Report by By Kyle Jillson for theNRA Blog
Four days of NRA individual High Power shooting began this morning as shooters started their long race for the prestigious Mumma Trophy. Weather is slated to be another perfect day with clear skies and temperatures not getting too hot. In 2011, Carl Bernosky won his ninth High Power title after shooting a 2393-160X. Will Carl make it an even ten this year? Maybe a new shooter will take top spot on the podium in 2012?
Today’s matches are the NRA Member’s Trophy, Scott Trophy, and Coast Artillery Trophy. The Scott Trophy Match is shot rapid fire from 200 yards in the sitting/kneeling position while the Coast Artillery Match is a 300-yard rapid-fire event shot prone. The Member’s Trophy match is shot slow fire from 200 yards in the standing position.
Early Match Results
The preliminary results for the Member Trophy and Scott Trophy matches are in. The first and second relays for the three matches are all wrapped up. Previous High Power National Champions Sherri Gallagher (2010), Carl Bernosky (2011) and David Tubb (most recent 2003) all took part in relay one. The results posted below are preliminary. The scores for relays three and four are still be recorded and tabulated at this time. With all matches expected to end around 3:00 pm, the NRA Blog will provide updates from the NRA High Power Championships in Camp Perry as they become available.
Members Trophy Match
1. Sherri Gallagher 199-5X
2. Carl Bernosky 198-9X
3. Tyrel Cooper 198-5X
4. Gus Dunfey 198-5X
5. Brandon Green 197-10X
Scott Trophy Match
1. Carl Bernosky 200-18X
2. David Tubb 200-18X
3. Sara Rozanski 200-16X
4. Tyrel Cooper 200-15X
5. Rodrigo Rosa 200-14X
The Sixth Annual NRA/Springfield M1A Match took place Sunday, August 5th at Camp Perry, as part of the National Rifle and Pistol Matches. With a prize table of cash and merchandise worth more than $27,000, this was the richest High Power Rifle event ever held. The overall match winner, Edwin Agle of Beavercreek, Ohio, shot a 477-13X to take home $2000.00 — not bad for a day’s work! The first-place civilian, Nick Till (475-8X) won $1500, while the second-place civilian, William Walter (474-6X), received $1000.00. The third-place Civilian, Thomas Rider (473-12X), was awarded a brand-new Springfield M1A rifle. Other top shooters received cash prize and/or Springfield Armory Pistols. CLICK HERE for Complete M1A Match Results.
This popular event always attracts hundreds of competitors. Any configuration of the M1A rifle is allowed. The course of fire is 50 shots at 300 yards from the prone, kneeling and standing positions on the MR-65F target. The top shooters have a chance at winning big money or taking home a shiney new rifle or pistol.
Nick Till in 2009 M1A Match. Nick was the 2007 Service Rifle Nat’l Champion. Photo courtesy NRA Blog.
This special M1A match revives interest in the M14, and its modern derivatives. Springfield’s M1A is a commercially-produced, semi-auto version of the M14, a 7.62×51 “battle rifle” that still serves our forces deployed in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere. At one time, M14-based match rifles dominated service rifle matches, but that’s history. Now M16/AR15 platform rule the roost in the service rifle game. But many shooters loved the old wood, .30-caliber rifles, leading to the creation of a special National Match just for M1A rifles. Mike Doy, Springfield Armory’s Facilities Manager observed: “The popularity of the NRA/Springfield M1A match goes to show that many shooters still enjoy competing with [M14-type rifles].”
Congratulations to the winning Rifle National Trophy Junior Team, Sagen Maddalena and Forrest Greenwood. Competing as Team California Grizzlies Berger, Sagen (left, below) and Forrest (right) set a new National Record of 968-21X in the two-person match held last week. Sagen also led all competitors, racking up the top individual score of 488-15X. The winning team receives the Freedom’s Fire Trophy. Team Coach was Robert Taylor II and Team Captain was Mike Barranco. Notably, two other California Grizzlies shooters, Lane Ichcord and Wayne Morgan, finished Third Overall with a 964-24X. This proves there are still some great young shooters coming from California, despite the many restrictive laws in the Golden State. CLICK HERE for complete Match results.
