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Welcome To Practical Shooting

 

The Southwest Pistol League, the Practical Shooting division of the Gopher Flats Sportsmen’s Club, is a member of The United States Practical Shooting Association and The Steel Challenge Shooting Association. The Southwest Pistol League (SWPL) is the originator of Practical Shooting. Each month, SWPL hosts a USPSA Handgun & PCC (Pistol Caliber Carbine) Match and an SCSA Steel Challenge Match open to members of all the clubs at our range and to the general public.

SCSA Steel Challenge Matches


If you prefer the audible feedback of ringing steel targets, and nothing but steel targets, the SCSA Steel Challenge Match is the fastest shooting competition of all. You can choose to shoot the match with a centerfire handgun or PCC (Pistol Caliber Carbine), a rimfire handgun or rimfire rifle. The courses are standardized and the same at every match. But, that doesn’t make the Steel Challenge easy. You’ll want to go fast…and the Steel Challenge will let you go as fast as you can miss. Or, are you a steely-eyed, precision shooting machine? Try it and see why the Steel Challenge always looks the same, but your scores won’t be! Visit the SWPL Steel Challenge Page to learn how to shoot steel, and nothing but steel! Contact the Steel Challenge Match Director for more information.

Monthly SWPL Steel Challenge Match

 

On the Fourth Saturday of each month, SWPL hosts a SCSA sanctioned Steel Challenge Match. As you’ve come to expect for a USPSA match, scoring is on the Practiscore App. Please remember to install the Practiscore App on your Apple iOS or Android devices. Then, visit the SWPL Steel Challenge Page to learn how to shoot steel, and nothing but steel! Contact the Steel Challenge Match Director for more information.

USPSA Handgun & PCC (Pistol Caliber Carbine) Matches

 

Unlike traditional target shooting…where competitors stand sedately at the firing line and take one-handed aim at a static bulls-eye target…in USPSA Handgun & PCC Matches, you’ll draw from a holster or pluck a handgun from a table (or raise a PCC from the low-ready), then walk, run, crawl, dive, and climb through varying and challenging courses to hit cardboard and steel targets. Those targets could be completely exposed, partially hidden, completely hidden, or moving. Visit the SWPL Handgun & PCC Match Page to learn how you can shoot, move, reload, and shoot more! Contact the USPSA Match Director for more information.

Monthly SWPL USPSA Handgun & PCC (Pistol Caliber Carbine) Match

 

On the Sunday following Steel Challenge match, which is ALWAYS on the 4th Saturday of each month, SWPL hosts a USPSA sanctioned handgun match. The matches are entirely scored using Practiscore and paper score sheets are a quaint artifact of a bygone era. Pre-register and join a squad on the Practiscore website, at least a day before the match. You’ll need to create an account, which can be used for matches nationwide. Squads receive their tablets from the Match Director during the match briefing. Select your squad’s number on your first stage and begin entering scores. As scoring and timing duties are rotated through each squad, you have the opportunity to run the timer or record scores when you’re not shooting a stage. When your squad completes their last stage, return the tablet to the Match Director.

SWPL Announcements

Comes To SWPL


Fellow luddites! Match scoring at SWPL is now paperless. If you aren’t already familiar with Practiscore, it’s easy to learn. Install the (Free!) Practiscore App on an Apple iPhone or iPad, or Android phone or tablet. Then experiment with the App at home or at your range sessions. Match scores are available on the Practiscore website later that day, and on the SWPL web page.

Location

 

You’ll find the matches at the Lower Ranges of The Gopher Flats Sportsman’s Club. These are the first set of ranges, on the right-hand side of the access road. Enter the gate and park between the pistol berms and the registration area. If you reach the card-key gate at the end of the access road, you’ve passed the Lower Ranges. Sorry, entry to the property beyond the card-key gate is prohibited, even if the gate is unlocked. Parking for the matches is limited to the fenced area within the Lower Ranges and the adjacent overflow parking area. Please do not park along the access road.


Please contact the Match Director for directions

Amenities

 

There are separate restrooms for Men and Women, running water, a covered registration/dining area with electrical outlets, and shade on each stage.

 

New Shooters

Introduction

 

Traditional shooting practice limits you to slow, deliberate, and intermittent shooting at bland, non-reactive targets. Practical Shooting frees you from those limitations, emphasizing both movement and as much speed as you desire. The Steel Challenge, well, challenges your swiftness and accuracy with arrays of reactive steel targets that clang loudly with every hit. For even more movement and speed, USPSA mixes static, reactive, paper, and steel targets to test your vision and reflexes. SWPL’s outdoor ranges are designed for Practical Shooting, allowing you to move and shoot safely. And though SWPL is a private club, club membership isn’t required to shoot The Steel Challenge and USPSA matches.

 

If you’re new to shooting, we recommend either the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) First Shots Program or the National Rifle Association (NRA) First Steps Basic Pistol Orientation to get you started. Once you’ve mastered gun safety and handling, you’re ready for the Steel Challenge, or USPSA, or both!

 

The Steel Challenge matches consist of 150 rounds fired in Six Stages. Each stage is its own bay, with five Steel Targets of varying sizes. You have a choice of shooting either a centerfire handgun or pistol-caliber carbine, a .22 rim-fire handgun, or a .22 rim-fire rifle. Each stage starts with the firearm held at a low-ready position, or by drawing a handgun from a holster. You’ll engage the targets from a designated spot, but move your firearm to engage all the targets. You’ll shoot each stage five times, reloading off the clock between each string.

The USPSA matches consist of 200-250 rounds fired in Six Stages, one of which is a Classifier. Each stage is its own bay, with a unique stage design and course of fire. The stage designs and classifiers change monthly. You’ll draw a handgun from a holster, pluck it from a table, or swiftly raise your carbine from a ready position, then walk, run, crawl, dive, and climb through varying and challenging courses to score hits on cardboard and steel targets. You can…Stand still. Go slow. Go fast. Go left. Go right. Sit. Stand on one foot. Stand on the other foot. Hop. Kneel. Reload. Don’t Reload. Change hands. Anything goes…as long as safety rules are followed. With few restrictions on how targets can be engaged, it’s up to each competitor how to complete a stage. If merely hitting targets wasn’t enough…all courses are timed. If you haven’t tried practical shooting before, it’s an entirely different game. You can shoot a centerfire revolver, semiauto handgun, or a pistol-caliber carbine. Bring a holster to carry your handgun, or a rifle slipcase to carry your carbine. Add spare magazines, moon clips, or speedloaders to feed your firearm … and lots of ammo!

Your First Match

 

Nervous about your first “public performance”? Most people are! Relax and enjoy it! Everyone you’ll meet at SWPL matches had a first time, too. You’ll find that both experienced shooters and Range Safety Officers (RO’s) are friendly and helpful to new shooters. We all enjoy Practical Shooting, and want to get you started right! Matches are just as much social gatherings as they are shooting contests. Here’s how we suggest you approach your match, either The Steel Challenge or USPSA:

 

First – Concentrate on Safety while handling your Firearm. Nobody wants to see you disqualified for a safety violation. This can happen, as the saying goes, if you run before you learn to walk. Learn safe gun handling first. Increased speed will come with practice. Slow or fast, you should always pay attention to where the muzzle of your gun points and where your trigger finger rests!

 

Next – Don’t worry about your stage times. Instead, slow down and concentrate on hitting the targets. Focusing on a clear sight picture and precise trigger control will make you a better shooter.

 

Finally – Get out on the range and have fun!