A very good link RE the USPSA/IDPA controversy

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Super GM Rob Leatham shoots both; he says they cover different skills but that accuracy in both is essential to reach the top.. GM Matt Burkett shoots both..etc etc.

The top shooters really don't argue this as they are there to have fun and reap the benefits..I think we should emulate them!!
 
This is more of an internet arguement than a real life one. Most people I know shoot both because they want to have fun. I rarely encounter someone with who just looks down their nose at one or another (outside of cyberspace) of course I hang around with shooters more than gun owners.
 
+1 on faustulus- I shoot both too. I compete primarily in IDPA, but use USPSA as practice. Also, Phil Strader who is a GM in both, owns and shoots out of the same place here in Northern Virginia and he likes both for their differences...
 
Agreed. I think the arguments are usually silly. The quality of the matches depends a lot more on the nature of the individual club more than which national org. it belongs to.
 
I used to shoot IDPA when it first started up but was turned off when the prez of the club I was shooting at berated me for using my G17. He told me "...this is a 1911 club!" OK, I went elsewhere.

We have a lot of crossovers who shoot at our USPSA matches and the vast majority have a good time. The ones that irritate me are the guys/gals who show up with a pistol and two magazines and then say USPSA is "unfair" or "not practical" because we have 30 round stages and you need 4-5 extra mags. But what really irritates me are the sermons we get about how our style of shooting will "...get you killed ON THE STREET!" (god, I hate that phrase)

I may try IDPA again although I will have to wait until a club starts up closer to me as I am loathe to drive four hours round trip for a match where I only fire 30 rounds.

Shoot fast and shoot often. :D
 
I'll preface this with the information I've never shot IPSC. However, from talking to folks who shoot both IPSC and IDPA the former is more open to the "gaming" aspect while the more tightly scripted IDPA is less open to "gaming" or free thought, whichever word you prefer.

I will eventually shoot IPSC because it means more trigger time. Each will appeal to differnt sorts of individuals and to some both will have appeal because they're different and mean more trigger time.

I think folks who like to figure things out or find a way to beat the system would find IPSC more fun to shoot. Some people resist being told what to do and prefer a more open format.

They're both good for the sport and excellent practice for your shooting skills.
 
I never really see an argument about one or the other except on message boards. In person all I have ever seen is good natured ribbing. The MD for my club matches makes jokes about USPSA to the shooters that attend the monthly IDPA match but he still shoots the USPSA matches himself. Of course he also makes jokes about anybody not shooting a Kimber in IDPA too. Nobody takes it to heart even though he is an IDPA loyalist because it's all done in fun.
 
IDPA vs IPSC. Is that like Trap vs Skeet vs Sporting Clays? Highpower vs Schutzen? American League vs National League?

Participate in the shooting sports that fit your personal preferences, be they Saturday diversion or Armageddon preparation.

And please respect the other person's choice. He is probably having as much fun as you.
 
There are a few shooters who pick a sport and think all others stink but I think you will find the majority of shooters either shoot both or shoot just one but support all shooting sports. I do know of some unfortunate examples where a USPSA club will try to get an IDPA club booted off the range or vice-versa, but for the most part we all seem to be getting the point that we hang together or will hang seperately.

When IDPA first came about there was some animosity generated because of some early marketing strategies, gunrag articles ,and shooter's attitudes. Funny part is most of the small group of shooters who back in the earlier days were into chanting the "USPSA will get you killed" mantra no longer shoot IDPA anymore anyway. There is a tremendous amount of crossover shooters now who will shoot both and an very healthy attitude towards both sports from both sides.

I really don't see it as a controversy at all. I think the more both groups work together, the better things will be for all action/practical shooting.

And that is what I see now, at least around my way.

Ted
 
I have run into individual IPSC shooters that cannot stand the idea of IDPA. On multiple occasions when shooting IPSC matches, I have run into anything from snide remarks to outright hostility. For what it's worth, I don't show up making comments about the "superiority of IDPA vs. IPSC" or anything else of that nature. I go to shoot. I view IPSC stages as having more of a carnival feel to them than most IDPA stages, (I did say most, not all). That doesn't make the skill set neccesary to complete the stage any more or less stringent. I feel pretty confident that if you can clean a Texas Star in 5 shots rapidly, you can hit a moving bad guy paper target, or for that matter, a badguy ducking in and out of cover.

At one point and time, when I had the time to shoot matches every weekend I had quite a few discussions with some of the Area 6 bigwigs here in Ga. These were good discussions, none of the low blows that I have experienced from some of the more militant members.

To be fair, I have seen IDPA shooters start in on IPSC shooters that were giving an IDPA match a try. If I have the opportunity, I try to nip that in the bud. It happens in both sports, there are some that cannot let things go at the "good-natured ribbing" line and have to cross deep into the "you're starting to piss me off" territory. People are people, no matter what sport or hobby they compete in. There's always a certain amount of "mine's better than yours".

Wheeler
 
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