New to IDPA, first match tomorrow

[Ryan92]

Tomorrow is my first time attempting to shoot IDPA. I have shot numerous local matches that follow USPSA rules, and I have also shot a GSSF match before but never IDPA. I am looking to push my shooting to a new level and I am hoping that this will be the trick. I have yet to become a member of IDPA because it is not required at the local match that I will be doing. Hopefully everything goes well and I will start to get into shooting competitive more and more.

I will be shooting in SSP w/ a M&P9 FS.

Any insight for a first time IDPA shooter?

[motosapiens]

IDPA is fun, and I enjoy it alot, but there is so much focus on non-shooting stuff (cover, order of engagement, etc....) that I'm not sure it will really take your shooting to the next level.

My tips: remember the -0 zone is pretty much the center mass of the upper half of the target. if you shoot center mass of the entire target, you'll have lots of -1's.

First priority is be safe.

second priority is follow the rules.

3rd priority is shoot accurately.

fourth priority is shoot fast.

[NicVerAZ]

Tomorrow is my first time attempting to shoot IDPA. I have shot numerous local matches that follow USPSA rules, and I have also shot a GSSF match before but never IDPA. I am looking to push my shooting to a new level and I am hoping that this will be the trick. I have yet to become a member of IDPA because it is not required at the local match that I will be doing. Hopefully everything goes well and I will start to get into shooting competitive more and more.

I will be shooting in SSP w/ a M&P9 FS.

Any insight for a first time IDPA shooter?

Make sure you learn the rules and do not make too many mistakes. You will make some. No big deal.

There are no fault lines, it is all about line of sight and being 50% being cover from the point of view of the target you are engaging in tactical order.

Listen to the instructions. Rehearse in your head. You can only use your imagination. There is no shadow run. No aligning the sights and dry firing at LAMR.

Do not drop a magazine with ammo in it. If in Vickers, triple some of the targets to make sure you get a 0 and this way you can drop the magazine, otherwise you have to do a retention reload. Remember that what I described is illegal but hard to rule upon (unless you shoot 5 times on the last target).

And never move with an empty gun.

Otherwise, have fun. IDPA is low count and goes fast because nobody shadow runs or rehearses. You can be done with a well squadded 4-stage IDPA in 90 minutes, go home and enjoy the rest of your weekend.

[Ryan92]

IDPA is fun, and I enjoy it alot, but there is so much focus on non-shooting stuff (cover, order of engagement, etc....) that I'm not sure it will really take your shooting to the next level.

My tips: remember the -0 zone is pretty much the center mass of the upper half of the target. if you shoot center mass of the entire target, you'll have lots of -1's.

First priority is be safe.

second priority is follow the rules.

3rd priority is shoot accurately.

fourth priority is shoot fast.

Great info for the target! I purchased a pack of 100 IDPA practice targets that I will be using for training. I have a pretty nice private range that I can hopefully set up practice IDPA stages at.

IDPA interests me because it is more real world. I live in Wisconsin and as you may or may not know, we just got CCW here late last year. I believe IDPA will help me to be a better shooter in the defensive aspect. I rarely shoot from cover or practice reloads with retention. So this is going to force me to do just that. It's all about learning something new which is all I want to do. I will be looking into USPSA events too but there are WAY more IDPA events in my local area.

[Ryan92]

Tomorrow is my first time attempting to shoot IDPA. I have shot numerous local matches that follow USPSA rules, and I have also shot a GSSF match before but never IDPA. I am looking to push my shooting to a new level and I am hoping that this will be the trick. I have yet to become a member of IDPA because it is not required at the local match that I will be doing. Hopefully everything goes well and I will start to get into shooting competitive more and more.

I will be shooting in SSP w/ a M&P9 FS.

Any insight for a first time IDPA shooter?

Make sure you learn the rules and do not make too many mistakes. You will make some. No big deal.

There are no fault lines, it is all about line of sight and being 50% being cover from the point of view of the target you are engaging in tactical order.

