When paying for a major match

[Round_Gun_Shooter]

What do you expect for your money?

When you pay in excess of $100 for a match, do you have any expectations????

Most important to me is the stages and a smooth running match that moves with props that have been tested so range failures are minimal, cold water is nice, a tee shirt as a remembrance of the match, for IDPA, some type of raffle prizes, for USPSA a prize table is nice.

Do I ask for too much?

Now, I will qualify this I have worked local, state, regional, sectional and area matches so I am not just spouting off. First and foremost on all this I feel the staff should be compensated in some way for their time and hard work. One match I regularly worked charged each staff member $20 on a voluntary basis. Money was used to buy a gun for a staff member each year as a thank you. Everyone gave and no one was chosen twice. Staff was treated to meals at night and to meals during the day as well as plenty of fluids. We all worked that match year after year until it ended.

My question is from a competitor point of view. No bashing any sport, venue, or other please

Edited February 21, 2009 by Round_Gun_Shooter

[jasmap]

I'm not a prize table fiend but they are nice if they're there. I don't go to matches solely for prizes. I'll return to a match if they have great stages. I mostly look for great stages and a fun friendly environment. That's what draws me to a $100+ match.

I would say camaraderie but I get that at any match because shooters are generally some of the best people I know.

[Dan Sierpina]

I too like a smooth running match with props that will last from the first shooter to the last. Not so many props that it slows down the match, and they can be reset quickly by one shooter. Good challenging stages, not something where 60% of the shooters zero it. For the price mentioned $100.00+ a tee shirt should be a standard, I've recieved them at matches that cost less. Officiating that is equal for all the shooters, D class - GM. High round count is good too And squads that share the workload!!!!

[dcarter]

I'm not a prize table fiend but they are nice if they're there. I don't go to matches solely for prizes. I'll return to a match if they have great stages. I mostly look for great stages and a fun friendly environment. That's what draws me to a $100+ match.

I would say camaraderie but I get that at any match because shooters are generally some of the best people I know.

+++1. Good stages, high round count, good people with prize table coming in last. The T-shirt isn't even a factor unless I can get one of Techwear's t-shirts again. I just love the one that I have.

[ciscoip]

All you folks wanting a T-shirt would probably be sorely disappointed by the Bianchi Cup. $300+ (not including airfare, hotel, and meals) and no t-shirt . . . just a hat or two with a sponsor's logo on it, a sample or two of lube or metal polish, and a bunch of brochures. The match was fun though.

[kimel]

I want stages that present a fair challenge to all competitors and provide multiple ways to shoot each stage so each shooter gets to decide what they think will work best for them. I expect to see props that you don't see every day. Things like movers, target arrays on swingers and drop turners increase the fun factor.

I expect the rules to be followed explicitly by all involved.

I expect staff that know how to do their jobs and treat every shooter the same regardless of classification. I also expect these staff to be treated properly (adequate staffing so no one gets beat to death trying to do too much, free cold drinks, free lunch) so they don't face the later squads in the day all dehydrated and with low blood sugar (= grumpy).

I expect to be challenged by tight shots and long shots; not just a bunch of open targets at 3 yards to hose on.

I really don't expect ultra high round counts. 10 or more 32 round field courses just to bump up the round count just isn't a good test of all of a shooter's abilities. A good mix of short, medium and long courses is more fun and a better test.

I expect scores to be posted in a timely fashion (within an hour of last shot fired) so those that need to beat feet for home aren't left standing around for several hours facing a long drive home in the dark.

Prize tables, raffles, or just trophy matches are all fine with me. It needs to be clear before I send in my registration what sort of match it will be because for some folks it DOES matter.

Overall, I expect to have a lot of FUN with old friends and friends I just met. If a match sucks I most probably won't go back again, at least for awhile.

[Joe4d]

I dont care so much about prize tables, however I attended a Level two sectional with I believe a $75 entry. The match was very well run and organized, however no prizes, (which I didnt care about) no Tshirts, and not even a congratulations email for my class win (my first). I would have been happy with a certificate. basically other than 7 good stages and a stage specific RO staff there was really no indication this was anything but a club match.

[Chris iliff]

If it's a sectional or higher I want there to be some kind of trinket for 1st thru 3rd in all classes and divisions, and I don't care if there are only 3 competitors in the division. Other than that I love matches that are well run. Every state sectional (Indiana) and Area 5 match I have shot have been run by the best people you could hope for. Area 5 just rocks for good people.

[HSMITH]

I only care about the stages, great stages are what I look for when I spend money or travel to a match. A3 two years ago was the best set of stages I have ever shot, on 2/3rds of them there were a TON of different ways to shoot them. Start positions were 'standing in shooting area' and the shooting areas were HUGE so you had to go find a spot! It really made you think about what works for you and what would be the best way for you to shoot it. I have not seen anything close before or since and it was just a world better than stages that are set up so that everyone shoots it the same way.

[mwx40x40]

All you folks wanting a T-shirt would probably be sorely disappointed by the Bianchi Cup. $300+ (not including airfare, hotel, and meals) and no t-shirt . . . just a hat or two with a sponsor's logo on it, a sample or two of lube or metal polish, and a bunch of brochures. The match was fun though.

And I always that there was a cash payout at the Cup. I have never been, so I must have mistaken.

[D.Hayden]

I'm with Kimel and Howard on the stages...

I'm sure this is why SMM3G is so popular.

[boz1911]

I agree stages are number one, and they don't all have to have movers, swingers, stars, etc. A good stage should have options and be a challenge to all. I must also add I suck at stage design but around these parts we have and are developing some good stage designers. I do like to see a substantial round count. I don't want to see a major with the same round count as one of our six stage outdoor matches. I also like to see qualified CRO's and RO's that know the rulebook or are willing to use it when in doubt. Organization is also important. I don't like to see "shoot-thru's" that have time to hang around for hours afterward to pick something up from the prize table. If they had that much time, they had enough time to shoot with a squad.

[ciscoip]

I like good stages that give shooters several options on how to complete a course; the type of stages that force a shooter to weigh a couple of different compromises.

I don't like stages that artificially inflate the round count . . . you know, the ones that require 31 rounds just to force the open shooters to do a mag change.

I also don't like memory stages . . . the stages where shooters have to memorize a couple particular spots to stand in to engage all the targets without leaving one out or accidentally engaging a target multiple times.

Just add a little variety, I'd like to see more standard exercises, a more stages that require 12 rounds or less, and stages with targets going out past 15 yards, preferably 35 or 50 yards.