The Modern Pentathlon is a 5-discipline Olympic event that combines Horse Riding, Running, Swimming, Fencing, and Shooting. However it looks like there won’t be real shooting anymore, at least at the 2012 London Games.
Union International de Pentathlon Moderne (UIPM) President Klaus Schormann declared that laser guns will be used instead of air pistols in the Modern Pentathlon at the 2012 London Olympics. Schormann claimed the lasers would enhance safety and allow “competitions in parks and even shooting malls”. Last year, UIPM officials argued for the use of lasers to reduce the environmental impact of lead pellets from air pistols. Schormann stated: “The decision to introduce non-air pistol shooting … is a significant development in terms of lowering the environmental impact of the sport.” That’s nonsense — Pentathlon air pistols fire tiny 7-grain pellets that are easily captured by bullet traps, so there is virtually no environmental risk.
Sebastian, creator of the Snowflakes in Hell Blog, observed: “The reasoning of the [UIPM] committee is disturbing. I hope this doesn’t portend bad things to come with other Olympic shooting sports, whose environmental footprint is arguably worse.” One Snowflakes Blog reader astutely commented: “It would have been trivially easy to mandate lead-free pellets, if the ‘lead poisoning’ argument were the real reason behind this change. Replacing air pistols with lasers instead of a much simpler requirement to use nontoxic shot suggests that it was the ‘gun-ishness’ of the air pistols, and not the environmental impact, that may have been the primary driver here.”
Technical Problems with Laser Systems
British pentathlete Sam Weale recently challenged the use of lasers in Modern Pentathlon. According to the Inside the Games website, Weale claims persistent technical problems with the laser shooting system have rendered Modern Pentathlon a “lottery” which threatens the integrity of the sport. Olympians can not trust the electronic scoring systems, Weale argues. “It can’t go on, it is embarrassing,” said Weale, who, along with four other atheletes, lodged a protest over malfunctioning targets at the recent European Championships.
UIPM Decision Criticized by USA Shooting & ISSF
The Outdoor Wire’s Jim Shepherd polled leading shooting sports officials and found widespread criticism of the UIPM decision to replace pistols with laser devices. According to Shepherd: “USA Shooting and International Shooting Sports Federation (ISSF) dislike the change. Their position is simple, the laser gun takes much out of the ‘shooting’ element of external conditions (pistol and pellet accuracy) and turns shooting ‘into an arcade game’. They view it as a possible threat to shooting, moving away from what is ‘shooting sport’.”
EDITOR’s Comment: One wonders if the UIPM’s next move will be to replace fencing foils and sabres with Wii computer-game controllers — in the interest of safety. And shouldn’t the UIPM replace Pentathletes’ four-legged equine mounts with hobby-horses to reduce solid waste and methane emissions?
The Ultimate Benchrest (UBR) National Championship will be held August 6th at Buck Creek, Kentucky. No the Ultimate Benchrest Championship is not like the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC)– there are no over-muscled brawlers with tatoos in a cage. Ultimate Benchrest is like any other registered benchrest match for SCORE, except for the targets. To “level the playing field”, UBR uses different-sized targets for different calibers. This way a .30-cal rifle, such as a 30BR, does not enjoy an inherent advantage by virtue of its larger diameter bullet making a bigger hole in the paper. You can shoot 22 caliber, 6mm, or .30 caliber, and have an equal chance of winning.
The event starts at 9:00 am on Saturday, August 6th. The range is located at 7204, Highway 1003, Somerset, KY 42501. You can set your GPS for: N37 05.792 + W84 23.961. Though all available spots for competitors are filled, match diectors still invite folks to “come on over” to see what this game is all about. For more info, visit www.UltimateBenchrest.com.
Top firearms industry executives and pro shooters participated in the Ninth Annual Shooting Industry Masters, held July 22-23 in Park City, Kentucky. A record-breaking 370 competitors raised $37,000 for NSSF’s First Shots program. This brings the amount raised by the Masters for First Shots to $94,000 in three years. The Masters, held at the Rockcastle Shooting Center, Park Mammoth Resort, is owned and operated by FMG Publications. The leading male and female pro shooters were Jerry Miculek (Team Smith & Wesson) and Tasha Hanish (Team FNH).
“We had nearly 500 people each day participating in the event, with competitors and volunteers combined,” said Randy Molde, match chairman. “It was exciting to see so many folks who are used to sitting behind desks all day out enjoying the sport they help make better. We’re thankful they chose to spend the weekend with us to support First Shots.”
