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In Phoenix, September starts SUMMER!!! That’s boldface, capital letters and three exclamation marks. Phoenix is different, you see. Our year has seven, not four, seasons. Our seasons are fall, winter, spring, summer, Summer, SUMMER and SUMMER!!! SUMMER!!! is when the … Continue reading
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… is (again) exaggerated by the national news. The local news is more accustomed to this. But there was a unique aspect last night. About 7:00PM as the winds were beginning to whip around, I went outside to put our … Continue reading
Yours Truly in “The Tower”
“Attention! Attention on the line! Your three minute preparation time begins … NOW!”
And so begins another relay.
At the recent Desert Mid-Winter competition in Phoenix, I took turns with Tony Silva calling the line. The Conventional Pistol portion spanned three and a half days starting with a Service Pistol 900 and just under 80 shooters. We ran two relays with an individual 900 and then team, EIC (Leg Match) or DR (Distinguished Revolver) matches almost every day.
For competitors who shoot all events and compete in teams as well, that’s about 150 rounds, more or less, each day.
When not shooting, there’s plenty of time to talk shop, get some lunch and clean guns.
But for those running the match, it’s a different story.
As I discovered, when you “call the line”, you become the person everyone goes to for answers.
“When are the scores going to be posted?”
“The Men’s room is out of toilet paper.”
“Where can I get some good Thai food?”
“What time is 45 Team today?”
It behooves you, therefore, to not only have a copy of the match bulletin immediately at hand, but also to have a couple of runners who can be directed to take care of the unexpected requests.
The Desert Mid-Winter competition is known to be well-run and we try to make it, as least for the line-calling portion, as much like Camp Perry as we reasonably can. In a sense, we view the competition as a training ground for those who will be making their first trip to Perry five months later in July.
So, to make sure I was “calling it straight”, I reviewed the official rules and prepared a script. Hopefully it sounded very much like the one that will be used in the Nationals shortly after Independence Day.
But there are exceptions such as range alerts that need to be announced. Late last year, for example, a Mohave Rattlesnake was discovered underneath the firing line bench where Jason, a local shooter, was sitting. The snake was apparently a juvenile and, if you look it up, you’ll find out this is one of the most dangerous rattlesnakes there is.
So this year we included a “rattlesnake alert” in range announcements. (None were seen nor heard during Desert Mid-Winter, thank goodness.)
But Desert Mid-Winter isn’t Camp Perry. It’s smaller, more friendly, and because we don’t have the crush of competitors that Ohio will see, we can take a less hectic approach.
“Attention shooters. When we ask, ‘Is the line ready?’, raise your hand and holler if you are not. We will stop and give you the time needed. There’s no hurry.”
During one of the matches this year, for example, we had a gun that refused to function. We stopped to allow the shooter to change guns. Not having a spare, he was in a dilemma until his neighbor offered a spare. And while he was being briefed on how the sights were set, the Air Reserve gunsmith standing nearby took the disabled one to see if it could be repaired. Two targets later the original gun was back, repaired and ready to go back into competition. (Thank you, Dan!)
Calling the line also means keeping track of re-fires, when they are or are not allowed for a specific shooter within a match and how many total shots are to be scored (whether or not that many were actually fired). Of course, the individual shooters could also keep track of this but, in the interest of following the rules as closely as possible to be consistent with the Perry competition, the line caller takes on this responsibility.
“Shooters, if you have a malfunction and want an alibi, do not clear the malfunction. Instead, continue to hold your firearm with the muzzle pointed in a safe direction and raise your hand. Someone will come and inspect your firearm and tell you what to do.
Range officers then assist by inspecting alibi claims before they are cleared, determining if the alibi is allowed or not. (For example, if the shooter forgets to click off the safety, no alibi is allowed.)
But above all, safety is the first and last concern.
Someone always checks the range to verify that it is clear.
“The range is clear. You may handle your firearms.”
When someone shouts, “Not ready!”, the line caller repeats it, tells everyone to keep their firearms pointed in a safe direction but to otherwise “Stand easy.” And then tells the shooter with a problem, “Take your time and solve the problem safely. Take as much time as you need.”
And before going downrange, there’s the well-known, “Let’s make the line safe. Magazines out. Cylinders open and empty. Slides back. Empty Chamber Indicators in place. Guns on the table.”
