Billy Copelin Dominates NBRSA 1000-Yard Nationals

Billy Copelin dominated the 2009 NBRSA 1000-yard Nationals in Sacramento, winning the National Championship and setting four pending records in the process. Billy used a 17-pounder in Light Gun Class, and a bigger rifle in Heavy Gun Class, but both were chambered for the 6mm Dasher. The little case, an improved version of the 6mmBR Norma, performed brilliantly in Billy’s hands. Along with his overall championship, Copelin won Two-Gun Group Agg (6.566″), Two-Gun Score Agg (840-8X), Light Gun Group Agg (4.611″), Heavy Gun Group Agg (8.522″), and Heavy Gun Score Agg (561-4X).

Jim O’Connell, official match scorer, observed: “It was Billy Copelin’s weekend as he won just about everything that wasn’t nailed down. On his way to winning the 2009 National Championship, Billy set four new records and earned himself a spot in the Hall of Fame (joining Jerry Tierney and Don Nielson). Congratulations to Billy…that was some fine shooting!” Copelin’s four pending records are: 3-Target LG Score (147-3X); 6-Target LG Group (4.611″); 2-Gun 12-Target Score (840-8X); and 2-Gun 12-Target Group (6.566″). Below is a video of Copelin shooting at the 600-yard NBRSA Nationals in 2008.

Generally Good Conditions Prevail
Fairly nice weather conditions prevailed for the 2009 NBRSA 1000-Yard National Championship. As a result, some fine scores were fired. Ventura, CA shooter Barry Bluhm, who won the Light Gun Score title with an impressive 279-6X, told us “There was nice weather most of the time all three days. Winds were 3 to 6 mph, but they didn’t stay the same. During some relays, winds got twitchy and would switch from side to side. If you missed a wind call, you could get burned.”

Barry, who does testing for AccurateShooter.com as one of our elite “designated trigger pullers”, noted that while Copelin “pretty much cleaned everyone’s clock with his Dashers”, a lot of guys shot big cartridges in Heavy Gun Class. George Tompkins was shooting 300gr bullets from a massive, metal-stocked Maxi chambered for the .338 Lapua Magnum.

Jerry Tierney finished second overall in this year’s NBRSA 1K Nationals. Jerry, the 2008 NBRSA 600-yard Champion, brought his .284 Winchester to the match, “making LG weight by an ounce or so.” Tierney, who is renowned for his wind-doping skills, tells us “he was rooting for the wind to blow, but it was Dasher weather.” Jerry added that the big boomers did not distinguish themselves: “The true heavies made a lot of noise but were not really in the running in these conditions. It was strictly a Dasher weekend, and a really great shooter [Copelin] behind a Dasher finished on top.” Tierney added that Copelin really deserved the championship: “Billy’s been at it many years; we all knew he was going to win the big one someday.”

Great Shooting by Many Competitors
Though Copelin hauled away the biggest trophies, there were many impressive performances by other shooters. Jay McMunn shot an amazing 2.445″, five-shot Small Group in Light Gun, and Stu Harvey wasn’t far behind at 2.473″. Charles Greer nailed two ten-shot 99s in Heavy Gun and one was a very small 6.649″ to boot. Robert Hoppe and T. Johnson both had 10-shot HG groups under 5.5″ (though Copelin shot smallest of all with a 4.907″ in HG).

Overall Rankings, using the NBRSA scoring system, which counts placements for both score and group, are listed below (lowest total wins). CLICK HERE to download complete results with group and score rankings for all events. We send a big “Thank-You” to Jim O’Connell from providing these match results so quickly.

National Champion — BILLY COPELIN (5 total points)
Second Place — GERALD TIERNEY (24)
Third Place — KENNETH SCHROEDER (26)
Fourth Place — CHARLES GREER (31)
Fifth Place — BARRY BLUHM (33)
Sixth Place — GREG WILSON (44)
Seventh Place — ROBERT HOPPE (46)
Eighth Place — LOU MURDICA (47)
Ninth Place — T. JOHNSON (54)
Tenth Place — GARY NOBLE (55)