SoCal Varmint Silhouette Match This Weekend

About 24 miles east of Oceanside, California (near the Camp Pendleton Marine base) is the Pala Reservation. On that Native American land you’ll find an impressive new Casino Resort & Spa, plus an excellent shooting range. The first Sunday of every month, many of Southern California’s top shooters come to Pala to enjoy a challenging Varmint Silhouette Match. Ten targets are set at each of the following distances:

200 meters – Field Mice (also called “pikas”)
300 meters – Crows (with a triangular center cut out, just for a little more challenge)
385 meters – California squirrels
500 meters – Jack Rabbits
600 yards – Prairie Dogs

There’s a North County Shootist Association Varmint Silhouette match this Sunday, May 3rd, and your Editor will be there covering the event. We invite AccurateShooter.com readers to come join the fun. You’ll need a very accurate rifle, and 80-100 rounds of ammo. You can shoot either rested prone (F-Class style), from bipod, or from a wooden bench with front pedestal and rear bag. Any rifle 6.5 caliber or under is allowed, with no weight restrictions. Muzzle brakes are permitted. There’s a one-hour sight-in period starting at 8 am, and the match starts at 9 am sharp. The folks at Pala run a tight ship, cycling multiple relays efficiently, so everybody gets to shoot 50 targets (10 each at five different yardages), and the show is usually completed by 1:00 pm. (Then if you want… head over to the Pala Casino for some gambling fun, or maybe a spa treatment.)

At Pala varmint shoots, max caliber is 6.5mm, to limit target damage. Typically you see a BR-style rifle, with a heavy, 26-30″ barrel, often using a muzzle brake. You need a very accurate chambering, so you’ll see 6BRs, Dashers, 6-284s, 6.5-47s, and a few 6mm Remingtons. (Note, the 6.5s are limited to 109gr max bullet weight to prevent target damage.) When this Editor last shot at Pala, Forum Member John Adams was kind enough to let me shoot his wicked little 22 Dasher. It proved very accurate, and very flat-shooting. I was impressed.

CLICK HERE for Match Info and Range Details

CLICK HERE to read a feature story on the Pala Varmint Silhouette Program

Similar Posts:

• Fall Fun at Pala Shooting Match in Southern California
• Varmint Fun Matches on Both Coasts This Weekend
• Varmint Silhouette Match This Weekend at Pala in California
• Varmint Benchrest Silhouette on Shooting USA TV Tonight
• Double Dose of Varmint Silhouette Action This Month at Pala, CA

Tags: Dasher, Silhouette, Varmint