Gauging Interest

My friend without pants and I have been kicking an idea around for the last couple of days, and I wanted to put it out there to see what the interest would be like. The short version is that Robb and I are both fond of the blogger get togethers like The GBR and the 2ABlogBash, but we’d like to see a little bit more shooting at these gun blogger events. GBR has a range day, and the BlogBash has NRA’s air rifle range, but what if there was a match, say a “Gun Blogger Invitational” match that allowed you to hang and bang action pistol style with your fellow internet gun nuts? Note, I am in no way trying to undermine or detract from those events – what I’m doing is gauging interest in an actual match that would be built for gun bloggers. Of course, to make this financially feasible, we’d have to allow other shooters to attend the match, so the scoring would work out like this:

All shooters would be competing for the overall championship, which would include some kind of prize/trophy. There would also be trophies for championships within classification, be it IDPA or USPSA (and even for unclassified shooters). There would also be a prize/trophy set aside specifically for bloggers – with the highest overall blogger walking away with that prize/trophy. Unfortunately, to put on a match of this size and magnitude, we’d have to charge an entry fee for the match, but that’s the only downside I can think of.

With everything I’ve listed above, what would your interest be in such an event? Remember, you don’t need a blog to come and shoot, but you do need to be a blogger to win the special blogger category? Thoughts, opinions, etc in comments, and vote on the poll.

45 Comments

  1. Well, it wouldn’t be until next year at the earliest. There’s a lot of legwork involved in organizing a major match.

  2. If the match was at the Boomershoot site there could be rifle as well as pistol competition. And that doesn’t even take into account the awesomeness of doing a match of “Boomer Pins” with rifles and boomers at 25 yards (think “bowling pin match” with a couple pounds of high explosives instead of each bowling pin).

  3. This idea is made of……wait for it……awesome!

    I would very happily lose a blogger match to Caleb.

  4. The big challenges you’ll face for turnout are a) early interest from people willing to dive in to inspire other to join, b) location & how easy it is get there, and c) time of year.

    If you get that stuff right, then you should see success. Give it a personality of its own – which shouldn’t be hard, especially if Robb doesn’t wear pants.

    The Bash was never intended to have a shooting component. Every year people ask about it, but there’s just simply not time for it. Asking people to take another day off just to shoot – planned at a range that’s never been visited from far away was just more than I am willing to take on. That you guys created a mini-shooting component at the air gun range was completely unexpected. So if it’s something you decide to do, make sure there’s lots of opportunity for people to add their own twist. You never know where it will lead.

  5. Expanding on what Bitter just said, if you use a photoshop of a pantless man and that pic of the reactive target starting to explode…..

    Also, finding a way to include Robb’s wedding hair would add several gallons of win.

  6. Sounds interesting to me, but the devil is in the details. At least, for me they would be.

    It would have to be within a days drive of me (10-12 hours), and preferably some place I can afford to stay. During the school year would be hard for me, and even the summer can have iffy times depending on Penn States latest extortion scam for instructors needing certification.

    Just put it together… If I can make it, I will.

  7. Ditto what Carteach0 said. I used to shoot a lot of IDPA and enjoyed it. But, I’m older and slower now. It would still be fun, though!

  8. You know – I keep meaning to drive down from ChiTown for a IndyBlogMeet, but something always gets in the way…

    I think that you guys have a great location too:

    Gun ranges that could be rented out since folks know you.

    Right on top of slew of Indy Bloggers (Tam, Roberta, Yourself, Frank James, Brigid) and
    ~close~ proximity to Breda, myself and few other oddballs weirdos from ILLinois (like Thirdpower from Days of Our Trailers…)

    Made of win…

  9. Eh, the shooting (or lack thereof) is not what keeps me from events… it is the travelling – the cost, the time off, the hotel rooms, the difficulties of flying with firearms, etc. So, yeah, I will be greedy, and if you have it in my neck of the woods, count me in. Otherwise… sorry :).

