USPSA Intro. Class, Shongun Range, Saturday 9/18/2010

[Col. Mortimer 11]

There will be a USPSA / IDPA Introduction Class at the Shongun Range in Mansfield Township on Saturday, September 18th. The class will run from 9:00AM to 2:00PM. The class will consist of two parts. A classroom briefing on the safety rules and a live-fire session running stages.

 

Equipment Required:

- Pistol, 9mm or larger

- A USPSA or IDPA compliant holster, belt and ammo pouches for at least two magazines.

The holster must prevent access to the trigger when the pistol is holstered.

- Three magazines

- 150 rounds of ammunition

- Eye and ear protection

 

The fee is $25.00, payment is due at the start of the class, cash only please. You do not have to be a member or Shongum. The class will be held rain or shine. Bring lunch or snack and something to drink. Coffee will be served in the morning.

 

The clubhouse phone number is (866)746-6485. Chect the directions here: http://www.shongum.org/contactus.html as your GPS may not get you to the exact location if you use the address. The range is on the right and there is a sign but it is small and easily missed. There is a house under construction with piles of boulders on the site about 200 yards before the entrance.

 

If you are thinking about getting into competitive shooting, this is your chance. PM me to sign up.

 

- This is not an NRA class, has nothing to do with the NRA and never will. -

[sirsloop 1]

...alternatively couldn't you just show up a little early at one of the normal events with a compliant holster, pistol, and ammo? From my experience they are extremely friendly towards new shooters. Not trying to knock this class, as it probably goes through the safety rules, rulebook, offers theory on course of fire, etc. Just sayin if you are thinking about participating you don't necessarily need to wait until sept to try it out.

[Col. Mortimer 11]

...alternatively couldn't you just show up a little early at one of the normal events with a compliant holster, pistol, and ammo? From my experience they are extremely friendly towards new shooters. Not trying to knock this class, as it probably goes through the safety rules, rulebook, offers theory on course of fire, etc. Just sayin if you are thinking about participating you don't necessarily need to wait until sept to try it out.

 

You are right but we had too many first time shooters getting DQed. Some on the first stage. I felt this was bad from a safety point of view and for the people running the match and certainly bad for the first timers. Also, some people are intimidated by the first match. This class is your first match but without the pressure of a match. So you are right. If you want to start right away, jump in. If you want a fun, easy and above all else, safe way to start, take this class. Plus, you get lots of tips that will get you better faster.

[67gtonut 847]

...alternatively couldn't you just show up a little early at one of the normal events with a compliant holster, pistol, and ammo? From my experience they are extremely friendly towards new shooters. Not trying to knock this class, as it probably goes through the safety rules, rulebook, offers theory on course of fire, etc. Just sayin if you are thinking about participating you don't necessarily need to wait until sept to try it out.

 

 

Actually no.....

 

Mike's class was much better then the 15min they spend with you the 1st time at a match. Must less pressure ( they want to get the match started) .... more time to ask questions, and was just plain fun.....

 

Mike does a great job taking his time, going over the rules, and explaining exactly what to expect at your 1st match..... I highly recommend taking it....

[kenw 293]

I took the last class that Mike offered, and i have to say that it made it far less intimidating when I went to my first match a couple of weeks ago.

 

I had a much better sense of the flow of the event, and I'm certain that the zero-pressure practice and the extra hints I got at the class helped my score at the match (not that that was anything to write home about, but it was fun).

YMMV

 

K

[Col. Mortimer 11]

There is room for a few more people. If you have been thinking about jumping in, now is the time.

[damnyankee 1]

Mike,

 

Thanks for a great day. I know that I feel ready to shoot my first match next month.

 

It was a great group of guys and Mike ran an agenda that worked. He started on SAFETY and tied that in to USPSA rules and techniques. He managed to keep it light but serious and I know that everyone got a clear understanding of how to operate. He arranged for three COF's including a qualifier (not for formal scoring but for format). We ran Comstock and Virginia counts, had releads and shot steel (poppers and plates), hard cover, no-shoots, an activator, and a swinger (I probably missed something - not the targets though). We scored, pasted and learned how to handle ourselves which included having the safety and rules continuously reiterated.

 

We also got tips and encouragement as part of the feedback.

 

If you're thinking of getting into Practical Shooting or have just started -TAKE THIS COURSE. Even if you're not thinking of Practical Shooting, the gun handling techniques and training are worh the time & $. Your gun doesn't mattter that much either. I shot with a sub-compact M&P 9c and felt comfortable.

 

Don't wait for another annnouncement. If enough of you PM Col. Mortimer, I'm sure they'll put a class together.

