Reflection

2006 IDPA National Championship
Stage 16, Bay 13
By
Gary W. Burris A01202

I was privileged this year to be the Chief Safety Officer for Stage 16, Bay 13 at the 2006 IDPA National Championship match. The three Safety Officers assisting me were Tom Skuse, Ted Smethers and Paul Davis. The team did an exceptional job. We soon fell into a rhythm that worked like a well oiled machine. Everyone performed their job with surprisingly few problems given that we had to deal with rain and mud during the last two days of the event.

Stage 16 was 29 rounds minimum with two 6 round strings and one 17 round string. This bay became infamous for the “Little Bastard” that gave several shooters problems, and the description of string 3 below will explain how the bay got this dubious title. By all accounts this was one of the more challenging courses of fire of the match. And there is no argument that it was the muddiest bay. There were a total of nine threat targets, two pepper poppers and three non-threat targets. All paper threat targets in the bay received a minimum of three shots each and the steel was shot until it fell.

The first string had the shooter starting at position 1 holding keys in his gun hand and a briefcase in his support hand. At the start signal the shooter dropped the keys & briefcase and engaged two paper threat targets through windows with three shots each while moving diagonally toward position 2. The time required to shoot this string averaged around 4 seconds. The shooter was reloaded off the clock.

The starting position for the second string was behind a wall pointing the gun at a red dot painted on the wall. When the shooter pointed his gun at the dot, I assumed he was ready and gave the command “Stand-by” followed by the start signal. After the start signal the shooter advanced to the opening and using the wall as cover engaged two paper threat targets in barricade tactical order with three shots each. The first threat was about five yards down range and the second was about ten yards down range with the right half of the second target obscured by a non-threat target. This was the first non-threat target that shooters encountered in Bay 13 and many took advantage of the opportunity to add an additional five seconds to their scores. Average time for string 2 was about 5 seconds and again the shooter was reloaded off the clock.

The third string utilized the same starting position as string two. At the start signal the shooter rounded the corner and advanced to the opening about three yards down the hallway. Again using the wall as cover everything in the room was engaged in barricade tactical order (slicing the pie). Inside the room were five threat targets, two steel pepper poppers and two non-threat targets. One of the threat targets and one of the non-threat targets were swingers activated by the first pepper popper. The order of engagement was as follows: Paper target, pepper popper (tripped both swingers), two paper targets with non-threat swinger in front, second pepper popper (Little Bastard), paper target and swinging paper target with stationary non-threat between the last two paper targets. Average time to shoot this string was around 23 seconds.

This third string is where shooters had the most problems. Everything seemed to be going well for the shooter until after the pepper popper was engaged that started the swingers. From there on things seemed to go down hill because so much was going on. Shooters were required to engage the second paper target with at least one shot and after that I allowed them to switch between the two paper targets that were behind the swinging non-threat. Surprisingly the swinging non-threat was only shot a couple of times. However, there were a number of procedural penalties awarded for engaging these two targets out of tactical order.

After these two paper targets came the “Little Bastard” pepper popper. This little popper was only about 18 inches tall and several shooters went right past it without engaging it. For this effort they received five points down and a failure-to-neutralize and thus an additional seven and one half seconds added to their scores. Or, if they remembered to go back and pick up the “Little Bastard” before finishing they received a three second procedural for engaging the pepper popper out of tactical order. I cannot count on all my fingers and toes how many people the “Little Bastard” got.

I kind of expected that my IDPA membership would be revoked after I awarded Bill Wilson (President of IDPA) a procedural for shooting the “Little Bastard” out of order. Bill came to me after the targets were scored and commented saying, “That’s what I get for not practicing or shooting enough matches before the nationals.”

Next in order was a stationary paper target that was partially obscured by a non-threat target. Then finally a swinging threat target was engaged. For some reason a lot of shooters enjoyed shooting through the swinging threat target and winging the non-threat. And this on top of the fact that there was someone in practically every squad that asked the question “Does a shoot through count?”

I had a ball running this stage. There were so many great laughs, usually at the expense of some shooter who blew up on the third string. Not that I was laughing at the shooter having a problem but rather at their reaction after the “Little Bastard” got them. And most shooters will admit to laughing at themselves once they got past the disappointment of falling prey to the “Little Bastard”.

Women’s Introduction to IDPA
By
Gary W. Burris

I wrote an article for the Tactical Shooters Club Newsletter in the third quarter of 2002 entitled “Where Have All the Women Gone?” about women shooting IDPA. In that article I explored the reasons why I thought they did not get as involved as their male counterparts. The Women’s Introduction to IDPA is my effort to get more females involved in our sport.

