2006 Area 6

[davidball]

Great match . . . great stages providing a variety of challenges. Well organized and well run. Thanks to the staff and everyone who put on the match!

[dpeters]

Looking at the match results, it says Cris Tilley shot Limited. Is that currect?

Doug

[carinab]

Heck of a fun shoot! Thanks to all who worked so hard to put it on and thanks to squad eleven for nursing me along. Thanks to BJ for being a gentleman and letting me jump in and shoot first at the end of day one when I was running on fumes. I wouldn't have lasted the squad rotation to my turn. They would have had to wake me up after going prone on stage five! Thank you again to the Techwear boys both for the lively conversation, dinner, and for being good folk. See the Techwear thread for clarification. What integrity!

[BDH]

Looking at the match results, it says Cris Tilley shot Limited. Is that currect?

Doug

Yes, I believe this is correct. While I saw a LOT of shooters come through, it caught me off guard to see iron sites on top of his gun...

[folsoml]

Fantastic match. I think I shot better in the rain! Squad 9 was a force to be reckoned with. Several winners in there--most noteably: A junior production shooter named Matt Sweeney. He took not only high junior in Production, but high D class as well. He had 67.86% of the match points! Write this one down: If he keeps shooting, this kid is gonna be one of the great ones.

[Tengu]

A great match, with really solid, well-designed stages and a great staff. My thanks to all of the people who obviously worked so hard to put it together! It was my first trip to an Area 6 match, and I plan on being back next year The stages offered an excellent mix of different shooting skills, one of the best of any match I've been to in a long time. My only complaints would be the placement of the most time-consuming stage of the match right after the chrony, which caused a major bottleneck, and the lack of water late in the afternoon (at least on Saturday). Otherwise it was just about a perfect match. Good work guys!

[Hobbes]

Fantastic match. I think I shot better in the rain! Squad 9 was a force to be reckoned with. Several winners in there--most noteably: A junior production shooter named Matt Sweeney. He took not only high junior in Production, but high D class as well. He had 67.86% of the match points! Write this one down: If he keeps shooting, this kid is gonna be one of the great ones.

Right you are about the match, Sweeney and squad 9. You and your buddy did well taking home those plaques. Congratulations.

signed,

40minor

[Turtle]

You're welcome! Always a pleasure (even if I did have to go back to my real job to get some R&R )!!!

Thanks for everyone's patience getting through Stage 9...

Brian, you guys had your hands full with that stage and you all handled it magnificently (that's what we've come to expect from you, though)! Seriously, look at the stats as far as number of shooters at this match compared to other matches. It rivaled past national matches! Last years Nationals had only 22 fewer shooters in Production Division. 367 shooters in 2 1/2 days has got to be a record or something. Once again, great job to all involved. Thank you. It was good to see everybody again too, you too Tighty. I just wish I shot a little better....

Edited May 9, 2006 by Turtle

[ima45dv8]

367 shooters in 2 1/2 days has got to be a record or something.

I just looked and we had the exact same number of shooter at last year's Area 6 match.

Who woulda thunk it?

[Jack Suber]

So, did they raffle the gun? Who won it?

[kamakiri]

Great match, albeit grueling for a pale northerner still shaking off the effects of semi-hibernation. It was fun to shoot with Squad 5, a great bunch of guys.

I appreciated the hard work of the range staff, especially the folks who insisted on doing all the pasting while the shooters relaxed. Thanks, everyone.

Good stage designs, too. Nice mix of speed and precision, multiple solutions, etc. I especially liked "Houses of the Unholy" (worth the long wait) and "Bite the Bullet," and the humorous touches on "Starry Eyed" and "Fluffy's Saloon."

Congrats to all the match winners. Particularly impressive was Angus Hobdell's domination of Production division.

See y'all again next year, I hope...

[ima45dv8]

Having had a chance to grab a good night's sleep and 2 Cuba Libre's, it's time to comment on this year's match...

