Getting Started in USPSA: A Step by Step Guide

Practical pistol shooting has experienced a massive increase in popularity over the last few years. The most popular organization, USPSA, boasts over thirty thousand members, which means there are even more people that are looking for information about getting started in this sport. Keep reading to see a step by step process for shooting your first match.

What is USPSA

The United States Practical Shooting Association (USPSA) is the lead organization for practical shooting, focusing primarily on pistol competition. They have numerous divisions to compete in, from fairly stock, every day pistols, to custom race guns with optics, compensators, and special hand loaded ammunition.

Recently USPSA has also seen a massive increase in the pistol caliber carbine (PCC) division. These carbines are chambered in pistol calibers and often resemble AR-15 rifles or MP5 style sub guns.

For those that enjoy shooting other firearms, including rifles and shotguns, USPSA does have multi gun competitions which is the USPSA version of 3 Gun events.

Why Should You Shoot USPSA?

While everyone has their own reasons for shooting USPSA, there tend to be some common responses when asked why someone starts shooting competitions.

Many shooters are simply bored with going to the range standing in a lane and shooting a paper target directly in front of them. Inevitably they will see a video of someone crushing a stage at a match, and realize that running around shooting a variety of targets as fast as possible is way more appealing.

For other shooters, including myself, it is a way to increase their pistol skills, either for self defense, or as a job requirement for the police or military. There is a saying in automotive racing that “racing improves the breed,” and this is one hundred percent true in competition shooting.

The amount of skill required to shoot a USPSA competition stage, at an average level, is staggeringly high compared to the average skill level for most recreational shooters. Don’t let this intimidate you into thinking you can’t do it, because you easily can. No one starts out looking like a rock star.

Lastly, it should be said that if you have never shot a pistol before or you don’t feel confident in basic manipulations like unloading, loading, and holstering a firearm, then you first need to seek out competent instruction on these fundamentals before you try to participate in a match.

Next we should have a brief discussion about the type of gear you will need to shoot your match.

Guns, Gear, and Equipment

As I alluded to earlier, there are a variety of divisions in USPSA, with very specific rules for each one. For shooters new to competition, I recommend shooting in Production Class, but there are numerous divisions you can compete in. Here is a list of divisions and a quick explanation of what they are.

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• Production: the most stock pistols, limited to 10 rounds in magazine, minor power factor
• Limited Division: race pistols, no optics allowed, hi capacity magazines, major and minor power factor
• Open: nearly anything goes, optics, compensators, huge magazines
• Carry Optics: duty style pistols, with slide ride red dots, medium amount of modification allowed
• Pistol Caliber Carbine: rifles chambered in 45 caliber or less
• Single Stack: 1911 style pistols in major or minor
• Revolver: self explanatory
• L10: a limited division with 10 round mag capacity, basically custom 1911’s

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The vast majority of shooters participate in only five divisions: production, limited, carry optics, open, and PCC. If you want to try your hand in another division feel free, just realize the expense can go up. If you have a 1911 sitting around and want to feel like a real American then, by all means, shoot single stack.

The Pistol

Production pistols are the most similar to everyday carry pistols, and are generally not full on race pistols. While you are allowed to modify them, fairly heavily, it certainly isn’t required to do so to remain competitive.

I started out shooting a bone stock Sig 226 because it’s what I had, and I felt most comfortable with it. Many shooters will shoot Glock 17’s or Sig 320’s, and they work perfectly well. Almost any gun that is available to purchase in any normal gun store will be production legal.

I recommend a full size pistol as shooting smaller guns will be a real challenge, especially while you are newer. I also do not recommend purchasing a pistol specifically for USPSA at this point. You need to do a few matches first to see what you like and don’t like. You will also find that most shooters will let you handle their pistols and will be able to give you much more solid recommendations than the local gun store guy, who has no idea what USPSA is.

The Holster

Many folks won’t need to purchase a holster, as they will already have something that will work for USPSA. If you don’t, then all you need is something that will securely hold the pistol, and is safe. Kydex, and plastic holsters work the best for this, as they retain their shape when the pistol is removed.

I’ve used blade tech holsters for several years, and they work very well. This is an example holster you can get for Glocks, but they makes holsters for nearly any firearm you can think of.

Blade-Tech uses their Tek-Lock system which is really well designed, and fits a variety of belts easily. I still keep my old Blade-Tech gear around to loan to newer shooters, and it always does the trick.

Magazines and Magazine Pouches

In USPSA, stages are not allowed to require more than 32 rounds. This doesn’t mean you won’t shoot more, as anyone who has wasted a magazine shooting at a far piece of steel can attest too!

Most production shooters will carry five magazines on their belt, giving them 50 rounds in total to play with, as you are only allowed to load 10 rounds per mag in production.

