What you do when you fail is more important than when you win.
Most people won’t ever win a National Championship or finish top ten at the World Shoot, but a lot of people will get disqualified for one thing or another.
Sadly I am no exception to this, and have been DQ’d more times then I care to admit. Not just at local club matches but major Nationals events.
Recently I competed in the 2016 Infinity Open In Texas and was Disqualified because the RO felt I broke the 180 when a door I opened hit the end of my muzzle. Now whether or not I actually committed a safety infraction as a result is beside the point. What matters is how You react to the news that your whole match is over.
It takes a great deal of time money and effort to shoot big matches like this one, even for someone like me who is fortunate enough to have sponsors like Taran Tactical Innovations, Mclearn Custom Guns, Blade-Tech Industries, Berry’s Bullets, Asym Ammunition and other amazing companies supporting me, It’s still hard to accept. I think being frustrated is pretty natural. The LAST thing you should do however is put the Range Officer on blast or lose your temper with match officials.
Since arbitration of a safety call of this nature isn’t allowed in USPSA, your one and best option is to disagree with the RO but accept whatever call is made and GO HOME. No one wants to see you throw a tantrum or flip your shit, It makes you look petty and childish.
What has to happen afterwards is an evaluation of the situation to determine whether or not something needs to be corrected in your training in order to prevent it from happening again.
Running with your finger on the trigger, sweeping yourself, accidental discharges, things like this are fixable at club matches and in dry fire/practice, if you use your disaster as a learning experience, It turns into a valuable lesson instead of a waste.
Good luck at the range and stay safe.
Nils Jonasson 