First Club Level IDPA Match

This weekend I shot about 300 rounds of 9x19, 45 slugs and 75-#4 shotshells. The bruising on my shoulder and arm is both impressive and colorful to say the least.  This morning my arm is a kind of yelow purplish red color indicative of heavy shotgun use.  I achieved my two of my three minimum goals of not getting disqualified and coming home with the same number of holes I started with.  I did not place dead last in Shotgun and I actually placed third (in a field of six) in ESP (Enhanced Service Pistol).

I must say that my STI Spartan is if anything too reliable.  In all the time I've owned it I had four double-feeds.  Two of them, of course, happened in this weekend's match, in succession, clear double-feed, get another double-feed, clear double feed, keep shooting.  The funny thing is that on the same course of fire the pistol didn't feed when I racked the slide the first time.  I say it's too reliable because I have almost no experience clearing a double-feed.  I was utterly discombobulated by the malfunction.  I need to find a way to practice dealing with malfunctions.

While I was at the match I took the time to observe how the organizers were running the match.  I made a few notes:

• Provide rain cover for the the targets, garbage bags work okay.  If there's a threat of fog or heavy dew the targets need to be covered.
• Ziploc bags for the timers
• Overhead cover for shooters (for rain or sun).
• Bottled water
• Johnny on the spot.
• The score keeper needs a clipboard that has a compartment for the shooter's scoring cards and a cover for the card being scored for rainy day matches.
• Have a well posted location for signup, signing into the range and for taking fees.
• Have many spare targets already made up, ie no-shoots, priority targets (pistol, knife etc).

I tend to be a bit too self-critical, on the day of the match I thought I'd done very poorly yet had made my minimum criteria.  I didn't do as badly as I'd thought but I didn't shoot as well as I usually do.  I made lots of contacts and had an opportunity to chew the fat and openly talk about a sport in which I'm engaged rather than getting disapproving looks from the politically correct when I talk about IDPA in public.  I also found out that you can get reduced recoil slug loads (aka bunny fart slugs).

I've developed a callus on my right thumb from loading mags, to borrow a quote from Hickok45 of youtube fame, "Life is good!"