 

Mike is a good teacher, knows his stuff and the facilities are very nice.

 

/ End of commercial / I didn't intend it to be a commercial but it sure does sound like one.

[jeff47 30]

+1 for everything said above.

 

I had a great time and felt really comfortable with the flow of things. I was nervous and shot poorly on the first stage but by the third I felt good and shot well. (reasonably)

 

I just want to thank Mike again, it was well worth the $25 and the hour drive each way.

[Maksim 1,504]

Now you guys are ready for this coming Sunday at Old Bridge. See yall there. =)

[Maksim 1,504]

so what did you guys learn?

 

What were your two biggest takeaways from the class?

[Vinny 1]

I second/third ....

 

Mike thanks for a gret class

 

Two takeaways:

 

1. Don't Rush. Sounds counterintuitive but it keeps everyone safe and makes you faster. I won't forget to slap in my mag again!

2. The R.O. is my friend. When in doubt ask.

 

I've got some video of George going through 2nd stage I'll ask him if I can post.

[damnyankee 1]

I second/third ....

 

Mike thanks for a gret class

 

Two takeaways:

 

1. Don't Rush. Sounds counterintuitive but it keeps everyone safe and makes you faster. I won't forget to slap in my mag again!

2. The R.O. is my friend. When in doubt ask.

 

I've got some video of George going through 2nd stage I'll ask him if I can post.

 

Go ahead and post it. I enjoyed showing it to my wife. She said that Jessie Abbate is a much better shooter. A lot better looking too.

[damnyankee 1]

Separately from the items I mentioned in my original post, my 2 top takeaways are:

 

Reaffirmation of "You can't miss fast enough". As Vince said, "Speed will come with time". A mike, no-shoot, or procedural is VERY costly.

 

Developing a strategy at the walk through is really important. In the video it's very obvious that I'm a novice and have never fired a match. We were firing 'Production'. 7 targets, 2 each, any order. I found a starting position where I could shoot 5 targets, skipping one (T-4) which was covered by a no-shoot, reloaded on a short move to a second position and shot the last two. My reload on the move wasn't great, but that's a practice item. If I remember correctly a had 12 A's and 2 C's.

 

I think that Mike got a kick out of my shooting a sub-compact with it's short sight radius. With my old age vision when I focus on the front sight, the target is a blur so the gun doesn't matter that much.

[jeff47 30]

1) Safety First. You can be disqualified (DQ'd) pretty easily so make sure you read all of the safety rules and take your sweet time. Some of the reasons to be DQ'd are pretty obvious (sweeping yourself, even a finger, while on the firing line, breaking the 180 rule etc.) and some aren't so much. I was almost DQ'd before I even touched my gun. More detail on that below.

 

2) Again, you don't want to got too fast, particularly before the buzzer and after your last shot. It's pretty easy to be disqualified if you're not paying attention for even a moment and trying to remember all of the range commands while preparing to turn, draw and start firing and moving can make you do something stupid if you're not taking it easy. Chances are good that you're not going to perform fantasticly the first time out anyway so why go nuts trying to shoot too fast? The penalties are crushingly brutal for misses and no-shoots and being DQ'd is no fun, so just relax.

 

If I had a third item it would definitely be to plan your shooting during the walk through. In just about every stage, I think almost everyone shot each course differently depending on how they thought they could perform the fastest and easiest so it does require some strategy.

 

As far as almost getting DQ'd, you can handle ammuntion anywhere EXCEPT the safety area. There are only 2 places you can Touch your firearm, the safety area and on the firing line. In my pistol box I had my pistol (empty, no magazine) and a magazing with bright orange trainers. Snap-caps and trainers are considered ammunition and once I had opend up my pistol box in the safety area and that mag with the bright orange trainers was sitting next to it I would have been DQ'd immediatetly. Luckily being made aware of this before that happened, instead I had to go with the RO to the firing line, clear the range and declare it hot, then open up the box, verify the gun was unloaded and then remove the mag with trainers and place it in my pocket and close up the box, declare the range clear and move on with our lives. WOW. So some of the safety rules could be considered a bit crazy but since the goal is to have fun and not have anyone leave with more holes than they had when they got there, I can't complain.

 

Well worth it.

[Maksim 1,504]

Great takeaways and thanks for sharing it with others. =)

 

Now where is this video?

[damnyankee 1]

Great takeaways and thanks for sharing it with others. =)

 

Now where is this video?

 

Here it is. Be nice. This is the first USPSA COF I've ever shot.

 

[Maksim 1,504]

Not bad, and the other stages?! lol. videos are goooood.