A Minot handgun shooter won a first place title at the United States Practical Shooting Association Area 3 Championship. Jay Hansen overcame some initial equipment troubles to lead his class of shooters. The event was held earlier this month at Grand Island, Neb.
USPSA matches involve handgun shooting that challenges the shooter with a variety of shooting positions. Final results are based on a combination of the number of hits on target and the amount of time used by the shooter.
"I had two magazines go bad on me right off the bat, but the whole match still went okay," said Hansen. "I ended up shooting about 95.6 percent of the total points possible."
The match consisted of 14 separate courses of fire over two days. Hansen's effort earned him the Class C Area Championship in the open division. The open division allows shooters to use optics on their handguns and extended magazines. Shooters are classified based on their previous competitive scores.
"I finished 31st out of 66 open division shooters," said Hansen. "I'm pretty sure I'll end up getting bumped to Class B now, which will be okay."
The Area Championship includes an automatic berth in the USPSA Nationals in Las Vegas Oct. 16-20. Hansen said he intends to compete at that event.