USAMU Shooters Set New Doubles Team National Record
Not to be outdone by the young Californians, U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit’s SSG Tyrel Cooper and CPL Matthew Rawlings set a new National Match Record of 593-21X last Wednesday in the Hearst Doubles Team Match. Congratulations Ty and Matt!!
Jamie Gray won the Gold Medal in women’s 50m three-position rifle today at the Royal Artillery Barracks in London. Jamie finished with a score of 691.9, a new Olympic record. Fittingly, Jamie secured the Gold Medal with a 10.8 on her last shot in the finals, just 0.1 shy of a perfect score. “I’ve worked on taking that last shot for four years,” she said. “It was almost a moment of relief… I knew it was a good one.” Jamie finished 4.4 points ahead of Silver Medalist Ivana Maksimovic of Serbia. The Czech Republic’s Adela Sykorova took the Bronze medal, 8.9 points behind Gray. You can watch the Women’s 50m Three Position Finals on the NBC Olympics Website (internet service provider log-in required).
Jamie shot great throughout the competition and headed into finals with a two-point lead over her competitors. Gray’s qualifying score was 592, also an Olympic record. This was Jamie’s second appearance in the Olympics, and she has made great progress in the past four years. In Beijing in 2008, Jamie finished fifth in three-position rifle, and fourth in air rifle. After winning Gold in Londson, Jamie said: “This is a dream come true. I made a plan and I stuck to it.”
Two Gold Medal-Winning Room-Mates
At the Olympic Athletes Village in London, Jamie shares a room with Kim Rhode, who won Gold in Women’s Skeet Shooting. Perhaps that pairing brought good luck to both ladies. Team USA now has three Gold medals in shooting, the team’s best performance since 1984.
Earlier this spring, in a USA Shooting interview, Jamie talked about Olympic shooting competition which divides male and female shooters into two divisions: “I am a born competitor and whether it is men or women I want to win. In a sport that is equal between men and women I would most definitely enjoy the competition. I started out only knowing that men and women compete against each other. It wasn’t until I learned shooting was an Olympic sport that I realized men and women didn’t compete against each other. It is exciting to me that there are still sports out there that men and women can be equal, however for other reasons it may be better that there are different categories for each.”
Jamie began shooting in a BB gun program at 8 years old. An all-round athlete, as a high school student, she played varsity soccer, basketball and softball. Jamie graduated from the University of Alaska Fairbanks and shot for its nationally-renowned rifle team. She is currently the technical coach for the Columbus State University Rifle Team. Jamie is married to another shooter, USAMU SSG Hank Gray. Jamie, who originally hails from Lebanon, PA, competed as Jamie Beyerle before her marriage.
It’s the final day for the CMP Matches at Camp Perry! CLICK HERE to follow the John C. Garand Match results on-line. You can also view results for the other CMP matches completed so far on the CMP Competition Tracker webpage. This afternoon, the final relays for the Springfield/Vintage Military Rifle Matches will be fired. This evening, the CMP will hold its awards ceremony honoring the top shooters at the National CMP Games events. Here are some of the winners of prominent 2012 CMP Matches at Camp Perry (partial listing):
President’s Trophy Winner — Jared Perry, 398-16X
Daniel Boone Trophy (Overall Winner) — SGT Sherri Gallagher, 494-15X
Presidents-NTI-NTT Aggregate (Overall) — SSG Tyrel Cooper, 1286-59X
GSM 3-Gun Aggregate — Dennis DeMille, 858-17X
M1 Carbine Match Winner — Sciarabba, Stephen, 375-5X
NTI Garand Match Winner — Robert Steketee, 468-8X
National Trophy Team Match — USAMU Praslick, 2950-103X
National Trophy Jr. Team match — California Grizzlies Berger, 2880-93X
Vintage Sniper Team Match — Rutherford/Armstrong, 398-17X
25-year-old Peter Wilson of Great Britain earned the gold medal in front of the home country shooting a 188 out of 200. He is now Britain’s first shooting medalist since Richard Faulds won gold in the same event in Sydney 12 years ago. Sweden’s Hakan Dahlby finished second while Russian Vasily Mosin won bronze after a shoot-off with Kuwaiti Fehaid Aldeehani.
