GSSF River Bend Ballistic Challenge V

Photo courtesy of Glocking Tall

On Sunday July 15, 2012, I traveled to the River Bend Gun Club in Dawsonville, Georgia, for the GSSF River Bend Ballistic Challenge V.  

As usual, I shot my Gen2 Glock 17 Bruce, and it performed perfectly, as expected. For those unfamiliar, you can refer to the GSSF course of fire here. 

MATCH PREMLINARIES

The GSSF course of fire consists of ten strings – 4 on Glock the Plates, and 3 each on 5 To Glock and Glock M. So, owning 11 magazines, I am able to pre-load my magazines and not have to do so at the range. That’s a nice thing.

One thing to remember is that we are allowed 11 rounds total per string, so if I load all my magazines with 11, and I don’t shoot the gun dry, I will need to strip one round off the next magazine before using it.

In fact, since 5 To Glock is exactly two shots per target, with no chance of make-ups as there are on the other two stages, I load my magazines 11 – 10 – 9. Then, I have one in the chamber after the first two strings, but the slide is closed. And, the slide locks back empty after the last shot, so showing clear is simple.

Before the match I did my usual pre-match checklist. 

Life has a way of throwing curve balls, though, and one thing I learned in baseball was never to sit on a pitch, that is, never assume you know what’s coming next.  This came to the forefront with a pre-match malfunction.

For dry firing I almost always install my plastic 5.11 training barrel. However, during the course of practice, the end of the recoil spring must have slipped off the notch in the barrel, because I couldn’t get the slide to slip off as I disassembled it, no matter how hard I tried. I tried everything I knew to get the slide off, to no avail. Finally, I had to resort to cutting the guide rod, and replacing it with a spare.

SHOOTING THE MATCH

When I arrived, it had been raining, sometimes hard, for about an hour. Footing was still good, but some stages had the cardboard NRA targets covered with plastic to protect them.

I elected to shoot Glock The Plates first, without a warm-up round, since the plates weren't affected by the rain. Bad idea. I left 4 plates standing my first round, and I could tell from the paint missing from the support that I had been shooting low and a little left, meaning I was jerking the trigger. I know enough from golf not to try and diagnose and fix problems mid match, so I just aimed a little high and right, and I had no misses the rest of the day. My Plates runs were in the mid-7 second range, which was about a second longer than normal, but that was okay.

I had one other close call, when I flinched on one of the long 25 yard shots on 5 To Glock. I called the shot low, and I thought it might be a miss, but it was a D, low and left. Even the RO commented when we were scoring. Some of my other 5 To Glock shots were in the D range, and those 3 second penalties hurt.

Some time while I was waiting for the third stage, Glock M, it stopped raining and the sun came out, all in the space of about 2 minutes. The temperature climbed, but the humidity stayed the same – 100 percent.

All this meant good hydration was essential. I had already drunk about 300 ml of the 1L of sports drink I had brought, and I drank another 500 ml while I waited, and ate a couple of granola bars. Of course, none of this alleviated the temptation to walk across the way to the Holy Smoke barbecue stand operated by a local church. The wind was blowing that tempting smoke our way all day. But I resisted.

I shot the last stage in a decent time, with all Alphas and three Charlies. One thing I did now that the sun was out was step forward a foot or so, so that my fiber optic front sight was fully illuminated by the sun. This helped a lot.

All in all, my overall match score was 188.1, not a good time at all. Four Mikes and a bunch of Deltas, combined with subconsciously slow shooting in the rain, add up.

AFTER THE MATCH

There are usually a decent number of booths at the Dawsonville match, but a lot of them called it quits during the rain, before I arrived. So, I didn’t get to buy any cool Glock items.

I did pay a visit to the factory Armorer, even though Bruce had been given the once over just a couple of months ago to relieve the Gen2 frame. I also told him about my training barrel incident, and he gave me a new recoil spring, making this the third year in a row my recoil spring has been replaced. Everything else was fine, though, as I expected.

I was tweeting after the match, and found a new blog, Glocking Tall (@GlockingTall), whose author was at the match as well. I am looking forward to getting to know him, and I added him to the blog roll today. 

So now we wait for Glock to post the scores. I won't win a gun for coming in first, but in a few weeks the final scores will be posted, including the random drawings. There's hope for me yet.

Match Report - Cherokee Gun Club USPSA June 2012

On Saturday June 9, 2012, I shot in the USPSA match at the CherokeeGun Club in Gainesville, Georgia. The day was sunny and warm, never about the mid-80’s. There were 81 shooters total, and 7 stages.

I shot in Squad 7, so I shot the last stage of the day first. However, I’ll describe the match in order.

I also will track some lessons learned with numbers in parentheses (thus) and talk about them in the Debriefing.

