The LTT P30L continued to shoot very well, securing a third-place finish for me at the Action Pistol Regional known as the Flagler Cup. I didn’t shoot as well as I would have liked, but I did post my highest match score to date, 1892. Having shot a 1910 the day before in practice, this was a bit of a disappointment, but as most people know, match performance is not the same as practice. In the near future, we will take a deeper look at why that is and what we can do about it. Since nationals are next week, I won’t have much time to implement anything new, but it never hurts to try.
Among the many great things about Action Pistol, the regionals draw all of the top shooters from around the world, with not only U.S. competitors shooting, but a large contingent of High Masters from Australia make the annual trip as well. In addition, Germany was represented as was Barbados. My kids love talking to people from around the world, and Action Pistol is more of a family-friendly sport than many others. We had several juniors shooting, and my kids and a few others helped make the match run more smoothly.
From the U.S. we had the USMC shooting team, the Army’s AMU, as well as Border Patrol and HSI. During a lull in the action, I was able to pick the brain of SFC Ryan Franks, the NCOIC of AMU’s contingent. He is one of the top competitors in the sport, and he gave freely of his time and knowledge. In this case, he was explaining how he likes to mount the barricade. Ryan Shot a 1920 in practice last week, a feat not often seen in Metallic, the division he shoots in. At Flagler he shot a 1913 147X, a very impressive score.
His pistol is a custom 6″ metallic gun, with sights made specifically for him. The glove is a necessity, given the amount of practice on the Barricade. Some ranges are better than others, but many of the barricades are a bit chewed up, and the glove really saves your hand from the splinters and abrasion that can occur.
I started out not resting on the barricade last year, but just like in real life, when your adrenaline is going, it is useful to be able to rest your weapon. This year I have been lightly touching the barricade, and it has definitely improved my score. At the 10-yard line, I still shoot freestyle, but at 15, 25, and 35, I use the barricade. I went from dropping 10 points or more, to anywhere from 0-6 points down. Just need to whittle that down a bit further, which is my plan at Bianchi. Hope to see you there!
the splinters on the barricades, thus the reason for the wings on the race guns lol
congratulations on a great performance
Congrats! Nice work!
To your practice level or not I suspect many people don’t know what a great score that is. I am not great but an above average shooter and in my second Action Pistol match (first was last year) I only shot a 1523. Unfortunately my gun chose to double feed at the most inopportune time, the plates. Between that and prone being difficult at best due to an injury I figure I dropped 60-80 points. I was hoping to hit 400 in each event but only did it in the practical and the Barricades.
To my dismay, my area won’t be doing this match anymore. Ever since Flagler started we have slowly been losing competitors to it, including the Australians. I really wish there were more opportunities to shoot these matches. It is a lot different than my normal IDPA or USPSA.
You mention bracing on the barricade and I think that and getting a little more practice on the mover and leading the target could help me considerably. Oh well.
Congratulations on your great performance and good luck at the Cup.
Thanks very much, but after only two matches, you are doing very well! Not to mention gun issues… I’m very sorry to hear that your club is cancelling future matches, will they still do club level events? I am missing USPSA right now, as too much Action Pistol wears me out a bit, but there really is nothing like it for what it does. I hope you stick with it!