The Masters is a handgun, rifle, shotgun competition divided into two classifications: Industry and Open. The Industry class is for new to intermediate shooters, while the Open class is for professional and advanced shooters, many of whom compete on the USPSA and 3-Gun Nation circuits. Regardless of class, scores are not published. This helps maintain the traditional, no-pressure, fun atmosphere of the Masters.
2011 Shooting Industry Masters Top Shooters and Teams
Open Class
Industry Class
High Team: Open Class – Team JP Enterprises, Tony Holmes, Kurt Miller, Don Bednorz, Trapr Swonson and John Paul.
High Shooter: Open Class – Jerry Miculek, Team Smith & Wesson 1
Congratulations to USAMU member SSG Michael McPhail, winner of the 2011 Smallbore Rifle Prone Championship. SSG McPhail won three matches and took the 1st Daily 1200 Aggregate as he shot consistently throughout the week to finish with 4796-401X. Coming in second place overall was Mark Delcotto with a 4796-380X and CPT Christopher Abalo, SSG McPhail’s teammate on the AMU, finished third with a 4795-388X.
With so many talented shooters participating in the championship, SSG McPhail’s commanding X-score ended up as the deciding factor as his point total of 4796 was matched by two other shooters, Mark Delcotto (Civilian Champion), and Paul Nordquist (Any Sight Champion). McPhail shared credit for his victory: “I’d like to thank the commander of the AMU, all the solders and support staff at AMU — coaches, other shooters, my teammates — and also the NRA and the volunteers. Without the volunteers this match would never even happen.”
Held July 24-29, the Smallbore Rifle Prone Championships are a part of the NRA National Rifle and Pistol Championships held at Camp Perry, Ohio each year. Comprised of a Metallic Sight and Any Sight championship, competitors take 480 shots over the course of 12 matches from distances of 50 meters and 100 yards to determine who will take home the Critchfield Trophy.
Special Category Winners
Paul Nordquist shot a 4796-371X to match McPhail’s point total and secure the title of Any Sight Only Champion. Renowned shooter Nancy Tompkins won the High Woman award with a 4794-375X. Reya Kempley shot second (among women) with a 4794-352x and Sarah Beard of Texas Christian University took third with a 4790-351x. Kempley also won the Metallic Sight Championship with her aggregate of 2400-182x.
Civilian Champion: Mark Delcotto – 4796-380X
Any Sight Only Champion: Paul Nordquist – 4796-371X
Woman Champion: Nancy Tompkins – 4794-375X
Senior Champion: Peter Church – 4791-352X
Intermediate Senior Champion: Larry Parker Sr. – 4788-349X
Collegiate and Junior Champion: Sarah Beard – 4790-351xX
Intermediate Junior Champion: Katie Bridges – 4784-340X
Sub-Junior Champion: Sammy Richardson – 4751-270X
Service Champion: SSG Michael McPhail, USA – 4796-401X
High Visitor: Keigh Ridgeway – 4785-340X
The Randle Trophy match is smallbore international postal match with women competitors only. The Randle Trophy match was shot July 26th at Camp Perry immediately after the Dewar Trophy match. The course of fire for the match is a Dewar Course, where each shooter fires 20 shots at both 50 and 100 yards in the prone position. Below is a slide show with photos of the match.
Started in 1952 for International Women’s Team Competition in memory of former NRA President Thurman Randle, participating teams must be from an English-speaking country and field a team of 10 firing members, two alternate shooters, a captain, and a coach. Earning a position on the U.S. team is not easy, members must be one of the 12 top-scoring shooters in the Metallic Sight Aggregate competition at Perry to be invited. Below are the talented members of the 2011 Randle Trophy Team.
The NRA’s Smallbore 3-Position Awards Ceremony took place last night in the Hough Theater. Top honors went to SGT Joe Hein of the USAMU with an overall score of 2379-154x. Second was Missouri teenager Garrett Spurgeon with Arizona’s Tarl Kempley placing third. Brad Driscoll won the 2011 Camp Perry Junior Championship. Lisette Grunwell-Lacey was the Womens’ 3P smallbore champion and Ronald Durcholz of New York took the Senior title. This was a tough week of competitive for the 3P shooters — competitors battled through numerous weather dealays caused by thunderstorms.
Pistol Championships Captain Philip Hemphill of the Mississippi Highway Patrol won his first National Championship at the NRA National Pistol Championships held July 12-16 at Camp Perry, Ohio. Although Hemphill’s consistently high scores produced an aggregate total of 2632-113X. Hemphill is a ten-time winner of the National Police Shooting Championships, but this is his first big win at Perry. “This is the Super Bowl of pistol competition and winning feels great,” said Hemphill. “This is harder than the National Police Shooting Championship because of the distances you’re shooting, but winning here at Camp Perry is like winning at the Mecca of shooting.”
