Road To The Nationals: Ask The Champs

We are continuing our celebration of Women of USPSA’s one year anniversary with our Road to the Handgun Nationals coverage.  For our second and final post of the series, we asked a few questions of the mighty women who won our Area and National Championships in 2010.  We were very entertained with so many of their responses that we wanted to share them with all you. Their answers are randomly arranged, as it was after 8:00 p.m. when this was compiled!  Enjoy!

ASK THE CHAMPS*

Women of USPSA: What’s your favorite meal before a major match?
Rhonda – Medium rare ribeye with a baked sweet potato and a salad w/blue cheese dressing.  And an ice cold beer.  : )
Jennifer – Waffles, fruit, nuts and apple juice.
Sharon – I like to eat protein, and coffee for a little kick.
Carrie – Cereal and a bagel with peanut butter.
Athena – Steak (nicely marbled rib-eye, if possible),  lots of veggies and avocado =)
Maggie – A sausage McMuffin from McDonald’s.  I’m not really a breakfast person, so we just grab something quick on the way to the range.
Megan– I don’t really have a favorite, but we often wind up at a steakhouse…steak is always good!
Carina – Seeing as how no match I’ve attended this year has been under 100 degrees, I’d have to say,“Something salty!”  I have no real favorite meal per se.  Generally for dinner the night before, I eat some sort of meat flavored food, veggies, and drink lots of water.  The last meal before a match is breakfast and I’m not a breakfast person, especially if the day starts early.  I will almost always pack my mini blender, a can of coconut milk, and a container of protein powder.  I add what ever fresh fruit I can find, make it into a shake, and then I’m ready for the range.
Rebecca – Nothing favorite in particular, but I always try to eat something light and healthy and make sure I’m well hydrated.
Debbie – My favorite breakfast before the match would be peanut butter on an english muffin.  If you meant dinner, anything from Outback or Italian!
Julie – My rule when I travel is that I have to eat something that is green or swims.  If I am lucky, I have both!

Women of USPSA: Do you have a good luck charm you take to the range with you?
Maggie – Yes!  My boyfriend, Mike!  He knows everything about everything about everything when it comes to shooting, helps me get ready, always has the best advice, and is super supportive.
Carrie – Not really … surprisingly.
Sharon – I won a Smith & Wesson hat that I have worn for every match.
Rhonda – I am in serious need of a new good luck charm – until I find a new one, I can’t help but keep wearing a really distressed-looking (PC for “disgusting”), used-to-be-black hat that just fits me perfectly!
Julie – I wear a locket with a picture of my husband and daughter.
Athena – No good luck charm.
Megan – It’s not really a good luck charm, but I do like to wear my “phiten” Hello Kitty necklace.
Jennifer – My husband!
Debbie – Used to have a good luck charm, now I figure the best thing to have is AMMO!
Rebecca – My boyfriend is always somewhere close by on the range.  : )
Carina – Does my gun count as a good luck charm?

Women of USPSA: What do you like most about competing?
Sharon – The shooting is my favorite part, but I enjoy spending time with all the other shooters.  I have never in my life met another group of people that encourage you in one breath, and then make fun of you in the next!
Jennifer – Competing forces me to keep getting better – besides, it’s just fun!
Rhonda – Even though we are all competing against each other, I just love the camaraderie that I find on the range – even your biggest “rival” will bend over backwards to help you!  Other than that, I get a rush from competing and doing well that I can’t find anywhere else.
Maggie – The feeling of accomplishment I get when things go right.
Carina – I like the mental stillness that happens when the buzzer goes off.  My conscious mind is only observing, along for the ride if you will.  It’s like meditation – except louder, and with firearms.
Athena – What I love most about competing is the thrill of knowing you are shooting against people within similar skill levels as yourself and that you have to be at the top of your game to win it. The rush is incomparable to anything.
Megan – I like the people and the sense of accomplishment you get from successfully shooting a stage – or better yet, the whole match!  It is pretty cool to look back and see the improvements that have been made over the years.
Debbie – The best part about competing, besides the socializing, is that feeling when everything comes together on a run and it feels effortless!
Julie – I love the thrill of facing a challenge and giving 100%.  Tackling a stage and performing my best is such a rush!
Rebecca – I like that I can learn something new at every match about my shooting abilities.  I also always enjoy the camaraderie.
Carrie – Feeling good about running a stage smoothly and the way I wanted, and yet still knowing I could have done better.