We hold a weekly IDPA match on Tuesday evenings at the Memorial Oaks Shooting Club and I’ve been working with the owners to put together something specifically for women. The idea of a women only IDPA match was suggested. I contacted IDPA headquarters and ran the idea by them. Their suggestion was to not call it a match but rather an introduction to IDPA. Basically, if you call it an IDPA match, then it should be open to any IDPA member regardless of gender. And thus the Women’s Introduction to IDPA was born.

The plan is to hold this introduction to IDPA on Thursday evenings from 6 to 8 pm. Women will be able to come and shoot one time without joining the IDPA. Then if they like the format, and I’m betting they will, they can join the IDPA and return on following Thursdays to continue learning.

The Women’s Introduction to IDPA will be formatted much like our Tuesday IDPA match except it will be much less intense. I expect that most of the women who start attending will have little or no experience shooting a handgun. And the majority of them probably will not have the correct equipment, holsters, magazine carriers, etc., when they first start. Emphasis will be placed on safe gun handling, shooting skills and learning IDPA rules. Once shooters learn the basics they will be encouraged to participate in our Tuesday matches and any of the other IDPA matches sponsored by the other four IDPA clubs in the Houston area.

My intention is to provide a really fun and informative shooting experience for beginner shooters. The goal is to endow women shooters with the skills and attitude necessary to participate in IDPA competitions without feeling intimidated or embarrassed. We have several women in the Houston area who are active IDPA shooters. I have asked some of them to stop by on Thursday evenings every once in a while to serve as role models for beginner women shooters.

IDPA SO Class in New Mexico
By
Gary W. Burris

Butch Cassidy asked me to come to New Mexico and give an IDPA Safety Officer class. He needed the class to complete the requirements to become an IDPA affiliated club. The Hole in the Wall Range will host a monthly IDPA match on the third Saturday of each month.

I tried to get a couple of my friends to go along but they had previous commitments that did not allow them to go. So I ended up making the trip by myself. It is 888 miles from my house to Silver City, New Mexico. The trip was long but not that bad. Interstate 10 west of San Antonio has an 80 MPH speed limit all the way to El Paso.

I arrived in Silver City around noon on Friday and the SO class was scheduled to begin at 6pm that evening. So having a few hours to burn, I drove around to get a good look at the area. It was really a pleasant little community. I found all the standard motels, fast food and retail outlets. The topography was a bit hilly and a refreshing change from flat Houston. On Saturday following the SO training they held a “fun IDPA match” that was designed to attract local shooters to come and learn about what the IDPA has to offer. Included was a great lunch including roast beef sandwiches, hot dogs, potato salad and cold drinks.

The Hole in the Wall Range is located in the southwest part of town. It is a new facility with a large retail area and good sized meeting/training rooms. The shooting range is outdoor but covered. There are two parts to the range. One part is composed of shooting booths with powered target retrieval systems. The second is open and is an area used for police training and IDPA matches. When I said the range was covered I mean that the entire range is covered, not just the area where the shooter stands. Think of it as an indoor/outdoor range.

The Hole in the Wall Range is home to the Pro Force Training Center. Butch provides training for everyone from beginner shooters to law enforcement. There are NRA classes, concealed carry classes and even driver safety classes.

Three Bellies Weekend
by
Gary W. Burris

It was Friday, my day off, and I was in the process of taking care of a few loose ends. I had gone and done my civic duty by voting early and had stopped by to get my hair cut followed by getting the oil changed in the truck. My cell phone rang and it was Johnny Van Etta. He told me that our friend Jay Hurst had an opening for a couple of guys to go on a Blast-and-Cast weekend of duck hunting and fishing in Rockport, Texas, and asked would I be interested?

YES, I’m interested. A quick call to my wife to confirm that there were no special plans for the weekend (I asked for permission) and the deal was done. Johnny and I got together and went to Gander Mountain to get duck stamps and then on to Academy for chest high waders. We packed our shotguns and clothes then left to meet Jay at his house.

Johnny, Jay and I are affectionately known as the “Three Bellies”. I’m not real sure where that name came from but it seems to have stuck. We put all our stuff in Jay’s SUV and got on the road to Rockport. Jay had a condominium right on the beach at Rockport. So we settled in and spent some quality time sitting on the veranda overlooking the water and telling lies while hoisting a few adult beverages.

Up well before dawn, we went to meet the guide and boarded his air boat for the trip out into the marshes. The water was calm and we skimmed across the shallow marshland with ease. I’m sure glad the guide knew where he was going because he went most of the way without running any lights. The noise of the engine seemed out of place and made for a surreal feeling of flying through the air. We zigzagged around small islands and waterways finally stopping and setting up a blind by sticking branches in the mud. Folding chairs made a good place to sit while waiting for the 6:08 a.m. time to begin shooting.