This year we added, “When your firearms are safe, step back from the table.” And then we watch and wait until everyone has moved back. (Sometimes it takes a reminder or two.)
Nonetheless, mishaps still happen.
Someone shot a hole in the firing line table but — good for them — they were following the safety rules and had the gun pointed in a safe direction, downrange. (Gary plugged and painted it and then did his normal job of refacing all targets before competition resumed the next morning. Thank you, Gary!)
And an early shot was fired, long before the Rapid Fire targets turned to face. Again, the gun was pointed in a safe direction so no damage was done.
Perhaps most alarming was a shot during a three minute preparation period.
“I thought I was dry-firing!”
Yes dear reader, you are absolutely right: That gun should not have been loaded!
But that’s the very case the safety rules are designed to handle. That’s why the rules are what they are. That is the kind of accident — some will say “negligent discharge” — that is most likely to happen. And because the shooter was otherwise following the rules and had his firearm pointed in a safe direction, no one was hurt.
Here are the NRA’s rules:
- ALWAYS keep the gun pointed in a safe direction;
- ALWAYS keep your finger off the trigger until ready to shoot; and
- ALWAYS keep the gun unloaded until ready to use.
Here’s rule #1 again — there’s a reason it is #1.
- ALWAYS keep the gun pointed in a safe direction.
The line caller’s primary job, and that of every shooter on the line, is safety.
“Attention shooters. Anyone, I mean anyone, may call ‘Cease Fire’ at any time if there is an immediate danger.”
I’ve been shooting Bullseye for several years in Phoenix and in various clubs around the US during my business and vacation travel. I’ve spoken with shooters who’ve been engaged in this sport for decades, and some who’ve been doing so for more than half a century and I’ve yet to hear of a single injury from a bullet*.
I hesitate to point it out lest I bring down a curse, but the fact remains that Bullseye, in spite of what the public might otherwise expect given the nature of what we do, is a remarkably safe sport.
“Shooters to the line. This will be the Timed Fire portion of the National Match Course, two strings of five rounds, twenty seconds per string.
“For your first string of Timed Fire, with five rounds … Load!”
____________________
* Note:
I have witnessed injuries, however, from a red dot that broke away from a 1911 in recoil and smacked the shooter’s forehead, and I have heard of hand injuries from explosions presumed to be due to reloading problems — a double-charge or a normal round fired after a squib has plugged the barrel.
Accidents do happen.
And, someday, you will be the one at fault.
Practice those rules; your life really does depend on it.
L to R: Daniel (firing), myself, Makella,
daughter Mary, her husband Scott,
and on the swing are Elijah and Melissa
(Click for larger)
I’ve written before about solo shooting in my backyard air pistol range. It’s good iron sight work and, with next to no recoil, it’s a good way to practice that smooth release.
On the occasion pictured here, however, Daniel and Melissa had brought Elijah for his first visit and my daughter and her family were all present. (My son and his family couldn’t make it.)
After we all got to hold Elijah, someone suggested we go out on the patio since the weather was nice.
As we went through the door and knowing I’m a shooter, Melissa said, “My Dad was a shooter.”
“Would you like to try an air pistol today?” I asked.
In five minutes, the range was ready.
Most of them had never fired a gun or for the few who had, it was a long time ago. So, one at a time, I took each one through the basics of safety, operating the Baikal IZH-46M including cocking, loading, aiming and firing.
I let each of them dry-fire so they could feel the trigger and get accustomed to the noise. From there, we’d move to live fire and I’d stay close to handle the problems that always arise with new shooters.
As each one finished, we would retrieve their target and put up a fresh one.
As you might expect, some were good and some weren’t (A big backstop is a must.)
My granddaughter, Makella, had shot this AP before. The grip is large but she’s grown since her last try and she did good. All her shots were in the paper. (At the regular range several months earlier, she fired my ball gun and immediately displayed the toothy grin that often accompanies that first shot of 45 ACP ball ammo.)
Daniel was handicapped by my right-hand custom grip. As you can see he’s a leftie. Nonetheless, he did pretty good with most shots in the target.
(Note to self: Get an extra set of grips and carve them for ambidextrous use.)
Scott, Makella’s Dad, shot very well. He’s got the upper-body strength that benefits pistol shooters and he’s fired other guns. Even the air pistol’s light trigger benefits from a solid grip.
