I thought the one I went to way back when was helpful. It wasn’t super in-depth but covered safety, basic commands and rules and iirc we shot a small stage. This was in the early 2000’s where there was probably some info online, but I hadn’t found it yet and I had been shooting steel matches at the same range. I thought it was nice showing up to a match knowing I’d already done this before, even if it wasn’t in front of a large group of people. ETA: I think there were only three of us there so I don’t think it lasted much more than an hour.
I also saw plenty of new folks show up to matches and not have a problem and receive plenty of match day tutoring, though the completely new to competition shooting group also seemed to be the most likely to get DQ’d.
So, I guess if a newbie had the time to spare and asked me if they should go to an intro class I would recommend it. I also wouldn’t tell someone they should wait around and do a class first if they really wanted to compete.
My first match I had two main goals:
1) Don’t do anything that would get me yelled at (i.e. DQ’d)
2) Don’t finish last.
IIRC I didn’t do #1 and barely achieved #2 (I think I was 3rd from last). Suffice to say, my preconceived notions that I could shoot were suddenly exposed to a dose of realism going up against guys who shot USPSA seriously. Fast forward 15 years to present day, quite a few rounds later, I’ve been shooting with sense & purpose and my hobby has a tangible way of tracking progress (classification and how I stack up against the local heat).
One thing I will say for sure is my gun handling (and shade-tree gun smithing skills) got way better as a result. It also meant I had a justifiable reason to drop coin on different guns and gear.
USPSA gave me a reason to experiment and learn different handgun platforms (SAO, striker, DA/SA), and how to churn out reliable and accurate reloads en mass.
3-gun got me into ARs and learning how to set them up the way I wanted, with several niche guns ranging from close & fast to far & accurate.
Old eyes made me make the shift to red dots on pistols and my first Carry Optics gun was a nod to my Timmy leanings with a CZ P10C with RMR and BUIS. Which has since led me to my current pair of CZ Shadow 2’s with SRO as my main comp pistols and a 365XL w/ HS407K as my EDC. There’s also a LTT Beretta RDO in the mix, but I’m still trying to figure out if that was a competition purchase or my inner Timmy speaking. Because of my eyesight I only shoot my 1911s and 2011’s once or twice a year.
Of late, PRS and NRL has captured my interest, and I’m trying to shoot a couple matches intermixed with 2-3 USPSA matches per month. I’m currently in the process of having my first custom rifle built in 6mm GT to replace a fairly stock Ruger in 6.5CM. Its hard to explain, but hitting 1.5-2 MOA size steel plates from weird positions at silly distances while on the clock is oddly satisfying. One thing that has helped a ton with my rifle shooting is competing in NRL22 with a .22LR rifle. Plus .22 is way cheaper so I’m shooting way more and learning how to be efficient with my position building and learning to call wind.
I am in my 5th year of idpa. The best part of it is all the crazy shooting positions we get to do. Other than owning your own range on your property or taking a class, gun games let us do what we otherwise are not allowed. One indoor we used to go to absolutely forbid drawing from a holster. Another allowed it after I was watched by an employee and if I was able to get the right most lane so no one was to my right. It is so much fun that my wife just started and shot her 4th idpa match last weekend. I started her on idpa like stages at our Izaak Walton range maybe 8 months ago. Her comment has been that she is SO much more comfortable w/ all the basic gun handling stuff. Indoor all she did was load a mag, put it in the gun, shoot at stationary paper, and remove the empty mag. She is still a bit nervous running from one shooting position to the next w/ the loaded gun so she does a fast walk. She is also blown away how nice everyone is and how much they help her. The most recent match she was finally not at the bottom of the results. 3rd from the bottom had her yeehawwwing as she sat at the PC and looked at scores. I strongly urge everyone here to give idpa or uspsa a try. For idpa all you need is a gun, a holster, a double mag carrier, and 3 mags. Oh and about 100 rnds of ammo and $15-20 entry fee.
@CraigS
This is exactly what some of the hard core defensive people Pooh Poohing competition don’t get.
They say we should be spending the time working on our other skills…
But for me, they come out of different time and emotional budgets.
USPSA comes out of the same budget as watching TV or going to the movies or a bar with a buddy.
Not out of the time spend lifting weights or running on a treadmill.
It’s a great way to meet like minded people, get a little friendly competition and have tangible goals for improvement.
It’s just plain fun.