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Its been a very long time since my last video upload, but I'm back this shooting season to have some fun (with a new gun or two to boot). Today was blistering cold day @ New Bedford. It reminded me of my last Double Tap Match with cold rain, cold winds, cold temperatures, and cold...well everything. That being said, it didn't stop us crazy folk to shoot all 5 fun stages. I decided to turn in my Glock Open this time around to try out a CZ Shadow.
I've been hoping to concentrate on Production for a while. I will never shoot as well with iron sights, but there's nothing more fun than knowing that every shot counts...plus the whole mag change thing may seem masochistic to like, but I love it.
It's DA/SA so it took me a while to get used to the two trigger weights, but can't even begin to describe the awesome feel of the SA CZ trigger. I think it beats my Tanfoglio, 1911, and Glock triggers. It was quite light though so my "creeping" of the trigger meant "boom" in SA mode. The gun is a lot heavier than the Glocks...actually I think it's heavier than the Glock Open gun, so the recoil of the gun was virtually zero.
Other than the classifier, anything that I shot got good hits but most likely it's because I was shooting slower. Aim = good in production. That being said, everything was about rookie mistakes today. Dirty mags, some bad positions, limp wristing, and completely missing targets during the walkthrough cost me dearly. However, those are all little problems that can easily get fixed in the next month or two.
Shot a 3-stage rifle match @ Independent Sportsman's Club in Foxboro, MA. Absolutely beautiful day, and I have to thank my good friend Gary for letting me borrow his awesome rifle. I have no idea what the specs were, but all I gotta say was that there was barely any recoil. That being said, I felt the first match jitters as half the time I was just trying to remember the basic rifle mechanics. Nevertheless, I got it somewhat down by the second stage I think. I don't know if this match convinced me to get into anything involving rifles or shotguns, but it sure made a great Saturday for me!
A gloomy day, but we just missed being rained on (which is a good thing). This was a quick match with 4 stages (3 was filmed). This was a practice match before I drive down to Virginia this coming weekend to shoot the VA/MD Sectionals. That being said, I'll be experimenting (because that's what I love to do) with a XDM 9mm gun next week. Looking forward to it!
This is the first of many fun big matches that I will be attending this year. I haven't traveled around and had fun for a while so gosh darn it I'm shooting as many big matches as possible! This was the first time I shot at Fredericksburg. They have a very nice range layout, which makes navigating from stage to stage a simple process. Participants lucked out with weather as we shot in wonderfully mild temperatures. The majority of the stages were run and gun, and we all know how much I love run and gun matches! That being said, I still forgot about this thing called "aiming". Nevertheless, I shot my usual "C" range score. Hey I'm not complaining, considering I didn't get one jam or procedural or weird tripping episode which I usually do during larger matches, I'm happy. Great squad and great ROs, looking forward to coming back in September for Area 8! Maybe this time I won't get lost trying to get to the range (stupid Tom Tom). Next match, trying out that Springfield XDM @ New Bedford!
There's nothing better than test drivin' a gun for the first time at a USPSA match. I just got a Springfield XDM 9 with some nice changes done to it. Will I be done with my Glocks? Never! Have I forgotten about the CZ Shadow? Of course not! Do I just like getting new guns and trying them out for fun? YES! Who knows, maybe I'll get a S&W Sigma and try it for a production match...I'm just kidding by the way. The previous owner had quite a few upgrades made including Dawson sights that shine brighter than any sight I used, a nice extension of the usual mag release, and a very impressive trigger job done by Canyon Creek. I jerked the trigger quite a few times in the first few stages but got the hang of it at the end. This gun is mightily impressive and I got much better scores (aka "As") than I have in a while....ummm still didn't hit that steel till the end though. Nevertheless, I think I'm going to go another round with this bad boy next weekend where two matches (including a all steel match because I'm a masochist) are comin' right up!
The monthly mini-match @ Independent Gun Club. This was a great warm-up for tomorrow's mini Walls of Steel match. I think they ask for 180 rounds to be brought to finish the stage...but I'm going to bring 300 rounds for all my potential steel misses. One nice thing I discovered shooting this match was how much better I shot when I made a firmer grip with my left hand. Hopefully I'll remember that in the next match. I have a habit of loosing my left hand especially if a stage takes a long time to finish (aka steel tomorrow)... I don't have my Glock open so I'll be shooting my XDM for iron sights and my CZ Shadow for open division for fun.