The best part was working with a team of motivated folks who displayed the highest level of professionalism and attention to detail, while maintaining an up-beat attitude during what were often trying conditions. If you were there and enjoyed stage 7, "Starry Eyed" in any way, it was a direct result of the efforts of Jamie McGaughey ("jamie mcg"), Randy Manning, Michael Daniels ("GlockSpeed31") and Brian Ozment. Because of these Gentlemen's efforts the stage was running a flat 2 minutes from "Standby" to "Standby" (we timed it). Considering there were 13 pieces of steel to hang and reset and paint that's a Helluva feat. A lot of the squads helped and that certainly was part of it, but many shooters were heard stopping their squad-mates from going downrange with comments like, "Stand back -- these guys have it down to an art!". I don't think there's a higher compliment to be paid than that. You guys have my undying affection for making me look good!

Best I can recall, with 2 Stars and 2 Pepper Poppers and 1 falling Plate, we only had 3 reshoots out of ~367 shooters. All were due to Range Equipment Failure. 2 were because a plate fell and knocked another off the Star and 1 when a Popper failed a challenge. During construction I numbered all of the plates and all of the arms (1 through 10) and during the match every plate was positioned in exactly the same place for all shooters. The right-hand Star was consistently presented with a plate at 12 o'clock and the left-hand Star was reversed (a plate at 6 o'clock). *Lots of talk and internet traffic has been generated lately about the inconsistency of Texas Stars. I hope this shows that is true only if attention to setup and reset are lacking.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

We truly appreciate the stages put up from clubs across the Area. Cherokee Gun Club (Stage 11, "Tap 'n Pull"), Stan Da Man "Bulldog" Johnson from S. Carolina (Stage 10, "Stan's S%#$ Again"), and the ever-creative Bruce Wells from Florida (Stage 5, "House of Mouse") brought and built some wonderful stages.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Larry Turner, a local Limited10 shooter (who ain't hiding from anybody -- come on over to his pond and play), designed most of the stages and deserves a very special Thank You for his efforts. I wish all of you could come experience our regular indoor Tuesday Night Fun Shoots and see the sort of stages he can paint in an indoor range. Given a larger pallette to work with at A6 he did an outstanding job of creating fun and challenging stages. As stage designers go, he's one the very best.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Lessons learned include not having too many activators on a single stage. Stage 9, "Houses of the Unholy" had some back up and we'll take that into account with next year's stages. It was a great stage, CRO'd by Brian Hannah (yeah!) and also manned by our own forum regular Clay Autery ("cautery"), among others. They did an outstanding job with a stage that was at sometimes "difficult" to administer. We now see that 1 Pressure Plate, 2 Clam-shells, 1 standard Swinger and 1 top-mounted pivoting swinger and 3 Pepper Poppers might be a bit much for one stage.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Funniest moment -- JamieMcG was calling out the next shooter and yelled "Ickabod!" This guy ducks his head and slowly raises his hand. He then says, "That isn't my real name. That's what you get for showing up late and letting your friends register you for the match".

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The BE'ers I had a chance to say "HI" to were far too numerous to mention here. So. . . . . . . . . . . . . "Howdy to All Y'all" (that's the proper plural in the South)!

Already looking forward to next year!

...Mark

Edited May 9, 2006 by ima45dv8

[GlockSpeed31]

The best part was working with a team of motivated folks who displayed the highest level of professionalism and attention to detail, while maintaining an up-beat attitude during what were often trying conditions. If you were there and enjoyed stage 7, "Starry Eyed" in any way, it was a direct result of the efforts of Jamie McGaughey ("jamie mcg"), Randy Manning, Michael Daniels ("GlockSpeed31") and Brian Ozment. Because of these Gentlemen's efforts the stage was running a flat 2 minutes from "Standby" to "Standby" (we timed it). Considering there were 13 pieces of steel to hang and reset and paint that's a Helluva feat. A lot of the squads helped and that certainly was part of it, but many shooters were heard stopping their squad-mates from going downrange with comments like, "Stand back -- these guys have it down to an art!". I don't think there's a higher compliment to be paid than that. You guys have my undying affection for making me look good!

Already looking forward to next year!

...Mark

We are only as good as our leader! Raising my hunk o' bubble gum to you buddy!