STAGE 1

Stage 1 was Georgia State Standards, and, as the name implies, was borrowed from the Georgia State USPSA match. It consisted of twelve USPSA targets arranged in an inverted V shape, with distances ranging from 7 yards out to 40 yards. There was a box opposite each base. The course of fine was, from either box, one shot on the targets on that side of the center line, then moving to the other box and one shot on each target there. For a second string, you started in the second box, shot one per target, then moved to the other box. At this point you shot one per target with the strong hand only.

I started on the right, so I ended up on the right side shooting strong hand only. This was telling, since all three misses I had on this stage were on the farther targets on the right hand side, meaning I likely missed shooting strong hand only. (1)

The RO came to me after the stage and mentioned that I almost broke the 180 degree rule when I was moving from right to left while changing magazines. There’s not a really good way to do that for a right hander, except pay attention and do it right. (2)

STAGE 2

The next stage was called Sliding Away. We shot the two poppers from inside the box, then we could engage the 10 paper targets in any order. This was my best stage of the day. I ran it fairly quickly, and had all A’s and C’s, with no misses. In fact, I finished ninth of 29 in Production on this stage.

My key was making sure I had a good sight picture on the poppers, as well as moving while I shot. It seemed to be a theme of the day that so many shooters stood still while shooting, then ran like hell to the next shooting position. Since I’m not very fast* I can’t rely on running, and learned to shoot while moving.

We also started facing uprange with the gun unloaded and holstered (3), and had to turn, load the gun, and fire. If I had to guess, this stage was designed by someone who open carried in California.

STAGE 3

The next stage had a left side and a right side shooting box. From the left you could shoot 5 poppers, one of which engaged a clamshell target. 

A clamshell target is a target that pops up, and then a second later gets covered by a No-Shoot target. This means you normally have to shoot the clamshell as soon as it’s activated, and that’s how the first person through the stage shot it. Soon, though, someone noticed there was a lot of target showing above the No-Shoot, so they decided to leave it till later, and take a head shot on the portion that was exposed. 

This worked just fine, and the rest of the squad shot it that way. I actually tried to shoot the clamshell in the center, but I didn’t double tap it (4), and had to end up settling for A/C, with the A in the middle under the No-Shoot.

I finished 41 out of 81 total on this stage, my best of the day.

Here's video of Stage 3.

Here's Dave Sevigny running Stage 3. Dave was in the group behind us.

You would think Dave would win the whole match. Sorry, KC Eusebio beat him.

STAGE 4

Stage 4 was called Dance Down The Middle, and it was made up of single shot paper targets around the perimeter, with a center fault line. All the targets on the left had to be shot from right of the fault line, and vice-versa.

Most people shot it thus: at the sound of the buzzer, they stepped over the line and started shooting at targets, standing still, until they had shot the number they had in mind. Then, they hopped over the line, some changing magazines as needed, and shot the other side.

Then, they ran like hell to the next shooting position, and did the same thing.

The whole time, I’m thinking “Sorry, isn’t this sport called ACTION shooting?”

Here’s how I shot it: At the sound of the buzzer, I moved over the line and shot the first five targets, moving up to where I was opposite the first target. Then, I moved over the line and shot the first five of the other side, while moving down range, keeping myself just behind a 180-degree line to the target. I then continued on thus till I was done.

Shooting on the move is a technique more shooters need to learn, or use. (5)

My Embarrassing Moment of the day came after my first string. As I was moving and changing magazines, the magazine fell out of my hand. Fortunately, this isn't a penalty, and I kept the presence of mind to keep my muzzle down range and retrieve the magazine (on the run, no less) and get it in the gun.

(This is where I'm glad I don't have a Hat Cam like Walt.

STAGE 5

Sorry, there wasn't a diagram of Stage 5.

Stage 5 was called Urine in Your Face, and I have no idea why.

It started with a lone steel target from the starting box, then a series of paper targets and No-Shoots shot from a lane moving down range. Again, most people moved, stopped, and shot several targets, while I kept moving and shot on the move.

But, again the dreaded Mike reared its head, as I tried to double tap the two paper targets close up and to the right, and instead shot Alpha / Mike on each. (4)

Here's another shooter on Stage 5:

STAGE 6

Stage 6 was a Classifier called Front Sight 2. It was almost like an El Presidente drill, except we ran it in two strings, and we started one run facing uprange with hands raised, and one string facing downrange with hands at our side. Draw and put two on each target.

When I finished shooting, someone behind me called out “sandbagger!” That's because I had shot 12 alphas with a time of about 8 and a half seconds. But I practice El Presidente, and this was easier, since there was no magazine change.

