So I Show Up To Matches Without A Vest

[1slow]

I finally convinced an LEO friend of mine to attend an IDPA match with me. He wore his duty gun in a pancake holster under a Polo shirt. The "wise" SO told him that drawing from a closed front garment was super unsafe but they'd let him do it, just for today. They had the honest expectation that he would go buy a vest to play their game. Any guesses on how many more IDPA matches he attended?

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SO is a blivet drama mama. SOs like that give the sport a bad name.

[JodyH]

SO's like that need to be policed by the sanctioning organization.
RO/SO's need to keep their opinions to themselves or else hand the timer over to someone else.
It should be emphasizedo during RO/SO certification that when you have the timer you are representing the organization and forfeit your right to express an opinion contrary to the written rules.

[Wheeler]

SO's like that need to be policed by the sanctioning organization.
RO/SO's need to keep their opinions to themselves or else hand the timer over to someone else.
It should be emphasizedo during RO/SO certification that when you have the timer you are representing the organization and forfeit your right to express an opinion contrary to the written rules.

I agree wholeheartedly with your statement. The problem is IDPA, like many other sports is a wholly volunteer run thing at club levels. Match directors have to make do with what they can get and nepotism is a thing.

I had a USPSA guy tell me that I couldn't wear my revolver under a vest at a match because they "didn't shoot those kinds of guns there." It didn't keep me from shooting my rig, especially as I knew both the MD and the AC, nor did it keep me from going back.

[Welder]

My 'vest' is the brightest blaze orange long-sleeved zipper hoodie I could find. With a Beretta 92 under it. The guys in my club love it. The rations of crap have grown as I slowly move up in the ranks, but it's all good-natured. I have a great time at matches, am placing top 10 out of an avg of 40-50 competitors these days, and am now an SO as well.

A person's attitude totally makes or breaks them at these types of events. Wear and/or shoot something outside of the norm and be prepared to take a good-natured ribbing and return same. Some people are way too serious and just need to relax and see the humor.

ETA that I hadn't been to this subforum for awhile and didn't realize this thread was basically dead already. Sorry about the resurrection!

[rd62]

TBone550,

I believe you were in my LTT class last weekend. This topic reminds me of the exact question I asked EL on the topic of IDPA competition and shooting in carry gear. I'll try and paraphrase his response. His stance was that competition was good and pushed skill development. When you introduced factors that could be considered a handicap you insert the opportunity to justify a less competitive performance. You give yourself an excuse and I think he had a valid point. I know when I first started shooting IDPA when the timer went off, the heart rate went up along with the stress level as I was competing. As time went on, I plateaued but found I was no longer stressed. No jitters, no high heart rate, sweaty palms, etc. Yeah I shot from carry gear, IWB under a polo or hoodie, etc. and I was slower, but I expected to be. I wasn't improving my performance under stress.

I believe he equated it to saying you could beat a pro race car driver on the street if he didn't have his race car. Like that was the sole key to his performance. Or thinking you were gonna beat Rob Leatham in a match if he had to shoot from carry gear under a hoodie. He's still gonna smoke your ass.

I don't have a racecar and can't afford one, but I'm gonna find a vest and bring my OWB holster to my next IDPA match and leave my excuses at the door. I think there is a place for training from carry gear and that EL would agree, but I'm not sure that's at the match anymore. For me it'll be at the Pannone Covert Carry Class in April.

YMMV but for me, I think carry gear competition became a crutch for me. Unless of course everyone is competing in carry gear and hoodies!

[fixer]

I just wear a t-shirt to conceal my Glock. Just like everyday for me. I very rarely see anyone else doing this! Do you serious guys think someone like me is a dork? To me IDPA is a fun way to apply some "pressure" to my live fire shooting. In a way to mimic real world situations to be prepared for a SD situation. I do enjoy the competition and strive to do my best but I never wear a vest when I leave the house! So do I cave in to the peer pressure or just be comfortable being the misfit? lol

Every match is everyday carry including USPSA.

[Talionis]

His stance was that competition was good and pushed skill development. When you introduced factors that could be considered a handicap you insert the opportunity to justify a less competitive performance...

I believe he equated it to saying you could beat a pro race car driver on the street if he didn't have his race car. Like that was the sole key to his performance. Or thinking you were gonna beat Rob Leatham in a match if he had to shoot from carry gear under a hoodie. He's still gonna smoke your ass.

There is a lot of good stuff in this quote. I think competing in carry gear can be extremely valuable from the standpoint of becoming comfortable with the gear and gun you wear on a daily basis, as well as finding and understanding or changing any weaknesses associated with your method of carry or gear choice. As you bring up, it is definitely possible to use the fact that you are competing using carry gear as an excuse for not striving for or achieving excellence.

My personal opinion is unsurprisingly similar to Mr_White's on this. Shoot to dominate regardless of what gear you are using, and crush any excuses before they drag you down to mediocrity. Your own personal standard of domination doesn't necessarily have to be something like "match win against skilled opponents by massive margin" but it should NOT include excuses in the standard.

[DAB]

i shoot local IDPA matches with my carry gun, carry holster, and a double mag holder (for the match only). lately, i've been focusing on accuracy. was down 5 over 4 stages last match, came in 3rd of 13 shooters. i'm shooting my Px4 9mm in CCP (more reload practice). if you want to bring your 'gamer' gear, that's cool, i'll bring my every day gear and see how I do.

[Sherman A. House DDS]

I've shot matches wearing a bright, reflective, international orange mesh traffic vest. It's breezy in the summer, conceals the gun, and it's not floppy so when you wing it out of the way, it moves and is not billowy. I had a Woolrich (or Eotach) vest that I used too, but after costing with Deet and sunscreen habitually, it disintegrated.

I try and keep IDPA fun. Like it was meant to be.


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[Randy Harris]

I have shot for years , including the 2014 IDPA Nationals , with a Glock 34 from under an untucked t shirt. I normally finish first overall in my local monthly matches and I have my ups and downs in the bigger matches. I use pretty much the same gear for match and street , just with the holster moved behind my hip and my mag pouch moved behind my hip to be IDPA legal. Shooting in Master class the closed front garment does not always help me finish as high as possible and to be honest ,I wore a vest (that I won at a match) at the 2015 IDPA World Championship.

It comes down to what you want to accomplish and for that match I wanted as many things going for me as I could get. The open front garment makes your draw and mag changes just tiny bit faster no matter how fast you are from a closed front garment. In a street confrontation that extra .20 on the draw and extra .50 on the mag change is probably not a big deal....but in a 16 stage match that all adds up and that might be 5 places (or more) in Master SSP....

Do what YOU want to do and who gives a damn what anyone else thinks? If you are shooting matches to bolster your marksmanship and gun handling under stress to improve your street skills then roll however you dress in every day life. But if you are wanting to be the most competitive you can be then the vest will make that a little easier .