Here are three options to not only get practice at the range but have a way to easily gauge your improvements.
I've always been competitive in the things I embark on, the shooting sports have been no different. Only a few years after picking up a handgun I found myself at my first USPSA pistol match. Having regularly gone to the range and practiced the basics of pistol shooting and the advanced skills needed to draw a handgun from a holster I felt prepared to push my limits and see how I did.
USPSA (United States Practical Shooting Association) is a run and gun form of pistol competition where the shooter engages multiple targets from various firing positions, sometimes while on the move in as quick a time as possible. There are static targets, moving targets, targets partially being cover and reactive targets during a single course of fire. Of course there are also many more safety rules and concerns than just the three gun safety rules of the NRA. I left my first match mentally fatigued from the stress of following a course of fire, being sure I engaged all my targets and always performing with the utmost regard for safety. After a few matches things settle down and become more routine and the fun factor goes way up. Other competitors are very friendly and helpful, always ready to answer questions and provide advice to new shooters.
NRA Action Pistol is a single firing position at an array of targets shot at various distances to complete one of four stages of this type of shooting match. One stage you shoot steel plates on a rack, another you engage cardboard targets from either side of a barricade, a third is shooting multiple rounds at a pair of targets and the highlight is the mover stage where you engage a single target as it moves across the shooting bay from one cover to another. These stages are shot from distances of 10 yards all the way out to 50 yards and are timed. This makes for a great way to improve your shooting and provides a great way to see yourself improve over time. It only took me one day at the local club practicing the stages with the Action Pistol guys to be hooked on this style of competition. Other shooter are extremely helpful and encouraging to newbies and are happy to see you come out to enjoy what they love shooting.
Local Club Bullseye Leagues provide great accuracy training and the matches or multi week leagues are put on by shops connected to a range or local shooting clubs. This is done firing from a single position at a single non-moving target but provides stress and training with every round you shoot. The goal being to shoot the center of a bullseye with every shot producing a perfect score of 100 per target. The very center of the bullseye is called the X ring and provides a means of breaking ties if two or more shooters have perfect scores.
Clubs that hold these events typically will offer practice days throughout the month to held prepare newcomers and allow the more accomplished time to improve their skills. To get involved check out: www.uspsa.org and https://competitions.nra.org/documents/pdf/compete/action-pistol-getting-started.pdf
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