STAGE 7

Stage 7 was Humdinger, which was undoubtedly named for the noise it makes. Eleven steel targets, all shot from a shooting box and around some barrels.

This was my first stage of the day, and I hadn't shot at all before, so I probably shot 25 rounds to take out the 11 targets. My time was over 22 seconds. Instead of spraying and praying, I could have taken a one handed dueling stance and done better. (6)

DEBRIEFING

In retrospect, I didn't do the worst I could have done, nor did I do the best. In general, the Mikes meant I was shooting too fast. A little slower will means better hits. It's a tough realization for someone who is competitive and thinks they should be shooting fast. But if I am to get to that point, it will mean – shocker! - PRACTICE!

Here's what I need to practice:

1. I need to shoot one handed a lot more. This was evidenced on Stage 1, as well as on the “reverse handed” stage at the Memorial Day shoot at Creekside Firing Range.
2. I need to practice moving right to left while changing magazines
3. I need to practice drawing an unloaded gun, loading it, and firing. In case I open carry in California. Or I’m ambushed coming out of a gun show.
4. I need to work on double taps.
5. I need to practice shooting on the move. This may require a lot of dry firing or Airsoft work, since there are a limited number of places I can practice this.
6. Slow down and make hits. My score will go up. I can't miss fast enough to win.

* I'm told that somewhere there is a baseball scouting report on me that says "he's short, but he's slow to make up for it."

Match Checklist

Courtesy of Everyday No Days Off

In the course of seeing how bad the video quality was from the Memorial Day Steel Match, compared to the HD video I shot earlier, I edited my Match Checklist this morning to add my HD camera. I use this checklist to remind me of what I need to do, and I typically start it a few days before the match.

I thought I would share it with you. Here’s the checklist. Feel free to copy it for your own use.

By the way, Bruce is my Glock 17.

Clean and inspect

q  Detail strip Bruce, inspect all parts, safety check

q  Install (-) connector on Bruce

q  Clean Bruce as needed

q  Lubricate

q  Inspect magazine bodies, springs, and followers

q  Inspect belt, holster, and magazine pouches

q  Inspect and clean hearing protection and eye protection

Prepare

q  Load magazines

q  Make up sports drink

q  One water bottle in freezer

q  Print directions to the range

Pack

q  Bruce

q  Liberty

q  Magazines

q  Extra ammo

q  Clean towel

q  Sweat towels

q  Eye & ear protection

q  Knee pads

q  Hat

q  Sunscreen

q  Bug spray

q  Rain gear

q  Granola

q  Lunch

Load car

q  Shooting bag

q  Armorer case

q  Camping chair

q  Extra ammo

q  Gun cart

q  Golf umbrella

q  Water and sports drink

q  Directions

q  Still camera

q  HD video

Memorial Day Steel Match

Stage 4

As I've related before, on Memorial Day the Creekside Firing Range in Cartersville, Georgia, hosts an annual Memorial Day Fundraiser. Consisting of a pistol match, and auction, and a tactical rifle match, all proceeds from the match this year went to the widow and two children of a soldier from the Chattanooga, Tennessee area, who was killed in Afghanistan this past year.

I shot in the morning Steel Challenge match, which attracted about 40 competitors. I didn't stay around this year for the auction or the rifle match, mostly because I don't own an AR-15 - yet. (More on this later.)

The shooters were split into two sqauds, and we shot 5 stages. 

STAGE 1

Stage 1 was simple enough. The shooter started out seated at a table, with the gun loaded and lying on the table facing downrange. At the buzzer, we engaged five 4-inch targets at 20 yards, then moved to the second shooting area, where we engaged another five 4-inch targets at 20 yards.

Sounds simple, yes. Easy, no.

Four inch targets are small, very small at 20 yards. That's the X ring on a NRA D1 target, or half the center "-0" ring on the IDPA target.

Couple that with being the first stage of the day, and it wasn't pretty. I shot it in 32 seconds, and I was in the upper half of results if I had to guess. I bet I took 25 rounds.

STAGE 2

Stage 2 was just Stage 1, reversed. Start standing, shoot with the opposite hand, and progress to the seated position.

Okay, I had practiced drawing with my right hand and moving the gun to the left hand, and I had done some dry firing left handed, but not enough. As I tweeted at the time, I found out that, shooting left handed, I flinch in a way totally different from how I flinch right handed.

All stages carried a 90 second par time, and I ran out of time on this one, with only 4 targets knocked down. Since each target missed added 10 seconds, my score was 140 seconds. Yuck.

The best way I can describe my performance on this stage is to compare it with a drunk Kid Shelleen in the movie Cat Ballou. Only, I wasn't drunk.

