If you missed the first episode of Top Shot on the History Channel, you can still watch it on Hulu.com. While the show’s “Survivor”-style battle of personalities disappointed some gun enthusiasts, Top SHOT is still engaging television that brings the shooting sports to a large audience. Over 2.1 million viewers watched the debut episode of Top Shot. Click below to watch in embedded flash player, and you can click an icon to zoom to full screen. (Advert may load first — be patient.)
David Tubb’s instructional DVD, “The Art & Technique of the Modern Match Rifle”, is a great resource for any High Power or position shooter. This 2-disc DVD provides over 4.5 hours of instruction and shooting demonstrations. We’ve watched the entire video and can assure you that it is excellent. Novice High Power and prone shooters who apply David’s methods should definitely improve their scores.
David has included highlights from that DVD in a shorter promo video. While the shorter video is a sales tool, it’s very informative in its own right. Watch the video and you’ll learn a great deal just by watching how David shoulders his rifle, and how he adjusts and maintains his shooting position. David shows examples of prone, sitting, and standing positions. In the short “trailer”, David also provides helpful tips on adjusting sights, and placing the spotting scope.
If you shoot Service Rifle, High Power, or prone, you can benefit from watching this short sampler video. The full 2-disc DVD is available for $49.95 from Creedmoor Sports or Superior Shooting Systems. With over 4.5 hours of content, the DVD covers all the across-the-course positions, the set-up and use of aperture sights and diopters, High Power and long range targets, the approach method in offhand, proper placement and use of spotting scopes. The DVD includes bonus footage of David shooting strings in all of the across-the-course positions.
Top Shot is a new 10-episode TV series premiering this Sunday, June 6 at 10 pm (9 pm Central) on the History Channel. (Top Shot repeats Tuesday, June 8 at the same hour.) Sixteen experienced shooters were chosen to compete for a $100,000 cash prize. The 16 contestants are divided into two teams. Each week the teams compete against each other, then one contestant from the week’s losing team is eliminated from the show in a head to head elimination round. We’ve previewed Top Shot’s first two episodes and we can say that Top Shot makes for good television. The cinematography and editing are first-rate, even if hard-core precision marksmen might quibble about some of the equipment used. In addition to modern rifles and pistols, contestants must master antique black-powder arms as well as crossbows, throwing knives, and even tomahawks. Hey, it’s Hollywood remember?
Among the 16 competitors is Accurateshooter.com contributor Kelly Bachand, a talented young Palma shooter from Washington state. Kelly figures prominently in episode one. The History Channel has released an extended 11-minute Series Preview you can watch now on HULU.com.
Editor’s Note: The video Bios include footage from team challenges on upcoming episodes. Watching the contestant Bios gives you a “sneak peek” at much of the future action.
‘Top Shot’, a new 10-episode TV series, debuts this Sunday, June 6th, on The History Channel. The show features 16 competitors (all experienced shooters), vying for a $100,000 prize. While competitors were selected on the basis of marksmanship skills, ‘Top Shot’ is NOT just a series of multi-gun matches or target shoots. Contestants are grouped into two teams which compete in a different type of challenge each week. This requires competitors to master a wide variety of weapons, both modern and antique. One of the 16 competitors is AccurateShooter.com contributor Kelly Bachand, a promising young Palma shooter. Kelly plays a prominent role in the premier episode.
After wrapping up his filming stint with ‘Top Shot’, Kelly visited us in Southern California to do some testing with an Eliseo .308 Win tube gun (photo above). Kelly explained that, for the TV show, he and his fellow competitors had to demonstrate skills with a wide variety of historic and modern weapons. In addition to modern rifles and semi-auto pistols, competitors used black-powder revolvers, crossbows, throwing knives, and even tomahawks. In some episodes the competitors were tasked with recreating a historically significant feat of marksmanship — such as cutting a “hanging rope” with a pistol shot. Each week, contenders will face both team and individual elimination challenges until one winner remains. In the series opener (Sunday, June 6), contestants are immediately divided into two teams and then compete in a “Rifle Relay,” an obstacle course using standard-issue rifles from four different wars. In the elimination round, two contestants go head-to-head in “The Long Shot,” a long-distance sniper challenge which will send the first person home. ‘Top Shot’ will air Sundays at 10 EDT, with ten episodes slated for the upcoming season.
On Memorial Day, we honor those service men and women who have given their lives in defense of their country and freedom. Take time today to honor our fallen heroes. Our world would be a far different place without their sacrifices.
“Last Rites” (U.S. Navy photo, National Archives).
The top photo shows U.S. Navy Chaplain, LCDR Joseph O’Callahan administering last rites to an injured crewman aboard the USS Franklin (CV-13) after the ship was struck by by two armor-piercing bombs from a Japanese dive bomber on March 19, 1945. Chaplain O’Callahan received the Medal of Honor for his heroic actions onboard.