I started loading my 12 gauge pump and only then noticed that I had not installed the plug that limits the number of shotgun shells to three. It was illegal to hunt ducks with a shotgun that could hold more than three shells. I quickly dug out my multi-tool and started to remove the screws holding the cap on the magazine of the shotgun. Of course the ducks started coming to our decoy spread and both Johnny and Jay began shooting. I continued to work on my gun. I cut a small branch and fashioned it into a plug then installed it in my shotgun. Now I was ready to shoot. Finally, we all limited out and were ready to return to shore by 7:30 a.m.

The return trip to the dock was interesting because now I could see all the stuff we had dodged on our way out. It was my first time to ride in an air boat and I have to say it was an enjoyable experience. While the guide cleaned the ducks, we pealed off our waders and settled on a place to go and have breakfast. We then returned to the condominium for a quick nap in preparation for fishing that afternoon.

After noon we went to the dock and loaded into the boat for the fishing trip. It was a center console boat with a large outboard and the trip to the fishing area was fairly short. We used live shrimp and a bobber to fish for speckled trout. The fishing wasn’t all that great but it was a very enjoyable time. We drifted and fished while talking about the morning’s duck hunt and doing that male bonding thing. After a few hours we headed back. Again the guide cleaned our catch and we talked about where to have dinner. We returned to the condominium to clean up before dinner.

We ate dinner at a local seafood eatery. I knew we were in for a treat when the waitress put bibs on each of us before taking our order. They covered our table with paper and brought a large bucket of food and dumped it right in the middle. The pile of food included shrimp, crab, sausage and potatoes just to mention a few. That and a bottle of wine made for some real good eats. Then it was back to the condominium for some more light conversation on the veranda and more adult beverages.

Sunday morning it was up before dawn again and off to catch the air boat for some more duck hunting. The water was even calmer on this trip and I relaxed and enjoyed the ride. We set up very near where we had been the day before. This time I was ready when shooting time arrived. We limited out again, with 5 ducks each.

I don’t know how it would be possible to have more fun. I even enjoyed the laughter of my two “friends” at my expense. You see, I got stuck in the mud helping our guide pick up the decoys while they enjoyed an adult beverage from the safety of the air boat. It was because of my will to survive and my extraordinary superhuman effort that I was able to extricate myself from the mud and save myself from certain death. My two “friends” were useless being doubled up with laughter, tears streaming down their cheeks and choking on beer. I however remained calm and in control throughout the ordeal. They were fortunate that I was there in case they needed someone to resuscitate them.

Reflection
by
Gary W. Burris

Where has the year gone? It seems that time has slipped by almost without notice. Now as 2006 begins to fade into obscurity, I reflect on what has transpired in the last year. I’ve had a few highs and a few lows as well in the past months.

I got to see a bit of the world. I was in Paris, France, on business in April for a couple of weeks. I was the Match Director for the Louisiana State IDPA and Mud Wrestling Championship this year. Then I was asked to serve as Chief Safety Officer for the Italian IDPA Nationals held near Rome, Italy, in July. The IDPA Nationals was held in September in Little Rock, Arkansas, and I was honored to serve as Chief Safety Officer for this the 10th anniversary of IDPA. Silver City, New Mexico, was a fun trip (888 miles one way) to teach an IDPA Safety Officer class. I’ve been to Kansas and Oklahoma to visit relatives.

My mom and dad both celebrated their 85th birthdays this year and I was fortunate to be able to attend the birthday party for mom in May and for dad in September. I got to see my six year old granddaughter march with her Girl Scout troop in the Veterans’ Day parade and that evening my twelve year old grandson played his trumpet in a band that gave a musical salute to veterans.

Al Hodges passed away. Al was one of my closest friends. It’s hard to believe he’s gone. Still I remember all the great times we had. I could write a whole book about the adventures and laughs we’ve had. And I’m thankful that Al has been a part of my life.

The Tactical Shooters Club got started shooting at the Memorial Oaks Shooting Club on Tuesday evenings and seems to be going well. I started the Woman’s Introduction to IDPA on Thursday evenings at the range.

The duck hunting and fishing trip to Rockport, Texas, was one of the highlights this year. I hope to do another hog hunt before the year ends. And my pal Johnny has invited me to go with him to his deer lease. I’m thinking about becoming more involved with shooting sporting clays. That would require that I get a new toy just for that game.

I’m still committed to teaching NRA classes. It is something I really enjoy doing and I think my students get a lot out of the classes.

My plan for the New Year will be to take a step back from the intensity and stress of competitive shooting. I’ll just shoot to have fun and enjoy the fellowship of like minded shooters. I’ll spend a lot less time on the end of a timer and a lot more time with a gun in my hand.