Berger.Fan222
Member
Steel challenge is a great sport and has really expanded the pistol abilities of my buddies and I. Take care to compare your scores with other newbies and with your most recent scores, so you don't lose heart or be tempted into the gamesmanship demonstrated by most of the guys with the best scores. Be content with steady improvement over time.
Rather than take the view that there is one "best" pistol discipline, I think a broad base of pistol skills is best served by participating in a number of pistol disciplines over time. The person who can finish in the top third of their local steel challenge, USPSA, IDPA, action pistol, and Bullseye is probably a more well rounded and better pistol shot than those who can win one or two disciplines outright but who are lost in the others. Even moreso if you can do it with the pistol you carry every day, keep for home defense, or take hunting regularly.
My buddies and I are balancing our emphasis on steel challenge this year with a couple action pistol events and a couple Bullseye events, as well as plenty of private practice, continued development in the NRA Marksmanship Qualification programs, and occasional "home brew" shooting events just between us. I expect we'll all be much better pistol users and competitors on 1/1/2018 than we were on 1/1/2017, even though we've all been shooting for years and were no slouches at the beginning of the year. Next year? Who knows? If we find a friendly and welcoming and well organized group in another discipline, we're likely to hang out for a while and see where it takes us.