In his latest Weekly Video Podcast (#22) Michael Bane, host of DownRange TV, tests the new Bushmaster ACR at the TiG Training Facility in Tennessee. While this new reifle may interest our readers, Bane also discusses the latest status of the Freedom Group’s efforts to “go public”. The Freedom Group is a Cerberus-owned consortium of firearms/security companies including AAC, Barnes Bullets, Bushmaster, Dakota Arms, DPMS, H&R, Marlin, and Remington. A public offering of Freedom Group shares is potentially a very big deal in the firearms industry. This week, Bane explains, the Freedom Group made a presentation to the SEC in support of its future Initial Public Offering (IPO). Click on the image below to watch Bane’s latest video report. (NOTE: you may want to turn down the volume on your speakers BEFORE clicking link, particularly if you are at work).
Many of the world’s best wheelgunners will be in California the first week in June. The 19th Annual Smith & Wesson Int’l Revolver Championship (IRC) takes place June 4-6 at the Hogue Action Pistol Range in San Luis Obispo, CA. This is the 11th consecutive season that San Luis Obispo Sportsmen’s Assn. hosts the IRC, the highlight of the ICORE revolver shooting season. Nearly 200 ace revolver shooters, from the USA as well as 6 foreign countries, are expected to compete. According to Ron Joslin, IRC match director: “This is the highlight of our competition season. It’s where everybody in ICORE comes together to determine who is the best. This is our Superbowl, and it’s been that way for the last 18 years.”
The man to beat in Open Class will be legendary pistolero Jerry Miculek of Team Smith & Wesson. Jerry has won every IRC in which he has competed. When it comes to wheelguns, Miculek is the fastest man on the planet. Also competing will be past Ladies Open Division winner Julie Golob, and last year’s Limited Division Champion John Bagakis.
Along with the adult classifications, the IRC features divisions for Junior shooters. The junior events are always crowd-pleasers. Some of these youngsters are definitely future champions in the making. The video below shows the 2009 IRC Junior Shoot-Off for the overall Junior Title.
Man vs. Machine-Gun — Miculek Duels Uzi on Shooting USA TV
In related news, on tonight’s ‘Impossible Shots’ segment of the Shooting USA TV broadcast, Jerry Miculek will attempt to keep pace with a full-auto Uzi machine-gun. Shooting his tuned 1911 pistol, Miculek will engage a set of targets and try to match the RPM (rounds per minute) rate of the Uzi. This should be an interesting challenge to watch. Who will win? Well, I would never bet against Miculek when it comes to speed shooting….
Shooting USA’s Impossible Shots airs Wednesday at these times:
Eastern Time: 2:30 PM, 10:30 PM | 2:30 AM (Thursday)
Central Time: 1:30 PM, 9:30 PM | 1:30 AM (Thursday)
Mountain Time: 12:30 PM, 8:30 PM | 12:30 AM (Thursday)
Pacific Time: 11:30 AM, 7:30 PM, 11:30 PM
GalleryofGuns.com, the website of firearms distributor/wholesaler Davidsons Inc., has just unveiled its new VIDEO HUB. The Gallery of Guns Video Hub offers TV show previews, informational videos from Ruger and the NSSF, plus scores of product videos illustrating rifles, pistols and shotguns. If you’re interested in gun-centric video programming, check out the new VIDEO HUB. It’s a good resource if you’re planning to purchase a factory-built pistol, shotgun, or AR-style rifle. Unfortunately, as yet, there is little of interest for fans of precision bolt-guns, but Davidson’s will likely augment the content mix in the future. Click the image below to visit the new VIDEO HUB. Warning: Turn down your computer speaker volume if you are at work!
The National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) now offers FREE educational video DVDs about firearm safety and wildlife conservation to teachers and school administrators. Already, more than 4,500 DVDs have been ordered by educators. Teachers can order the DVDs (and download related PDF brochures) via the NSSF website. In addition to the videos, each DVD contains guides and activity planners to assist teachers. For more information, visit the NSSF Education Videos webpage.
The Firearms Safety DVD contains three video segments, two designed for viewing by students and one for a general audience. These videos show students how to make correct decisions when encountering a firearm in an unsupervised situation at school, at home or at a friend’s home. The Wildlife Conservation DVD features three videos that teach students about America’s wildlife management system and explain how hunters contribute funding for conservation. Teachers can preview both the Firearms Safety Videos and the Conservation Videos on the NSSF Website.
“We believe teachers and school administrators should teach students how to correctly respond if they encounter an unattended firearm. Students who understand what to do in such situations can potentially save lives,” said Steve Sanetti, NSSF President. Regarding conservation education, Sanetti said, “We have a generation of children who spend less time outdoors and who see more wildlife on television than in the wild. It’s important that students today understand how once-endangered species such as white-tailed deer and wild turkey have been brought back to abundance through efforts funded by hunters.”
David Tubb’s instructional DVD, “The Art & Technique of the Modern Match Rifle”, is a great resource for any High Power or position shooter. This 2-disc DVD provides over 4.5 hours of instruction and shooting demonstrations. We’ve watched the entire video and can assure you that it is excellent. Novice High Power and prone shooters who apply David’s methods should definitely improve their scores.
‘Top Shot’, a new 10-episode TV series, debuts this Sunday, June 6th, on 
Many of the world’s best wheelgunners will be in California the first week in June. The 19th Annual Smith & Wesson Int’l Revolver Championship (IRC) takes place June 4-6 at the 