Earning an aggregate score of 2629-112X, two-time National Champion SFC James Henderson of the USAMU took the silver medal and the title of Regular Service Champion. Third place and the title of Civilian Champion went to John Zurek with a 2626-115X. For the fourth year in a row, Judy Tant clinched the titles of Woman and High Civilian Woman Champion by firing an aggregate score of 2549-68X. Bryan Layfield of Clarksburg, West Virginia, was named the Junior Champion and Collegiate Champion after firing a 2565-95X.
The National Rifle Association and the Civilian Marksmanship Program conduct the National Matches at Camp Perry each summer, considered to be the “World Series” of the shooting sports. Participants range from novices to Olympic-level shooters, and include civilians, military personnel, and law enforcement officers. The NRA National Rifle and Pistol Championships are open to everyone; NRA membership is not required. Ongoing daily reports on the NRA National Championships are found on the NRA Blog.
The International Benchrest Shooters (IBS) has updated its Official Rules of Competition. The complete IBS rules, with all recent updates, are presented in the latest Rulebook #12a. This is updated through July 2011. Rulebook #12A includes 2010 rule changes and 2011 temporary rules. New rules are highlighted with red text. You can now download the updated Rulebook #12a, as a .PDF file, from the IBS website.
Metallic Sights Standing Competition Video
Yesterday, 21 August, marked the opening of the Smallbore 3-Position Competition at the NRA Championships in Camp Perry, Ohio. The video below shows some of the shooters during the standing segment of the Metallic Sight portion of the smallbore championship events.
Standing Position Shooting
This week, smallbore competitors compete in three different positions: Prone, Standing, and Kneeling. Here are images from the standing portion of the event.
Prone Shooting
Here is a slide-show from the prone segment of the Smallbore three-position tournament at Camp Perry. These photos were taken on 21 July, during the first relay.
Images provided courtesy the NRA Blog, used by permission, all rights reserved.
Montana 1K benchrest shooter Leo Anderson has set a pair of astounding multi-match Light Gun Score Agg records. These are “records for the ages”. This season, Leo’s 6-match Score Aggregate was 99.5 (99,99,99,100,100,100), while his 10-match Score Aggregate was 96.8 (84,94,95,98,99,99,99,100,100,100). That’s amazing consistency. Given how hard it is to shoot a single 100 score at 1000 yards, Leo’s Aggs are jaw-dropping. It will be a long time before these Agg records are broken (if they ever are). Leo set his 99.5 (6-match) and 96.8 (10-match) records shooting a 17-lb rifle chambered for the 6mm Dasher. The Lawrence barrel was chambered by Montana gunsmith John King and Leo did the stock work himself (starting with a Shehane MBR Tracker).
99.5 Six-Match Agg and 96.5 Ten-Match Agg at 1000 Yards
Leo set these multi-match Agg records at the Deep Creek Range near Missoula, Montana. Tom Mousel, another record-holding Montana shooter reports: “Our Agg season is now complete here in Montana. Leo ‘Legend’ Anderson has broken both the 6-match and 10-match score aggregate records. He hasn’t just broken them, he has smashed them, with a couple Aggs that are truly remarkable. As a fellow 1000-yard competitor, I fully understand what it takes to grind out a quality Aggregate. What Leo has done this year is the most impressive thing I think we might ever see in the 1000-yard benchrest game. Leo is one of the best of the ‘good guys’, and also, in my opinion, Leo is the best 1000-yard shooter to ever grace our sport. You’d have to check with Leo, but I believe these are his 14th and 15th world records in his career. Leo also holds our Club record for Light Gun group and score, when he drilled a 3.476″/100 back in August of 2008″. (See photo below)
Record-Breaking 6mm Dasher Light Gun Specs
There’s nothing really exotic about the 17-lb Light Gun with which Leo set his score records. The stock is a laminated Shehane MBR Tracker with some modifications by Leo to make it track better. Leo altered the angle of the toe to match the forearm and modified the taper of the sides of the buttstock to ride better in the bags. Pillar-bedded into the stock is a Stiller Viper Drop Port. Leo loves this action. He says it is very fast to operate and the flat bottom makes it easy to install in the stock. In addition, the Viper action works well with his preferred CCI 400 primers: “I can run stout loads of H4895 with the Viper without cratering the primers. Some guys with other factory and custom actions have problems with the CCI 400s which are not as hard as the 450s.”