My daughter, she … well, let’s just say she fired two shots before saying, “Thank you”. (See note herein about a “big” backstop.)
And my wife declined to shoot. Like mother, like daughter, it’s just not for them.
The surprise was the new mother, Melissa. At the regulation 10 meters, she was good! Each time she fired, a new hole would appear in the black. Grinning, she would say, “Let me do another.” Pretty soon she had more than a dozen holes, all in the black.
(Never underestimate a Mother with a handgun!)
An air pistol range needs a space of about 40 by 10 feet with a good backstop and no cross-traffic.
The noise is minimal; we used no ears but the absence of eye protection is a serious oversight on my part. Oops!
Elijah didn’t seem to mind the noise and as long as you keep a good watch of the shooter and what others are doing, it should be safe. (Little kids running around would be a show-stopper.)
Check with your local Police Department to be sure it’s legal in your own backyard.
The Baikal is not inexpensive, but neither is it expensive like today’s better air pistols. I paid $400 a couple of years ago for mine. It is accurate and reliable. I have less expensive air pistols but they don’t shoot as well, have a strange balance, or just feel downright klunky.
The IZH-46M, on the other hand, is what the former Soviet Union air pistol shooters used in the Olympics a decade or so ago. Be sure and tell the family that. Knowing “this is not a toy” will both raise their safety awareness and heighten their intensity since they know it’s a good piece of engineering.
For new shooters, make it a non-competitive game. The rule could be “five shots and even totals have to set the table and odd totals clean up.”
“Shooters to the line!”
Mojave Desert
(Click for bigger — please!)
Did you bring your desert hiking boots?
I’ve got a bit of a trek ahead.
Shooters are ranked by the NRA according to their scores in official competitions. These are most easily expressed as the appropriate percent of the perfect 100.
To earn a higher ranking, a shooter must record a total of 360 shots at the new level.
Back in April at the Arizona Regional Championships, I shot a 2440-35. The 2440 is a smidgin above the 90% mark of the possible 2700 points but only includes 270 shots. It is an expert-class score but not enough shots to earn a step up. (I’m Sharpshooter class at the moment.)
In today’s official 2700, I shot a 2441-53 over an additional 270 shots.
And that should be sufficient.
Hooray!
In the next couple of weeks, I should be receiving my Expert-class card from the NRA.
That’s the good news.
The bad news is that Expert class is also known as the “vast wasteland” that many shooters enter but few leave.
I think of it as the Mojave desert, completely barren and devoid of plant life, unlike the sometimes lush Sonoran desert we have around Phoenix.
But with a couple of gallons of drinkable water, some dried desert rations and a pair of good boots, I’m ready to begin my trek.
I’ll be the dried-up, leather-skinned, dusty-haired shooter at firing position #8 for a while.
10s and Xs, pardner!
I shoot Bullseye for several reasons. Those who know me can report that, yes, my #1 reason is for the camaraderie; I just plain like the people I meet who are shooting Bullseye.
But that’s not the only reason.
A sense of accomplishment is also important.
And with that also needs to be the knowledge that I’m getting better.
Well, the time has come to move up.
The NRA Pistol Rules rank competitors in several categories, among them are Indoor and Outdoor. My current Outdoor classification is Sharpshooter and it is there — outside — where I commonly shoot both 22 and 45 caliber guns, the latter having a heavier, and therefore more difficult, trigger.
My Indoor classification has been as an Expert and it is indoors where the 22 is more commonly fired. Indeed, some indoor ranges permit nothing larger. Consequently, shooters tend to do better.
But I’m now ready to move up. Indeed, I both want to get my Outdoor Expert card, and I think my shooting is just about ready as well.
The individual skill-levels are as follows.
| Classification | Percent | 900 | 2700 |
|---|---|---|---|
| High Master * | 97 | 873 | 2619 |
| Master | 95 | 855 | 2565 |
| Expert | 90 | 810 | 2430 |
| Sharpshooter | 85 | 765 | 2295 |
| Marksman | less | < 765 | < 2295 |
My goal, the Expert class, needs a 90% mark. That is, I need to shoot an average of 810 points in Registered and Authorized 900s.
But scores are reported to the NRA for an entire competition. And, the NRA tallies “shots fired” as well as the score. In a 2700 I need to shoot at least 2430 as my total for the three 900s (3 * 810), and I need to “keep it up” at that level for at least 360 shots.
