In the middle of a ho-hum day, it’s a joy to get a text from Colleen when she’s out shopping.The day is looking up.
[ This content originated at Musings Over a Pint ]

I took on Monday off so Colleen and I could have “date day” doing fun stuff. We started our date by enjoying some shooting at Blue Ridge Arsenal – Winding Brook. Blue Ridge Arsenal is a new range in Ashland. It’s less than an hour from our home and an easy drive down I-95. We’d never been and were looking forward to checking it out.

Upon arrival it took just a few minutes to do the one-time review of the range rules at an electronic kiosk. After that we paid our fee at the counter and got to our lanes with no delay. The Range Officer gave us a quick tutorial on operating the target carriers and a few other directions. He watched us for a few minutes and then left us alone to shoot. The Range Officers we saw were attentive but not hovering.

Shooting out to 25 yards is available at Blue Ridge. I started out shooting at 7 yards, then moved the target out to 10 yards. I also made use of the turning target feature to add some challenge. Shooting from low ready, I set the target to be exposed for 2.5 seconds and varied the shots from 1 – 3 each cycle. At first I was slow acquiring the sights when bringing the gun up. Eventually I was getting the third shot in consistently — and getting accurate hits. In the future, I’ll vary the distance and timing to see what I can do. Drawing from the holster is permitted at Blue Ridge Arsenal after approval by one of the Chief Range Officers. There was no one on duty to do that while we were there but I’ll definitely seek that approval on a future visit.

For my last few mags I set the target at 15 yards. Even though I can’t see the target clearly at the distance, I was happy with the results. I jerked a couple shots, as often happens when I try to slow down too much and let my finger “think.”

It was fun shooting with Colleen. We each had our own lane, but the glass dividers allowed us to see each other. We frequently stopped to compare targets and share what we had been doing. It’s always a thrill for me to see how well she shoots too.

I recently learned that Blue Ridge Arsenal holds a monthly weeknight IDPA match. Now that I’ve visited the range, I’ll try to fit that into my schedule on occasion too. And I’m pretty sure Colleen and I will be back again for more range time soon. Our local indoor range is much more conveniently located, but shooting at the turning targets in a climate controlled range was much more enjoyable than shooting static targets in the cold.

After shooting, we continued our date by visiting a couple local breweries. That will be a subject of another post.

On Saturday, my friend Stuart and I ventured across the Potomac River into the People’s Republic of Maryland to shoot the Chesapeake Cup Tier 2 IDPA match at Sanner’s Lake Sportsman’s Club. The match was a BUG and CCP specialty match, so I shot my SIG P239 in the CCP (Compact Carry Pistol) division. The match was a lot of fun, with interesting and challenging stages.

As I went through my photos from the match, thinking about which stages to highlight, I realized that each of the stages had some unique or interesting element about it. I’ll mention those points briefly, and hopefully not make this post overly long. Photos of all the stages from the match are posted on Flickr.

All the original squads were divided up even further the morning of the match, so we shot with just six folks in a squad and the match moved quickly. Thank you to all the volunteers who showed up to run us through the stages efficiently.

Our squad started on Stage 4, which saw us “handcuffed” to a table. Two target groups were placed on either side. The rope cuffs restricted our movement such that most folks had to shoot the targets one handed. I had my one and only hit an non-threat of the match on this stage.

The scenario for the next stage started us holding a couple of water bottles before engaging some distant targets in a “car.” Next we moved to a window where more targets were found. The final target on this stage required a significant lean out from the fault line to hit, and the hard cover at the edge of the port took quite a beating.

Stage 6 started with the loaded gun in a box. There were three targets to be engaged while seated. After leaving our seat there where three more targets to be shot from two other positions.

The next stage had a moving target of a sort I had not seen previously. At the start, the shooter flipped a light switch which activated a pneumatically operated up and down non-threat blocking the shot on a scoring target. The non-threat popped up immediately at the start, too fast for most folks to draw and shoot. So we first moved left to engage three paper targets and a steel popper on the left, then hit then center target as we moved right for the final targets. The challenge was that the moving non-threat dropped slowly down, then after a few seconds, popped up FAST. You had to be prepared to shoot as soon as it dropped, else you risked having it jump up as you shot. Time it wrong and you waited for the delay before it dropped to expose the target again. This was a very fun stage to shoot.

Next we moved to a stage with a line of six targets, each requiring three hits, at least one of which must be a head shot. Adding to the challenge was the placement of non-threats lined up behind the targets. You had to shoot the targets from just the right angle to avoid a shoot through to the penalty targets.

Moving on, we got to the “selfie stick” stage. The scenario was that we were millennials who couldn’t put down the selfie stick, even if we were being shot at. We had to carry the selfie stick throughout the stage, which meant shooting it all one-handed. I shot this one just one point down but did have a bit of a struggle reloading while holding the stick. I managed to trap the tip of my pinky finger in the mag well when inserting the magazine. It wasn’t until a few stages later that it turned purple and started thumping. I’ll need to practice inserting the magazine while holding another object in the same hand — before I shoot an upcoming match requiring the use of a flashlight.