STAGE 3

Stage 3, for me, was a lot easier. From left to right there were two full size pepper poppers, then five groups of two smaller poppers, set in front of each other. The shooters were allowed to move along a fault line, set 20 yards from the targets, that ran the length of the targets. Some shooters moved along the line, Sundance style, while I prefered to stand and deliver.

I shot the stage in under 20 seconds, using fifteen shots. Now we're talking.

One observation was that I was actually able to call my shots on this stage. Rather than wait until I saw the target fall, I knew when I broke the shot that my sights were aligned, so I trusted that the shot was made. I even knew when I had made the three misses.

STAGE 4

Stage 4 is shown above, from a little left of the shooting area. It consisted of two Texas Stars and a popper. One plate on each Star was painted yellow, and the rules specified that these two plates had to be shot first, or there was a 10 second penalty. The problem was, the yellow plate on the back Star was in line with one of the plates on the front Star, so that you had to hit the yellow plate on the front Star first, and when the front Star started spinning, you had a shot at the back Star's yellow plate.

Once the two yellow plates were down, you could then engage any plates you wanted, in any order. Of course, with a Texas Star, that's is about a hundred times easier said than done.

I managed to clean the stage in under 70 seconds, although I did knock off a non-yellow plate from the front Star before I hit the yellow plate on the back Star, so I incurred a ten second penalty.

STAGE5

Stage 5 was a mix of twelve targets, 4 inch plates and poppers, all at about 15 yards. I kept things simple and engaged them left to right. Shot it clean, with a decent time, again calling my shots. On this one, I asked a fellow competitor to take some video.

Sorry for the crappy video quality, I left the HD camera at home. I've got to add that one to my checklist.





In all, I enjoyed the match, even if I didn't shoot as well as I could on the first two stages. I like shooting steel matches because the feedback is definite, and the scoring is simple.

As soon as I know where I placed I will let you know.

Competition as Training, From Someone Who Should Know

Competition is good. It helps you practice your gun handling skills, and it exposes you to a stressful environment which at least simulates a real world encounter. In the world of pistol competition, there always seems to be a lot of discussion about which pistol sport is more "defensive based" and more "real world" - USPSA or IDPA.

USPSA is the United States Practical Shooting Association, which is the US member of the International Practical Shooting Confederation, or IPSC. It was founded in 1986 as a way to codify the pistol matches that were springing up across the USA.

IDPA is the International Defensive Pistol Association, and it was founded in 1996, as a response by some who felt that IPSC competitions were getting too far from the intended purpose. Namely, the founders didn't like the IPSC trend toward "race guns," or guns purpose built for competition, and felt that there should be a sport that required the use of normal carry guns, with stages based on more real world scenarios.

The debate continues today.

Serendipitously, I came across this interesting passage the other day:

The object of practical pistol skill is not to win trophies, but rather to stop fights. Muzzle brakes and reduced loads are backward steps and not to be regarded as progress. When we see the terms "race gun" and "carry gun" as representing two different instruments, we learn that some people at least have lost sight of the object of the exercise.

This comes from none other than the founder of IPSC and its first president, Jeff Cooper.

Interestingly, he goes on.

It is important not to become dogmatic about this.

Whoa. Dogmatic doesn't even touch some of the "discussion" I hear.

He concludes:

If there is a better way or a better weapon, let's have it. But I have not seen this developing in pistolcraft, at least not recently. Those of us who have studied the matter deeply understood this a good many years ago. We will change when we are shown why we should, but not until then.

In this light, the recent trend in USPSA toward the Production division is certainly welcome.

So, if you're serious about shooting, you should be competing, both to build defensive skills, and to do so in a stressful environment. It seems clear that it doesn't matter which sport you choose, as long as you keep your goals in mind. The rules may be different, but the goal should be the same.

If we get away from the original intent, however, we risk making it into something it isn't suited to be, and something it wasn't meant to be.

Time Dilation Under Stress, Courtesy of Walt in PA

Courtesy of Walt in PA

Walt White at Walt in PA has posted another match report from his recent USPSA match. Check it out.

As I read Walt's description of his first stage, Stage 4, I began to see a neat demonstration of a curious phenomenon: how time slows down when we're "in the zone."

To see what I mean, read Walt's description of this malfunction he ran into:

It was at this point that I ran into trouble. My slide was locked back but my magazine wouldn’t drop free after pressing the magazine release button. I gave the gun a little shake to try and free the magazine but was unsuccessful. Being the first time I had ever encountered this problem, I acted on instinct. I mashed down on the slide release lever and the slide snapped forward. A press on the magazine release lever sent the empty magazine falling to the ground. I re-inserted a new magazine and racked the slide.

With a round in the chamber and the slide in battery, the gun appeared ready to rock. I raised the gun and fired two last shots on the one remaining target.