Within a competition, I can do better, or worse, on any given 900, as long as the average for the competition comes out at the 90% level.
For the 360 shots, at 10 points per shot, a 900 has 90 shots, and a 2700 has 270 — not enough. It takes four 900s, or a 2700 plus a 900 or, in my case, it will be two 2700s to accumulate the needed 360 shots.
For some time, my 22 scores have been around 840 to 850. If I shoot at that level outdoor, that will give me a 30-40 point “helper” on CenterFire and 45 scores. (And shooting 840 to 850, you can see that I could, on a good performance at several indoor matches, move up there as well — but I want to keep my Indoor and Outdoor classifications more or less in-line with each other. So I’ve been avoiding indoor Registered and Authorized matches for that reason.)
In the most recent outdoor matches, I’ve done better than expected. That’s especially true with my 45 caliber wad gun now that it has the roll trigger — thank you, Dan Norwood. It feels like I’m pressing on a soft pillow and, rather than needing to “build pressure” to break a shot, I now “keep it flowing”.
For the level of my ability at this time, the roll trigger is a real plus.
And tomorrow we shoot the President’s Day 2700 at the Phoenix Rod and Gun Club. It is an official event so the scores will be reported to the NRA.
And the following weekend has a second, and also to be reported, 2700.
If I can shoot both 2700s and score 2430 or better in each one, then the record of my most recent 360 (or more) shots will make the grade.
I want an Outdoor Expert classification.
That goal, and the determination to get there, will be driving my focus and attention for the next two Sundays.
10s and Xs!
____________________
* Note:
Above High Master, there are the unofficial 2650 (98.1%) and 2670 (98.8%) clubs. Performance at these levels is truly stunning, especially when you take into account that this is not for one shot, but for a repeated performance over at least 270 individual shots.
Five days, four guns, nine disciplines and over a thousand rounds, that was the Arizona Desert Midwinter competition for 2010.
And I’m pooped!
Tony Brong and myself
My good friend from Pennsylvania, Tony Brong, came out for the competition this year. Like many of you, I’ve been following Tony’s blog (click here) for some time. Tony is an accomplished Bullseye competitor and I consider myself lucky to know him as well as benefit from his Expert (soon to be Master) observations.
Our blogging and emailing friendship grew when Tony and I both shot the August 2008 Dutchman 2700 at the Palmyra club when I was in Pennsylvania for two consecutive weeks on business. The weekend “break” with Tony was great although I can’t say the same for my shooting.
With Tony returning the visit at this year’s Arizona Desert Midwinter event, I can’t say much more for my shooting as I had been “on extended hiatus” from shooting for several months due to personal issues, but getting to spend time with Tony again and to introduce him to all the wonderful people I’ve come to know at the Phoenix club was, well, wonderful.
Don Kling and Tony Brong
Don Kling, now an Arizona shooter, originally hails from Tony’s club back in Pennsylvania. Although their times at Palmyra didn’t overlap, they both knew many of the same club members.
Don calls the matches in Phoenix, both International and Conventional segments. Each has unique requirements. In Conventional, for example, it is not only common practice but typically encouraged for shooters to load their magazines at the end of each string before scoring targets. That way when they come back to the line, the next string can begin without delay.
But in the International disciplines, this is considered a safety violation and is grounds for immediate expulsion.
In International, shooters are forbidden to touch ammunition or firearms until commanded to “Load”. They then have sixty seconds to load a magazine or whatever the weapon requires, and no more than what the next string requires — typically five (5) rounds — and otherwise make their weapon ready to shoot.
At the end of that sixty seconds, the “Attention” command is announced and shooting ensues about three seconds later.
Well, for Bullseye shooters who are unaccustomed to but otherwise eager to try the International forms, Don patiently explains the difference in rules. He then follows up with an inspection and one-on-one “correction” with anyone who needs a little extra attention.
And don’t forget your ECI — Empty Chamber Indicator — typically a 8-12″ piece of brightly colored weed-wacker (grass trimmer) line that is threaded through a gun’s empty chamber and out through the end of the barrel. The NRA (Conventional pistol rule maker) mandates these in every NRA sanctioned event.
But when, during an International segment whose rules don’t require ECIs, Don called “Empty Chamber Indicators in place”, one of the shooters objected.
