While this topic is more of a club and competitor culture topic, it often gets brought up in seminars and at matches and occasionally to the rules email. There are a lot of clubs out there that are struggling to find help when it comes to running matches. Which is why I am asking: are you a consumer of matches, or do you help produce matches?
The reality of the situation is that USPSA matches would not exist without our dedicated volunteers. While way more members enjoy shooting matches than hosting them, the folks who coordinate with the range, setup the match registration, build the stages, check-in competitors, serve as range officials, and tear down the stages are the backbone of the club matches that occur every week around the nation.
All clubs run their matches a bit differently. There are the ones who can setup matches the day before and others who have to build stages the day of. Many of the clubs where the stages are build the day before offer a free or discounted match fee for the setup crew. But I have heard from numerous clubs that isn’t enough of a perk anymore. Which means the club sometimes moves to setup the morning of the match with the expectation that competitors will assist with stage building. But even with that model it is usually the same bunch of volunteers who show up early to build the stages. All the folks who help make sure the match gets built and happens are the producers of the match.
We also have the “shoot ‘n scoot” crowd. These are the folks who only focus on being competitors. They refuse to run the timer or scorepad because they “need to focus on competing”. They arrive late and leave right after the squad is done on the last stage and never help with setup or teardown. Basically they have the attitude that they are paying a match fee and are there to be served. I know not everyone can be involved in running the match, and there need to be straight competitors, but volunteer burn out is a serious thing and happens all the time in USPSA. While we all want to just be competitors, the reality is volunteer sports need volunteers to make events happen.
Do you like being able to go to matches at your local club? Has your local club been asking for folks to get involved? When that is happening, it usually is due to volunteer burnout and the volunteers acknowledge they need the help. We always encourage club leaders to train their replacements because it helps reduce burnout and you never know when integral members will have to move away for a new job or suffer a major injury. If there are not enough volunteers who know how to run the match, that match that you enjoy consuming may not happen.
Clubs often struggle to find new volunteers who want to move from consumers to producers. Next time you are at your local club match, think about how you can contribute. Maybe show up 30 minutes earlier and help setup. Or run the timer/scorepad for a few competitors on your squad. Or make sure the stage you finish on gets torn down and all the trash on the bay gets disposed of properly. Every little bit helps and the producers of the matches will appreciate it.