2023 CO and Iron Sight Nationals

[ddc]

2 hours ago, BritinUSA said:

Practically every match I shot in Colorado from 1998 to 2017

 

So... that was six years ago. I do recall a tendency for higher round count stages way back then... six years ago... pre-Covid... six years ago... pretty much a lifetime in terms of sport and how it evolves in the face of both internal and external influences.

 

Our most recent level 1 was as follows:

stage 1: 30

stage 2: 22

stage 3: 12 (classifier)

stage 4: 12

stage 5: 16

stage 6: 30

 

Yes, that is a sample size of one. YMMV, I get it.

 

But I can say this match, although somewhat "truncated" due to various factors. I think it is a reasonable example of how things usually work around here. A more typical local match would probably add at least a couple and maybe 4 to 6 rounds here and there. Even then we have a six stage match at around 150 rounds...maybe 26 rounds per stage... some more, some less.

 

Does that bother you?

 

[shred]

Covid (and associated ammo panic) was a "great reset" for round counts, but they are trickling back upward, partly because everyone has a 24+ rounds now and partly because lots of people still think "round count = quality" and its easier to design 30+ round hosefests than really interesting 18 round stages.

 

That trend isn't going away without massive ammo cost increases or an IPSC-style 1-2-3 rule which USPSA has been resisting for way more than five of your "lifetimes" that I've been shooting.

 

 

 

[Fishbreath]

39 minutes ago, shred said:

its easier to design 30+ round hosefests than really interesting 18 round stages.

 

Maybe I'm inserting 'interesting' before 'hosefests' in my head, but I find it significantly harder to design a good 30-round hosefest than a good 18-round stage.

 

I guess a 4x8 stage isn't particularly demanding design/setup-wise, but even before COVID I don't remember seeing very many of those.

[Racinready300ex]

 

1 minute ago, Fishbreath said:

 

Maybe I'm inserting 'interesting' before 'hosefests' in my head, but I find it significantly harder to design a good 30-round hosefest than a good 18-round stage.

 

I guess a 4x8 stage isn't particularly demanding design/setup-wise, but even before COVID I don't remember seeing very many of those.

 

I've just recently started trying to design stages, and 30 round stages are hard for me. I lay some stuff out that I like, count it up and it's typically 18-24 rounds. I don't think I've designed a 32 round stage yet lol.

 

[IL-SIG]

I too subscribe to quality over quantity. 

[OPENB]

Since Covid, locally, we've had some incredible 22-28 round stages that were much better, more interesting and just fun that the old 32 round stages that got the count up by just throwing a random target out for no other reason. 

 

I found the Nats to be challenging but a bit repetitive in some areas as noted. I didn't mind the bullet traps, but I know we'd all prefer natural berms, but it is what it is. The visual start stage was strange. Either give some more time to attempt the reload and the points, otherwise you had what I saw, a squad of shooters taking all the time to get mostly A's and skipping the reload alltogether. I liked stage 18 with the 30 yard mini poppers; it was one of my better stages, but I had a dot and a confirmed zero. It would have been demoralizing with old eyes, irons and an iffy zero. I think something more in the middle could have been as challenging without beating people's d!@# in the dirt.

 

 

[motosapiens]

15 hours ago, ddc said:

(snipi)

Yes, that is a sample size of one. YMMV, I get it.

 

But I can say this match, although somewhat "truncated" due to various factors. I think it is a reasonable example of how things usually work around here.

 

I wonder sometimes if we just have exceptionally high-quality local matches here. We certainly have some elite shooters and CRO/RM folks and guys who have MD'd and otherwise worked lots and lots of majors. 

 

I've shot majors all over the west, but I've only shot local matches in idaho, oregon, and washington.... however all those local matches were at least as good as ours.... and also run by very experienced and skilled folks. Maybe we are just lucky....

[motosapiens]

5 hours ago, Racinready300ex said:

 

 

I've just recently started trying to design stages, and 30 round stages are hard for me. I lay some stuff out that I like, count it up and it's typically 18-24 rounds. I don't think I've designed a 32 round stage yet lol.

 

I got all the way up to 30 last sunday, but 24-28 is more common for me for a large field course. I certainly don't mind 32 every now and then tho. Shooting is fun. Sometimes big stages have big round counts.