  10. If it’s within a 1-day driving radius of Indy, I’m there.

    Call it a rough arc from Norfolk-Atlanta-Birmingham-Memphis-St. Louis…

  11. I’m so there if you do it in Florida. I could swing ATL too since my parents live in Auburn, it’s a reasonable drive from there.

  12. At first glance, I suspected Caleb and Robb were scheming to pick up an easy trophy for themselves. 🙂 What about all the gunbloggers who don’t shoot IPSC or IDPA? Can you find a venue or close cluster of venues that could accommodate a septathlon of shooty goodness?

    1. USPSA
    2. Bullseye
    3. Skeet or some other clay sport
    4. Long range precision (keep the Boomershooters interested)
    5. Assault Rifle
    6. Bowling Pins (or mini pins for .22s)
    7. Tactical Shotgun

    I know this involves a nightmare of logistics for attendees and hosts alike, but doable since most gunbloggers don’t mind sharing sharing their guns. The USPSA stage could double as assault rifle with a shooting boxes much further back. The next bay over can host pin shooting against the clock only. Another bay can hold an array of steel poppers (and maybe a Texas Star) for Tac Shotgun. A fourth bay for bullseye pistol. There ought to be nearby places for one long-range stage and a clay range for skeet or trap (might even limit the targets to 10 or 15 birds a shooter to speed things up).

    Rotating folks through shouldn’t be too difficult, since not everybody is ambitious enough to try every discipline, but I’m willing to give it a try, even if I have to use my AR for long range, my Glock for Bullseye and pins, and my riotgun for skeet.

    Geez, wait until the muzzle-loading crowd shows up… an Octathlon?

    This certainly sounds like a match I’d love to try!

  13. If you want a match format that’s readily accessible to all, fun to watch, can be shot with a variety of weapons, and results in a minimum of whining, it’s hard to beat man-on-man pins, Caleb…

  14. Hmmm.

    If it’s in Caleb’s neck of the woods, I might be tempted to make a vacation of it – the wife has family in the WI area, so it’s kinda sorta in a general area.

    Besides, you need someone firmly anchoring last place, right?

  15. Define “blogger.”

    There are several people who actively comment on other folks’ blogs, whose own blogs are sadly neglected. Are they in or out?

    What are you going to do with people like me, with an active web presence in the gun blog community but without a blog of their own? Are we in or out?

  16. JayG,

    Besides, you need someone firmly anchoring last place, right?

    Dude, you’ll have to fight me for it.

    pax,

    I’m guessing “In”; I don’t think we’re a really exclusive bunch. After all, they let me play…

  17. Travel is always the biggest problem with these things. Still, I would make the effort for a gunblogger match.

    Pins would be fun. Or steel. Anything but punching holes in paper.

  18. Pax., I would say that commenters are very much a part of the Gun Blogger community. Without you guys, I’m talking to myself.

    With you guys, I’m still talking to myself, but at least there’s someone to overhear the conversation.

  19. Pax, you’d be in. You have a blog, and that’d be the only criteria for “blogger”.

    You know, Tam makes a good point about man on man pins being spectator friendly – and Cowboy Blob makes a good point about not everyone being an action pistol shooter.

    I’m glad I put this post up, because it’s helping me turn this from a wild-assed idea into something that could actually happen.

  20. Having the match in the Dallas/Fort Worth area allows for easy access from pretty much anywhere.

    With a years advanced warning, I am sure that I could schedule a weekend at the private range. We have bays from 15 to 200 yards so we could incorporate several different styles into one match.

  21. To make a stage even more gunblogger-relevant, we can even double up one of the pistol bays or use a public range to feature those challenging postal match targets that I never seem to find time for.

  22. No math. Divisions would be simple – no open guns, just Production and Limited. Production is for Glocks, Berettas, XDs, all those DA/SA or polymer guns, and limited is for your single action guns, or guns with expanded magwells and stuff. No caliber restrictions either.

  23. Just handguns? What about rifle and shotguns?

    No caliber restrictions? Does that mean I can bring a bowling ball mortar?