Listen to the instructions. Rehearse in your head. You can only use your imagination. There is no shadow run. No aligning the sights and dry firing at LAMR.

Do not drop a magazine with ammo in it. If in Vickers, triple some of the targets to make sure you get a 0 and this way you can drop the magazine, otherwise you have to do a retention reload. Remember that what I described is illegal but hard to rule upon (unless you shoot 5 times on the last target).

And never move with an empty gun.

Otherwise, have fun. IDPA is low count and goes fast because nobody shadow runs or rehearses. You can be done with a well squadded 4-stage IDPA in 90 minutes, go home and enjoy the rest of your weekend.

I have been reading them over and over and over. TONS of rules, some kinda dumb but hey, that's the game. I will be attending a first time shooters meeting before the match and I am sure they will let us know the basics.

How is it illegal to triple targets in Vickers? Thought you were allowed as many as you want...

"In Vickers Count, which is the typical method used, the Shooter may fire as many rounds as they feel are necessary to get good hits on any given target. The only limit is the amount of ammunition that the Shooter has handy. Regardless of the number of hits on a target, normally only the best two count for score."- Racine IDPA New Shooter Brochure

[PROBIKE101]

accurate and speed comes,try to be last to shhoot the stage,you will get a chance to see how to run the stage.dont rush comands for start and finish

finger out of trigger,when running side to side keep gun pointed down range,all the paper gets 2 or three,steels 1,remember priority behind cover

called slicing the pie,and tactical sequence no cover, near to far and every target gets 1 round before any targets get a second pay attention to stage descripion it will keep procedurals to a minimum and be accurate speed comes,

[RePete68]

IDPA can be confusing with all the rules regarding target engagement order, using cover, reloading with retention, etc. Thrownin a few Charlies in USPSA is ok, but shooting too many -1's in IDPA will kill your score. Just remember to shoot with more for points vs. speed & should should do well. Good luck, have fun.

[Ryan92]

Anyone know if 10/22's allowed for the side matches?

[cnote]

be ready for a long day, it goes faster at schultz than county line

[NicVerAZ]

Tomorrow is my first time attempting to shoot IDPA. I have shot numerous local matches that follow USPSA rules, and I have also shot a GSSF match before but never IDPA. I am looking to push my shooting to a new level and I am hoping that this will be the trick. I have yet to become a member of IDPA because it is not required at the local match that I will be doing. Hopefully everything goes well and I will start to get into shooting competitive more and more.

I will be shooting in SSP w/ a M&P9 FS.

Any insight for a first time IDPA shooter?

Make sure you learn the rules and do not make too many mistakes. You will make some. No big deal.

There are no fault lines, it is all about line of sight and being 50% being cover from the point of view of the target you are engaging in tactical order.

Listen to the instructions. Rehearse in your head. You can only use your imagination. There is no shadow run. No aligning the sights and dry firing at LAMR.

Do not drop a magazine with ammo in it. If in Vickers, triple some of the targets to make sure you get a 0 and this way you can drop the magazine, otherwise you have to do a retention reload. Remember that what I described is illegal but hard to rule upon (unless you shoot 5 times on the last target).

And never move with an empty gun.

Otherwise, have fun. IDPA is low count and goes fast because nobody shadow runs or rehearses. You can be done with a well squadded 4-stage IDPA in 90 minutes, go home and enjoy the rest of your weekend.

I have been reading them over and over and over. TONS of rules, some kinda dumb but hey, that's the game. I will be attending a first time shooters meeting before the match and I am sure they will let us know the basics.

How is it illegal to triple targets in Vickers? Thought you were allowed as many as you want...

"In Vickers Count, which is the typical method used, the Shooter may fire as many rounds as they feel are necessary to get good hits on any given target. The only limit is the amount of ammunition that the Shooter has handy. Regardless of the number of hits on a target, normally only the best two count for score."- Racine IDPA New Shooter Brochure

As RePete says, the rules are confusing. They do not allow you do empty your magazine by shooting several times a same target in the purpose of dropping an empty magazine.