Though not well-known in North America, Wilson is a world-record-holder who was one of the favorites heading into the event. In Tucson (AZ) earlier this year, at the ISSF World Cup, Wilson set a new world record, hitting 198 out of 200. Peter, a farmer’s son from Dorset, was the youngest Olympic Double Trap finalist by 13 years and only started shooting at school following a sporting accident which prevented him from playing cricket and squash. He left school a National Shooting Champion and was ranked world No.1 earlier this year before the Double Trap Olympic final.
Practice Makes Perfect
In an interview with The Telegraph, Wilson revealed: “I shoot at 80,000 targets a year. That’s what you do, get the movements ingrained, so when you’re faced with two targets to go in an Olympic final, you’re completely comfortable about what you have to do.”
During his rise to the top, Wilson got a little help from the 2004 Olympic Double Trap Gold Medalist, Ahmad Mohammad Hasher Al Maktoum, a member of the Dubai royal family. After Wilson’s support funding from UK Sport was cut in 2008, the Dubai Royal stepped in to help, providing free coaching help for the young Brit. As the result of budget-cutting by UK Sport, Wilson lost his training stipend. Somehow he had to come up with £10,000 a year to cover his shooting expenses. He tried to work in a pub as a barman, but found that the night shifts conflicted with his shooting practice. His parents instead funded him for a year while he tried to secure further funding. He has also raised funds, along with the rest of the British shooting team, by running fundraising events.
The NRA High Power National Championships begin in just a few days. One of the favorites this year is SGT Sherri Jo Gallagher, who won the High Power Title in 2010. Sherri is only the second women in history to win the National High Power Championship. The first was her mother, Nancy Tompkins. Sherri looks forward to the challenge of competing against the likes of defending champ Carl Bernosky, and past title holders Norman Houle, and David Tubb. Count on Sherri to turn in a strong performance at Camp Perry this year.
Along with competitive rifle shooting, Sherri has other important duties as a member of the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit (USAMU). Sherri, the 2010 U.S. Army Soldier of the Year, helps train other service men and women in shooting skills. In the video below, Sherri explains her duties with the USAMU. She is proud of the role the USAMU plays in training U.S. Army soldiers.
‘Army Strong’ is a way to show that the Army is going to make you a better person. It’s going to turn you into a much better version of yourself — that you didn’t even know could exist. ‘Dream Strong’ to me would be setting high goals for yourself, and doing what it takes to achieve them. There are things I’ve done in the Army that I’ve never dreamed I could do. I’ve always wanted to be a good leader — to teach others the [marksmanship] skills that I have used my whole life. It’s incredibly gratifying. — SGT Sherri Jo Gallagher
The National Trophy Infantry Team Match was held today at Camp Perry. Congratulations to the USAMU Team Praslick, which won the match with a final score of 1366. Members of the winning squad are: SSG Tyrel Cooper, SPC Augustus Dunfey, SSG Brandon Green, SFC Joel Micholick, SFC Daniel Peters, SFC Grant Singley, SFC Jeremy Mangione (Team Captain), and SFC Emil Praslick (Team Coach).
The Infantry Match is a unique, rapid-fire team event. 56 teams, each with six firing members, shoot the Infantry Course of Fire. A team coach and team captain are also permitted on the firing line while their team members are firing. Each team is permitted a total of 384 rounds to allocate among their team members. Firing starts at 600 yards in prone for 50 seconds. If teams have ammunition left after the 600, teams proceed to 500 yards (prone, sitting or kneeling in 50 seconds). Teams continue to move forward (300 yards – sitting or kneeling in 50 seconds, and then 200 yards – standing in 50 seconds) until all ammunition is fired. CLICK HERE to see scores and standings when they are tabulated.
Watch Infantry Team Match from Friday Morning, August 3, 2012
Long-range benchrest shooter Scott Weber had a pretty decent day at the range last Saturday — to put it mildly. Shooting his 6mm Dasher in a Williamport (PA) 1000-yard match, Scott recorded two new Light Gun world records, breaking a record set by Scott’s own father (Frank Weber) in the process.
