July 18-20, 2025 | Forest Lake Sportsmen’s Club
There’s something different about walking into a Nationals-level match. The usual match-day chatter is still there, but under it is a current of quiet focus. At Forest Lake Sportsmen’s Club this past July 18–20, you could see it in the way competitors handled their “Make Ready”; deliberate gear checks, practiced dry runs, and one last deep breath before the beep.
Forest Lake again proved itself an ideal host. The range sits just a mile off the interstate, with grocery stores, hotels, and even a Chipotle within a short drive. For traveling shooters, MSP airport is only about 40 minutes away, making logistics painless.
And once you stepped onto the bays, the stage designs immediately reminded you: this was the USPSA Multigun Nationals. Every shooting area looked like it had been purpose-built to squeeze every ounce of skill out of the competitors. From the reactive swingers to the long-range steel, nothing here was filler. Each target demanded your full attention.
The match atmosphere balanced that championship-level seriousness with the kind of camaraderie that keeps people in this sport. Squads shared stage tips, joked between runs, and stayed late to watch the top shooters work. It was the kind of weekend where you could walk the line, pick up pointers from a national champion, and then hear that same shooter cheering for you a few minutes later.
This year’s Multigun Nationals roster was lean but loaded. A total of 122 competitors made the trip to Forest Lake, split across Open (56), Modified (47), and Tactical (19) divisions. On paper, that’s smaller than in years past; but as the match director himself put it, “competitor count becomes less relevant when you’ve still got that kind of talent showing up.”
He wasn’t exaggerating. This was a field where multiple national champions, world champions, and longtime heavy hitters went head-to-head. The Modified lineup alone featured Daniel Horner, a name synonymous with efficiency and precision, while Open stacked the deck with the likes of Varick Beise and Jon Weidell; both homegrown talents from Minnesota’s 3-Gun scene who have been pushing each other’s performance for years. Tactical brought its own firepower with Nate Staskiewicz, Nils Jonasson, and the wildcard story of the weekend, Evan Nichols and his pump shotgun.
Weather-wise, the match gods were kind. The overnight rain that soaked the staff cleared in time for the main match, leaving competitors with temps in the 70s, a steady breeze, and humidity that was noticeable but far from oppressive. The grounds at Forest Lake were in top shape – well-drained bays, clean target zones, and no mud pits to slog through on the jungle stages.
With full staffing, professional stage construction, and a field this deep in talent, the smaller headcount didn’t feel like a drawback. In fact, it gave the event a tighter, more personal feel. You could actually follow the big division battles as they unfolded, whether it was on the timer, across the berm, or by checking PractiScore during a quick lunch break.
What competitors saw at Forest Lake over those three days was the polished tip of an iceberg: Months of planning, rules refinement, and stage design all coming together under the direction of match staff who’ve been building this championship back up since taking it over three years ago.
When the current match director, Adam Maxwell, inherited Multigun Nationals, he described it as “kind of broken.” The first couple years were spent on brand repair, rule updates, and getting competitors comfortable with a more standardized hit factor format. This year, he finally felt the match was “back on the rails” and ready for organic growth.
It takes a crew to make that happen, and Forest Lake had one of the best. Between 30 and 40 staff members worked the event, with roughly a third of them on-site a week ahead of time building stages. That early work paid off; This match went from setup to fully operational in three days, and teardown was just as fast. By the time most competitors were wheels-up from MSP airport, the range was already reset for local use.
Not everything was smooth behind the curtain. Between the staff match and the main match, a few “order of operations” hiccups in PractiScore caused scoring headaches. But instead of finger-pointing, the PractiScore techs dove in, disassembled the match files, rebuilt them, and reloaded every score. The fact that this free software has 24-hour human support, and that the crew at Forest Lake had them on speed dial, kept the scoring running clean when it mattered.
From the competitor side, what stood out wasn’t the hiccups, but how invisible they were once the match kicked off. Stages ran on time. Reset was quick. ROs stayed sharp and professional from first shot to last. If you’ve ever worked a major match, you know how rare it is to have zero negative staff interactions in three days. At Forest Lake, that’s exactly what happened.
Open Division was a homegrown heavyweight showdown. Minnesota natives Varick Beise and Jon Weidell, both of whom cut their teeth at this very range, battled all weekend in a race so tight you could measure the gap in deep breaths. Beise edged out the win with 2,943.8062 match points to Weidell’s 2,920.2460, a margin of barely one percent. The two were often just a stage apart, stealing glances over the berm to see how the other was shooting. Joe Farewell claimed third with 2,809.6308 points, a podium finish that also brought Dryfire Crew representation into the top three.
In Modified Division, AJ Anthony put on a masterclass. Running a tube-fed shotgun, and running it flawlessly, he didn’t just win his division; he posted the highest raw score across the entire match with 2,998.7872 match points. Taylor Ohlhausen took second at 2,738.7679, with Daniel Horner locking down third at 2,721.8424. Watching Horner work stages is like watching match math in motion; every transition, every position entered and exited with precision that wastes nothing.