As I read this, and imagined it in my mind, I thought it might take him 5 or 6 seconds to clear the problem.

Watch the video though:



You can see that it takes Walt 3 seconds, from 0:29 to 0:32, to clear and bring the gun back up. I think the fact that he was able to describe dropping the slide and trying to drop the magazine shows that he could and think about and clearly see all the details of what was happening.

All this happens because, when we are "in the zone," or under stress, the body is filled with the "fight or flight" response, and flooded with adrenaline. Our brains speed up, and perception of time is altered. Lots of people have reported this, and I once experienced it during an auto crash.

Just a neat observation. Thanks, Walt.

Great Detailed Match Report from Walt in PA

This isn't Walt, he does this a lot better.

I'm a little behind in my blog reading and podcast listening, but with the warm weather this weekend, I got to do a lot of yard work, and, thanks to noise-cancelling ear buds, catch up some on the podcasts.

In his most recent podcast, Walt White at Walt in PA talked about his first USPSA match of the year, and that led me to the collection of videos and stage debriefings on his blog.

I am a fiend for good descriptions of stages and how they are shot - visualization, planning, and the actual "Red Haze" shooting of the stage, and Walt really delivered. Check out the hat-cam video Walt provides. Coupled with his insightful and no-holds-barred self examination, I found it a really great read.

I am almost convinced that Walt and I are separated at birth. He doesn't cut himself much slack in reviewing his performance, and neither do I.

On a related note, one of the other podcasts I listened to was Episode 254 of Down Range Radio with Michael Bane. Michael has been competing as long as there have been competitions, and this episode he talked about Winter Range, the big Cowboy Action Shooting match. He didn't do as well as he thought he should have, or could have, either.

But he talked a lot about how the top shooters are able to shake off a bad stage, and go on to the next stage. Without that ability, they could easily let a poor performance take down their whole match.

I've been looking into this concept some, and I plan to write about it some more in the near future. In the meantime, I will take away the good and try to learn from the not-so-good.

Evolution of My Holster Rig

My competitive holsters, from 1993 to present.

About a week ago, I was asked by Walt in PA about the magazine holders I use for USPSA competition. I told him that I have been using the standard Glock Magazine Holder ever since I got into competition, for a number of reasons.

First, it's what I use for every day carry, if I use a mag holder. Second, it's lightweight and cheap. So cheap, I've never found anything else that meets my needs, for the price.

While my choice of mag holder hasn't changed, I can't say the same about my holsters.

The picture above shows my competitive holster collection, as it has evolved from 1993 to today.

When I bought my first Glock 17 in 1992, I went that same weekend and bought a very inexpensive nylon, one-size-fits-all holster, and I used that holster for club competition for about 3 or 4 years. It's made by Gould & Goodrich, and I don't know the model number because that part of the tag is missing now. The inside is a nice suede.

When I took up IDPA in 1995, I bought an Uncle Mike's Kydex paddle holster. Because I carried my gun at about 4 o'clock at that time, I adjusted it to the maximum forward cant that I could. I still use it for IDPA.

At that time, I used a stiff leather belt, laced through my belt loops, as a gun belt.

Then, in 2002, when I took up USPSA, I changed from a 4 o'clock position to a 3 o'clock position, right on my hip, and I bought an Uncle Mike's belt slide holster. About that time, I found a Bianchi competition belt on sale, and I started using that. I like the competition belt because it's a little more rigid than the leather belt, and I can take the belt off and on a lot easier.

In 2005 or so, I started experimenting some with my draw stroke, and I changed my technique a little. Before, I moved my hand below the gun and swept it clear with the fingers, then grabbed the grip as I brought the gun to bear.

However, I found that this technique didn't yield a consistent grip, so I changed, so that my first movement was to grip the gun with my strong hand, high, with a good shooting grip. Then I would draw the gun, while bringing my support hand in.

I found that the belt holster made the gun ride just a little too high, and someone suggested I try an offset holster, that mounted the gun lower.

Uncle Mike's belt slide holster, left, versus BladeTech DOH holster, on the right. Note that both belts are at the same level. The gun rides almost 3 inches higher with the belt slide holster.


I ended up buying a BladeTech "DOH" double offset belt holster, that's adjustable for cant at two points. After some experimenting, I have it set at a neutral position, not canted in any direction. I wear it right behind by the point of my hip bone, per the Production Division rules.

I find that the 3 inch difference between the belt slide holster and the DOH is enough to make my grip a lot more consistent.

Yes, I still have all these holsters, and many more. But that collection is for another day.

Too Many Victims

In response to the Brady Campaign's marking of the anniversary of the Tuscon shootings, Joe Huffmann produced this video showing a real solution to the problem.

