2009 Minnesota Sectional Match...

Went to Minnesota for their Sectional Match again this year--7 stages, only about 158 rounds. Fairly small, and the stages (by diagram) looked fairly simplistic. However, once I got there and took a look at how the stages actually turned out, I was pleased. I still would have liked one or two more stages (for a level II match) but there were some nicely tricky things in these stages, and they isolated a number of shooting skills for those who wanted to do well.

I had a lot of fun. Here is some video from the match...



..and more comments to follow.

Edited on June 28th to add:

Other than the massive screwup on the Random Hoser stage, it was a pretty good match for me. I could nitpick all of the small details, or just pick the two major things I should work on that will make the most difference. (Later for smaller details.)

As I shot it, I kept thinking that what was slowing me down (losing me time) was the fact that as I moved, I was often in a position where I could shoot, but I wasn't done with my reload yet. And several times after I was done moving and in the new shooting position, I still wasn't done with my reload. I had pretty much decided that I really needed to work on my moving reloads when Ben Stoeger (GM-Production Division) mentioned (we were all talking together after the match) that he thought I had gotten better since last year, and the only thing really holding me back was my moving reloads.

There you go. :)

He also suggested I get some competition-style magazine pouches, instead of these duty-type ones I currently have. I bought these as the cheapest thing I could find back when I started, and while they are handy for regular carry and such, they really aren't right for competition. Getting new ones won't be a magical fix, but it would help. So I'll probably do that, and work on my moving reloads. We'll see if I can get them faster by Area 3.

Second major thing, that has never been major before: What happened to my brain during the random hoser stage? Normally, I'm very good at changing my plan on the fly, and don't have any problems at quick critical thinking/problem solving even in the middle of a stage. That time, though---sheesh.

I think a major problem was that I hadn't solidly realized that I was running so close to the gun's capacity (magazine-wise). Every space was set for 10 rounds, and with one extra at the beginning, I never had an extra after--and I wasn't ready for that. As I get better, I don't give myself the "miss leeway" that I used to, and this time since I hadn't really thought about it, the consequences of the first additional shot didn't really occur to me--so I didn't try to get past the problem.

Something to remember---in most cases, I've got more than enough mags on my belt. If the count goes off, reload, and go back to the plan. Don't stop thinking--but often, that is the fastest fix available.

I dropped 60 points just on that stage because of that screwup. I ran the stats---if I had been shooting Limited-10 minor, I would have gotten second place with my current score. If I had run the Random Hoser stage like any normal stage, I would have gotten first in Limited-10 shooting minor, including beating a master-class person. (Granted, I wasn't in Limited-10, so it wouldn't have mattered. But as a comparison...)

I would still have lost solidly to Ben in Production, of course. He ended with 790 points. (Won every stage.) Even if I had gotten back 40 of those lost points, I still would have only had 662---nowhere close to his score. But it would have been a better-looking second place...

So:

1) Bear in mind how close I am running to the capacity of the magazine, and
2) Work on moving reloads, and eventually get better magazine pouches for competition.

That is what happening for drills now...