Yep, time for the annual reflection on our wonderful and dedicated volunteer range officials. We always say that we can’t have our sport without them. And that is very true. All match levels rely on our members who step up to serve as match officials and here are the reasons they are critical to our sport.
Every sport has some sort of referee or umpire. You can’t have a fair game without someone to makes sure the rules are followed. In October, we completed the largest USPSA Nationals match ever with 615 competitors. Between the pre-match and main match, we utilized 106 staff for that match. They all contributed to one of the smoothest matches we have ever had. Everyone was happy and had a good time. Approximately a quarter of the staff were working their first Nationals. And we hope to see them again in the future!
Our volunteer staff are also critical for Area, Section, State and any other major match, and not just for officiating the stages. The host club puts numerous hours into planning such a match. Every detail from recruiting staff, designing stages, building props, getting sponsors, ordering porta-potties, arranging lunches, and coordinating other range improvements to make the match flow smooth and to keep competitors comfortable is done by the volunteers at the host club. You will never understand all that goes into hosting a match, and the expenses involved, until you are part of organizing one. And don’t forget to thank the match director and the host club for the year worth of work to plan and execute the match.
At the local match, every squad needs to have someone who knows the rules. And that often means that ROs get assigned to squads of new competitors and give up shooting with their buddies. When you get assigned to the squad of newbies, remember that you are helping grow the sport. Provide coaching if they want it and definitely issue safety warnings (finger, muzzle) during the course of fire. And most importantly share your rules knowledge so they understand how our sport works. Be friendly, helpful and encouraging. Since we now have over 42,500 members in USPSA, expect to see new faces at your local matches.
And to all the members of USPSA, we only have about 6,300 certified range officials between all our certification levels. That is only 15% of the membership. That isn’t a very big number in comparison to the number of matches that happen throughout the year. Remember to thank those members who have stepped up and taken on the range official role.
NROI wants to thank all our range officials and match directors for all your hard work and all you do to make our sport happen! We also want to thank all the folks who hosted a RO, CRO, or SCRO seminar this year. We will have taught 91 seminars in 2025. That is a record for us and we look forward to beating that next year!