The next stage is another I found especially fun. It was also the stage on which I had my best finish — 5th place overall. The loaded gun and our spare magazines were left on a table. Our hand was on a bag, the pulling of which activated a swinging pair of a non-threat and a threat target. The two moved independently, exposing the target for varying bits of time. The swinger also settled quickly so you had to shoot it before the target was hidden again. First there were two targets to be engaged through a low port. So, shoot through the low port, quickly move to the swinger, then run back to the other side to finish, grabbing the reload off the table on the way.

The “standards” stage for the match consisted simply of three targets placed behind two non-threats, and was shot in two strings. The first string was strong hand only, the second was done weak hand. Each string required two body shots on each target first, followed up by a head shot to each. The targets were placed fairly close. Alas, I jerked two of the heads shots, in addition to getting a few -1 hits. Time to practice more one-handed shooting.

The final stage had us shooting a mix of paper and steel while navigating the course of fire that was an L-shaped hallway. Each paper target required three hits each. Some of the targets were exposed through a very narrow opening or a high port.

Overall, I was generally pleased with how I shot. I hit only one non-threat. I missed a number of head shots, especially when I was shooting one-handed. Other than those misses, most of my lost points were -1’s. A finish of 15th out of 32 in my division 34th out of 91 shooters.

Included in our match fee was a tasty lunch served by Southern Bobby-Q Catering. We had our choice of Pulled Pork, Italian Sausage, Steak and Cheese or Hot Dogs. My Italian Sausage sub with peppers and onions was delicious and hit the spot before the final stages of the match.

The Chesapeake Cup was a fun event full of stages to which entertained and challenged us. Shooting the compact gun was both fun and frustrating at times. However, the match also confirmed to me that I can be confident shooting and carrying it. Nonetheless I’m looking forward to some range time with a full-size gun next week.

Today, February 10, is the anniversary of the martyrdom of Saint José Sánchez del Río. On this date in 1928, this 14 year old boy was killed by Mexican troops for refusing to renounce his Catholic faith during the Cristero War. The story of this period of Catholic persecution led by Mexican President Calles was told in the movie “For Greater Glory.” The young martyr was beatified by Pope Benedict XVI on November 20, 2005, and later canonized by Pope Francis on October 16 of last year.

The Saint’s story is one with which few American Catholics are familiar. That is a tragedy in its own right. Though they might not know the Saint’s story, many Americans are no doubt familiar with his face. The picture, shown below, of the young boy with Cristeros fighters is one that is often seen hanging in Mexican restaurants, among other old photos. Probably not too many diners know that a Saint and fighter for religious freedom is looking down at them while they eat.

After José was captured by government forces fighting the Cristero, he was forced to witness the torture and execution of fellow Catholic countrymen, yet he never wavered in his faithful resolve. He was himself was tortured and urged to shout “Death to Christ the King” with the promise his suffering would be over. On the day of his torturous execution, the soldiers cut the soles of his feet and he was made to walk barefooted to the grave they had dug for him. He was repeatedly stabbed with bayonets as he made his way to the place of his martyrdom.

Even after he had been shot he continued to cry out “Viva Cristo Rey!” (“Long live Christ the King!”) The commander of the soldiers was so furious that he was able to resist the government barbarism, he finally shot the boy in the head. As he died he is said to have drawn a cross on the ground with his own blood as a final act of defiance.

During the Cristeros War many Catholics were killed by the Mexican government for their faith. This tragic part of recent history is pointedly ignored by the history books in both the United States and Mexico. It is a story that needs to be told and learned by all free people.

Saint José Sánchez del Río is truly a Saint for our times. His faithfulness in the face of torture and death should be a model for all of us. I pray we can be as strong when our own persecution comes.

Another lunch break spent at the indoor range.

I originally figured I was going to have a full week of eating lunch over my laptop. However, I did toss my range gear into the car before I left home in the morning, just in case. Fortuitously, a scheduled conference call was cancelled so I managed to get out of the office.

The car thermometer showed 37 degrees outside when I pulled into the range parking lot, and it was close to that inside. There’s something odd about shooting indoors in a coat and hat. Shooting in cold weather doesn’t bother me — when I’m actually outdoors! There were only a couple other shooters so it was a little more relaxing time than last week.

Again I worked with the SIG P239. This trip I mostly shot from 10-15 yards, with some closer one-handed shooting thrown in. After a few weeks of dry fire and a couple range trips, I’m feeling reacquainted with the compact gun. We’ll see soon how well that translates to competition.

With the outdoor range operating under short hours and increasingly restrictive shooting rules, I’m relying on dry fire practice these days more than anything else. Practice drawing from the holster and doing reloading drills is pretty simple with dry fire, and I do try to simulate a bit of movement as well. However, my live fire practice is restricted to standing in the range booth and shooting, at best, from low ready. At least quick follow up shots are within the range rules.

The match season is getting ready to ramp up again, and soon I’ll have the option of shooting most weekends. Those matches may well be about the only shooting on the move I get to do for a while.

The first three pro-freedom bills of this year’s session are headed to the governor’s desk. From the VCDL update:Lobby Day continues to pay off.  All the gun-control bills are now dead for this year.The following three pro-rights bills have passed…