Well I guess there is one word to discuss my shooting at this match: painful. I would love to take this footage and burn it so that it never sees the light of day, but that wouldn't be fun would it?
Anyways, I absolutely enjoyed the match and the squad that I was in was fantastic. That doesn't mean that I didn't want to take a sledgehammer and pound the steel though. Of course Walls of Steel wouldn't be Walls of Steel if it wasn't difficult. I mean, who wants to shoot gigantic poppers that are barely 12 yards away all day? No, what makes WoS so enjoyable is the challenge of knowing that no one will clean all the stages 1 for 1 (well at least I haven't seen it yet) and for those mortals like us, it's amusing to know that yes, we DO need at least 6-8 mags at our disposal just to finish each stage. The funny thing was that I shot so bad in the stock auto division, that I didn't have enough rounds to shoot my CZ Shadow for my next go around. Total match count is around 180 and I think I shot 180 in the first 4 stages alone (that's pretty bad if you want to know).
Either way, for the smaller target stages, as torturous as the experience was, it gave me the understanding that I couldn't get away with "C" to hit the target. Imagine going through a USPSA match and being told you had to shoot the "head section" everytime or fail? Well, I guess if the steel targets were USPSA targets I would fail miserably. That being said, this is something that I needed to go through I think. I have a couple of days before I fly out to Texas to shoot Double Tap. I haven't shot that match since I shot production with my Glock 35 during a cold and blistering day. So I'll be back shooting production once more with my XDM instead then I'll follow that up with a Glock 34/SSP configuration for IDPA on Sunday...maybe I should practice reload with retention...what's that again?
The Double Tap Championships located in Wichita Falls, TX has always been THE match to go to. I don't go to that many large elaborate USPSA matches, but this is one of those where I am never disappointed by their efforts to make a hoser intensive prop heavy match. Unlike the last two years (2008, 2009) that I shot in WF, this time we had some fantastic weather. Sure I was pretty worn out by the last stage, but it was just hot....nice dry heat that could be easily remedied by a jug of water and splash to the face. I will take that over any cold day where competitors shake so bad they can't feel their fingers to release their magazines. I shot this match a day after a 2-day training course (sorry, no vids for that one) so my goal this time around was just to shoot As. Like actually aim instead of trying to go fast, but getting horrible hit points because of my Mikes. Well, I got my goal. I shot slow, but I only got one ending 'M'. I learned during the class that there's no point in trying to make up by fast shooting...sure it looks cool but it doesn't bode well when the scores are released. So I'm gonna try to rework myself this shooting season and get the 'A's while developing the ability of running my butt from point A to point B instead of skipping along (like I do in half this video). I have a lot to work on...one step at a time, yup.
NOTE: Yes, there are a lot of stovepipes...that's my fault for thinking that the XDM-9 could have the same treatment as my G34 and work fine. You know, shoot a match, do field strip cleaning and put a dot of oil on 5 parts of the gun...guess I was wrong.
In contrast to the 100+ heat I encountered in Texas, I arrived home with surprisingly mild temperatures. In fact, I was looking forward to shooting in partly cloudy 70 degree weather for a change. I signed up for MA State IDPA quite a while ago, so though my body said no to anything that required running, kneeling, or moving out of a chair, I just had to get one last match in before I became a coach potato for a week. I did shoot an IDPA classifier about a month ago since I was long overdue, but I was nevertheless jittery during my first 3-4 stages. I didn't want to get any procedurals since I've been shooting only USPSA for the past two months. The ROs were kind enough to make sure we all understood what was required to complete each stage, which is something I needed (cause I forgot the difference between tactical sequence and tactical priority). Just like my last match, I simply wanted to get my hits into the -0s without having 60+ points added. It went well, two stages pretty much ruined my chances of beating folks in my division, but what really mattered was that I left with no procedurals, probably a third of the points I usually get, and the fun experience of shooting on the floor literally....so now I guess I can shoot intruders from under a bed?
So now I have two weeks until New Mexico High Desert Classic Sectionals...I don't know...XDM, Glock, CZ, XDM, Glock, CZ? Might have to flip a coin...