The 29.5″, 5-groove, 0.237″ land, HV-counter barrel was crafted by Lawrence Barrels. Based in Lewiston, Montana, Lawrence Barrels currently makes mostly AR barrels, but Leo says they make great cut-rifled tubes: “I currently have Lawrence barrels on both my Light Gun and my Heavy Gun. These Lawrence barrels both shoot great. I think they are the equal of the best examples from top barrel-makers such as Krieger and Bartlein.” Leo has tried straight-contour barrels, but he prefers some taper (similar to a Krieger #17 contour): “In my experience, tapered barrels seem to shoot better, at least in a 17-pounder. The gun is less nose-heavy and tracks better.” The barrel on Leo’s record-setting Light Gun currently has about 900 rounds through it.
For optics, Leo runs a 12-42x56mm Nightforce BR model with NP2DD reticle. Leo tells us: “the NP2DD reticle is my favorite and I have great confidence in the Nightforce. We tried it side-by-side with a big name European-made high magnification scope, and the Nightforce was visibly better. At 1000 yards it had better clarity, better sharpness, better resolution.”
Record Setting Dasher Recipe: Berger 105gr VLD, Hodgdon H4895, CCI 400, Lapua Brass
While many top 6mmBR and Dasher shooters use Varget or Reloder 15, Leo prefers Hodgdon H4895, which has a slightly faster burn rate. Leo tells us: “Right now, the H4895 and CCI combo is giving the best accuracy, and it’s a clean combination. I’ve shot a lot of Reloder 15, but the H4895 burns so much cleaner.” Leo’s load is running around 3050 fps, but “he’s not too concerned with what the chronograph says — when we tune our loads we go by what shows up on the target.” Leo is loading a bit more than 32 grains of H4895. (Editor’s NOTE: This load is for fully fire-formed Dasher cases ONLY. It is NOT safe to use in a 6mmbr with 105s.) Leo’s favorite projectiles are the “thin-jacket” Berger 105gr VLDs, pointed with a Whidden pointing tool. Leo turns his necks with a K&M neck turner.
To save on barrel life, Leo fire-forms his brass using a separate barrel. He prepares the brass with a false shoulder, then fires the cases loaded with pistol powder, cream of wheat and low-density plug in the end. He tried forming case with pistol powder alone, but that required much more powder and didn’t produce results as good as the cream of wheat method.
Shooting Fast — the Importance of Smooth Tracking
Leo tells us that you need a great-tracking rig to be competitive in the 1K game these days: “Some guys are getting 10 shots downrange in 20 seconds or less. It takes me about 30 seconds.” To shoot that fast, the gun needs to track perfectly so you can just slide it back and stay on target. “If you want to shoot fast, everything’s got to be working right — and your stock really needs to track well. If you’re chasing the knobs on your rest, you’re not getting [your bullets] down range.” Leo says the stock’s geometry must be “near perfect” in order for the gun to come back to the same spot shot after shot.
Leo Anderson’s Advice for New Long-Range Shooters.
We asked Leo if he had any advice for shooters new to the long-range benchrest game. Here are some of his thoughts:
1. Pick a Winning Cartridge – Leo thinks the Dasher is just about perfect for a 17-lb rifle: “Any more cartridge than that, you have too much gun movement. Something in the Dasher range is the perfect size. We shoot the Dashers around the 3050 fps node. Even with the 6-6.5×47 you’re just burning more powder, and at the higher node, the gun starts rocking and things start getting away from you.”
2. Get Good Equipment Right from the Start – “Go ahead and bite the bullet and buy good stuff right off. Too many guys try to get off cheap in the beginning. They end up buying two or three guns as they upgrade. You save money in the long run by buying good stuff in the beginning.”
3. Practice, Practice, Practice – “We get a lot of practice in the process of tuning and load development. We put in the time — on things like bullet sorting, case prep, load tuning.”
4. Keep Pushing for Perfection – “A lot of guys get a load that seems pretty good, and then they get lazy. Don’t be content when you get a 6-inch group at 1000, because the gun might shoot a LOT better. I’ve got Aggs in the five-inch range.”
Leo reports: “Here’s our ‘secret’ 1000-yard range out in the sticks where we do some spring tuning”.
The two-day 2011 Creedmoor Nationals for Black Powder rifles concludes today in Raton, NM. Many of the nation’s top black powder shooters are vying for the historic “Castle” trophy at the Whittington Center Range. Today’s course of fire is identical to Sunday’s — ten shots at each of three distances: 800, 900 and 1,000 yards. Weather was reasonably stable on Sunday, 17 July, but thunderstorms are predicted for this afternoon.