So for instance if you shoot SSP and have 4 targets in one location and know you will need to reload, a good tactic is to shoot 2 + 2 + 3 + 3 where 3 are the farthest targets.

If you shoot 2 + 2 + 2 + 4 and obviously with the purpose of emptying your magazine, you will be penalized.

be ready for a long day, it goes faster at schultz than county line

I am glad that at Phoenix South Mountain we have like 40 / 60 shooters and it goes pretty fast.

It is the only IDPA club in a very USPSA area (TGO, need I say more).

[jualdeaux]

How is it illegal to triple targets in Vickers? Thought you were allowed as many as you want...

"In Vickers Count, which is the typical method used, the Shooter may fire as many rounds as they feel are necessary to get good hits on any given target. The only limit is the amount of ammunition that the Shooter has handy. Regardless of the number of hits on a target, normally only the best two count for score."- Racine IDPA New Shooter Brochure

And therein lies the problem.

In IDPA, there is a difference between taking an extra shot, or two or three, because you're not sure you hit the target decently and taking extra shots so you can get to an empty gun so you can drop the mag and do a faster reload, or reload in a better place. The former is fine, the latter is called "Round Dumping" and can be penalized with a 20 second Failure To Do Right(FTDR) penalty.

So, yes. You can take as many shots as you want, but you can't.

[tackdr1ver]

IDPA interests me because it is more real world. I live in Wisconsin and as you may or may not know, we just got CCW here late last year. I believe IDPA will help me to be a better shooter in the defensive aspect. I rarely shoot from cover or practice reloads with retention. So this is going to force me to do just that. It's all about learning something new which is all I want to do. I will be looking into USPSA events too but there are WAY more IDPA events in my local area.

IDPA is a GAME, it is not 'real world' at all. In fact, I believe many things about IDPA would be about as far from real world as you can get..

Most importantly, just go shoot, be safe and have fun. Enjoy the time on the range and good luck in your first match!

[Ryan92]

Had a blast yesterday at the match. 8 stages all set up with a Halloween twist. Got off to a slow start but soon started to get into the groove. Screwed up a few times and got a few procedurals but overall not too bad for my first time. So many rules that you have to try to remember and they all seem to go out the window when you hear the timer go off. It was fun though and I am planning on joining IDPA and shooting future matches.

[ProGunGuy]

i shoot both, sometimes on the same weekend. after a while you will get used to it. I started in IDPA first, so adapting to the run and gun of USPSA was lot easier.

[M1911]

Had a blast yesterday at the match. 8 stages all set up with a Halloween twist. Got off to a slow start but soon started to get into the groove. Screwed up a few times and got a few procedurals but overall not too bad for my first time. So many rules that you have to try to remember and they all seem to go out the window when you hear the timer go off. It was fun though and I am planning on joining IDPA and shooting future matches.

We all suffer from buzzer-induced amnesia now and again. It happens less and less the more matches you shoot.

[Ryan92]

Looks like I placed 16th overall out of 56 shooters. Not too bad.

[Steve Koski]

Nice shooting Ryan!

[JimM]

IDPA is fun, and I enjoy it alot, but there is so much focus on non-shooting stuff (cover, order of engagement, etc....) that I'm not sure it will really take your shooting to the next level.

My tips: remember the -0 zone is pretty much the center mass of the upper half of the target. if you shoot center mass of the entire target, you'll have lots of -1's.

First priority is be safe.

second priority is follow the rules.

3rd priority is shoot accurately.

fourth priority is shoot fast.

That's a pretty good summary of priorities. I like the comment about location of the -0 zone. It took me a few matches before I realized how much I focused on the center of the target instead of the -0 zone. I was accurate, just not in the -0 consistently.

The suggestion of shooting slow, and doing everything else fast, helps me (and I wrote a couple simple reminders on a 3x5 card that I keep in my shooting bag so I don't forget to apply the basics). Good luck in your journey to the next level.