Thanks Joe!

Match Report - USPSA at Cherokee Gun Club

This past Saturday I shot the regular monthly USPSA match at the Cherokee Gun Club in Gainesville, Georgia.

The weather was perfect for a pistol match, starting in the low 50's F and ending around 60, with a slight breeze. There were 67 competitors and all classes and divisions were represented except revolvers. And, Dave Sevigny was there, and I got to chat with him for a few minutes.

There was an excellent mix of stages as well, including a couple of simple stages and one of the most complex field courses I have ever had the pleasure of running. More on that later.

I started on Stage 4, but I'll go through the stages from the beginning. Stage 1 was called Do Your Dance, and it consisted of multiple targets along the edge of the stage, with barrels and a dividing line up the middle of the stage. The Dance came from the requirement that targets on the left side be shot from the right side of the divider, and vice versa, so that the shooter was essentially dancing back and forth down the field. Very interesting. I shot it clean (which for me means no misses, I"ll worry about all Alphas later) but my time was slow. No surprise.

Stage 2 was the Classifier stage Cash 'n' Carry, with three targets from engaged from a box, one popper engaged while moving to a second box, and three targets engaged from the second box, only from under a horizontal bar that forced us to kneel or squat. (Given the choice I usually kneel.) I missed two shots on this stage and shot a no-shoot. Not good.

Stage 3 was called Doomed, and now I know why. It's the one shown in the picture above. There were two swinging targets and a guillotine target. The Guillotine target is covered by a no-shoot at the beginning of the stage, and shooting a popper drops the no-shoot. About 2 seconds later another no-shoot rotates into position blocking this target, so you have a short time to shoot it.

I shot Alpha / Charlie on the guillotine, not bad. But I missed one shot on a 25 yard target, and one shot on one of the swingers.

The best way to shoot swinging targets is to shoot when the target is all the way down on the left or right, as it's changing directions. In retrospect I should have shot more shots at the swingers.

Here is Dave Sevigny shooting stage 3:



Stage 4, where I started, was called Gotcha, and it was basically targets up the middle of the stage, with lanes on the outside of the stage where the shooter had to be. We shot our way down to the end and then shot three targets over a barrier. For me this was my best stage of the day. No misses, mostly Alphas.

Stage 5 was called Zombiemart. This one started with the gun in a cash register (really a briefcase) and then we engaged three targets straight away, with targets to the left and right.

I'll come back to Stage 6. . . .

Stage 7 was the Classifier Table for 1, and was a welcome change. Starting with an unloaded gun sitting at a table, we shot three targets, then reloaded and shot them again. Since I finished 6th in Production on this stage, this tells me my shooting was good but I need to work on my movement.

On Stage 6 this was painfully obvious. Here I am shooting Stage 6, Barrel Issues.



Here is Dave Sevigny shooting the same stage.



That was the fastest time of the day. As you can see, there were steel plates, poppers, and a gallows. All the fun a shooter can stand.

In the end, I finished 50th of 67 shooters, and was the highest in the D class. I take what victories I can!

I also took away a lot of things today:

> I need to (obviously) lose some weight, so I can get around quicker.
> I need to work on my double taps on close targets. On Stage 6 I shot a measured pair when a double tap would have done better. (Of course, I could also argue that if I shoot worse with double taps, say, Alpha / Charlie versus 2 Alphas, does that get eat up the faster time?)
> My magazine changes were decent.
> My sight pictures were decent, and I was calling my shots most of the day, even on the stages with lots of movement.

All in all it was the best match I've shot in a long time, and the most fun I've had in USPSA. Kudos to Peter Oliver, the match director at Cherokee. Peter came in second overall, by the way, which was probably the best he could expect.

The Evolution of My Pistol Shooting Stance

I was looking at photos of people shooting, and I noticed the different ways people hold their guns when shooting. This got me thinking about how my own shooting stance has changed over time.

Here is a brief history of my shooting stance.

The Dueling Stance

This is the classic one handed bullseye stance. The shooter aims along the arm, and puts one hand in their pocket. I have no idea if this is still being done, but if I had to guess, it probably is, by bullseye competitors.

I’ve played around with this stance on occasion, but I don’t have the arm stamina to do it effectively. However, if I did need to do it, I would just get some training and practice.

The good news is I don’t have much reason to use this stance. I don't shoot bullseye and I don't settle quarrels with a duel.

Weaver Stance

This stance was the major stance in use in the early days of Practical Pistol. A lot of more experienced shooters still use this stance. A lot of Hollywood people who don't have a good instructor use this stance, some of them using the Teacup method with the support hand.

R. Lee Ermey uses the Weaver stance. This is interesting, because the military taught a one-handed shooting style with the 1911, up until adoption of the Beretta M92 in the 1980's.