“International rules don’t require those, Don.”
Without missing a beat however, Don replied, “I’m calling the match and I do.”
That was that and ECIs were promptly put in place.
Presenting the Case
Scoring of a shooter’s target for most Bullseye matches other than at the annual championship in Camp Perry is almost always done by the person to the right of each shooter.
At the beginning of a match, each participant is given a blank score card on which they write their name and firing position number.
The command, “Pass right, score left” tells the tale. (The shooter at the extreme right end passes his card to the one at the extreme left, who then has to make the long trek to the other end of the targets each time around. Some ranges will make smaller “loops” where the line is divided in half to save walking distance.)
Immediately after scoring a neighbor’s target, each shooter looks at his own target to see his score — scorers write the score on the target as well as on the scoring sheet — and to see if he agrees with it.
Late in the Desert Midwinter match, a shooter challenged the scorer’s call on a critical shot. The scorer and shooter discussed the matter but could not come to agreement. As per the rules, Don then formed an impartial jury and included several expert and better level shooters including Tony. Tony’s participation as an unbiased outsider who knew none of the individuals made him a particularly good choice.
After each of the jurors had carefully examined the target and listened to both the shooter’s and the scorer’s case, they voted. And both shooter and scorer, after seeing and hearing the honest assessments applied to the case, accepted the outcome with no further argument.
Cara Kraus, Long Skidder
(Click for larger image)
Some shots, while dramatic, can end up being worthless.
This one, for example, is called a “skidder” and before looking at the possible numerical values, the scorer must consider from which side of the target the shot entered — did it enter from the front of the target or the rear?
You see, a shot fired on a turning target, if the target has turned away from the shooter, may over-rotate slightly and allow a late shot to hit the backside of the target first.
Shots fired after the target has turned away from the shooter don’t count.
But if the shot enters from the front of the target, it is good. The scorer then looks to see what was the lowest valued ring encountered and, if the shot also marked the next higher ring, the shot is scored for the higher ring. If not, then the lower score is entered.
Skidders can also obscure — destroy would be a better word — other holes in the target and make scoring unusually challenging for the remaining holes.
How would you score this one?
Dan Norwood
This gentleman is one of the top finishers at this year’s competition. He is on the United States National Guard Marksmanship Team.
And he’s a gunsmith.
Bill Weldon, one of the regulars at the Phoenix Rod and Gun Club knew Dan’s abilities and when I asked Bill to recommend a gunsmith to put a roll trigger on my wad gun, Bill suggested I ask Dan.
I did.
And he did.
In ten minutes using the extensive collection of tools he carries with him to competitions, Dan disassembled my 1911, measured and then dressed the parts, adjusted the three tongues of the flat spring and, voila, I now have a roll trigger. (Dan would later help Tony with his centerfire gun.)
In the end there are those who received awards and rightly celebrate their win.
And there are those who didn’t receive anything and perhaps some of them felt they lost.
I shot better than expected in some events, worse in others. In that respect, you could say I won some and lost some.
But a week later, I couldn’t tell you my scores.
You see, I’ve become pretty good at filtering what is important from what is not. I remember the faces you see above, the kind acts, the sincerity. I remember the smiles, the laughs, the jests and the good-natured ribbing. I remember the people.
So, I shoot Bullseye for the people.
Tony is one of them. So are Don and Cara and Dan and the shooter who challenged the scoring of his target.
Next time you stand at the line, look at the person to your left and then the person to your right. They’re gonna be good people, honest people, sincere people.
Pass right, score left.
You won’t lose.
 Good morning! |
The wife is still on the fence about going downtown today. Yeah, it’s gonna be hot but the light rail is supposed to be punctual so we’ll sit in the car until it’s almost time for it to pick us up at the park ‘n ride lot near Christown Mall. Then, it’s $2.50 each for the round trip (day pass same as two rides) to the stop right next to the Convention Center downtown. I have the maps and the schedule right here.
Her admission to the convention will be $10.00 but, for me, as an NRA member I get in free. I remind her to look at it as entertainment. (Update: She gets in free based on my membership!)
“Where else will you be able to see such an intense concentration of Libertarians with a few Republicans thrown in for seasoning?”