Tactical Division brought one of the weekend’s most talked-about storylines. Nate Staskiewicz topped the field with 2,983.2107 points, ahead of Nils Jonasson’s 2,639.0784. But the buzz wasn’t about first and second, it was about third place, where Evan Nichols posted 2,254.3061 points while running a pump-action shotgun in a field of semi-autos.
Every match has that one performance people can’t stop talking about. At the 2025 USPSA Multigun Nationals, it was Evan Nichols and his pump-action shotgun.
In Tactical Division, the equipment script is usually the same: high-capacity, fast-cycling semi-autos that let competitors push through arrays with minimal downtime between shots. Nichols flipped that script entirely. Running a pump gun at this level isn’t just about working the action; it’s about rewriting the way you approach every stage.
With a pump, there’s no margin for slop. A mistimed stroke or a sloppy mount doesn’t just cost fractions of a second, it can derail an entire run. Nichols had to build stage plans that accounted for the rhythm of manually cycling the gun, sequencing targets so he could keep the gun fed and his feet moving without burning time on empty chambers.
From the berm, it was clear he wasn’t trying to “out-semi” the semi-autos. Instead, he leaned into precision. His shotgun arrays looked more like surgical strikes than high-speed hosing. Where other shooters might let a bit of spread bail them out, Nichols’ hits were intentional and centered.
The buzz started early in the match and never stopped. By the time the final scores posted, his third-place finish wasn’t just a personal victory; it was a reminder that gear matters, but skill and execution can still punch above the weight of the platform.
Forest Lake’s 12-stage course design was a masterclass in balance. It was technical enough to challenge the most seasoned competitors, but never so contrived that luck overshadowed skill. Credit goes to stage designers Spencer Marsh, “Tanfo Tim” Dunderi, Kevin Harrington, and Seth Dammon, all of whom cut their teeth in Minnesota’s Wednesday Night series before moving into Nationals-level design.
The “Vortex Logo” Stage
Stage 5 became an instant favorite, not just for its flow but for the moment people realized the shooting area footprint looked like a Vortex Optics logo from above. The Open Super Squad alone ran three different stage plans here, proof that no single “right way” existed.
The 65-Round Pistol Marathon
Stage 12, built in a 270° bay, was a handgun endurance test. The round count meant everyone had to reload multiple times, but the placement of a 10-yard sprint section forced shooters to rethink their reload timing.
The Tight 3-Box Shotgun Puzzle
Stage 8 looked deceptively simple: three connected 8×8-foot shooting areas and a handful of shotgun targets. In practice, it was a minefield for efficiency, with viable plans going both pistol-first and shotgun-first.
Stage 2’s Rifle Accuracy Test
Six-inch plates at 50–70 yards turned this short-course rifle stage into one of the most discussed challenges of the weekend. Under hit factor scoring, every alpha mattered as much as the steel hits.
The Jungle Run Clay-Clearing Incident
During the staff match, the opening clays were so buried in foliage that the match director solved the problem with a fully loaded shotgun and a Rambo-style blast session to clear a path.
Hit factor scoring forced constant balance between aggression and accuracy.
On Stage 2, plenty of shooters respected the plates but then hosed the close paper, losing critical points. On Stage 4’s skinny-sammie challenge, some mid-pack shooters did the math and realized taking one shot and moving on was better than grinding for a hit they weren’t likely to get.
The 65-round pistol stage showed how throttle control could make or break a run. Push too hard on partials and you tanked your hit factor; play it too safe and you couldn’t catch the leaders.
This scoring format rewarded stage design diversity and gave every point, and every second, real weight.
Shotguns were the main troublemakers. The match director’s Benelli SBE broke an extractor in the staff match, Lanny Barnes cleared a rifle malfunction with a pocketknife, and Nils Jonasson suffered a rifle failure mid-match.
When gear failed, competitors adapted even if it meant cannibalizing parts between guns to create a functioning “franken-gun” just to finish the match.
On-site vendor Briley kept multiple competitors in the game with parts, tools, and know-how. TargetsUSA flew in from Alaska to help with setup and supplied steel that ran flawlessly. Genesis brought their full-auto 12-gauge for a little mid-match fun. US Border Patrol was also on-site with a booth, supporting the match and their team shooters.
Everything ran on time. Every staff interaction was positive. Competitive equity was built into the schedule, with squads hitting stages in similar conditions.
The prize table was strong, and the cash purse experiment gave top finishers a choice between cash or gear. In some cases, the ammo pile was worth more than the payout.
The lighter side? A motorcycle “Dumb and Dumber” supply run across the range, the Open Super Squad’s world-class trash talk, and a champagne bottle that exploded mid-podium celebration.
Forest Lake Sportsmen’s Club will host Nationals for at least two more years, and the team is already planning refinements. The venue’s location and infrastructure make it one of the most accessible championship sites in the country.
If 2025 proved anything, it’s that smaller fields can still deliver world-class competition. For shooters building their 2026 season, this match belongs on the calendar whether you’re chasing a title or just chasing the kind of weekend that reminds you why you compete in the first place.
Full disclosure: Action Gunner attended this event in person to capture video content for F5 Productions and assist with event media coverage. Our observations and coverage remain independent and unbiased.
