I went to my first match last night with my G19. I have never done a match, or competition with any gun before. Just range time, outdoor shooting, and dry-fire training.
We ran a 31-shot course, with a maximum of 10 rounds per magazine. It was a TON of fun. One (first) window had 3 paper targets, the next two windows had 2 paper targets and 3 plates each, the forth window had a Texas star (which kicked my butt) and the last window was a hostage/headshot set up and 2 large popper. It was quite a bit more fun than I was going to give it credit for. Adding the stress of speed/accuracy brings the intensity up a lot.
The group of guys I went out with at the Black Diamond Gun Club in Black Diamond, WA were a lot of fun, very welcoming, and entertaining for sure!
I shot well (a personal goal of mine was to practice my mechanics and checks rather than speed since I have never shot at speed in this way). I was able to apply a lot of my dry fire practice and range findings to get some very respectable times, and solid hits on target, not many misses other than that damn Star.
I would recommend you go out and try! It was by far one of the least intimidating things I have just showed up to try. Everyone was nice, helpful, and curious on what you/others are using.
I sand bagged myself for a long time, making excuses for not going, like lack of mag carriers, or not the correct holster… I was dumb, I should have gone sooner, don’t wait, take what you have and see if you can actually employ your gear! I was happy to find out I can keep things moving even grabbing mags from pockets and the like. Stay safe!