And I mention that today’s free “Refuse to be a Victim” session is at 1:00PM. I’d like us both to attend that. And the “Methods of Concealed Carry” at 2:00PM just down the hall also looks interesting but probably not for her. (She could use that time to check out the convention floor and find a set of grips for her as yet unknown carry that’ll match her mood — that’s how she packs for trips, by the way. “I have to take all this because I don’t know what I’m going to feel like wearing each day.” Okay, maybe a couple of sets of grips — to match her mood of the day.)
I’ll be stopping by booth #2406, Eagle Grips, to look at their ESS3s for my S&W 36 snubby that I’ll have in my pocket — my AZ Concealed Weapon Permit will be in my wallet just behind my driver’s license.
And I’ll be watch for Paul Huebl whose http://www.crimefilenews.com/ blog is one of my regular morning reads — Paul’s supposed to be wandering around the convention, perhaps today. It’d be a pleasure to shake his hand.
But time’s a wast’in. I need to cut the grass before the temperature hits 90 and then get showered and ready to go to the convention.
 Phoenix Light Rail and Star Gate Transfer Station (click for larger image) |
… Later
A lot of firsts today!
But it was crowded, very crowded.
The newspaper said they were expecting the largest crowd that’s ever attended an event at the Phoenix Convention Center and, judging from the registration line, the hamburger line, and the line at the air rifle range, yeah, they probably did just that.
 Yours truly and Paul Huebl |
The one booth I wanted to find was that of Eagle Grips. The floor plan had them in #2406, a relatively small space not far from one of the entrances.
But as luck would have it, I was holding the floor plan upside down so we walked half way across the arena before checking a few landmarks and re-orienting the map. We’d walked unseeing almost directly past it.
As we returned, I spotted it from twenty yards when I saw Paul Huebl’s toothy grin.
Meeting Paul was one of the reasons I had come to the show and, as if by magic, he was in the only booth on my shopping list. (I should add he’d put me on to these grips in the first place so maybe his familiarity with their product and his being in their booth wasn’t quite so miraculous.)
Walking up, I introduced myself and we shook hands. I introduced the wife, talked about blogging, my wife’s smile started to sag, we talked about grips for snubbys, my wife started to look around …
So we quickly drafted her to take pictures of Paul and myself with both his and my cameras. And after two exposures on each, Paul got busy with other readers of his blog and we moved on.
One of the bigger lines was for Ted Nugent.
Well, I thought to myself, with such a great first meeting with Paul, let’s go shake hands or something with Ted Nugent.
 Ted Nugent |
“There, did you see him look up in our direction, dear?”
Waving, “Thanks, Ted!”
Man, what a great pal.
Uhm, what should we do now?
“I’m tired,” my wife said. “How about if I sit over there in that chair and you go see the exhibits for a while?”
God doesn’t make ‘em better than the one that married me.
So I wandered the floor for a while. I bought tickets for a couple of different raffles, listened to salesmen hawk their wares and shove brochures into my hands that later went into the recycle bins, dropped the hammers on a couple of S&W revolvers, asked the young lady in cowboy clothing why the Ruger factory in Prescott AZ doesn’t give free samples when someone just stops by to see what they’re working on today … but all I got back was a smile.
Still, it was a nice smile.
 NRA Store |
On the way back to where my wife had been patiently waiting — I kept my perambulations to 30 minutes, I’d like you to know — I took a quick turn through the NRA Store.
They had some new items I hadn’t seen a few months earlier when I visited their museum in the Washington DC area but, somewhat expectedly, the prices again seemed just a tad high.
Mind you, I don’t mind supporting the NRA. I like what they’re doing.
And on my Washington DC visit, I did buy an NRA baseball cap — Made in China — and also an NRA emblazoned wind breaker — Made in Vietnam.
But I normally prefer to be a little more direct in my gift giving and not muddy the waters of “value” by paying more for something than I felt it was worth.
So I looked but bought nothing and headed out to where I’d left my wife sitting in a very comfortable looking chair.
Walking up I asked, “Ready to go?”
We reached home an hour later and we were both drained from the walking and the heat. The weatherman says it was 102 at the airport but downtown at the convention center with those tall mirror-like buildings and big expanses of concrete and asphalt, it surely was another 5-10 degrees hotter.
Dinner was take-out chinese washed down with several glasses of water.
Hours later, sitting in the dark with only the glow of the 52″ LCD TV and a taped episode of NCIS, we were starting to feel mostly recovered.