Edited May 9, 2006 by GlockSpeed31

[BDH]

Lessons learned include not having too many activators on a single stage. Stage 9, "Houses of the Unholy" had some back up and we'll take that into account with next year's stages. It was a great stage, CRO'd by Brian Hannah (yeah!) and also manned by our own forum regular Clay Autery ("cautery"), among others. They did an outstanding job with a stage that was at sometimes "difficult" to administer. We now see that 1 Pressure Plate, 2 Clam-shells, 1 standard Swinger and 1 top-mounted pivoting swinger and 3 Pepper Poppers might be a bit much for one stage.

Hmmmm, do I dare comment on this? Well, okay, just a 'couple comments'....

1) Actually, I'm not sure you can have 'too many activators' on one stage. However, a combination of too many activators... plus big squads... plus a tight schedule... plus weather... can lead to some delays... (of course, I won't even mention the challenge of making SURE the 'house' was clear before LAMR..)

2) I had a GREAT CREW working this stage! In addition to Clay (who completely saved my ass at Area 4 last year), I had a couple of 'locals' from 'up North' and several 'locals' from 'down South' that made this work out. It was a team effort!

3) One of my favorite discussions from the range (after I had been hit by some splatter)...

"Don't let that Yankee blood hit this Georgia soil!"

"Heck I'm worried about some of this Georgia red clay infecting me and me taking it North...."

Another great A6! See everyone at Nationals!

[ima45dv8]

....(of course, I won't even mention the challenge of making SURE the 'house' was clear before LAMR..)

Cindy and I were discussing the same thing last night. The black plastic works well except for being able to see a misguided 3 dimensional No-Shoot still wandering around downrange. The only thing to do is exactly what you did -- a careful sweep to ensure no one gets shot by mistake. Time be damned -- you did the right thing (no surprise there).

I'm not sure what the solution will be but we'll have one before next year.

"Heck I'm worried about some of this Georgia red clay infecting me and me taking it North...."

A valid concern! It's hard to get that stuff out of your clothes and you might develop an inexplicable yearning for grits and red-eye gravy.

Edited May 9, 2006 by ima45dv8

[Singlestack]

I was so sore I could barely walk yesterday.

I had a great crew on stage one too. WE were hitting the 2 minute mark on stage one as well

[Cjblackmon]

I had a great time, this being my second major match (Florida State was my first) and having an opportunity to meet ima45dv8 (Mark Ramsey) at Stage 9, the SEPSA crew from Jacksonville again (I promise I'll come up to gateway and shoot with you soon!), and Jack Suber, I can't thank you enough for bringing me the cover, it was a pleasure seeing you again, tell John I said congratulations!!!!

I called Bill and Cindy Noyes and thanked them for their hard work in organizing this match and to the RO's who made this run smoothly.

Definately see you all next year!

Who all is going to the Limited Nationals???

[JP_Thomas]

Fantastic match. I think I shot better in the rain! Squad 9 was a force to be reckoned with. Several winners in there--most noteably: A junior production shooter named Matt Sweeney. He took not only high junior in Production, but high D class as well. He had 67.86% of the match points! Write this one down: If he keeps shooting, this kid is gonna be one of the great ones.

Well, considering Matt is so Gung-ho to join the Marine Corps in 4 years.. (a fact Steve - the dad- does not like too much) .. hopefully he can get the Corps to come up with an Official Marksmanship team like the Army has to compete within IPSC/USPSA!

Don't forget ... Steve (Dad) Sweeney won C Class Lim10!

-Joel

[Jack Suber]

I had a great time, this being my second major match (Florida State was my first) and having an opportunity to meet ima45dv8 (Mark Ramsey) at Stage 9, the SEPSA crew from Jacksonville again (I promise I'll come up to gateway and shoot with you soon!), and Jack Suber, I can't thank you enough for bringing me the cover, it was a pleasure seeing you again, tell John I said congratulations!!!!

I called Bill and Cindy Noyes and thanked them for their hard work in organizing this match and to the RO's who made this run smoothly.

Definately see you all next year!

Who all is going to the Limited Nationals???

Chad,

My pleasure. Happy to help out. Perhaps next year I can get you one like mine - with the awesome garnet and black "C" on it and that fierce Gamecock! Looks like you shot well. Keep it up!

Jack

Edited May 9, 2006 by Jack Suber

[BDH]

....(of course, I won't even mention the challenge of making SURE the 'house' was clear before LAMR..)

