His 5 major title wins make Vogel the top ranked shooter in practical pistol competition. Photo: P. Erhardt |
Over the last couple weeks I've been engaged in a running dialog - mostly with myself but from time to time with others - about who is currently the top shooter in practical shooting.
When I wasn't talking to myself I was bouncing my hypothesis off of a couple good friends who know more about these kinds of things than I do.
During a recent trip to Columbia, Mo. to help film some segments for http://www.outdoorchannel.com/Shows/ShootingGallery.aspx>Shooting Gallery, I spent some quality time with the show's host, and good friend, Michael Bane, discussing this very subject.
I also spoke at length with Tom Yost about Vogel's accomplishments in the http://www.idpa.com/>IDPA arena. And while in Columbia, I got the chance to speak to IDPA's own Joyce Wilson to get her take.
All three agreed that Vogel's has been the standout performance of the 2011 pistol season.
So why is Vogel number one? Consider this...
He's won all three major events this year in IDPA, the Smith & Wesson Indoor Nationals, the Carolina Cup and the inaugural IDPA World Championship. And not only did he win the Stock Service Pistol division at each match but he was also the high overall shooter.
Vogel's performance in each match was so strong that he outpaced his nearest competitor by about 30 seconds. That's almost two stages, or as Yost explained it, "Bob could have forgotten to load his gun on a few stages and still won."
Vogel battled Leatham for the 2011 Limited-10 National title. Photo: P. Erhardt |
Vogel then went on to lead Team USA in production division competition at the triennial IPSC World Shoot in Rhodes, Greece where his individual World Championship win helped Team USA take the team gold medal.
All in all, not too shabby for just one shooting season, especially when you consider that Vogel isn't a "pro" shooter in the way we currently think of them. Actually, he's a full-time Ohio law enforcement officer, so, in other words, he has an honest to God real day job with all that that entails - including limited time off to shoot.
Vogel does have solid sponsor support to help him through the season. His primary sponsor is http://panteaoproductions.com/>Panteao Productions, a company that produces shooting DVDs including http://panteaoproductions.com/products/bob_vogel-building_world_class_pistol_skills>a couple featuring - you guessed it - Bob Vogel.
His ammo sponsor is Winchester, and additional sponsors include Rudy Project and Pro Ears. The only logo missing on Vogel's shooting shirt is that of a major gun maker. For some odd reason he's the only shooter at his level without a firearm sponsor.
Considering that Vogel has been shooting a Glock in competition, the obvious question is when, if ever, will the Austrian gun juggernaut make him an honest man and sign him up for one of those cool black shirts.
There you have it, 2011's top pistolero who, with five major titles across IDPA, USPSA and IPSC, truly "doth bestride the narrow world [of practical shooting] like a Colossus."
- Paul Erhardt, Editor, the Outdoor Wire Digital Network
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