Nationals went OK, not great but good. I finished 2nd SSP Expert and got my bump to Master.
As far as the actual match went, well I could of and should have done better than what I did. I started on stage 1 and the first 3 stages didn't go as well as I wanted. I had a plan on stage 2 and I almost nailed it except after a reload and before I moved to another position I needed 1 more shot on a target............I forgot that shot and in the end that could be what cost me the match since I only got beat by 1.6 seconds. If I would have hit that target, even with a decent shot then I would have been 2 seconds faster. Stage 3 was the standards, lots of shots, lots of 30 yard shots, and all Limited. I was doing OK until the last string and got way to fast and threw a couple of misses, I knew it when I pulled the trigger but being limited scoring I couldn't make them up.
I left the first 3 stages over 50 down and thinking I may have given the match away before I really got started. Then I realized everybody has to agonize over the Standards so I could still do OK as long as I got myself back into shooting my type of match. I got back to just focusing on the stage I was shooting and not worrying about the ones behind me. I put together a few good stages and felt that I had good monentum. After about 4 stages or so I had another bad stage, not terrible just not good, but got back into the right mindset and followed it up with another good stage. I did that cycle a few times but I was never able to really keep the ball rolling and find that groove I ususally get into. In the end I out of 17 stages I had 3-4 bad, 3-4 that were just OK, and the rest were good and solid stages.
It was either the non-shot on stage 2 or the really bad stage with the "dogs" that cost me the match. The "dog" stage was a minimum 1 scored round stage at targets that only had the -1 and -0 areas and 4 of them were out to 20-25 yards. I had a plan to hit the long ones with 2 shots to make sure I got the hits but I got to quick on the first target trying to beat the no-shoot swinger and missed that target and earned a "failure to Neutralize". Then I had the only gun issue of the match (actually the only one I remember since shooting the CZ), I had a stove pipe. That cost me about 4 seconds and on top of the 5 seconds for the FTN it really killed me. Knowing how my match went I spent the next 2 days watching the updated scores hoping I would stay on top but knew my time could be beat.
Overall I am happy with the match, I didn't shoot as well as I thought I should but I was able to stay focused and not panic when I had a bad stage. In the past I would have tried to make up for a bad stage by pushing to hard and then blowing the next stage. After a bad one I would go back to the fundamentals and just focus on the front sight and make my hits.
That makes the third division I have made Master in since May so I am really pleased about that. I worked hard this year to make Master and didn't know if I could do it in 3 divisions, that was my goal though. I was struggling a little in the early spring and that is when Garry Newton started to work with me. With his help I was able to figure out what I needed to focus on and it really helped me during the Nationals to regroup after a bad stage. I really want to thank Garry for all his help.
The year is pretty much done for me as far as major matches go. I will be shooting all the local stuff though working on the things I need to improve on so that next year I will not only be a Master but I will be a very competitive one.
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Friday, September 17, 2010
Getting ready for IDPA Nationals
It has been a while since I updated this so I thought I would post about the upcoming IDPA Nationals.
Since I shot the Texas State match I have been deciding on what gun to use for the Nationals and then spending time getting up to speed with something other than my 1911. I am shooting SSP Expert at Nationals because I hope to get my bump to Master. I had plans to go back to my M&P Pro but after a few matches and practices I decided that may not be the best choice. I really like the gun but for some reason I just don't get the hits I want. I tried a few different things but the accuracy always seem to suffer and to be honest my hits were never as good with it. On top of the accuracy issues it is just not 100% reliable, every so often I would get a FTE and sometimes at a match I just have the impending dread that it will show up at a very inopportune time. Tough to be competitive with that in your mind.
I decided to make the switch to a CZ 75b. That came with it's own hurdles, double action first shot, it was a stock gun, and just learning a new platform. I shot it a few times in stock form and slowly started to add some parts and do some work on it and after springs, sights, grips, and some modest trigger work I have a pretty nice gun. It has a good feel and I really like the blance and weight of the all steel gun. For the last month I have been shooting matches and practicing so that I can learn the best way to shoot and makes sure no unexpected problems show up.
The club I am the match director for hosted a regional IDPA match over Labor Day so it was a great oppurtunity to really shake things out. Knowing there are some really good shoters that were going to be there it was a great way to judge my performance with the new platform agains great competition. The gun ran great,unfortunatley I didn't run the gun the way I should have. I pushed the speed and my accuracy suffered, I was taking for granted how I was shooting going into the match and pushed the speed past the point of seeing the sights the way I needed to . I also was not working the trigger properly and ended up slapping at it a few times and that ended up producing too many points down as well as unacceptable misses.
Since that match I have refocused on the basics of just seeing the sights as fast I as can and working the trigger in a smooth controlled manner. Doing so has got me back on track on where I think I need to be.
Next week is the test though, Nationals. I shoot all day Thursday and as long as I do my part I am very confident the gun will not let me down. I feel that if I shoot my match and keep focused I can win my class. I know there will be some good shooters there (39 SSP EX's) and it will not be easy but that is the goal I am going with and will be happy as long as I shoot a good match. If I shoot my best and get beat then I can live with that.
Hopefully nest week I can post up some good news.
Since I shot the Texas State match I have been deciding on what gun to use for the Nationals and then spending time getting up to speed with something other than my 1911. I am shooting SSP Expert at Nationals because I hope to get my bump to Master. I had plans to go back to my M&P Pro but after a few matches and practices I decided that may not be the best choice. I really like the gun but for some reason I just don't get the hits I want. I tried a few different things but the accuracy always seem to suffer and to be honest my hits were never as good with it. On top of the accuracy issues it is just not 100% reliable, every so often I would get a FTE and sometimes at a match I just have the impending dread that it will show up at a very inopportune time. Tough to be competitive with that in your mind.
I decided to make the switch to a CZ 75b. That came with it's own hurdles, double action first shot, it was a stock gun, and just learning a new platform. I shot it a few times in stock form and slowly started to add some parts and do some work on it and after springs, sights, grips, and some modest trigger work I have a pretty nice gun. It has a good feel and I really like the blance and weight of the all steel gun. For the last month I have been shooting matches and practicing so that I can learn the best way to shoot and makes sure no unexpected problems show up.
The club I am the match director for hosted a regional IDPA match over Labor Day so it was a great oppurtunity to really shake things out. Knowing there are some really good shoters that were going to be there it was a great way to judge my performance with the new platform agains great competition. The gun ran great,unfortunatley I didn't run the gun the way I should have. I pushed the speed and my accuracy suffered, I was taking for granted how I was shooting going into the match and pushed the speed past the point of seeing the sights the way I needed to . I also was not working the trigger properly and ended up slapping at it a few times and that ended up producing too many points down as well as unacceptable misses.
Since that match I have refocused on the basics of just seeing the sights as fast I as can and working the trigger in a smooth controlled manner. Doing so has got me back on track on where I think I need to be.
Next week is the test though, Nationals. I shoot all day Thursday and as long as I do my part I am very confident the gun will not let me down. I feel that if I shoot my match and keep focused I can win my class. I know there will be some good shooters there (39 SSP EX's) and it will not be easy but that is the goal I am going with and will be happy as long as I shoot a good match. If I shoot my best and get beat then I can live with that.
Hopefully nest week I can post up some good news.
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