These magazine pouches by Blade Tech, are great for those just starting out. I would recommend buying two of them, and keeping one magazine in your pocket to load when you are told to make ready for the stage.

Obviously if you don’t have five magazines for your pistol then you will need to purchase those. Most pistols come with two or three which means you’ll probably only have to buy a couple of magazines.

The Belt

Once you arrive at your first shooting match you will see that most experienced shooters have special belts, and magazine pouch systems. This is because they work a little better than a traditional belt.

As a new shooter you don’t need anything fancy just yet. Make sure you use a wide belt, preferably around one and a half inches, that is fairly stiff. You don’t want to be using a flimsy dress belt to hold the weight of your gun and magazines.

Eye and Ear Protection

This is mandatory, and you will not be allowed to shoot without it. I recommend getting a cheap pair of electronic ear muffs. They will muffle the sound of gun shots, and they will allow you to hear normal sounds as if you weren’t wearing them. The Walkers Razor earmuffs are very popular and they won’t break the bank.

I recommend clear eye protection that is impact rated. You can get these types of safety glasses anywhere, Walmart, or even places like Home Depot. You can pick up a pair of these glasses from Amazon for super cheap.

Now that we’ve covered some of the big ticket items let’s start to look at how we actually find a match.

Finding a USPSA Match

There are several ways you can find these matches, and you would probably be surprised how many matches there are within an hour or two of where you live.

Step one will be signing up for a Practiscore account. This website is where almost all matches are signed up through. Creating an account is very simple, and it is free. Just click register in the upper right hand corner.

Once you’ve created an account you simply head to the Matches tab and search for USPSA matches using the map function or you can type search terms into the bar on the left.

Once you find some matches that fit your schedule and are are close by, you’ll need to look and see when sign up begins. Most matches open sign up a week or two in advance at a specific date or time. Major matches will have sign ups well in advance.

This is important to pay attention to as some matches will fill up within 15-20 minutes of the start of registration, so don’t forget to set that reminder on your phone!

If registration is active then you simply click the registration button, and fill out the required fields based on the division you want to shoot and your personal info.

Your name and email should be auto populated. You then select your division, production, limited, etc. Below that you will select your classification. As a new shooter you will be U, for unclassified. Below that you will see categories for female, military, LEO, senior etc. Select that if you would like. Lastly, you can select power factor.

If you are shooting production you are always minor. Only those shooting cartridges larger than 40 caliber, in other divisions, should select major power factor. Don’t worry about understanding all that right now. We’ll discuss it a bit more further down.

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Squadding

Once you’ve filled out your registration information you will be allowed to squad. Sometimes you will receive an email with a link that allows you to squad, and other times you will be allowed to squad immediately by picking a squad in the main registration area you just filled out. Each match director chooses how they want to do this.

It doesn’t really matter what squad you choose, but I do think it’s helpful if you find a squad that has some higher classification shooters shooting your division in it. This allows you to see how they shoot the stage with the same type of firearms, and gear.

That’s it, you’ve signed up for your first match! Now let’s talk about some do’s and don’ts at the match.

Match Rules and Etiquette

Because running around with guns can be dangerous, USPSA has implemented strict safety regulations that keep the sport fun and safe. I can tell you from personal experience that I never go back to a range or competition that allows unsafe gun handling.

This is one area where there is no leniency, and it can be harsh when someone is disqualified for unsafe gun handling. You shouldn’t worry about this, but you should be mindful of it, as no one needs a trip to the hospital!

Here is a list of match disqualifications in USPSA

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• Handling your firearm outside of the safety area, without Range Officer direction
• Handling ammunition/dummy ammo in the safety area
• Breaking 180 Degrees on a stage (pointing gun up range)
• Removing belt, and or handgun, while still holstered anywhere other than safety area
• Intentionally knocking eye or ear protection off
• Attempting to clear a squib (bullet lodged in barrel) during course of fire
• Failure to point PCC muzzle at berm or safe area while casing
• Holstering a loaded firearm during a course of fire improperly (i.e. hammer is cocked or safety is off)
• Climbing or standing on equipment clearly not meant for this
• Accidental discharging a round over a back stop or while manipulating a gun without intending to shoot
• Picking up a dropped firearm without Range Officer Present
• Drawing/Holstering a handgun inside a tunnel
• Sweeping your own body (legs don’t count during holstering) with your firearm
• While facing down range allowing the muzzle of the gun to point up range, beyond 3 feet, while reholstering
• Wearing more than one gun at once
• Putting finger on the trigger during the following: malfunction clearance, moving, loading, unloading
• Using metal, steel core, tracer ammunition
• Drawing a handgun while facing up range
• Unsportsmanlike conduct aka being a jackass
• Under influence of drugs or alcohol at match

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See how simple it is. Just don’t do these twenty things and you’ll be fine! All kidding aside many of these disqualification are common sense. You probably shouldn’t show up to the range and start climbing on the club house while smoking crack. People won’t like that.

