If you’re really into guns and you have any sort of social media program on your phone you are almost 100% certain to have run into short clips of competitive shooters displaying their fast splits, quick footwork, and high-speed, low-drag equipment setups with guns that look like they’re straight out of an 80s sci-fi action flick. If you’ve ever seen that on your phone and said “I want to do that!” Then today is your lucky day because I’m here to give you my personal suggestions on how to enter and continue to grow within the world of competitive shooting.

Competitive shooting isn’t nearly as intimidating to get into once you’ve gone to your first match. For most newcomers to the competitive shooting environment, I recommend attending a simple Steel Challenge match. Steel Challenge is a fairly simple competitive shooting event that has a very low barrier to entry in terms of skill, equipment required, and match fees. My home range hosts a steel challenge twice a month and the round count is usually somewhere in the realm of 250-300 rounds of whatever pistol caliber you’ll be shooting. Match fees are around $15 per match and most shooters have at least enough magazines to shoot through each stage without reloading (you’ll need a minimum of 25 rounds per stage). If you’re looking for an exact list of what you’ll need, I’ll put a short one at the bottom of this blog post so you can keep it handy.

My personal suggestion for your first Steel Challenge match would be to take a rimfire pistol like a Ruger MK III or MKIV, 5 magazines, and 250 rounds of ammunition and you’re good to go. Rimfire pistols within Steel Challenge require even less equipment as you won’t need a holster for them - just a bag to stuff the pistol in as you walk up to and away from the firing line. Steel Challenge competitions are relatively short and each stage only consists of 5 targets that must all be engaged and hit. You will shoot each stage 5 times to get a total score for the stage (your slowest time is thrown out). Most clubs will opt to shoot between 5 and 8 of the stages from the standardized list and its because of that consistency of stage plans that I like Steel Challenge for newcomers and even just for measuring your personal progress - the stages never change so you have something consistent to measure against as far as performance goes.

Aside from gear concerns, all that is really at stake at any firearms competition is your willingness to learn, and maybe learning that you’re not as good of a pistol or rifle shooter as you thought you were. I know my first handful of Steel Challenge matches were an absolute trainwreck but I became so addicted to the formula and thrill of the competitive environment that it has now spread into disciplines such as USPSA, which is actually the governing body of the Steel Challenge competition.

Steel Challenge is just the gateway drug that got me into competition shooting and I think overall it, and the many other types of competitive shooting I’ve tried out and learned have transformed me into a safer, more confident, and more competent firearms operator. And really that’s just it when it comes to starting your competitive shooting career - get out there and try it! ​ Consider this an open invitation from a currently active competitive shooter - please come have some fun with the rest of us!

 

Luke’s Steel Challenge Equipment List:

● Division: RFPI (Rimfire Pistol Irons)

● Pistol: Ruger MK IV 22LR Pistol

● Magazines: 5X Ruger MKIV 10-round Magazines (reload after each string)

● Pistol Bag: Any old pistol bag will do

● Ammunition: CCI Mini Mags or CCI Standard Velocity (Bring at least 300 rounds)

● Other Equipment: A willingness to learn, ask questions when you’re confused, and plan to have a good time! If you have any questions about getting started in Steel Challange, USPSA, or even PRS shooting please feel free to drop me a line on Instagram at my handle @ballisticaviation