It has been quite some time since I shot USPSA. I have been trying to get back to a match for a while, but scheduling is not working out well. Nonetheless, I have a match coming up and I hope I will be shooting in carry optics, with my preferred carry gun.
I say hope, because in perusing the rules of the sport to get reacquainted with it, I see some really dumb stuff. Not exactly a new complaint about shooting sports in general.
Let’s have a brief recap of what shooting sport rules SHOULD look like. A weapons division should allow for as many different guns as possible, while keeping them to a very similar performance level so that there isn’t one clear advantage. As an example, Production Division should allow almost any DAO, DA/SA or striker-fired pistol to compete. Weight can be an issue but the current 59oz rule seems absolutely ridiculous to me. No one will ever carry a 59 oz gun by choice. Nonetheless, I am ok with that for competition as I don’t think it gives a real competitive advantage.
You can even put single action guns in the category for all I care, I don’t think that trigger is nearly the advantage that others do. Where I start to get annoyed though, is when they talk about modifications. The rules allow almost any internal modification under the sun, but heaven forbid you shape the external grip to better fit your hand or preferences. This is also the case in Carry Optics, and is more to the point here. This is the definition of moronic, and whoever wrote it should be ashamed.
The original point of Production Division was to encourage people to shoot the sport with what they had and not feel like they needed to spend thousands on a custom gun. Yet we are ok with changing barrels, triggers, firing pins, springs, etc. Just not trimming a beavertail or adding stippling. Weird.
Another silly point is the magazine capacity issue. In Production, 10 rounds used to be the limit and with the sunsetting of most of those dumb laws, the capacity was upped to 15. I actually liked the 10 round rule as it forced more reloads, but it does limit creativity on a stage to some extent. Everything is a tradeoff. Nonetheless, 15 rounds makes sense as any gun someone will want to shoot can accomodate 15 rounds.
On the other hand, Carry Optics, which should be identical to Production but with a battery holder up top, allows a 141mm magazine length. This is really dumb. Lets get people to come shoot with their highly modified but mostly factory guns, then require that they add expensive, reliability reducing magazine extensions to up their capacity to 22-24 rounds, depending how much money and reliability they are willing to sacrifice. On top of that, many guns do not have such extensions available, again limiting the number of options for shooters, as well as sponsorship opportunities for manufacturers. Why would a gun company sponsor a match or a stage (or a shooter) if their wares are not welcome and competitive? Remember, in this case it’s not the gun, it’s the aftermarket that determines this. Of course, the aftermarket will accommodate the most popular models, but why make that an option at all? Just limit the mags to 15 rounds and all is good.
Even with all this silliness, I think USPSA has some real benefits to offer shooters, so it is time to get back into it for a bit. But do I use my favored P30, or do I go with a Glock? Decisions, decisions.