I decided to break out the CZ Shadow since I've been using the XDM and Glock for a while. Today was the opposite of the last couple of matches...it was cold and wet (which is why I didn't break out my hat cam this time around). Maybe it's because I'll be shooting a big match this Saturday but I felt like pushing myself a little harder today....and well I did shoot faster. But I went past that point between being smooth and fast...and well actually aiming. It's hard to be conservative when I'm shooting a CZ because it feels like shooting an open gun with iron sights. I gotta remind myself that all because the trigger is light and the recoil is minimal doesn't mean I don't need to track that sight during the second shot. What did I learn last time? Shoot 80-90% right? Ok, I'm going to repeat that mantra a thousand times in my head when I'm in New Mexico.
Uploaded by gamingoddess on Jun 25, 2011 117 views
I would like to sincerely thank the match organizers for "Giving Back" to all the servicemen and women who have served in the military. The shooting sports have always supported the military in some shape and form and to see a club go all out and give free entries to those who served is unheard of. Thanks guys!
The High Desert Classic is hosted by the Rio Grande Practical Shooting Club at Albuquerque, NM. Every year about 150 participants sign up to the match with slots running out within weeks of the registration opening. There are three major matches that my friends would often attend (Double Tap/Texas State Limited/HDC) so I wanted to make sure that I put all three matches on my schedule. No matter how many times I move and meet new people, I can't help but enjoy their craziness the most. This time I decided to bring out the CZ Shadow one more time...and three of us decided to call ourselves CZ Cs. Because well...we were shooting CZs and we were definitely C shooters. Besides one weird jam on the first stage, the CZ ran great. I was very impressed on how well the mags and dirty gun held up. I had to wipe the outside of the mags when I was on deck as the sand would slowly crust around the mag and stick it onto my mag holder (see the horrible stage...I kind of gave myself a wedgie on that first mag change). This match punishes you severely for going on the C zone on the majority of the stages as there was a lot of hard cover. Hard cover is good, it keeps the most of us honest. You can try to hose the stages, but well the results won't be all that great if you don't look at the sights. On stage two I had six misses for a lot of hard cover hits. And after that I shot to the point of paranoia to avoid a repeat. The fact that I got 2nd C in production completely surprises me (I was still lllloooowwww on the board) but hey, I got my usual 60% so I'm happy. Next big match will be Texas State Limited in 2 weeks. I will be shooting my Glock 34 and will be shooting Limited Minor. I mean, it kinda wouldn't make sense shooting production or open in a match that's labeled with "Limited"...errr but it wouldn't make sense shooting Minor either.
Oh well, it will be fun to have a little more rounds in a mag than ten for once!
Uploaded by gamingoddess on Jun 26, 2011 106 views
Since I started shooting open division back in 2009 I have been getting a lot of PMs on the gun that I use for open division. Well, this amateur video is my answer to all the questions. This is the ultimate Glock gun to use for GSSF unlimited, USPSA Open division, Steel Challenge, and maybe some...extreme plinking? Who knows, but well I have fun with it and though it won't make me a super GM shooter in the next century, it's my answer to, "I want to shoot open...but I still want to shoot Glocks." Nuff said. Just FYI, I am definitely not a gun expert. I know enough to break down my Glocks and clean them. That's about it.
Talk about BEAUTIFUL weather today. I think the fates decided that I deserved at least one day of awesome weather this summer. Well, being that I've shot production for the last three months I decided it was time to breakout the open gun (that and I just got it back). It's weird going from a division where points count a lot and you have to position yourself just right...when in open division...well, I just run around and pull the trigger when my dot goes over the brown thing. I actually shot a nearly perfect (not that many points down) match until the last stage. Aiming was great until the steel decided to stare down at me. Then I just jerked the trigger like crazy...not too good when you don't hear the "ding".
About the gun, obviously you can see it ran perfectly the whole way through. The transition to a harsher recoil from the soft production recoil was an eye opener, but the dot doesn't jump nearly as much since the change from it's last configuration. I say, I'm very satisfied, can't wait to shoot it at a local match again...until then, gotta break out my Glock 34 again.
Located in Breckenridge, the Texas State Limited is a fast paced match that allows you to push yourself to shoot some fast stages...if you think you're good enough to get some good scores while you're at it. I've had several opportunities to shoot this match when I lived in New Mexico, but because I couldn't afford more than two to three big matches a year, I had to put this one on the wayside. Seriously, what was I thinking? Sure it was hot...but so was Double Tap and High Desert Classic...I mean, it is summer. That being said, since I've been mainly shooting my G34 for production I thought I might as well throw a Dawson ICE magwell on it and call it a limited gun. I felt like I could try to redeem myself a tad with this match, as it felt like Double Tap Part II. Other than a few hiccups and a disasterous hoser stage, I am very happy with my performance. Since I knew I was shooting amongst a field of competitors shooting major rounds, I concentrated a lot more on aiming...and it helped me.
