Your First Big Match

[Rocket35]

Mine was the 2005 Winter Indoor IPSC Tournament in Rockford, Illinois. I had just classified "B" class in Production the month prior. I was a cross over from IDPA at the time. Shooting a Glock 34, I came away with a 1st "B" class win and $75.

[gunsablazin]

Tn State IPSC championship, or something like that anyway at Chattanooga rifle club, must have been 1987 or so. I had not shot in a while and thought I was going to a local match! I got out of the car wondering what was going on, paid up and shot anyway. I had been out partying the night before and was hungover as all hell, finished up about 42 or so. Perhaps I could have been better prepared, anyway I learned gunfire makes my head hurt worse!

Robin

[glock-cop]

My first big match was the 1998 Michigan State Match. I was shooting a Para P14-45. On the second stage I broke the mag catch. I was able to buy one from a vendor and moved on. I then shot 2 stages with a bad extractor. Managed to borrow and kept going thanks to a buddy. Plus I found out that I moved up to C class the day before the match began.

[jriera]

My first Big match (or any other kind of match) was at the World Shoot in Venezuela in 1988.

I went as an 'observer' with the Spanish team and the local Range Master let me borrow a gun (single stack 1911 in .45 ACP) and ammo to compete, I got enrolled with the South African squad (reigning team at that time) and meet my two objectives for the competition; do not finish last (finished in the bottom 20) and do not get DQ.

It was a great experience, learned more about trigger control and target selection in a week than most people learn in a year!!

As an added bonus my pictures was in the front page of the Front Sight magazine edition just behind Rob Leatham at the podium!!

Edited April 10, 2008 by jriera

[mpeltier]

My first big match was the Florida state championship in 2002. For a relatively new competitor like I was, it may as well have been the nationals. I remember bieng a bit overwhelmed and really nervous. I was determined to shoot the match as best I could and focused mostly on bieng relaxed and having fun. I had no Idea how to tabulate the standings to see how I was doing, but when it was all over I had a feeling I would finish well in my division (Lim-10). Much to my surprise and the delight of my then 4-year old son Dalton, I won High Overall in Lim-10 and took home a very nice trophy.

[nm3gnr]

My first USPSA match was the NM Sectionals in Albuquerque, NM. I shot Limited unclassified. Took top U and 16th in limited. I have been hooked every since. This is just about the best way I have found to blow money !!!!

[scribble]

First large match was 2008 WIIT in Rockford IL and 2008 Single Stack Classic.

Learned that we can't all shoot like the Top Dawgs.

[HPD SRT]

First "Big Match" hmmmm......

Well just kidding I didn't have to think that long. I did a couple of local matches here and there. Then last year I went to the Area 1 Championship. I shot my XD45Tac souped up by Scott Springer out of Bend, OR. I ended up shooting Limited Minor with my Power Factor only being "164.7" AND I am not Exaggerating here.... I was .3 under Major. Yeah it sucked. But you know what, I ended up being squaded with all M's or GM's so I learned a lot. And not to mention I got 1st in C Class!! Woo Hoo! Well now I'm barely a B class, and am shooting the Area 1 again this year at the end of the month. Hopefully I make major this time......

A-57358

Edited June 11, 2008 by HPD SRT

[Neomet]

First big match was last weekend at the High Desert Classic. Had a major case of Bigmatchitis resulting in more mikes than Ray Charles shooting a Jennings 380 but still had the time of my life. Most of it was attributable to the great squad I was with and how smoothly the match was run. I somehow managed to stumble into a 2nd place U plaque for Open. I also had the extraordinary luck of getting a reshoot on a stage that I ran past a target on earning myself a FTE and two mikes. I still owe the RO who scored me wrong a beer or three. The main thing though was how great the guys I shot with were from the GMs down to .....well.....me I guess. Ha!!

[-JQ-]

First big match - Last weekend at the IN sectional after starting last october in some local club matches.

No DQ's and no AD's so that was good.

