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FieldShunt · 06-22-2009

Stuck!?
Not really. Actually, a stage like that pretty much demands having only one SO for everyone, since the other variables are so great.
That way, everyone had exactly the same instructions, calls, and scoring assessments.
The tough part was that I missed much of the rest of the match and had to rely on second-hand reports. But no one else wanted to miss out on doing the stage blind, so I had to build it and SO it.
I can't say enough about the cooperation and help from the competitors. A setup like that can be tough, what with a limited pool of help, in a fairly complicated stage, for reset, but we did fine.
As for IDPA rules being restrictive, I guess so. I suppose I oughtn't go into a compare-the-disciplines thing, but since I go "all ways"- USPSA, IDPA, ICORE, steel- I just go along with the program.
I know lots of folks think about IDPA as being goofy with reloads and that tac priority stuff, and there's plenty to discuss, there, but I always come back to the one real difference between the older discipline and IDPA: IDPA is about cover, and shooting from it.
I get to design and supervise the designing of both kinds of stages, and that's what the opposing design approaches come down to: in USPSA, charging a target in the open is a way to a better score; in IDPA, it's against the spirit of the game.
Everything else is just details. Since I see value in both sets of skills and procedures, and all of it makes any of us better gunhandlers, I'm glad there's both kinds.
Now, IDPA is much easier to set up and score and so is more accessible to more clubs, especially smaller ones with more limited resources both in materials and manpower. It takes a lot fewer manhours and props to do six IDPA stages than six USPSA stages, and so I say, great- more matches are good.
Me, I like 'em all and I think it's great to have the different games available.
As for noticing anyone- SOing a stage like that, so time-sensitive and intense (I saw one muzzle, real clearly), about all the SO can pay attention to is the competitor's gun and trigger finger. Plus, of course, closing all of those dang doors.
I could almost have missed my own brothers.
Thanks for coming out.

06-22-2009	#44 (permalink)
FieldShunt Plinker Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: 38	Stuck!? Not really. Actually, a stage like that pretty much demands having only one SO for everyone, since the other variables are so great. That way, everyone had exactly the same instructions, calls, and scoring assessments. The tough part was that I missed much of the rest of the match and had to rely on second-hand reports. But no one else wanted to miss out on doing the stage blind, so I had to build it and SO it. I can't say enough about the cooperation and help from the competitors. A setup like that can be tough, what with a limited pool of help, in a fairly complicated stage, for reset, but we did fine. As for IDPA rules being restrictive, I guess so. I suppose I oughtn't go into a compare-the-disciplines thing, but since I go "all ways"- USPSA, IDPA, ICORE, steel- I just go along with the program. I know lots of folks think about IDPA as being goofy with reloads and that tac priority stuff, and there's plenty to discuss, there, but I always come back to the one real difference between the older discipline and IDPA: IDPA is about cover, and shooting from it. I get to design and supervise the designing of both kinds of stages, and that's what the opposing design approaches come down to: in USPSA, charging a target in the open is a way to a better score; in IDPA, it's against the spirit of the game. Everything else is just details. Since I see value in both sets of skills and procedures, and all of it makes any of us better gunhandlers, I'm glad there's both kinds. Now, IDPA is much easier to set up and score and so is more accessible to more clubs, especially smaller ones with more limited resources both in materials and manpower. It takes a lot fewer manhours and props to do six IDPA stages than six USPSA stages, and so I say, great- more matches are good. Me, I like 'em all and I think it's great to have the different games available. As for noticing anyone- SOing a stage like that, so time-sensitive and intense (I saw one muzzle, real clearly), about all the SO can pay attention to is the competitor's gun and trigger finger. Plus, of course, closing all of those dang doors. I could almost have missed my own brothers. Thanks for coming out.