I used the Weaver stance early on, because it gave me a better view of the sights. The gun is closer to the eye. It also turns your body a little bit, which stabilizes you against the recoil. Proponents also say it presents a smaller target to the bad guy, but to me that assumes you are standing there shooting at a bad guy, and not running like hell to get away, like you should be.

Isosceles Stance

This stance is named for the triangle that the arms make when holding the gun in front of the shooter. It was pioneered by Brian Enos and Rob Leatham in the 80’s.

I noticed that a lot of shooters used this stance, and I tried it a number of times. Some of them lock their elbows, like Dave Sevigny, and some leave the elbows a little bent, like Doug Koenig. I tried it both ways.

But because it was uncomfortable to me – that is, unfamiliar – I quickly went back to the Weaver stance.

On a couple of practice occasions, I decided to see how accurate I could be with each stance. I found out that I was a lot more accurate using the Isosceles stance than the Weaver, and I mean a lot more accurate. I think it has to do with the variability of the hold. In the Weaver I kept my strong arm a little bent, and I think this led to differences from shot to shot.

After a few sessions, I finally convinced myself to switch to Isosceles. It wasn’t easy – no change ever is. But it’s paid off for me.

Now, I occasionally find myself back in the Weaver stance, for no apparent reason. Habit I guess.

My point of all this is to say, try all the stances. Don't use a stance just because you think it looks good on Jack Bauer. Use what works. And if people give you grief, let your score do the talking.

Match Report

Photo courtesy of River Bend Gun Club Action Pistol group

Saturday July 16 was quite a shooting day. I had planned on shooting the GSSF match at the River Bend Gun Club in Dawsonville, Georgia, and I found out late in the week from Staci Boudreau, a fellow shooter on Twitter, that the club's monthly Action Pistol match was also held that morning. So I met Staci and her husband Bruce at RBGC for a full day of shooting.

The River Bend Gun Club, RBGC, is a very well kept and well run club located a few miles off I-575 about 50 miles north of Atlanta. I first shot there as a guest of a co-worker a few years ago, and it's only gotten better since. I've shot GSSF and USPSA there, and now Action Pistol.

The RBGC Action Pistol match is very much like the matches I first shot in Alabama 18 years ago. It's not affiliated with any organization like USPSA, which gives them a lot of freedom in stage design, gun classifications, and the like. I shot Production class, because that's what I shoot in USPSA, and I wanted to keep the more frequent magazine change as a part of the test. Oh, I was tempted to shoot Limited, since I could have loaded my magazines to 19 and blazed away. Maybe next time.

First, I think the safety briefing that was given was about the best briefing I have ever had. He went over all the rules of the match, and all the safety points. Nothing was glossed over, that there was no assumption about anyone's previous shooting experience. It was presented with ease, and no one seemed anxious to move on. Very refreshing.

Also refreshing - literally - was the weather, around 75 degrees at the start of the match, and drizzling most of the time. Shooting a Glock, all I had to do was wipe off my grips before shooting. The weather started to dry up by the end of the match, though.

There were three stages, and each tested different shooting skills. The first stage was all steel plates, either classic round plates, steel bowling pins, pepper poppers, or steel IPSC targets. You either hit or not, and it all came down to time. The second stage was classic run and gun, with an added twist - the last series of targets included one target that had a badge around its neck, representing an undercover policeman, and the ROs changed which target was the LEO before each run. At least one shooter in our squad shot the cop.

Stage 3 took advantage of the non-USPSA rules, in that it only required shooters to neutralize the targets, which was defined as one shot in the A area, or 2 in the B and/or C area. Shots in the D range just made the target angry. There were several shots around barricades, and if you aimed center of mass and saw an A hit, move on.

There were unpleasant surprises, though, as some shooters received Failures to Neutralize, because they assumed a single headshot was a neutralizer, not seeing that they had actually hit the B area in the head.

After that, we enjoyed a great hamburger and hotdog lunch, then headed up the hill to the Cowboy range, where the GSSF match was already under way.

After signing in, we shot the three stages I talked about last week. I shot a very good match for me, with zero misses except one steel plate left standing. My score was 121 seconds and change, which is a 15 second improvement over my personal best.

Bruce shot a lot better than I, with a score of 83. Well done.

I arrived home about 4:30, after leaving the house at 7 AM. A quick peak as I cleaned out the car revealed that my Glock didn't really need cleaning. I just brushed out the trigger group, ran a rod brush through the barrel, and put him away. The Glock 19 I took as a backup got the carry loads back in, and went in my waistband.

The GSSF scores will be posted later today, Monday, and in a few weeks, the prizes will be awarded. But believe me, before then, we'll be back on the range.

