How I Got to USPSA B Class in 8 Months | What Actually Worked

Estimated reading time: 7 minutes

I went from my first USPSA match to B class in about eight months. I didn’t do anything crazy, but I did do a few things consistently. If you’re thinking about competing or you’re stuck in C or D class, here’s what actually helped me.

A Little Background First

Sometime last year I was trying to get better at shooting, which sent me down a rabbit hole of Ben Stoeger and Joel Park content. That led me into USPSA competition. Around June, I was doing dry fire and following their books. I was calling it my midlife shooting crisis. I wanted to get better at shooting, but I had to define what “better” even meant.

Once I started training with competition in mind, I realized I should go validate my skills at a match and see what happened. I wanted a way to test my training under pressure. Not just my own pressure with a timer on the range, but real match pressure.

The competition side was completely new to me. I’ve been shooting most of my life, and after launching USA Carry in 2007 I did some structured training, mostly defensive and concealed carry classes. No competition background at all.

Here’s what I learned along the way.

Lesson 1: Just Start Competing

Stop overthinking it. You don’t need to be ready. Matches expose your weaknesses fast. You’ll probably learn more about what you need to work on in one match than in multiple range sessions.

Before my first match I did take a competition class from Grandmaster Joon Kim. It focused heavily on movement, which was something I hadn’t been thinking about much. It opened my eyes to a whole other aspect of the sport. I was definitely in over my head, but I took a lot away from it.

The bigger point is this: get to a match. It’s the fastest way to understand what actually needs work.

Lesson 2: Dry Fire Is Everything

I’m not going to tell you I dry fired every single day for 30 minutes since June, because that didn’t happen. But I was consistent. I was dry firing four to five days a week, getting in anywhere from 10 to 45 minutes per session.

The drills I did most consistently were pretty boring. I used a shot timer to work on my grip from the holster, not even drawing, just getting a solid grip over and over. A lot of trigger control at speed, one shot, trying not to disturb the sights. I worked on grip pressure and transitions.

Most of my improvement didn’t come from the live fire range. It came from putting in the time at home for free. No ammo, no range fees. Dry fire is where you hone your skills. Live fire is where you validate them.

Lesson 3: Remove Friction

If it’s hard to start, you’re just not going to do it.

I keep dry fire targets set up around my office and living room on stands and walls so I can move them easily. My magazines are already loaded with SnapPoint USA dummy rounds. These are painted, true-weight dummy rounds that weight the gun down the same as live ammo. I also run a mag block so the slide doesn’t lock back during dry fire.

Everything is already set up and ready to go when I am. If it takes you 30 minutes to set up for a 15-minute dry fire session, you’re not going to do it. Keep the setup simple.

More from USA Carry:

• Making Competition Part of Your Defensive Training
• Live, Practice, and Compete from Concealment
• What I Learned From a USPSA Grand Master With Zero Match Experience
• How a USPSA Grand Master Enters Positions vs. First-Timer (Me)
• Does Competition Shooting Have Practical Applications?

Lesson 4: Fundamentals Over Speed

I didn’t have a single big moment where everything clicked. It was gradual improvement from dry fire at home, live fire at the range, and then putting it to the test at matches.

At my most recent match I shot 53 alphas, 10 Charlies, 4 deltas, and 2 mikes. Looking at that, I left knowing I need to clean up my hits. That comes down to fundamentals, not just going faster. You can’t outshoot your fundamentals.

Lesson 5: Tools vs. Simplicity

I’m not knocking any of the dry fire tools out there. I have most of them. I’ve used the Mantis X, Laser Academy, dry fire mags, and the ACE XR VR system. They all have their place.

But these past few months I’ve been defaulting to simplicity. I train with my actual competition gun or my carry gun. My gun in my hands, dummy rounds in the magazine, targets on the walls. That’s it. I feel like it’s given me a better feel for the gun than anything else.

I still use the ACE VR system for stage planning. I can set up a run one way, see my time, run it differently, and compare. That kind of decision-making should carry over to real stages. But for the fundamentals side of things, simple wins.

The best setup is the one you’re actually going to use. Find what works for you and stick with it.

Lesson 6: Competition Shooting Helps With Defensive Shooting

I don’t buy the argument that competition is going to get you killed in the streets. Going down this rabbit hole hasn’t changed my mind about carrying or what I carry. But it has improved my shooting across the board. My grip, transitions, and target confirmation have all gotten better, and that carries over to my concealed carry gun.

I actually compete using a concealment appendix holster from Carey Concealment, since I carry concealed and own USA Carry. I feel like I’m blending the two worlds. I’m working on draws from concealment in competition, which is how I carry anyway. The skills transfer. They always have.

Lesson 7: Nobody Cares About Your Skill Level

I wasn’t too anxious going into my first match, which surprised me. But I understand the anxiety of putting your skills in front of other people. The truth is, nobody cares.

Everyone I’ve met at matches has been supportive and helpful. I’ve been squadded with grandmasters and masters and they’ve all been great. Nobody cares if you’re unclassified, C class, or D class. Just be safe. That’s it.

If you’re not competing because you’re worried about what people will think, just show up. Those jitters will go away after the first stage or two, and you’re going to have a blast.

How the B Class Happened

I didn’t fully understand the classification system at first. I thought I needed eight classifiers to get classified. What I didn’t know is that USPSA classifies you after your first four. So most of last year I was running as unclassified when I was technically already a C class.

About a month ago I signed up for a five-stage all-classifier match and started looking at my numbers. I was less than one percent away from B class going in. I tried to tell myself not to think about it. Easier said than done.

I ran the match, threw some deltas, had a couple of mikes, and left not feeling great about it. Went to lunch with the guys from my squad and figured maybe it didn’t happen. No big deal.

USPSA stats update Tuesday night. But I couldn’t wait that long. Monday morning I built my own spreadsheet and did the math because apparently Practice Score has a bug in its percentage calculations. I did the math myself and confirmed it. I made B class.

Does it mean anything? Personally, yes. It validates that the training is working and I’m making progress. But B class is not a finish line. I’ve got the bug. I want to get to A class, then master, maybe one day grandmaster. We’ll see.

I’m going to keep doing the same things: dry fire, fundamentals, live fire validation, and matches when I can. I’ve got another training session coming up with Joon Kim and I’m not going to pass that up. How often do you get to train with a grandmaster?

The Bottom Line

If you’re thinking about competing, just go do it. Nobody cares about your skill level. You’ll have fun, you’ll get hooked, and you’ll meet a lot of good people.

If you’re stuck in C or D class, dry fire consistently. Pick up Baseline Dry Fire by Ben Stoeger and Joel Park, follow their plans, and work on fundamentals. Keep it simple.

I’m 47 years old and I got to B class in about eight months. It’s not that complicated. Put in the work and the results will follow.