{"id":6472,"date":"2010-10-12T21:52:26","date_gmt":"2010-10-13T02:52:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.downrange.tv\/blog\/?p=6472"},"modified":"2014-01-04T11:34:46","modified_gmt":"2014-01-04T17:34:46","slug":"the-quest-for-master-class-%e2%80%93-stage-3-breakdown","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.downrange.tv\/blog\/the-quest-for-master-class-%e2%80%93-stage-3-breakdown\/6472\/","title":{"rendered":"The Quest for Master Class \u2013 Stage 3 Breakdown"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.downrange.tv\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/10\/questformasterclass101310.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-6474\" title=\"questformasterclass101310\" alt=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/www.downrange.tv\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/10\/questformasterclass101310-300x177.jpg\" width=\"300\" height=\"177\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.downrange.tv\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/10\/questformasterclass101310-300x177.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.downrange.tv\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/10\/questformasterclass101310.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a>In two previous installments on the Quest for Master Class, we have examined Stage 1 and 2, breaking them down in to specific areas where the average shooter can look for ways to pick up time. Now here we are at the last stage, which is widely regarded as the most difficult in the IDPA classifier. Stage 3 is fired at 20 and 15 yards, and incorporates reloads with retention, movement, and some very difficult shots. Let\u2019s take a look at this week\u2019s video and see how it goes.<\/p>\n<p><center><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"http:\/\/player.theplatform.com\/p\/6eFMJC\/RqqFgTxaLX4a\/embed\/9RxeFEaD0Mb4&amp;autoPlay=false\" height=\"269\" width=\"478\" allowfullscreen=\"\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe><\/center><\/p>\n<p>After it\u2019s all said and done, we ended up with a 39.27 on Stage 3 of the IDPA classifier, which is definitely inside the goal time of 40 seconds. With the Stage 1 time of 27.12, a Stage 2 time of 23.98, and a Stage 3 time of 39.27, that produces an aggregate score of 90.37 seconds for the entire classifier, which if shot as a continuous COF would be good enough for Stock Service Pistol Master Class. Now that you\u2019ve seen each stage broken down, our next episode will hopefully feature all three stages shot together for a Master Class time.<\/p>\n<p>Let\u2019s look at what happened on Stage 3 to get that 39 second time. Stage 3 presents a huge challenge for most shooters, myself included. I don\u2019t enjoy shooting at 20 yards, and with combat sights it can sometimes be difficult to get a proper sight picture. The Ruger SR9c has excellent sights for a carry pistol, and knowing the point of impact for the rounds makes it much easier to establish that proper sight picture to get good hits. This particular run I put a high premium on accuracy \u2013 while my raw times were slower than I normally average, my points down were actually lower on Stage 3 than they were on Stage 2. I had excellent hits, and because of that I was able to find the balance of speed and accuracy that allowed me to get under the 40 second goal. Here are the par times I use for Stage 3:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>String 1: 6 shots, reload with retention\/tac load, 6 more shots \u2013 15 seconds aggregate<\/li>\n<li>String 2: 6 shots, reload with retetion\/tac load, move to barrel and kneel and fire 6 more shots \u2013 15 seconds aggregate<\/li>\n<li>String 3: Draw, kneel, fire six shots around either side of the barricade \u2013 6 seconds aggregate.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>If you hit those par times you\u2019ll be right around 36 seconds for Stage 3, which is an excellent place to be. The trick on Stage 3 is as mentioned above \u2013 a balance of speed and accuracy. While the 20 yard shots can be taken faster, going too fast will cost you in the accuracy department, and similarly focusing too much on accuracy will cost you speed. My practice for the 20 yard stage is also detailed in the video \u2013 my favorite drill is to draw and fire 1 shot in under 2 seconds to a Down Zero hit. If I can get that 5 times in a row, I\u2019ll try for 2 shots in 2.25 seconds, and then add more targets as I\u2019m able to get those hits.<\/p>\n<p>Of course, what everyone really wants to talk about is the tactical reload\/reload with retention. I\u2019ll tell you the secret to getting faster with those: \u201cpractice\u201d. Lots and lots of dry fire practice is the only way to get faster with your reloads with retention. As talked about <a href=\"https:\/\/www.downrange.tv\/blog\/the-quest-for-master-class-%E2%80%93-staying-dry\/5036\/\" target=\"_blank\">in a previous episode<\/a> I prefer the reload with retention to the \u201ctactical reload\u201d as it gets the gun back in action with a two handed firing grip faster and involves less fumbling with mags. Practice your mag changes in dry fire, and you\u2019ll be able to smoke them in matches. I\u2019ve actually started using the RWR in IDPA matches the same way I would use a speed reload in USPSA. Since no IDPA stage is longer than 18 rounds, if I\u2019ve engaged 4 targets with a total of 8 shots and I\u2019m not exposed to any further threats, I\u2019ll often do a reload with retention while changing shooting positions (as allowed by the rules). I\u2019ve found this is just as fast if not faster than doing a slide lock reload in the middle of an engagement, as I don\u2019t have to interrupt my shooting to reload the gun. Practice this method and see what happens!<\/p>\n<p>Next episode we\u2019ll come back and shoot the whole classifier \u2013 it\u2019s time to hit SSP Master, and I feel a strong run coming on!<\/p>\n<p><strong>Quest for Master Class Statistics<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Rounds Fired: 5237<br \/>\nFastest Time: 84.66<br \/>\nClub Matches Won: 6<br \/>\nMajor Match Best Finish: 12th<br \/>\nESP Classification: Expert<br \/>\nSSP Classification: Expert<\/p>\n<p>********<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft\" title=\"caleb mugshot\" alt=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/www.downrange.tv\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/caleb-mugshot.jpg\" width=\"110\" height=\"110\" \/><em>Caleb Giddings is the founder of Gun Nuts Media (<a href=\"http:\/\/www.gunnuts.net\/\" target=\"_blank\">www.gunnuts.net<\/a>). He has been involved in competitive shooting since he was a cadet at the US Coast Guard Academy in 2000 and has attending training courses at Gunsite and the former Blackwater USA. Since shooting his first IDPA match in 2008, Caleb has started the climb through the rankings, earning the title of Master Class shooter in the Enhanced Service Revolver division in 2010.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In two previous installments on the Quest for Master Class, we have examined Stage 1 and 2, breaking them down in to specific areas where the average shooter can look for ways to pick up time. Now here we are at the last stage, which is widely regarded as the most difficult in the IDPA [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":6474,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[750,1,749],"tags":[753,842,1158],"class_list":["post-6472","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-caleb-giddings-bloggers","category-featured","category-the-quest-for-master-class","tag-caleb-giddings","tag-idpa-classifier","tag-idpa-master-class"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.downrange.tv\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6472","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.downrange.tv\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.downrange.tv\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.downrange.tv\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/13"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.downrange.tv\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6472"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.downrange.tv\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6472\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.downrange.tv\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6474"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.downrange.tv\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6472"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.downrange.tv\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6472"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.downrange.tv\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6472"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}