Glock Sport Shooting Foundation

I am surprised when I talk with fellow Glock owners who are unaware of the Glock Sport Shooting Foundation, or GSSF. I then realized I hadn’t done a full post explaining what this organization was or how to join. Let’s correct that today.

The GSSF is owned and operated by Glock, Inc., out of their US headquarters in Smyrna, Georgia. They organize and run about 36 matches a year, all over the country, with the much appreciated assistance of a lot of people at local host ranges. The schedule can be found at the GSSF website, www.gssfonline.com. Joining GSSF is just $35 for the first year, and $25 to renew, plus $25 per match for each pistol you compete with. (More on that later.)

But the bounty comes with the prize packages. In addition to awarding Glock pistols for winners, and cash for other high finishers, they also award a lot of cash, complementary membership renewals, and free pistols at random to competitors. In the 15 years I’ve been competing, I have only won a prize once for my finish – I won $100 for taking second in my class. But I’ve also won $100 once, $50 twice, two annual renewals, and – YES – a brand new Glock of my choice. (That’s where Libert, my G19, came from!)

GSSF is open to any Glock shooter, regardless of age or experience. There are different classifications for shooters, ranging from Amateur Civilian (which would include most of us), to Guardian (for police and military) to Master (for those who are ranked Master or Grand Master in other groups). All you need is a Glock pistol and at least 4 magazines, plus 104 rounds of ammo. And, if you have more than one pistol, you can enter more than one classification, which increases your chances of winning a random prize.

Admittedly, GSSF seems like a rather low-intensity competition, when compared with USPSA or IDPA. There are no reloads or movement during the stages, and the stages start at low ready, rather than being drawn from a holster. This is perfect for the new shooter, but don’t think it makes matches a cake walk for experienced shooters. This just shifts the emphasis from transitions to accuracy.

To level the playing field, and to account for the restrictive gun laws in some states, all magazines start with 10 rounds, and you are allowed one in the chamber. There is an exception for the Glock 36, which only holds 6 rounds to start, in a class called Heavy Metal, and if you shoot another .45ACP or 10mm Glock, you can enter that class as well, and self limit your magazines to 6 shots each, plus one in the chamber.

Scoring is based on time, with penalties assessed for errant shots or misses. The match uses three kinds of targets - the NRA D-1 target, also called the Tombstone; steel pepper poppers; and 6 inch steel plates.

For the metal targets, scoring is easy. If you knock the popper or the plate down, there is no penalty. If you leave one standing, you add 10 seconds. Ouch.

For the Tombstone targets, all shots in the A or B area incur no penalty. Shots in the C area add 0.5 econds for each, and shots in the D area count for 3 extra seconds each. Complete misses add 10 seconds. Ouch.

Every match I’ve been to has included the same 3 stages, and they are run just about the same everywhere. I tried to find some good examples of these stages, but the best ones are actually on the GSSF website itself, which I liked above.

5 to Glock:

This stage is five Tombstone targets, spaced from 5 yards out to 25 yards. Sometimes these are in a straight diagonal, and sometimes they are staggered. The point here is to test transitions from target to target, and to test your ability to make the longer shots as well as the close shots.

This stage is shot three times. At the end of the stage, all three times are added up, and each target is assessed. There should be 6 shots on each target, and penalties are added accordingly.

Glock M

The stage is named for its similarity to the letter M. From left to right, there is a Tombstone target at 7 yards, a Tombstone at 15 yards, 3 pepper poppers at 11 yards, then another 15 yard Tombstone, and a 7 yard Tombstone. This stage is also shot three times, with only one popper being shot on each run through.

Here’s where a little strategy comes in. I generally shoot all the Tombstone targets, left to right, 2 each, then shoot the pepper popper. This means I’ve shot 8 shots, leaving me three shots to knock the popper down. If I leave a popper standing, then it’s my fault, but I’ve never left a popper standing.

Glock the Plates

This is the simplest stage of all – just 6, 6 inch steel plates, at 11 yards. Knock them all down in the shortest time. This stage is shot four times.

But, as is often the case, the simplest stage is not necessarily the easiest. I have probably left more plates standing in my GSSF career than any other. For me, this stage embodies all the fundamentals of good shooting – sight picture, trigger control, and follow-through. When I get all these where they should be, and my shot cadence is right, I clean this stage. My technique is to shoot each plate in order, whether I hit it or not, then come back and take the ones I miss.



GSSF can be an excellent entry into competitive pistol shooting, and it is also a great complement to other shooting games for more experienced shooters. If you own a Glock, give them a look. For that matter, sign up, and come shoot with me next Saturday, July 16, at the Riverbend Gun Club in Canton, Georgia.