Leighton Oosthuisen running for Area 2 Director

[Charlie Perez]

All,

 I wanted to give the ECO section a heads up about Leighton Oosthuisen who is running for the Area 2 Director position. I have attended many matches with Leighton over the years and he is a stand up guy, travels the world to participate in practical shooting sports, and has a vested interest in representing our Area properly on the USPSA Board of Directors. I endorse Leighton as a solid candidate for the Area 2 Director position and will be voting for him when the election happens. Listed below is an e-mail he sent me about his stance on the subject of USPSA and his bid for Area 2 Director. Leighton's contact information is listed on the bottom of this e-mail. If you have any questions or comments feel free to reach out to him. Regardless of voting for Leighton or not please take the time to vote for someone as your vote and opinion does matter.

ECOUSPSA,

You likely have heard that Jerry Westcott has stepped down, and that the USPSA Area 2 Director is up for a special election.

I (Leighton Oosthuisen) will be running for this position. I have actually been considering running for years, ever since Mike Voigt, my mentor and close friend, first suggested it.

I am excited to state what I think needs to be improved, explain what I can do for the organization, and provide some insight into who I am.

USPSA
First, I think USPSA is an awesome organization. I love shooting, and love being a part of the game. And while I think there is room to improve, I am someone who believes in being inclusive. I believe we should be professional, respectful and responsible in the way we treat others. I don’t believe in “burning the house down”; rather finding a happy medium that works for everyone.

In this world of instant communication, social media and “keyboard experts”, there will always be differing opinions. The goal should be solutions reached through respectful dialog. Our leadership, administrators, officials and competitors must share a common respect for one another. Our organization was founded by principled people, and we should set an example for the rest of the sports shooting world.

ABOUT ME
I am from South Africa, and emigrated legally to the USA about 25 years ago. I started from nothing, placing 149th/150 at my first match. Since then I have traveled the world, competing at hundreds of ranges, matches and events. I have been a sponsor, competitor and match official. And in 2016, after 20 years, I finally became a GM, albeit on paper. The highlight of my shooting “career” was representing the USA at the World Shoot in the USA in 2014, and in France in 2017.

I am a competitor first! Our sport exists because of shooters.
But I have also studied match management and learned what works, what makes great matches, and how shooters can be brought back time and again.
I am not a Match Director - to be honest, MDs are a special group of people with a passion for running and building matches. I am blessed to be surrounded by excellent Match Directors and leave them to do their thing.
My entire life, from serving in the Army, Law Enforcement and Search & Rescue; all the way to three decades as a businessman, has been dedicated to building infrastructure and helping others.
A business exists for the benefit of the client; and I believe clubs and the USPSA exist for the same reason.
Client satisfaction is key. It makes running the business a happier endeavor, and keeps cash flow positive, which promotes investment and expansion.
While I have worked matches, taught shooters and been a Range Officer, I see the Area Director position as a liaison, a strategist, a developer of concepts. And of course, the Area Directors are responsible for operations oversight at USPSA.
Decades in the construction, service, retail and marketing industry developing ideas and reacting to market conditions allowed me to be successful at keeping clients happy and keeping them coming back. My dog training school is one of the largest in the world, with a client listing of 36,000 people. Our retention rate is about 85%, and 90% of our customer base rate us 5/5.
Client acquisition, retention and satisfaction has been my bread-and-butter for decades.

SERVING ON THE BOARD
I am not interested in simply being on the BOD.
I want to make a difference. I want transparency and I want results.

I believe there are FIVE areas we should address:
• Improve the value of USPSA to clubs, administrators and shooters (members)
• Improve communication and support for clubs, ranges and matches.
• Win over and retain existing and past members
• Aggressively reach out to gun owners that don't shoot
• Expand range facilities to accommodate more and larger matches
• Develop our workforce and reduce staff burn out.

WHAT IS IN IT FOR ME
I have spent the past week traveling to, meeting and reaching out to clubs and shooters.
• “Why should we belong to USPSA”.
• “We pay USPSA thousands of dollars, yet feel alone with little support.”
• “I don’t need to be a member to shoot”

VALUE
We need to add more value to membership. Both for clubs and for shooters.
Our current membership is 32,000, which is up about 12,000 in the past year. This is great, but we also lose many members.

And then of course, in my opinion, we are missing millions of people.
• Surveys show about 30 million target shooters in the USA.  Our membership is barely 1/10th of a percent of that. Where are they?
•    The NRA has 5 million members, most of whom I am sure shoot. Where are they?
We should be building relationships - not just lip service, but active participation between shooting groups.

IPSC
I also think we should actively promote the relationship with IPSC. I am probably the most supportive candidate of IPSC in the USA. I have traveled to many countries to compete, and as a shooter, love representing the USA.
We should encourage running IPSC stages, matches and inviting international competition. I would love to see more shooters traveling internationally, not just for the World Shoot, which is limited to about 55 competitors, but other popular matches as well.
IPSC has grown in past years, to over 100 nations, and 250,000 members. They are heavily promoting sports shooting, as well as lobbying politicians to support the sport of shooting. The French Chateauroux range, home to the Pistol and also the Shotgun World Shoot, was financed with government “sports” money.
This does not mean changing USPSA. We have our own culture, rules and equipment.
My loyalty is 100% to USPSA. But I also feel it should be up to shooters to decide what they would like to do.
Simply, let’s make it available to everyone. Let’s run both USPSA and IPSC matches.