Early in the day, Scott shot a 3.746″ (99-1X) 10-shot group which beat the existing group-size record, a 3.835″ group shot at the Montana Deep Creek Range in 2006. Then, in the shoot-off, Scott drilled a 100-6X score to top the existing score record held by his father Frank Weber. Interestingly, Frank’s 2012 record was also a 100-6X, but Scott has the smaller group — 4.007″ vs. Frank’s 4.237″ — so Scott will be credited with the record. Well at least he kept it in the family!
Scott reports: “It’s unbelievable to set one record but two in one day on different relays — it doesn’t seem real. All I wanted to do was win the shoot off since I never won one since I’ve been shooting. My dad is happy for me , but he told me ‘don’t look back’ because he is coming to get his record back!”
INSIDE STORY — Rifle Specs and Load Details
Scott Tells us: “Mark King built the rifle. It is similar to my dad’s Light Gun that Mark also built. It has a Sitman (Master Class) stock with 2-inch rail in the back, BAT 3-lug action, Broughton barrel with Mark King brake, and a Jewell trigger. My scope is a Leupold 8.5-25X, MK IV.” The Broughton barrel is chambered for the 6mm Dasher with a 0.266″ neck. Scott turns his necks to about 10.5 thousandths thickness and runs 0.261″ neck tension.
Two Loads for Two Records
Scott used two different loads during the match: “The load I used for the group record was 32.7 grains Varget with CCI primers, 107gr VLD custom bullet, seated +.010 into the lands. These 107gr VLDs were experimental bullets I just recently received. I used a different load in the shoot-off when I broke the score record. That load was 33.7 grains Varget, CCI primers, 105 Berger hunting VLD, seated +.010 into lands. The Bergers were trimmed and pointed hard with a Hoover pointing die.” [Editor’s Note: The 33.7 grain load is very stout and may be UNSAFE in some Rifles. Both listed loads should only be used with fully-formed Dasher cases.]
SGT Vincent Hancock of the USAMU shot a 148/150 to win the Gold Medal today in men’s skeet at the London Olympics. Hancock has now won back-to-back Golds in skeet shooting at two successive Olympics. (Hancock also won Gold at Beijing in 2008). Finishing second with a 146 score, was Anders Golding of Denmark. Qatar’s Nasser Al-Attiya won a shoot-off over Russia’s Valery Shomin for the bronze at the Royal Artillery Barracks. Read Related Story on ESPN.com.
After setting a new Olympic Record by hitting 123 out of 125 clays in Tuesday qualifying, Hancock entered the medal round with a one-target lead. He then shot a perfect final round score of 25 for a total of 148 out of 150, which was also a new Olympic record. He is the first men’s skeet shooter in Olympic history to win two Gold Medals.
Hancock is a “young gun” in a field of more experienced competitors. At age 23, he is the youngest in the men’s skeet competition by five years. (The average age of medal-round-qualifying skeet shooters in London is 37 years.) Hancock almost missed the 2012 Olympics altogether. After his 2008 win in Beijing, he thought seriously about retiring from the sport. But after some months considering the options, he resumed his training with a vengence and now he is on top of the world. Hancock’s victory, combined with the Gold-medal performance of team-mate Kim Rhode in women’s skeet, gives Team USA a sweep of the Skeet events at the 2012 Olympics.
Olympics Finals photos by Tim Hipps, IMCOM Public Affairs.
Nick Till in 2009 M1A Match. Nick was the 2007 Service Rifle Nat’l Champion. Photo courtesy 
25-year-old 
The NRA High Power National Championships begin in just a few days. One of the favorites this year is SGT Sherri Jo Gallagher, who won the High Power Title in 2010. Sherri is only the second women in history to win the National High Power Championship. The first was her mother, Nancy Tompkins. Sherri looks forward to the challenge of competing against the likes of defending champ Carl Bernosky, and past title holders Norman Houle, and David Tubb. Count on Sherri to turn in a strong performance at Camp Perry this year.
SGT Vincent Hancock of the USAMU shot a 148/150 to win the Gold Medal today in men’s skeet at the London Olympics. Hancock has now won back-to-back Golds in skeet shooting at two successive Olympics. (Hancock also won Gold at Beijing in 2008). Finishing second with a 146 score, was Anders Golding of Denmark. Qatar’s Nasser Al-Attiya won a shoot-off over Russia’s Valery Shomin for the bronze at the Royal Artillery Barracks. 
