I followed my plan...

[mreed911]

... And five procedurals later found out how well my plan worked.

It was a three position, 10-target stage, with two paper and two steel in the first position. I planned to shoot the first four while sidestepping right, and did. Two steel, three alpha, one charlie. Unfortunately for me it was shoot from the box, not a horizontally running boundary line. My first hit on steel happened before my foot stepped out of the box. My next five shots all happened from outside the box.

I followed my plan… Sidestep and shoot. Unfortunately, my plan didn't match the stage description. Completely my fault.

At least the placement of the other two sets of targets facilitated shooting from inside the respect in boxes.

Earned a zero for that one. Learned the lesson before this weekend. Stage planning, stage planning, stage planning. I'm a visual learner, I didn't actually read the stage description. I just listened as someone else ready. Reading it with my own eyes will actually put it in my head.

Edited June 9, 2016 by mreed911

[Hi-Power Jack]

I also have to "read it myself", and then I still usually ask questions ...

[SCTaylor]

Sorry to hear that Mike! I'm visual but I gotta read the stage description or its likely I will not remember it!

[mreed911]

I hate having stuff like this happen but it's why I shoot local matches - to get more experience and make matches in general less of a thing.

Another example - I didnt know that on Virginia count stages mags must be loaded to division capacity. Now I do.

[blacklab2011]

Another example - I didnt know that on Virginia count stages mags must be loaded to division capacity. Now I do.

If your talking about USPSA then I don't think that is correct. I see limited & open guys down load magazines all the time on virginia count classifiers usually requiring a reload.

[teros135]

Another example - I didnt know that on Virginia count stages mags must be loaded to division capacity. Now I do.

Huh? I must have missed something? What rule states that?

[mreed911]

Another example - I didnt know that on Virginia count stages mags must be loaded to division capacity. Now I do.

If your talking about USPSA then I don't think that is correct. I see limited & open guys down load magazines all the time on virginia count classifiers usually requiring a reload.

Another example - I didnt know that on Virginia count stages mags must be loaded to division capacity. Now I do.

Huh? I must have missed something? What rule states that?

Now that you say that, I can't find it in the rulebook. Should have taken what I learned here and (politely) said "show me!"

It's also possible I misunderstood what they were saying. Classifier was 99-46. I loaded 6/6 (should have loaded 7/6) on the first string and after that first string was advised that I was required to load 8 (division capacity) in my mags (Single stack major). No penalty or anything, just a caution.

[teros135]

Another example - I didnt know that on Virginia count stages mags must be loaded to division capacity. Now I do.

If your talking about USPSA then I don't think that is correct. I see limited & open guys down load magazines all the time on virginia count classifiers usually requiring a reload.

Another example - I didnt know that on Virginia count stages mags must be loaded to division capacity. Now I do.

Huh? I must have missed something? What rule states that?

Now that you say that, I can't find it in the rulebook. Should have taken what I learned here and (politely) said "show me!"

It's also possible I misunderstood what they were saying. Classifier was 99-46. I loaded 6/6 (should have loaded 7/6) on the first string and after that first string was advised that I was required to load 8 (division capacity) in my mags (Single stack major). No penalty or anything, just a caution.

Well, if it's USPSA, there is no such rule. You're right, have them show you! Or alternatively, point them to 8.1.1 and 8.1.2 (the ready condition specified in the Classifier WSB) and ask them where it says that.

[GrumpyOne]

Your plan was sound...it just didn't match what the stage description said to do.

[mreed911]

Your plan was sound...it just didn't match what the stage description said to do.

Yup.

It was a good match and I'm new enough I'm still learning the basics of competing, shooting to compete, etc. The folks I shot with were ALL helpful, not at all condescending, and wanted to make sure we did as well as we could. I'm "less than a year" new but even the first-time shooters appreciated the attitude. It makes all the difference in the world.

[motosapiens]

Another example - I didnt know that on Virginia count stages mags must be loaded to division capacity. Now I do.

If your talking about USPSA then I don't think that is correct. I see limited & open guys down load magazines all the time on virginia count classifiers usually requiring a reload.

Another example - I didnt know that on Virginia count stages mags must be loaded to division capacity. Now I do.

Huh? I must have missed something? What rule states that?

Now that you say that, I can't find it in the rulebook. Should have taken what I learned here and (politely) said "show me!"

It's also possible I misunderstood what they were saying. Classifier was 99-46. I loaded 6/6 (should have loaded 7/6) on the first string and after that first string was advised that I was required to load 8 (division capacity) in my mags (Single stack major). No penalty or anything, just a caution.

in idpa you are not allowed to download mags. uspsa has no such rules, and how would you enforce it for limited and open anyway?

the person who told you that was just thinking of the wrong sport.

[MemphisMechanic]

However...

Why WOULD you download mags? I believe you forced yourself to do a slide lock reload and thus stated that "I should have loaded 7 instead of six."

Incorrect, sir.

What happens if round #3 goes click instead of bang, and you have to rack it out of the gun? You're back to that slide lock situation on the reload, which throws away unnecessary time.

In Open? Sure. A half-full mag still has 15 rounds in it. Plenty of spare ammo for a 6 round string. In single stack or production, load to division capacity. Spare ammo is always a good thing in the event of a couple of failed rounds or a jammed gun. The extra few grams also makes the gun heavier and helps tame recoil. By about 0.003% - keep telling yourself that actually matters. ;-)

FYI: I don't care if your gun has eaten 12,380 rounds of that exact ammo without failure, for months and months. If you're trying to improve your classification, an inexplicable jam WILL ALWAYS happen on the classifier stage.

Edited June 30, 2016 by MemphisMechanic

[Hi-Power Jack]

an inexplicable jam WILL ALWAYS happen on the classifier stage.

MURPHY'S LAW: Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong.

JACK's LAW: Murphy is an optimist.

[teros135]

In our sport, as in others, different things work for different people, and everybody can come up with a rationale for their own procedures. I like having mags loaded to a capacity at least close to max because the draw and first shot have the same feel every time and the same as in practice. I'm sure, for myself, that the gun comes up differently if it's empty, and I tend to overshoot the magwell on reloads if I use an empty mag (kind of like reaching for the coffee mug you think is full but is really near empty, and you apply the amount of muscle that would be needed for a full one. Goes right up into the air.)

I (personally) don't think loading to "stage capacity" on a classifier is a good idea. You change the gun's feel and bypass your own ability to think (which is probably why 06-03 is called "can you count?").

On the other hand, in Lim and Open I'll download my first mag by a few rounds so it's not so heavy when it hits the gravel on reload, but the next mag is full, for the reason stated above. That's just me, but it seems to work.

Edited June 30, 2016 by teros135