But I’m goin’ back tomorrow. There’s more to see.
The wife will, undoubtedly, stay home in the cool house but, oh yeah, I’m goin’.
It’s huge and really nice, and so very, very different from the junky, dirty gun shows. There’s carpet on the floor, good air conditioning, clean rest rooms, new guns and equipment in expensive displays.
Besides, I need some newer catalogs.
I need one from Brownells, Champion’s Choice, Midway, Cheaper Than Dirt, IMMR, Hodgdon’s, Springfield Armory and, of course, Smith & Wesson. I could also pick up some brochures on black powder long rifles, shot guns and high power rifles, and maybe one or two on smallbore. I saw the Clark booth and, at the other end, the one for Kimber. (I wonder if Dave Salyer or Ed Masaki are here?) And there was that one really interesting display of Kentucky long rifles over on collectors row. I wonder what it feels like to heft one of those into position?
Yeah, I gotta go back.
So many guns, so little time.
Before
Little things:
Let today’s matches begin!
After
I won’t have the complete scores for a day or two but, at this point, I know how I did, and it was “extremely well” on this last day.
Here are my scores across all four days of this annual event:
| Service Pistol | 681-9 | 75.7% |
| 22 Caliber | 823-15 | 91.4% |
| Center Fire | 773-12 | 85.8% |
| 45 Caliber | 811-17 | 90.1% |
| 2700 Aggregate | 2407-44 | 89.1% |
| 3600 Aggregate | 3088-53 | 85.7% |
| 22 Team | unk. | unk. |
| CF Team | 264-2 | 88.0% |
| 45 Team | 275-8 | 91.7% |
| Service Pistol Team | 220-1 | 73.3% |
| EIC Leg Match | 252-4 | 84.0% |
| Everything | 4099-68 * | 85.4% * |
* will increase slightly with 22 Team score
After four days of shooting a 900 plus one or two NMCs in each day, my technique has settled down considerably.
Significantly, in both of those final NMCs, I think my performance was just about the same but for the Leg Match, I had changed to some ammunition given to me many, many months ago by John Zurek. This change seems to show the gift ammunition flying substantially better than what I had used just moments before.
About this gift ammo John Zurek had said, “Save this for a Leg Match. It’s really good stuff.”
And I’ve had it sitting in the supply cabinet for, what, maybe a year now? A while back, I tested a scant 10 rounds in the Ransom Rest and they printed within a 1.5″ circle at 50 yards. Oh yeah, that’s good stuff!
So today, I used another 30 of those rounds for the Leg Match.
As I released each shot, I called it and then looked in the scope. The truth of John’s words looked back at me because practically every shot was on call. And while it’s true I still messed up a couple of them, when the Leg Match was done I had a very respectable score.
With that, I also learned that the ball ammunition I had been using in the Service Pistol matches, both individual and team competitions, simply did not get along with my ball gun. At least some of the blame for the dismal Service Pistol scores goes to the ammunition / gun mix. They just don’t get along.
I have ten rounds of the “good stuff” left and I’ll have to figure out what to do with them. Certainly I’ll be measuring them with calipers every possible way I can think of. And ultimately, they’ll probably get fired from the Ransom Rest again but this time with a chrony in front and then a virgin target way out at 50 yards. Whatever I get from all that will be both my starting point and my goal in developing a ball load.
Yes, there’s a lot to be done.
But looking back at the last four days, it’s been absolutely wonderful.
Here are today’s pictures. (Click for bigger versions.)
 John Zurek Visits Don Plante’s Tailgate Store |
 Corps Camraderie |
 Marines |
 Fresh Target |
 Jeannie Verifies Her Score |
 Jams Didn’t Fluster This Marine |
 On To The Next Target |
 Meeting of the Minds |
 Enjoying the Day |
 Move ‘Em In |
 Renold Schilke Scores a Target |
 Parent Spectators |
 Spouse Spectators |
 Ron Scores a Target |
 Quick Repair |
 View from the Tower |
 On Break |
Before
Today and tomorrow are the days in which my concentration — and repetition — need to be at their best. I will do the same things as yesterday but with a more challenging gun.
Today we shoot the individual Center Fire matches in the morning, and then the team Center Fire and team 45 matches after lunch.