  24. No math? How about arithmetic? Surely you are going to keep score, right?

    At least keep a tally of the number of hostages shot.

    😉

  25. I posted some thoughts at Sebastian’s.

    I’d say Indiana is a good choice. The airport in Indianapolis is gorgeous. And (at least for me) easy to get to. Chicago is only a 2 hour drive so its easy for anyone under the sun to get there no problem. Plus its a VERY pro gun state (not to mention St. Elmo’s – one of my 2 favorite steak houses in the whole country)

  26. If you could fit a bowling ball mortar into a handgun, sure. What I meant is that there won’t be Major/Minor PF scoring – makes things easier on newbie shooters.

    As far as shotgun/rifle shooting, well that’s part of what I’m trying to figure is exactly what people want to shoot. Because once I get a general idea of what the event itself would look like, I can start trying to find a home for it.

    Edit: by “no math” I meant that Uncle won’t have to work hard to figure out what gun to bring with him. Of course I’d keep score – can’t have a winner without that!

  27. That said, Robb’s Orlando suggestion makes a ton of sense to.

    I mean, why not have Disney subsidize the flights. And there’s plenty of hotels and the like.

    And maybe we can throw in a Feral Pig hunt for those of us who like to 1) eat and 2) shoot moving targets.

  28. Ahh… so the rimfire guys are on equal footing with the centerfire guys. I got it.

    [The guys at my local range hate me too. After the walkthrough it’s “Joe! Do you have any comments or questions before we tell you ‘NO! You can’t do that?'”]

  29. Well, it does make it easier when right now the event consists of “let’s get together and shoot some guns”.

  30. At this year’s Gun Blogger Rendezvous plans are underway for three range days, an action pistol/Steel Challenge session, Rifle and handgun target range day from 25′ to 1,000 yards, and a Cowboy Fast Draw range day. Not true matches, but times and scores from the Steel Challenge and Cowboy Fast Draw days will be tracked. It’s open to all gun bloggers and anyone who reads the gun blogs. We also raise money for Project Valour-IT.

    …… Mr. Completely

  31. I’m down with the idea. With enough notice on firm details, I’m tentatively in.

    In addition to the handgun matches, some sort of tactical shotgun and rifle matches would be nice. A small (even unofficial) mulsurp bolt-action match (Mausers, Mosin-Nagants, etc) would be fun, too.

    I’ve wanted to shoot bowling pins since I started shooting, but have never been able to, so add that to the list of suggestions. Steel would be fun as well.

    Travel is going to be the biggest factor for me. Idaho and Indiana are a bit of a trek from Texas, but doable. I don’t fly unless I absolutely have to (and haven’t since the late 90s), so drive time will definitely be a factor for me. Indiana is probably as central as we’re gonna get for a match, and it’s less than a day’s drive for me.

  32. Schedule it around the time of some other big firearms event (SHOT Show, NRA convention, whatever) and you’ll get better participation I betcha.

  33. I believe the NRA meeting next year is in Charlotte.
    And Charlotte is a pretty major (at least on the East Coast) hub.

  34. I’m hopin’ for Indiana, as it’s about my only chance of attending.

    I’ll shoot whatever, probably quite badly.

    As for attendance, I would suggest you apply BlogMeet rules: bloggers, commenters, readers, all. Just gotta abide by range regs.

  35. As much as I would love to meet some of the people in the Mid-West I really think doing it in conjunction with the Gun Blogger Rendezvous or the NRA convention is the better way to go.

    I suspect my travel and vacation budget is as large or larger than most people and there are so many things that I want to do that I can’t do them all. Combining events will alleviate that problem some. Adding still another event aggravates the problem.

    Of course it would help if GBR were to move around the country. But that has it’s own issues.

    Regardless, if it looks like this event might become a reality I will be glad to give, and modify as needed (within limits), the software I use for running Boomershoot.

  36. Yeah, because if we combine it with an event in Lost Wages or Idaho or Reno, that’ll be two gun blogger events I can’t attend at once instead of only one. 😉

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