I think the curse of major matches shooting Limited has finally broken. I've never shot a Limited or Limited-10 major match with more than 50% percentage (usually below 45%...yeah that bad). This time even with my G34 I shot over 65% which I am very happy with. Will this persuade me to switch over to Limited? Probably not. But as long as I'm here in the states, Breckenridge will always be on my yearly shooting calendar. For those who thought of going, well you missed out. Don't make the same mistake next year!
The Vermont State Championship (or Vermont Classic) is located at the Lamoille Valley Fish and Game Club in Morrisville, Vermont. Hosted by the Green Mountain Practical Shooters, there were a total of 10 stages supporting approximately 100 shooters from throughout the East Coast. I've never been to Vermont (I know, shoot me) which is sad since it looks like I've been missing out. No question, this is one of the most beautiful areas I've ever seen. Sure it was kinda weird shooting in the wilderness instead of a situated berm, but you got used to it. I'm sure Bambi has his hiding places anyways. Since I'm going back to open for the next couple of weeks to prepare for Area 3, I thought I might as well break it out for a Level II match. This is sounding like a broken record, but the whole "let me torture myself in production for three months" really helped me out, as I haven't shot nearly as many mikes as I did before I took my long break. Had no mikes in this match...though I could've let off on the Ds a bit.
This was the first time testing out my "upped" load in a major match. Had to up my powder to .9 (that's a lot) to hit major. And I barely hit major too...166PF...ouch.
The only stage where I had an obvious screw up was when I had this weird automatic reflex to literally check to see if my C-more was on or not. I lost the dot, which does happen...but those 3 seconds felt like hours. It looks like I will need to practice some dryfiring at home from low ports with my open gun. Same thing happpened in the last stage where I lost the dot when I crouched down to engage the two low steel.
Other than that, I really liked how they put the stages together. Fifty shooters were able to finish 10 quality stages with only 5 pits. Good stuff. Since it looks like I'm shooting against As/Ms and a couple of GMs..well I'll probably get my butt whooped, hopefully I get above 65% for once (cross fingers).
Another hosefest @ New Bedford. Hell yeah! After a week of disgustingly hot weather in the Northeast, we were lucky enough to get the tail end of the heatwave on Sunday. It was muggy and nasty, but we've seen worse. I shot poorly and pretty much nailed it when I got a mike in the last two short stages. Short stages, no matter how fast you shoot them, cost you dearly when you get low points. But hey, when it happens it happens. At least it was in a local match, not a major match. The next time I shoot my Glock is @ Area 3 in Nebraska. Until then, the next two weeks will be full of IDPA! Now it's time to break out that G34 and find my IDPA vest...which is somewhere...ummm where is it?
Located in Colebrook, CT, the NWCSA range hosted their first Northwest CT Classifier Challenge. Comprised of a 90-round classifier and an additional 10 round stage, I was happy that they kept it nice and simple for an enjoyable Monday evening shoot. I always wanted to put up a video of an IDPA classifier so this was the perfect opportunity to show just how simple it is to complete. All you need is 3 targets, some stands, a barrel, and a makeshift wall to do it. Of course to make it official, you have to attend an official IDPA club, but nonetheless it's pretty easy to practice. I really don't know what was going on in my head today...maybe it was the nice breeze and sunny weather, or maybe it was the fact that I was shooting something that wasn't moving or spinning with hard cover targets throwing off my aim, but for some reason I just could not get my head into being patient. In other words, I shot horrible. If I could make the excuse that my raw time was good, maybe that would make me feel better, but I didn't even shoot smoothly. Oh well, guess I'll be dryfiring a lot this week (especially slide lock reloads brrrr....). If you're curious about the 10 round stage, well you are just gonna have to go to the match to see it! That and I messed up a whole bunch of times following directions so it would have probably added 10 minutes to the video.
Next up, New Bedford IDPA in preparation for Sunday's CT IDPA match in Hartford, CT.
I don't have my Glock open so I'll be shooting my XDM for iron sights and my CZ Shadow for open division for fun.
