSA Limited class, you are fine. ( And I don't think anyone will care / check )

3) If you sign up for both Ltd & Optics, you will shoot one on Friday ( Usually Ltd) and the other on Sat. They will not mix you up.

4) not hard to do, just a very full, long day.

HTH

[38stupid]

i normally send my ammo to the match hotel, and have the person in charge of handling SC coordination there at the hotel sign for it, and hold it for me till i arrive

i call before i leave to ensure that it has arrived, and all is well. in the past i've not had a problem, and will probably do it again this year. the hotel staff is very friendly and helpful with the shooters.

Is it better to send the ammo to the match range or the hotel as suggested above?

I am shipping ammo from NY and UPS takes about a week (at least) to get to CA.

Bob

[10mmdave]

i normally send my ammo to the match hotel, and have the person in charge of handling SC coordination there at the hotel sign for it, and hold it for me till i arrive

i call before i leave to ensure that it has arrived, and all is well. in the past i've not had a problem, and will probably do it again this year.  the hotel staff is very friendly and helpful with the shooters.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Dog, I plan to do the same with my(our) ammo, what do you do for the

return trip ?

Will the hotel staff send it back out for you ??

DaveP

[shred]

The hotel won't send it back if they know what's in it. Try and practice enough that you're under the weight limit, or find a friend from nearby that's driving.

[10mmdave]

The hotel won't send it back if they know what's in it.  Try and practice enough that you're under the weight limit, or find a friend from nearby that's driving.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I thick we have this figured out, ship ammo to hotel, nice people there will take care of it.

If you have a lot of ammo/ammo cases that won't fit in your suitcase find the

nearest UPS customer center and ship it back to yourself.

If under 11 lbs (ammo in cases) ship back with luggage.

Wonder how the Airlines feel about all those fired cases ?? Me thinks I'll be

shipping back no matter what.

Works for the SC, other shoots not so easy.