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Shooting USA – Single Stack Nationals
It’s classic pistol competition as Col. Jeff Cooper first created the combat sport. 400 USPSA members compete in Barry, Illinois with single-stack 1911’s, in the biggest championship competition of the year. Plus the history of John Browning’s 1911 that is clearly of History’s most famous Guns. And the little known museum in Alabama with the 8,000 weapons collected by one man who had been an American spy in World War Two.
USPSA Single Stack Nationals
 The 1911 Government Model is the original firearm of the International Practical Shooting Confederation (IPSC) and the United States Practical Shooting Association (USPSA). Though the sport has evolved over the years, with modified race guns and new divisions, competing with the 1911 is still fast and fun, especially at the Single Stack Nationals.
“If we go back into IPSC with Cooper and the guys who started it, this is what they were using. This is what they used then, and it’s now the largest USPSA match,” says 1911 Society Founder, Richard Heinie. “People like it, everybody can use the gun. Everybody can handle the gun.”
 It is the USPSA’s largest event with more than 400 competitors being challenged through 14 courses of fire at PASA Park in Barry, Illinois. Top competitors shoot traditional 1911s chambered in .45 ACP, .40S&W or 10 millimeter; which are considered major power factor. However, most of the ladies typically shoot minor power factor, with 1911s chambered in 9mm or .38 Super. The smaller caliber guns have two more rounds in the magazine, but are scored more critically.
“What I really like about shooting nine millimeter especially at this match is the fact that I get extra rounds,” says Smith & Wesson Team Captain Julie Golob, who’s shooting a Performance Center 1911 in 9mm. “So, even though I have to aim harder, sometimes having those two extra bullets to play with is a very, very good thing.”
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History’s Guns - 1911 Government Model
Firearms enthusiasts will tell you we still haven’t improved on John Browning’s 1911. The simple, single-action, recoil-operated, semi-auto pistol shipped out with America’s Doughboys fighting in World War One, and is still in limited service in the War on Terror today.
“The Colt 1911 Government Model is one of the most iconic firearms in history. It’s a superb, superb weapon,” says Firearms Historian Garry James. “John Browning came up with as close to a perfect design as he could.”
Berman Museum
 American Intelligence Officer, Colonel Farley Berman left behind a treasure before his death. Over the span of his lifetime, Berman collected nearly 8,000 firearms and artifacts – from an ancient repeating crossbow, to a diamond-encrusted Royal Persian Scimitar, to Hitler’s silver, to a rocket gun. Now his collection is housed in Berman’s hometown, Anniston, Alabama at the Berman Museum.
 “His knowledge of weapons, weapon systems, the mechanisms, how they work, where they fit in to the whole scheme of things was just phenomenal,” said Berman Museum Curator David Ford. “He loved entertaining people. He loved collecting. He loved the secrecy and of all of it. There was a mysterious air about him.”
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Bushnell Long Distance Range System
 Bushnell is out with the new Long Distance Range System to enhance your precision rifle game, or to help you on your next hunt. It consists of the Elite Tactical One-Mile Laser Range Finder with ConX, which laser measures target distance and then communicates with the Kestrel Sportsman, that has Bluetooth connectivity, to sync to a ballistics app on your smartphone. The system calculates distance, wind correction, and elevation for first shot accuracy.
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Pro Tip: Daryl Holland – Clearing a Room
 Daryl Holland is a world-renowned firearms instructor with more than 20 years of active duty experience, 17 of which were spent in Special Operations. Now he is a full time trainer, and part of the Colt Combat Unit. He helped with the design of the Colt Combat Unit Rail Gun. This time, he’s showing us how to safely clear a room.
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Get the DVD!!
 NRA Membership Offer: Jim Pays $10 when you join the NRA through the Shooting USA website.
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