Jim

[ADulay]

Looks like I placed 16th overall out of 56 shooters. Not too bad.

Nice job!

My first two times out I was the bottom guy and it wasn't even close!!

Congrats.

AD

[swhiteh3]

And never move with an empty gun.

I shot *MY* first official IDPA match this past weekend. I had shot a few "IDPA-Lite" type matches, along with plenty of other stuff, but this was my first IDPA match, and I knew I was going to stumble on the rules - and I did. I stopped once and picked up the magazine I dropped on the ground with a live round in it, etc. (Apparently it's safer in a gunfight to pick up a magazine with a single round in it, and put it in your pocket, than it is to just keep shooting with the full magazine that's now in your gun! I think you might have to yell "Time-Out!" to the people shooting at you first!)

But I need someone to explain this to me....

On one stage, the shooter started without cover facing several targets, which had to be shot in tactical sequence and tactical priority. No problem. Draw and start shooting. I tripled a few of them and shot to slide lock - completing all the targets in that area. Now, I'm standing WITHOUT COVER. I start to move to cover (where additional targets need to be engaged) while re-loading and get a procedural. RSO says I needed to complete my reload before moving to cover. WHAT?!?!

Ok, to be fair, he did a good job of explaining this before the match - it's not his fault - but mine. I brain-farted. I knew I was supposed to do this, but I didn't. My tactical training taught me to get behind something NOW while I reload. I don't blame the RSO.....

But I still don't understand why this is. In what universe would you require someone to stand in full view of people shooting at you while you re-load? As he explained to me "The reload needs to be complete, including the slide closed on a loaded chamber, before initiating movement to cover". I can understand this (almost) if you're in one position of cover, and moving to another, but in this case we were not. I was in open ground, shooting stationary, as per the stage description, and moving toward cover.

Can anyone provide a little insight here?

[Jim Watson]

On one stage, the shooter started without cover facing several targets, which had to be shot in tactical sequence and tactical priority. No problem.

That IS a problem. It is no longer allowed for an IDPA CoF to require both TS and TP on the same set of targets.

Draw and start shooting. I tripled a few of them and shot to slide lock - completing all the targets in that area. Now, I'm standing WITHOUT COVER. I start to move to cover (where additional targets need to be engaged) while re-loading and get a procedural. RSO says I needed to complete my reload before moving to cover. WHAT?!?!

That sounds very hokey to me with the requirement that reloads be started and finished under available cover. And if there is cover for the next target array, then it is available. I would expect you, if required to empty your gun in the open, to dash to cover to reload and engage the next target. It would take a very strange layout to do otherwise.

I think you were still shooting "IDPA Lite "type"" because they were not adhering to IDPA rule and policy.

[daves_not_here]

On one stage, the shooter started without cover facing several targets, which had to be shot in tactical sequence and tactical priority. No problem.

That IS a problem. It is no longer allowed for an IDPA CoF to require both TS and TP on the same set of targets.

Draw and start shooting. I tripled a few of them and shot to slide lock - completing all the targets in that area. Now, I'm standing WITHOUT COVER. I start to move to cover (where additional targets need to be engaged) while re-loading and get a procedural. RSO says I needed to complete my reload before moving to cover. WHAT?!?!

That sounds very hokey to me with the requirement that reloads be started and finished under available cover. And if there is cover for the next target array, then it is available. I would expect you, if required to empty your gun in the open, to dash to cover to reload and engage the next target. It would take a very strange layout to do otherwise.

I think you were still shooting "IDPA Lite "type"" because they were not adhering to IDPA rule and policy.

Reloading behind cover is what I call a "anti-gaming" rule. Like you I got a procedural on it. I can see how reloading while moving from one position to another could be used to game out a stage.

I have a saying after I get the procedural "I'm learning IDPA rules 3 seconds at a time"

Oh yeah, I also learned to just leave the dropped magazine there if you can. I can't pick it up and load it under 3 seconds so I go for my second mag. This is only if you have enough rounds to finish the stage.

DNH