Cindy and I were discussing the same thing last night. The black plastic works well except for being able to see a misguided 3 dimensional No-Shoot still wandering around downrange. The only thing to do is exactly what you did -- a careful sweep to ensure no one gets shot by mistake. Time be damned -- you did the right thing (no surprise there).

I'm not sure what the solution will be but we'll have one before next year.

Well, if Cindy is planning to 'sentence me' to the house next year, I don't know that I would change the black plastic. Is it tougher to clear? Yes, but as long as there are enough range officers, it's not that bad (one down the left, one down the right, and whomever has the timer, last one through the middle of the house). I like the black stuff because it makes it a little easier to 'hide' targets...

If you are set on changing it, then I would recommend the orange mesh construction fence stuff. It doesn't cost much, and you can see through it (plus the wind goes right through it as well).

[Jack Suber]

What if the black walls didn't run completely to the ground so that the RO could squat and look underneath for legs that shouldn't be there?

[ima45dv8]

What if the black walls didn't run completely to the ground so that the RO could squat and look underneath for legs that shouldn't be there?

That's along the same lines of what I was thinking. What we had before recovering it for A6 were walls with openings along the top (maybe 10-12 "), but that only works well with tall ROs and shooters. Having some clearance at the bottom would let the staff bend over for a quick foot-check.

I'm also not too fond of the orange mesh idea for the same reason Brian stated.

[m.e.t.]

I really enjoyed my first Area 6. I will be back. Can't say the same for the wife. She has been to several big matches over the last couple of years. And it always rains. All of my shooting friends from here in Indiana groan when I tell them she is going.

Rain or no rain. This was one of the best mixture of stages I have seen. All of them equal to stages seen at the nationals. And with the number of shooters involved the few hick-ups were easy to accept. Except the gun problems that plagued me the first day.

A big thank you to all the folks involved. See you next year.

Mike Thompson

[davidball]

Can't say the same for the wife. She has been to several big matches over the last couple of years. And it always rains. All of my shooting friends from here in Indiana groan when I tell them she is going.

Point of clarification: We love Gloria. The rain - not so much.

[cautery]

And it continues... Why do I shoot IPSC/USPSA...? It's the people. When I went to Area 4 last year (prior to becoming a USPSA member), I made the remark that "these folks are about the nicest bunch of folks I've ever come across; you just want to hang around them." I've made that remark (similarly phrased) many times since then, and it remains the chief reason why I am associated with USPSA... I simply dig hangin' out with y'all!

Area 6 did not disappoint. I met tons of new folks out there in Georgia, and saw lot's of "old" acquaintances as well. ( Note: Being a relative newcomer to USPSA circles, I can't really call ANY of my acquaintances "old", but that IS the feeling you get...) Just wish I would have had a little more time to "hang out".

Enjoyed working this match... (must be some kind of genetic mutation or something) Can't offer any comment beyond Stage 9, as I seldom had occasion to be anywhere else... Seriously though, I had a grand time. Enjoyed working with Brian Hanna (great CRO, great to work with, great from whom to learn), Ray, Bruce, Phil, Jim (and his Explorers), Boris, the "other" Brian, and of course Dave and Dana Sevigny, and all the rest who "checked in"*.

* "checked in" - Reference to the Eagles song "Hotel California", "You can check in any time you please, but you can never leave!" Appellation offered up in description of Stage 9 somewhere between the first and last rain storm.... by a shooter as I (choose to) remember it.

All-n-all, a super match. I really didn't even mind the 12.5 hr drive back home!

RE: House Design

Openings at the bottom or not, I'd STILL have to walk through it to clear it (door ways, barrels, etc .) Would not feel comfortable NOT doing so. If you just have to improve it... Add a suitable a-frame joist/rafter system and then use a high-mil clear poly plastic sheeting roof during the match(es)...

Less air? Possibly, but I doubt a significant reduction IF you continue to use the half-moon circ cuts in the side walls to relieve wind loading. The close spacing of the internal spaces combined with an 8' height leaves little room for air circualtion from the top anyway.

Roof ends the need to bag targets internal to the house... a MAJOR hindrance to running the stage in inclement weather. AND alternatively, you could use black poly and convert to a dark house... (Mmmm, just don't ask me to RO it OK? )

Y'all have a great day!

Edited May 9, 2006 by cautery