The most common disqualification is breaking the 180 degree rule. This can occur when targets are placed close to the limit and competitors swing their gun too far. It can also happen when reloading facing towards a side berm.

This video is a pretty clear example of breaking the 180. As he passes the target to his left, he decides to re-engage it when it is clearly behind him. Don’t do this!

The next most common would most likely be sweeping yourself. Things such as muzzling your hand or a leg while kneeling would cause you to be disqualified.

None of these rules are particularly complicated when you think about your basic firearms safety rules. We don’t point our guns at things that we aren’t willing to shoot, and we keep our finger off the trigger until we are ready to fire. If you keep this in mind you will be fine. Now that we know what we must not do, let’s talk about some match etiquette.

Match Etiquette

Most of this is common sense, but it never hurts to review a few things. I recommend that you arrive early to all of your matches. If they are still setting up stages then you should offer to help. Many hands make light work.

If you received any instructions in your registration email, then follow them! If they want you to park somewhere then park there. If you need to pay with exact change then bring it! Crazy stuff, I know.

I also recommend letting the range officer (the guy giving commands on each stage) know you are a new shooter. They will be happy to explain what the commands mean, and what they want you to do while you are at the match.

Lastly, you’ll notice that the shooters on your squad all help reset the stage for each other. They paste the targets, and reset steel plates after scoring has been completed. You need to do this. There is nothing worse than a lazy squad mate.

Now you aren’t expected to paste and reset immediately before your run or after. You need to get ready mentally to shoot, and you will need to reload your magazines after.

Match Strategy and Scoring

USPSA matches are shot for points divided by time. On your standard, metric USPSA target, the center A, and head A zone are worth 5 points, the C zone is worth 3 points for those shooting minor power factor, and 4 points for those shooting major power factor. The D zone is worth 1 point for minor, and 2 points for major.

Production division is always minor power factor, meaning that those rounds have less energy and are “easier” to shoot than larger rounds 40 caliber and above, that are “harder” to shoot. Here is a quick example to explain the basics of scoring.

If you have a 10 target stage, with all metric cardboard targets, you will have a total of 100 possible points, as all cardboard targets are scored on the best two hits, unless otherwise specified.

If shooter 1 shoots this stage clean, with all 20 A zone hits, they will receive 100 points. Their ranking for this stage will be based off of their hit factor which is points per second. If shooter one took ten seconds to score 100 points, then they have a hit factor (HF) of 10.

If shooter 2 shoots this same stage clean, with all A zone hits, but they took 20 seconds, then their hit factor will be 5, placing them behind shooter 1. These are the basics of USPSA scoring. If you want a really great in depth analysis then check out this video.

For the new shooter, you really don’t need to worry about the minutiae of scoring. Just keep in mind the following principles and you will do well.

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• All cardboard targets are scored on the best two hits (unless otherwise specified)
• Steel targets require one hit
• Failing to engage and missing a target are penalties
• Don’t shoot white no shoot targets
• Shooting black (hard cover) on targets is not a hit.

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For your first matches, try not to be super competitive. Even if you think you are a pretty good shooter I promise you that the 12 year old girl, and the guy with an oxygen tank will probably out shoot you. Not that I know from personal experience or anything. Your goal should be to go and have a good time, while learning as much as you can.

Additional Resources for Shooting Better

Once you’ve been smoked on a stage by Walter and his mobility scooter posse, you’ll no doubt want to get better at this game! What you need to do is go out and buy a super expensive gun and all the gear you see the top guys shooting. That will definitely bump you up the rankings. Just kidding, don’t do that!

I’ve also never seen someone buy five grand worth of guns and gear, and accidentally discharge a round over the berm, because they didn’t have a clue how to use it.

You need to practice with the gear you have, and you need to dry fire. Let me say that again. You need to dry fire. I recommend Ben Stoeger’s Dry Fire Reloaded book to everyone I can. It works, and is very easy to follow.

There are also thousands of good USPSA training video’s on Youtube. I’m particularly fond of this series by NSSF. It’s basically a $500 dollar class for free.

Here’s one of the video’s

Final Thoughts

This has been quite a long article, and it can be easy to become overwhelmed by the details. Don’t worry about this stuff. These details are here to make your start a little easier. You don’t have to get everything right, or understand the intricacies of every rule in the rule book to have a good time.

You’ll find that shooters are some of the most open, and friendly people there are. They will literally give you their gun and ammo to shoot if you need to run a stage, or your gear is broken.

Like any new endeavor the hardest part is taking the first steps, and with this guide you now know which direction you should be walking! Good luck, and if you have any questions put them in the comments section below and I’ll get you an answer.

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