What do you do when the temperature is over 105 degrees for 10 days straight? Of course, you head to the coast. And if you time it just right, you’ll have some of the best shooting in California. Nestled in the foothills, just a few miles from the Central Coast, sits San Luis Obispo Sportsman’s Club, a refuge for many California shooters in the summer. It’s not uncommon for the Central Valley to be more than 100 degrees for days on end, but San Luis Obispo Sportsman’s Club will be 65 to 75 degrees all day long. It’s perfect weather for shooting.
In addition to the many other shooting sports that San Luis Obispo Sportsman’s Club hosts, it is home to The Coastal Classic, one of California’s best USPSA Level 2 matches. July 2024 marked its second consecutive year and it’s a match you don’t want to miss. With the main match on Saturday and Sunday, and the option to shoot all day Friday, it’s hard to miss, especially when the rest of the state is on fire (even if it’s a dry heat).
If the balmy 75 degrees with a slight coastal breeze isn’t enough to get you there, the 10 challenging stages surely will. Every stage was designed to test your accuracy and ability. Staff adhered to the schedule of 45 minutes stages, and there was plenty of time after you shot for the day to enjoy what the central California coast has to offer.
When Maddux Le was asked about the range, he answered, “It’s a beautiful range. There’s the beach, restaurants and lots of good places to go besides the match. We’re done by noon and there’s still a lot to do. Having amenities close is important.”
From wine tasting to fresh seafood and quaint shops, the coast has what you need to unwind after shooting.
Without the distraction of bad weather, it’s easier to stay focused on shooting. To achieve high shooter overall, Le had to ensure every shot was exactly as he wanted. “There were some hard shots. They had 25-yard to 30-yard swingers and poppers.”
Not only were there tough shots that made you respect targets, it was nice to see them take advantage of the large bays for distance and angles. Shooting poppers at 35 yards will test your skill.
“Sometimes it’s hard for ranges to get distance,” he said. “A lot of times they’re cramped for space, but [San Luis Obispo Sportsman’s Club] has large bays. It was fun!”
Le’s favorite stage was Stage 9, Hail Mary. It was a 29-round, 145-point stage designed by Tiger Nguyen. “It was a good mix of close targets and far poppers, paper and [the] swinger.”
Starting with five- to seven-yard targets and options to shoot 15 yards or wait until closer (with a few extra steps), the stage naturally flowed left to right, but the target presentations allowed for a variety of shooting options. Do you take the activator as soon as you see it, or wait until the last position and shoot it with the swinger? It’s enjoyable to have options for stage planning.
Even the medium courses had options. Stage 2, Easily Forgettable, was a 28-round stage, but with an entirely different feel. With plenty of close targets (five to 10 yards) and a few at 15 yards, it gave the ability to move through positions and never stop shooting. With any start position in the shooting area, it wasn’t just which direction should the shooter choose to go. Several targets presented themselves in multiple positions. Being able to shoot through positions was a great way to test even the most advanced shooters.
Stage 5, Race to the Bottom, was a quick 27-round retreating stage. With hidden partial targets, you had to time your steps just right to be in the correct position. It was easy to overstep some targets, but if you got your footwork down, they presented themselves quite well. While nothing crazy was in the match, the simple 16-round Stage 7 did have a table (barrel) start. Most of the shooters’ times were between seven and 10 seconds. It’s always fun to have at least one stage to just go fast and hopefully not stink.
The match was full of difficult and fun stages, but not so difficult that a newer shooter was overwhelmed. This was Susie Hancock’s first sanctioned match, and even though she chose to shoot all day Friday, she was up for the challenge to shoot all 10 stages.
“I felt prepared going in because I was able to see the stages in the matchbook. There was a lot of information that helped,” she said.
Even if the match book can’t show exact angles of shots, it does help to obtain a visual for start positions and direction.
Hancock’s favorite stage was Stage 1, Keep it Tight. “There was a lot of movement on this stage and it was fun to shoot quickly. It had a good mix of steel and paper targets too.”
On her squad, there was discussion on which target to attack first. Even with a straightforward stage, there were still options. Despite the discussion on what to shoot first, she had her stage plan and stuck with it.
A common comment throughout the match was how well it was run.
Le added, “The staff did a great job. They’re efficient. California shooters do a great job of resetting stages, [the Range Officers] would tell us, ‘This is what we reset. This is what you reset.’”
It was clear from the beginning what was required of shooters and expectations we had of staff. All details were addressed to maximize efficiency and keep the match flowing as it should. From the timing of Stages 6 and 7 in a shared bay, to resetting the 32-round field courses, Hancock noticed, “everything and everybody was in place. It just ran smooth.”
Since this is the Coastal Classic’s second year, they learned from the first. They made a good match even better.
“Stage designs matured over the year and provided more challenging presentations to all shooters,” observed Greg Vaugn.
With a match director willing to see where things can be improved, I expect another outstanding match next year.
Vaughn has traveled the country shooting and working USPSA matches. He’s no stranger to the time and effort that goes into a big match. Even those seasoned to USPSA can get burnout, but Vaughn was encouraged “why” he volunteers.
“The experience at the Coastal Classic reminded me: it’s about the shooters. Our goal is to maximize shooter experience,” he said. Indeed, this was the overarching attitude of staff.
Even with a slight tablet issue on Stage 8 during the Friday shoot, staff stepped up to the challenge. While a reshoot could be negative and set a sour tone for the match, the staff didn’t skip a beat. Range Officers from other stages came over to help reset the stage between shooters. It was an average of 1.38 seconds to shoot, score and reset with more than 25 staff members helping. They were even done before the scheduled time.
Beyond the slight hiccup Friday, the Saturday and Sunday main match went according to plan. Vaughn noticed of the main match, “Everybody was in a good mood.”
The shooters had a lot of fun, and with 14 people on a squad, there wasn’t a lot of waiting. In fact, the match was done 45 minutes ahead of schedule on each day. No bottlenecks, no fussing—just some good shooting.
If you want to get out of the heat and enjoy a match on the central California Coast, the Coastal Classic is definitely the match to attend. With great people on your squad, staff that is a joy to be around, beautiful weather, a fantastic range and so many options for after-match activities, this match will fill up quickly. Keep an eye out next year to sign up early—bring your family and have a great weekend. I’ll see you on the range.
Article from the September/October 2024 issue of USPSA’s magazine.
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