Many shooters use the same gun for Center Fire and 45 for economic reasons. I’m no exception. My wad gun started life as a Springfield Armory Mil-Spec but has then been “matured” with a carefully fitted Kart competition barrel, trigger job, slide to rail adjustments and a red dot sight. The resulting race horse shoots extremely well when fed and handled correctly and, especially for the latter, that’s today’s challenge.
My ball gun will go along for the ride today for two reasons. First, it’s my backup in case the wadder becomes disabled in some way. Secondly, the trigger has to be weighed and, if it passes, the gun tagged before the EIC Leg Match tomorrow. The Marine gunsmith who makes that determination is available today (and tomorrow).
Yesterday in the 22 matches I succeeded in finding the precise finger placement that resulted in neither a left nor right “flick” of the barrel when the hammer was released from the sear. Simultaneously, I had many successes in maintaining a solid but unbiasing and unchanging grip so that, again, as the hammer was released from the sear, my grip was still pressing squarely with no rotating pressure that would have “flicked” the barrel left or right, nor up and down for that matter.
In addition, well after I had assumed my 90 degree stance and brought the pistol up and then settled down into the aiming area and took up the slack on the trigger, I then focused my attention on the dot, started the trigger and then patiently “watched” the wobble and, when it lessened as it always does and the dot was deep in the aiming area, the shot broke and I mentally noted the dot’s “o’clock” position on the target but immediately returned the dot to the center of the aiming area and held for several more seconds. I then lowered the gun and verified through the spotting scope the new hole in the target where I had placed the shot. And on the few occasions where it was not where I’d called it, I analyzed what I had done wrong — finger too deep into the trigger pushing the hole left, rushed the shot to “get it over with” rather than simply observing the process as it developed before my eye, etc. — and re-rehearsed my shot plan so I’d return to it on the next shot.
Today and tomorrow, I simply have to do that again, and again, and again.
The shorter barrel of the wad gun (5 inch) as compared to my 22 (S&W Model 41 with the 7 inch barrel) means that those “flicks” will be all the more sensitive to my attentions today.
I will, therefore, need to be most diligent in my concentrations.
Today’s mantra, since my body follows this shot process almost completely without conscious guidance, will simply be
Ohhhmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm… [Bang!]
After
I was wrong.
The number one lesson in Bullseye is pressuring or moving your trigger finger straight to the rear … and not changing your grip pressure while doing so.
I broke that rule big time today and paid the price.
My Slow Fire scores were 80-0 (started good, went downhill), then 64-0 (hideous) and 67-0 with that three point rise due to finally, on the last shot, figuring out how to move only my trigger finger to break the shot.
But, well, the good news is that I did eventually figure it out. Every target from there on, the Timed and Rapid Fire targets in the NMC and their own matches, were all in the 90s including a 97-3 in Rapid Fire.
So, by the time the Center Fire segment was over, I was ready to shoot Slow Fire — Oops, too late!
I finished with 773-12, well shy of the 810 mark that would bump me up into Expert category I’ve been eyeing on the horizon. And it is unlikely I’ll recover enough points tomorrow to bring my average up to that level for the 2700.
And to be honest, with the “oops” that butchered most of this morning’s Slow Fire targets, it seems clear this Sharpshooter still has a lot to learn.
But it wasn’t too late for some measure of redemption because after lunch we shot team Center Fire and team 45 NMCs. With the trigger issue figured out, I was ready and since my scores could make or break those of the team, the pressure was on.
In the Center Fire team, one round of my ammo wasn’t up to snuff; it was the fifth round in the first string and it failed to fire, probably with a high primer — I’ve been getting one of those about every 200 rounds. In the alibi, I only partially regained my concentration and ended up trading my initial three tens and an X for four eights. That brought my score down eight points on that target!
But regardless of that, I was pleased because the Slow Fire targets in both team competitions placed me in good stead with my teammates. I had done my part fine.
Toward the team total in Center Fire, I contributed 264-2.
And for the team in 45, I added a couple to those lost eight and ended with 275-8.
As before, here are some pictures from today. (Click them for larger images.)
 Squadding Chart |
 Another Day |
 Lots of Stuff |
 Tony “Stat Man” Silva |
 John Zurek, Jim Henderson, Adam Sokolowski (Left to Right) |
 Art Pimentel Watches an Alibi (I shot with Art at the Sunnyvale Club) |
 Chock Full O’ Marines |