Over my head and loving it! My first IDPA match was this weekend!
We went to N.C. this weekend to see my sister and her husband. Last week I had seen a gun shop on the net near her house I wanted to visit. In the process of looking for directions I found some other gun shops in the area of interest to me. One of the ranges had an IDPA match planned for Saturday night. I had been told it would be a good idea to watch a match before joining one. Therefore, I called to get directions and to ask if the match was in a place where I could see all the action safely. The gentleman that I talked to told me that he was tired of people asking to watch. Before I could say anything, however, he completed his thought with “why watch if you can shootâ€. He told me that the worst thing that could happen would be that I would walk away with some experience under my belt. He asked what I shot and if I had a holster and spare magazines. He also asked if I had a spare magazine holster. I told him I did not. He asked, “Do you have pockets?†Of course I do; so there went my only excuse to back out. He encouraged me that it was only a game and that if I would forget about the clock that I would be able to just shoot and have a good time. Sign up was from 4 to 5 with a safety briefing at 5 followed by the match.
When the match began I was so nervous that I removed my pistol to load it at an improper time. One of the range instructors saw me and quickly ushered me out of the range area. After a proper tongue-lashing he began to thoroughly explain to me what I could and could not do. I was not in the least offended by this unsolicited attention; I was clearly nervous and the personal attention really helped to ease my tension. I was not the only new guy there and the whole staff took equal care that we all had a good time and were comfortable with what was expected of us. I had no idea how long a match would take (4-5 hours) so I was unable to finish the whole match. I had to get home and relive my baby sitter. It’s not like I was in the running for the win. I’ve only been shooting targets since January 04.
Despite my nervousness and getting fussed at I had a really good time. Now that I know what to expect I think that I’ll have even more fun and better results next time. My time should be shorter next time if only because I WILL have a magazine holster next time rather than digging around in my pants pocket for my spare magazine.
I would really like to hear about other people’s first match experiences.
We went to N.C. this weekend to see my sister and her husband. Last week I had seen a gun shop on the net near her house I wanted to visit. In the process of looking for directions I found some other gun shops in the area of interest to me. One of the ranges had an IDPA match planned for Saturday night. I had been told it would be a good idea to watch a match before joining one. Therefore, I called to get directions and to ask if the match was in a place where I could see all the action safely. The gentleman that I talked to told me that he was tired of people asking to watch. Before I could say anything, however, he completed his thought with “why watch if you can shootâ€. He told me that the worst thing that could happen would be that I would walk away with some experience under my belt. He asked what I shot and if I had a holster and spare magazines. He also asked if I had a spare magazine holster. I told him I did not. He asked, “Do you have pockets?†Of course I do; so there went my only excuse to back out. He encouraged me that it was only a game and that if I would forget about the clock that I would be able to just shoot and have a good time. Sign up was from 4 to 5 with a safety briefing at 5 followed by the match.
When the match began I was so nervous that I removed my pistol to load it at an improper time. One of the range instructors saw me and quickly ushered me out of the range area. After a proper tongue-lashing he began to thoroughly explain to me what I could and could not do. I was not in the least offended by this unsolicited attention; I was clearly nervous and the personal attention really helped to ease my tension. I was not the only new guy there and the whole staff took equal care that we all had a good time and were comfortable with what was expected of us. I had no idea how long a match would take (4-5 hours) so I was unable to finish the whole match. I had to get home and relive my baby sitter. It’s not like I was in the running for the win. I’ve only been shooting targets since January 04.
Despite my nervousness and getting fussed at I had a really good time. Now that I know what to expect I think that I’ll have even more fun and better results next time. My time should be shorter next time if only because I WILL have a magazine holster next time rather than digging around in my pants pocket for my spare magazine.
I would really like to hear about other people’s first match experiences.
It's good you weren't offended; that gentleman can be a bit brusque at times and I was a bit worried when he took you outside.
