e-Postal Handgun Match Feedback
I got an interesting email from Rivrdog regarding his take on the e-Postal handgun matches. He had tried to post it as a comment, but Blogger apparently ate it, so he emailed it to me, and here it is:
What I was going to tell you was your postals have become like bracket-racing at the drags, and how many fans go to see bracket-racing versus the real (NHRA) thing?
When your eyes stopped accomodating, you chose to outfit all your weapons with electronic or tunnel sights.
When my eyes stopped accomodating, I chose to practice point-shooting by instinct.
I can still carry a combat weapon to defend myself with, and while I won't shoot the buttons off the bad guy's shirt like you will, I will make him dead sooner than you will.
This extends, somehow, to postal matches.
Back to the bracket-racing analogy. You take your street-legal rod to the bracket races, and they put you on the line next to a Super-Comp car with a trick engine, fancy tranny and trick Traction-Masters with 14 inch gummyslicks. The tree greens for both of you, and even though your green was first, he passes you at the half-way mark. The math whiz in the booth does the math and says you won the race, even though you were looking at his trunk deck receding in the distance before the finish line.
That's the feeling we get shooting the postals against the super-comp guns. You design the postals with tiny targets, and they are perfect for your red-dotted guns. You then give us handicaps (classes) where we are theoreticaly equal in our class. We may be equal, but always, in the back of the mind, we know that we will never be able to cut the wings off the flies like you can. It's just not competitive, dispite the handicaps you give us in the rules.
Add that feeling to the fact that your ARE a gen-you-wine pistol master, and the "why try" becomes the ruling thought.
Basically what's happened is that you've turned yourself into a niche shooter. You ARE the master of the niche, but everybody else feels ill at ease in your niche competing with you, so they don't. When you try to widen the niche a bit, it's still YOUR niche, and you are still the niche-master.
How about it, shooters? Leave a comment and let us know what you think.....
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7 Comments:
I'm just waiting for the day when I can try IPSC. Running around shooting fake bad guys sounds like fun! They have classes too, so I can take my plain Jane self defense gun and run around like an idiot and still see what there it to see.
I think e-postal is perfectly fair. It's just for the fun anyway.
The last one I managed to enter, I beat you and everybody else in two categories, and I'm by no means a master rifleman or pistoleer. I think they're fine. I don't have a dot sighted pistol (yet) so I can't compete there, though I have pistols, rifles, revolvers...when are we going to have a shotgun e-postal?
I tend to use both combat arms and competition arms, so maybe I'm biased. Maybe I'm just biased cuz I won. :P
Ahh. It looks like I have my work cut out for me. Rivrdog, I'll try to make this one relatively easy and fun.
Actually, I was thinking of a TPC, a Tactical Police Course. In the ones I shoot, you have to score 100% to qualify.
The target isn't tiny by any means, it is the 5-zone of a 25-yard silhouette (there's a number on the target, I'll have to get it).
The match is timed.
Your first course of fire is one round in each of three positions, using a 55-gallon drum as cover. One from the right of the cover, one over the top, one from the left (using weak hand). this is shot at 15 yards. Time is (???, I've never timed one, just shot in a bunch of them) probably about 7 seconds.
The second course of fire is at 12 yards. From supported (Weaver or Isocoles) position, draw and fire two shots, then reholster, then repeat (twice), total 6 rounds, 5 seconds per each two rounds, with five seconds in between.
Third course of fire is from the seven yard line. Using two-handed As above, draw and fire six rounds in 10 seconds, with a magazine (speedloader) change.
Fourth course is fired from the four-yard line, and with one-hand point-shoot only (no using sights, gun at heart level), but instead of the maggy change, you change hands after 3 rounds and fire the last three from the weak hand). Time, 7 seconds.
The last course is at the two-yard line, and simulates a suspect interview gone bad. You are in the interview stance (bladed partially away from facing the suspect with your gun side away), and are interviewing and writing (the use of a notebook and pen is simulated by holding an imaginary pen and writing on an empty ammo box or tray). On the command ("GUN!"), you throw the "notebook" at the suspect's chest (target), trying to hit him (it) with it in a distracting maneuver), draw and double-tap from the hip-hold position (strong hand on hip, a modified fast-draw hold), WHILE TRYING TO PHYSICALLY ENGAGE THE SUSPECT'S GUN HAND WITH YOUR OFF-HAND, WHICH MUST BE OUT OF THE WAY WHEN YOU FIRE! (A roundhouse sweeping motion, ONCE ONLY).
Time, 5 seconds, then a break to holster, clear the line, pick up the dummy notebook, ready the line and do it again.
Ammo expended, 25 rounds.
EVERY ROUND HAS TO BE IN THE 5-ZONE.
That's about 6" X 16", on a target about 18" X 30".
Head shots don't count. Center of mass is the idea here.
That's the TPQC (TPC for short). There is a companion revolver course, but it isn't shot much anymore because all the LEO's hereabouts carry pistols.
State law says LEOs have to qualify on it once a year at a minimum, but most do it twice, and some four times a year.
I STILL do it, even though retired, so I can maintain State qualification for my HR218 national carry card, and possible deployment as an auxilliary during a disaster.
Besides, as Mr. C quoted me, it maintains the gunfighting reflexes.
I generally fire this with a total group size of about 5", but I have recently been outshot by one of my students (my age, who had just gotten Lasik eye reshaping. SHE shot about a 3" group, with MY pistol, a Glock 23 (in .40 S&W) which she then nagged me into selling her as it was her "natural" weapon now.
I'm now going to buy a Glock Model 22 (the bigger frame one), relearn it in time for the Fall Quals and it will become my primary SHTF piece (along with it's companion Kel-Tec Sub Rifle in .40, using the Glock magazines).
I MAY buy a .22 conversion for the Glock Model 22. It will make up the cost of the conversion kit in about 1500 rounds, which I shoot with this service weapon between most qualification periods.
BTW, I am in favor of all states REQUIRING some type of continuing qualification course for open or concealed carry. Not all do that. Oregon doesn't, it's only a classroom course here. Texas does, and I understand the course is no snap there.
My wife and I have been to a couple of shoots with these guys. They were tremendously supportive and I learned some great technique about trigger control and raising the sights. The shoots have nothing to do with competition- they are about doing your own personal best and great fellowship. I am a much better shooter because of my participation, and will continue to do so, even though I have no short term plan to beat these guys, but give me a couple of years.......
Mark
Man, that sounds like fun, Rivrdog. Only problem I can see is that there is no way in hell I would be able to shoot that match. No ranges let you shoot from the holster, and no ranges allow you to shoot from cover. I suppose I could get an entry off if i managed to convince the IDPA people to let me have a customized run thru, but they probably wouldn't.
Other than that little detail, it sounds great.
Hmm... If it's pointless to compete in accuracy against Mr. Completely, perhaps a different sort of competition is in order?
Perhaps we should have more, say, artistic competitions - such as, see who can come up with the best smiley face using bullets?
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