The crew running the competitions have done so for a long time now and now they run very smoothly, they consist of 12 stages or courses if you prefer. These go from 12 to 32 rounds minimum each, while we can fire more, that costs time and wasted time means loss of points and lower placings.
Especially when you know how well your competition has done. This has been standard for a long time as Ryan, who won again, always has his run just before me.
It is always fun to watch him as he is very smooth and consistent, to say nothing about speed.
For me there were two stages that stood out above the rest with one closer in some ways, this one had more moving targets both sliding and a turner. I like to shoot and move, and these two stages, 1 and 12, I was able to do one after the other. 12 was a very quick sub 10 seconds – 22 minimum rounds, so it was fast and loud. While stage 1 had 32 rounds with a lot more ground to cover, and the targets were a lot further out, so aim was more critical otherwise the miss could add up and really hurt your final score, and consequently wipe out any chance of placing well come the final results.
This time I was using a different pistol than normal, Tanfoglio in 9mm, which I run at a higher power factor than the standard 9mm, which basically means I have more gun powder, louder – faster and better points, but also means it’s a little livelier to hold when at full speed.
Our squad like always had a mix of competitors, because this is probably the most inclusive sport, damn it hurts to use that word, but the fact is everyone gets treated the same, no inch given or asked for, other than the shorter people who sometimes need a box to stand on so that they can see over barricade’s (it would be rude to name anyone, but Lyn does have to take more steps than most).
Just to finish, I have been honoured to be given a chance to be part of the team to travel to the world IPSC Hand Gun championships in South Africa this September.
This came as a surprise and bonus for me as I have always wanted to go there for a shoot.
So, while I have been selected for the New Zealand team this will be my last World’s as I’m getting old and the cost related to these trips is primarily self-funded.
I am also proud that Johan from my club (Cable Bay) and Corbin who shoots with us and the Motueka club are going as well. Both of them are doing very well and this will be their first World competition.
So, if anyone would like to help us with sponsorship or has an idea how we could get some extra funds, don’t be shy and drop me a line. Thanks, Brian.