Women of USPSA:  Other than the obvious shooting gear, what’s the one thing you make sure you have in your shooting bag when you go to a major match?
Rebecca – I try to stuff my bag full of positive energy before every match! : )
Julie – Band-aids!  Oh, and I always try to have a camera of some sort with me.
Debbie – Pro Grip!
Jennifer – Wet wipes and kleenex.
Sharon – Protein and water.  I have crashed at a couple matches.  Keeping the blood sugar level helps for the best match.
Carrie – A hand towel….usually “borrowed” from the hotel.
Rhonda – Sugar free gum!
Carina – Fitted spare parts…almost everything else another shooter would be happy to loan you.
Athena – Food and water and pro-grip (not mixed together, of course).
Megan – My i-pod….I never go to a major match without it. It keeps me sane. : )
Maggie – Sunscreen and chapstick!  It’s usually hot and dry at the range.  Oops…that was two…

Women of USPSA: Do you have a pre-stage ritual that you go through?
Sharon – I close my eyes, and visualize me shooting the whole stage.  Feet placement and everything. Last thing I think is all A’s or all 0′s, and let my body take over what I have programed it to do.
Carina – After my last walk thru, I visualize the stage again.  I’ll always take a deep breath and consciously relax.
Megan – I always go through the stage in my head, making sure I know where the targets are. If I mess it up while doing it in my head, I do it again until I get it right.
Julie – I check all my mags to makes sure they are loaded.  When I walk through the stage I pay close attention to tough shots or position work.  I never run through the stage at full speed. For me, my walk through is my chance to program myself.   I commit to the plan then I go through it one or two times in my head before I load and make ready.
Debbie – I do my mental run through including plan A and B … Mentally I say “front sight, left hand –  front sight, left hand”.
Carrie – When I get to the line I just like to load up and go.  I’ll walk through the stage in my head as the shooter before me goes.
Jennifer – My husband and I always tell the one who is up to shoot “run fast, shoot well, don’t miss”.
Maggie – I like to walk off by myself when I’m the on-deck shooter, collect my thoughts and focus.
Rebecca – I walk through and evaluate each stage and look for any areas in the stage that I may need to pay special attention to.  I always go through my plan in my head one more time just before “shooter ready”.
Rhonda – Depending on the complexity, I’ll run through the stage in my head several times, even counting steps and working on foot placement as I’m going
downrange to tape/reset – then I just try to relax.
Athena – I walk through the stage in my head one last time. Dot on, holster unlocked.  About 10x (Can you say OCD?)

Women of USPSA: What are you thinking when the RO says “shooter ready?”?
Carina – I’m not thinking at that point…or at least I shouldn’t be.  As a friend of mine says, “If I’m thinking, I’m stinking!”  I do my best when auto-pilot is engaged.
Maggie – I try to clear my mind of all the nervous and negative energy and think of something positive before the buzzer goes off.
Sharon – “Be like Julie”.
Rebecca – I concentrate on breathing.
Carrie –  “Front sight, front sight”
Jennifer – “Please don’t let me hit the no-shoot”.
Rhonda – Breathe, drop shoulders, relax…
Julie – I clear everything out of my mind and focus on listening to the first tone of the start signal.
Athena – ”Just focus on the dot”.
Megan – Relax, just shoot my game plan – I always try to remind myself that.
Debbie – ”I wonder if there’s Pro Grip on my butt?”  Just kidding, I’m thinking “left hand”.

Women of USPSA: Are you competing at this year’s handgun nationals? If so, what division(s)?
Megan – Open
Rebecca – Open
Athena – Open
Maggie – Open & Limited
Debbie – Limited
Carina – Limited
Julie – Revolver

Women of USPSA: If you are attending, what are your expectations for this year’s match?
Maggie – I expect to be challenged!  I go to every match to compete against myself.  My goal is always to shoot to my fullest potential and find areas for improvement.
Rebecca – Just to shoot to the best of my ability.
Megan– I expect to remain focused, execute the stages as I planned, and have fun. If I am able to do this, then I have been successful!
Athena – Stars aligning, lots of A’s, executing planned choreography! In a nutshell, I know that if I make very few errors, I know I can finish decently overall.

Women of USPSA: If attending, what are you most looking forward to at Nationals?
Julie – I love seeing friends, meeting new people and the intensity of competition that the USPSA Nationals always brings.  Most of all though, I am really excited to tackle a new division and doing LOTS of reloads!
Debbie – I am most looking forward to shooting my new gun under my new sponsorship!!  Cameron’s Custom Guns/STI !!
Carina – I’m looking forward to catching up with all the other lady shooters.  We always have big fun together.  Also, my husband will fly out at the end of the match and we’ll be celebrating our 12th anniversary in Vegas.  Then I’ll be aiming to misbehave!

In closing our Second Annual Edition of Road to the Nationals coverage, we want to thank our fellow / sister Women of USPSA and friends for their support.  We are extremely pleased with what we’ve been able to accomplish in the last 12 months and  are also very grateful for the assistance that we have received from contributors, both male and female.  We couldn’t honor the Women of USPSA without your help!

The USPSA back-to-back Handgun Nationals begin in less than a week. We know this is an extremely busy time of the year, so we want to especially thank the women who were able to respond to our “Road to the Nationals” questionnaire.  Best of luck to our current Area and National Champions, as well as to ALL other shooters headed to Vegas next week!  DVC!

*Ask The Champs Contributors:   Sharon Burwell, Carrie Carlson, Megan Francisco, Julie Golob, Rebecca Jones, Debbie Keehart, Athena Lee, Jennifer Messerschmidt, Carina Randolph, Maggie Reese and Rhonda Stonacker