PRESIDENT TRUMP
President Trump recently stated his Administration has prioritized making it easier for Americans to participate in shooting sports on public lands. I would like to see us pursue this avenue at the local and state levels. I am actively engaged in discussions with lobbyists in Arizona, and am working on doing just that. Next I want to expand this program into other states.
(Note: This lobbying has been at my personal expense. Mike Foley has indicated he would not allow member resources or finances to be allocated to these projects, and I support that)

MEMBERSHIP
USPSA informs me we have approximately 3,000 to 3,500 members in Area 2.

NSSF research shows:
California: 33 million gun-owners (20% of population)
New Mexico: 2 million gun-owners (49% of population)
Arizona: 6 million gun-owners (32% of population)
Colorado: 5 million gun-owners (34% of population)
Hawaii 1.5 million gun-owners

This is the market demographic. How is it that from a market of 47 million shooters, we only have 3,000 members. We need to reach gun owners that don’t shoot. NSSF has said the same. We need to hold shooting clinics for experienced shooters
• Offer Tyro (New shooter) programs;
• Ladies events;
• Junior events;
• Law Enforcement events;
• Fire Departments etc.
Target each demographic individually.
Focus on what each desires, and solve that need.
Look at how Amazon targets specific demographic groups. One-size-fits-all does not work.
I would like to see more clubs holding more matches.
Diversify a little, so that more people can be brought into the game with less energy.
It is easier to teach a ladies group, and make a social event out of it, than it is to offer one group fits all.

Imagine if we were able to get every manufacturer to include a brochure on sports shooting, and made it easy for them to locate a club. Then educate and support that new Tyro. More members, more revenue, more resources.

And imagine paid stage builders, stage resetters and staff.
This is not some crazy idea - it is being done at matches in Europe such as the Extreme series of matches.
Think 1,100 shooters, 30 stages over 3 days, half day format, 400 rounds.

SPORTS SHOOTING
As Area Director I will encourage existing and new clubs to promote the concept of Sports Shooting first, then Competitive Sports Shooting. Make it fun to start, supply basic equipment and training, and then develop the group. USPSA should spearhead this, and provide support and guidance. This is not to say we are not active 2A. I just feel we should pursue the sports market as a viable, fun and family based activity.

MATCH-IN-A-BOX
I have been working on a concept called Match-in-a-Box, where a small club can order everything they need to run a small match. Handbook, Marketing materials, Stages, Timers, Equipment, Targets, Scoring, etc.
Everything needed to set up and run a two - four stage match. I would love to see new ranges be supported in getting this going.
To be honest I got the idea from Kippi and Rob Leatham, who run a new shooter program at Rio Salado. No holsters, no running, just basic competition training. They have since built an amazing team.
And by the way, Rob Leatham has endorsed me for Area 2 Director - unheard of for TGO (He dislikes politics)
Finally, one of my personal issues with our organization is the lack of information being disseminated to the members.I am always amazed at the lack of knowledge by shooters of current events. Of course, part of the issue is the lack of interest by members. Only 20% of the eligible voters in Area 1 just voted, about 600 of 3,200 members. You know it’s bad when a girl with a gun gets more likes on Instagram, than an Area election.

MATCH-IN-A-TRUCK
About three years ago I started looking into running a traveling match project. Think of Monday Night Football but for shooting. A modular based set of stages making up a match in a truck, similar to the Match-in-a-Box. This “match” would travel to the smaller clubs, set up and run the match. This would allow smaller clubs and ranges to host a match, which would benefit shooters, drive membership and promote the sport.
I have hired similar groups to run dog sport events, with great success.

REACH OUT
As Area Director, I fully intend to get out and meet with as many clubs, shooters and coordinators as I can. I am planning trips to California, Colorado and New Mexico in the next two months. (I am still trying to figure out how to get to Hawaii LOL)

At a minimum, I want to get to know as many as possible.
Who does what. Who needs what. Who has great ideas.
Let’s share - I am not the boss of you, as my daughter says.
I am here to work with you and make your life better.

Feel free to check out my website https://www.leightono.com
Voting is in October, with USPSA’s election agency sending out cards to eligible voters (as of May 1st, 2018)

I will be sending out more campaign materials as time gets closer. Feel free to share these with your members. I apologize this is a lot to read - but I believe it is important to be transparent.

FINALLY
I would appreciate your support, and your vote.
Even more than that, I would welcome your input.
Please email me back, and give me some insight into where you stand.

But even if you don’t vote for me, make sure you vote!
Respectfully demand better communication, better support and an active approach to building USPSA into the future.

Feel free to reach out to me on my cell at 480.797.0221
Also feel free to connect with me on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/leighton.oosthuisen

Kind Regards

Leighton Oosthuisen
USPSA Life Member L4092
Team USA 2014 / 2017

www.LeightonO.com
Leig...@PartnersDogs.com

Leighton Oosthuisen
USPSA Life Member L4092
Team USA 2014 / 2017
“Less Work, More Play”

4640 E Forest Pleasant Pl
Cave Creek AZ 85331
c. 480.797.0221
w. 480.595.6700
f. 480.595.6885

Charlie Perez
303-882-6728