Finished top D SS...I hope they make the "D" really small on the plaque

[Don Gwinn]

I'll let you know if and when I ever shoot one.

Illinois Sectional for Production/Single Stack is coming up in October, but I have a meeting for a pro gun political group on the other end of the state that day. I'm a lot better at being mean to legislators than I am A zones.

[TwoShot]

My first "Big" match was the 1990 Nationals. We shot the standards first, to say the pucker factor was high is an understatement. I had shot club matches for three years and earned a slot the third year. Seeing the Super Squad shoot was an experience I will never forget!

[Sean.McCanne]

My first match was the OKC Gun club match the day before the start of the 2008 Nationals in Tulsa. I was in a squad with a couple of friends (one of which went to Nats), and people like Henning Wallgren, Phil Strader and Kelly Raglin. They were using it as a warmup for the Nats. It's difficult to concentrate on slowing down when these guys are shooting in front of you. I shot pretty good times, I just didn't hit anything.

My second match was the Area 4 sectional a few weeks ago. Same basic groups of people, but I concentrated a lot more and shot a lot more alphas. My times were slow as hell, but it was better all in all.

Tomorrow, I shoot another club match, and my 16yo son is shooting production in his first match. It's going to be the best match ever.

Then we're all going to go have a homebrew porter and some nice cigars. Except for my son. He's not old enough.

Good luck and have fun!

Sean

[VegasOPM]

My first big match was the 2001 (or was it 2002?) 3 Gun Nationals in Vegas. The match was in March, when it is normally 70 and sunny here. It was 40 and rainy for the whole match. One rifle stage had a low port that had to be shot from prone- most of the grip of my AR was under water. One the first day, my tricked out STI Limited gun kept turning into a pump action. So the next day I switched back to my Glock (and I haven't ever switched back) I had a lot of really slow misses with the rifle and some really fast misses with the pistol. The high points were that the Glock ran perfectly, while the sandy muck did a number on the other folks guns. The highest point was pulling 13th overall on a shotgun speed shoot in Limited. Oh, and winning an ammo bag and some bullets. I pretty much sucked, so I was thrilled to win anything.

[itchy]

What a great topic.

Mine was the Steel Challenge, I think about 1997. I had been shooting local, falling steel matches. Trained at Gunsite, LFI, Chapman Academy, so I thought I was a decent shot.

I was shooting a Glock 19, factory sights, and factory ammo, in IDPA SSP class. I just remember having to do a reload in the first box of Outer Limits. I was actually thinking that I might have to go prone.

I kept shooting that G19 until I finally won a 17 at a GSSF match. Then I took a class with Matt Burkett, who introduced me to my first 1050. It's been great ever since. I'm a Steel Challenge addict.

Seiichi

[Rocket35]

My first major USPSA event was February 2005, and it was the Winter Indoor IPSC Tournament. Match was, and still is, held in Rockford, Illinois.

The only way for me to get into the match was to take an RO class and work on the staff. This match routinely sells out in a week if not days. Staff usually work 16-18 hours a days and shoot in between ROing and breaking down and setting up the stages to be shot. See there is only three indoor bays. So You shoot the first three stages at zero-dark-thirty and then RO all competitors through the stage. Then tear them down and set up another three. RO all competitors, then shoot those three and tear them down and set up another three stages. Now you can either shoot those three that night or come in and shoot them at zero-dark-thirty the next morning. I opted to go to the hotel and come in the next morning, as I was beat.

I came away as 1st B in Production Division shooting a Glock 34. I remember that I kept telling myself that I just need to "survive" each stage and I will do fine. I remember saying to myself I don't need to win every stage. I also got to meet, shoot and work with some of the midwest's finest and had a blast. It was one of the most satisfying win's I have ever experienced.

Looking back now, it is pretty cool what you remember and how I can still feel what I felt those two days!

