Thank you to our new friend Troy Fowler for his refreshing take on IDPA and his praise to John and I. Read with the Pictures at http://outdoortrog.posterous.com/idpa-practical-useful-fun
Troy Wrote:
Rolled out to my first IDPA match this weekend. Well, actually my son shot, I was there for the writing and to see what this whole concealed carry "scenario" based shooting was all about.
From what I observed, John and Julianna Crowder, who run this particular club, went logical with the name.
Capital - The Capital of Texas - Austin
Area - They welcome shooters from Hither and Yon.
Practical - Absolutely the most practical "practice" I've seen
Shooting - ABSOLUTELY - cool weapons, nice folks, and lots of pops!
check out their website - http://www.caps-chl.com/
After a more than efficient safety and rules of the range explanation, it was time to rock and roll.
To make you a practical shooter the IDPA rules state you must have your handgun concealed under a jacket, including spare magazines.
Not surprisingly you were required to draw your gun, safely, finger off the trigger, acquire the target and shoot for center mass. Interestingly.....a perfect score is 0. Meaning you hit the 10 ring every time - which is backwards...well, sort of. Here's the logic of "0 = 10 ring" - you're shooting for time. High scores and misses add seconds to your overall time which rolls up to an overall score. There were five scenarios so a few misses on each one can stack up at the end of the shoot. So 0, or no additional time means you are shooting straight. The experienced shooters are fast, very fast, but they shoot straight too - it is definitely something to pay attention to - when you get serious.
Hey for all of you who might be intimidated by a "pistol match" remember where we started here. My son is 13 and absolutely loves pistols. The CAPS group was welcoming and very supportive, teaching Caleb how it is all done safely, yet allowing him to handle his weapon as needed. Trust me he was at least two decades younger than anyone I saw and did fine. I suggest you check out the CAPS folks. They shoot at Best of the West in Liberty Hill every second Sunday. Safety, Orientation at 8:15, hammer down at 9 am. BTW - if you show up early they'll even let you help set up.....just like any club....help is ALWAYS appreciated!
Come get you some practical shooting. What the heck did you get that concealed carry for anyway. It is a HOOT!
These are my thoughts and experiences about guns, my training and participation in the competitive shooting sports; promoting education and responsible gun ownership to my community...a taste bit political, but always honest from my heart to encourage positive discussion.