Edited November 1, 2008 by Rocket35

[HighVelocity]

My first big match was the 2006 TX State IDPA championship. It was about 100 degrees and 100% humidity (June in S. Texas). I'd only been shooting IDPA for 4 months (less than 12 matches) but managed to stumble into CDP Sharpshooter in a classifier a week before the match. I was definitely not prepared mentally this level of competition. On my first stage, I double tapped a non threat in the forehead and got two procedural penalties. One for leaving cover with an empty gun and one for not moving while shooting. I finished 13th out of 16 in CDP SS. I was all over the place and it was downright ugly. The drive home gave me 6 hours to figure out if this was a game that I wanted to continue playing.

There was one stage that I shot really well, 15th out of 165 shooters overall. It was 25 or 35 yards, I can't recall but I think it was called The Canyon and I only dropped 1 pt. So I started focusing on what I did right instead of what I did wrong and was able to get my head together for the next time.

[Glen517]

I don't think it was the first. But it was one of the first. Had been shooting less than 6 months. Area 5 2005 our group comes walking down the hill at sellersburg and we notice 2 figures in black standing around what apperes to be our first stage. It's Julie and Dave they are on our squad ! Wow I thought to myself. Shoorters like that shooting with the riff raff. What a great sport ! I was hooked for life.

[Sabot]

Well, my first and only was the 2009 LaRue multi-gun. I had a great time and finished 89th overall which I was VERY proud of. I shot for score as a Marine officer over a decade ago, but this was a true first.

On my very first stage, I was executing a pistol reload and the adrenaline forced me to put the mag in backwards. As I yanked it out, the adrenaline forced me to pull the floor plate off of the mag causing spring and 13 rounds to fly everywhere. The RO calmly re-assured me to fight through the friction, and I did.

Good times!

[gregdavidl]

My first big match was the 1984 Area 4 match held at Bill Wilson's range in Berryville, AR. We got a tour of his shop and he had this cool picture hanging behind his desk. Bill was pointing a .44 magnum revolver directly at the camera and the muzzle "followed" you, no matter where you stood in the office. I also met Jerry Miculek at that match. He and a buddy drove up in a sheriff's cruiser and made a comment to the effect that they had had no trouble with highway patrolmen on the way up. He also shot a 4" model 19 from a cross-draw holster. Having only been shooting competitively for a few months prior, my shooting left a lot to be desired. However I did manage to shoot all A's in the prone portion of the 50 yard standards and that was a tremendous confidence booster.

[Nik Habicht]

2001 Mid-Atlantic Sectional at Topton, my 6th USPSA match ever, shooting a SS in Limited with one ten-round mag and a bunch of eight rounders, shooting unclassified, finished four or five places up from the bottom with 34%....

Highlights: Being mentored through the match by Chriss Grube, who on one two-string stage persuaded the ROs to let me reload my single ten rounder between strings, and who got a laugh on the "Gun starts in the freezer of a fridge" stage when he asked the ROs if it would be range equipment failure if I knocked the fridge over when shutting the freezer door.....

[ParaGunner]

My first level 3 match was the 2009 USPSA Ohio State Championship. I had just made B class in Limited the month prior to the match . I did really well and was happy just being there. After a monster jam on one of the stages I ended up placing 3rd in B class Limited. It felt great getting 3rd.

[murkish]

2008 Space City Challenge shooting production finished 21 out of 26. I was squadded with Benny Hill and a bunch of great guys that I was meeting for the first time.

I was walking back to my range bag after the a fairly botched performance on the plate rack stage and Benny looked at me and said, "You shot that all f-ing wrong." I just sighed and nodded my head.

[mildot1]

2009 Illinois Sectional. Spent two days prior to shooting the match in class with Max & Travis. Was on Travis's squad and we talked him into shooting first on every stage

Nope I didn't tear it up but I did make far fewer mistakes and will say it was my best match at that point. High unclassified limited shooter and finished in the middle of the pack.

Was a Blast!!

[salilus]

2008 Louisiana State IDPA. My first Major, sanctioned event. All went well till the 4-5th stage where I lost my front site (Truglo TFO) on a 35 yard stage. Probably a good thing. Made me slow down and concentrate harder. Still got 2nd ESP Sharpshooter.