The Creedmoor Championship and the Castle Trophy
The Creedmoor Nationals’ match history dates back to the 19th century with the purchase of the Creed Farm in Long Island, New York. A long range black powder match between the United States and Ireland at the brand new Creedmoor range drew a significant amount of attention to the shooting sports and drew eventually drew its name from the NRA’s range. The 2011 championship currently being conducted at the Whittington Center is based on the original course of fire in keeping with the tradition of the match.
Castle Trophy
The Castle Trophy was first awarded to the 25th Lanarkshire Volunteers by Lord Elcho for their win over England and Ireland in a shooting match in 1871. The trophy was used as a prize at Creedmoor matches over the next couple of years. A noted inscription on the trophy reads: “Overall winners National Rifle Association of America 2nd Round” April 25, 1873. To honor the victors in the famous Creedmoor 1874 challenge match the USA and Ireland, this trophy was given to Colonel John Bodine of the United States of America Team.
Shown below, looking rather dapper in their waistcoats and top hats, are members of the American rifle team that defeated the Irish squad in 1874:
Story and photos by KJillson courtesy of the NRA Blog.
The Modern Pentathlon is a 5-discipline Olympic event that combines Horse Riding, Running, Swimming, Fencing, and Shooting. However it looks like there won’t be real shooting anymore, at least at the 2012 London Games.
Sebastian, creator of the Snowflakes in Hell Blog, observed: “The reasoning of the [UIPM] committee is disturbing. I hope this doesn’t portend bad things to come with other Olympic shooting sports, whose environmental footprint is arguably worse.” One Snowflakes Blog reader astutely commented: “It would have been trivially easy to mandate lead-free pellets, if the ‘lead poisoning’ argument were the real reason behind this change. Replacing air pistols with lasers instead of a much simpler requirement to use nontoxic shot suggests that it was the ‘gun-ishness’ of the air pistols, and not the environmental impact, that may have been the primary driver here.”
EDITOR’s Comment: One wonders if the UIPM’s next move will be to replace fencing foils and sabres with Wii computer-game controllers — in the interest of safety. And shouldn’t the UIPM replace Pentathletes’ four-legged equine mounts with hobby-horses to reduce solid waste and methane emissions?
Top firearms industry executives and pro shooters participated in the Ninth Annual Shooting Industry Masters, held July 22-23 in Park City, Kentucky. A record-breaking 370 competitors raised $37,000 for NSSF’s 
The Masters is a handgun, rifle, shotgun competition divided into two classifications: Industry and Open. The Industry class is for new to intermediate shooters, while the Open class is for professional and advanced shooters, many of whom compete on the USPSA and 3-Gun Nation circuits. Regardless of class, scores are not published. This helps maintain the traditional, no-pressure, fun atmosphere of the Masters.
Congratulations to USAMU member SSG Michael McPhail, winner of the 2011 Smallbore Rifle Prone Championship. SSG McPhail won three matches and took the 1st Daily 1200 Aggregate as he shot consistently throughout the week to finish with 4796-401X. Coming in second place overall was Mark Delcotto with a 4796-380X and CPT Christopher Abalo, SSG McPhail’s teammate on the AMU, finished third with a 4795-388X. 
Captain Philip Hemphill of the Mississippi Highway Patrol won his first National Championship at the NRA National Pistol Championships held July 12-16 at Camp Perry, Ohio. Although Hemphill’s consistently high scores produced an aggregate total of 2632-113X. Hemphill is a ten-time winner of the National Police Shooting Championships, but this is his first big win at Perry. “This is the Super Bowl of pistol competition and winning feels great,” said Hemphill. “This is harder than the National Police Shooting Championship because of the distances you’re shooting, but winning here at Camp Perry is like winning at the Mecca of shooting.”
Montana 1K benchrest shooter Leo Anderson has set a pair of astounding multi-match Light Gun Score Agg records. These are “records for the ages”. This season, Leo’s 6-match Score Aggregate was 99.5 (99,99,99,100,100,100), while his 10-match Score Aggregate was 96.8 (84,94,95,98,99,99,99,100,100,100). That’s amazing consistency. Given how hard it is to shoot a single 100 score at 1000 yards, Leo’s Aggs are jaw-dropping. It will be a long time before these Agg records are broken (if they ever are). Leo set his 99.5 (6-match) and 96.8 (10-match) records shooting a 17-lb rifle chambered for the 6mm Dasher. The Lawrence barrel was chambered by Montana gunsmith John King and Leo did the stock work himself (starting with a Shehane MBR Tracker).
The Creedmoor Nationals’ match history dates back to the 19th century with the purchase of the Creed Farm in Long Island, New York. A long range black powder match between the United States and Ireland at the brand new Creedmoor range drew a significant amount of attention to the shooting sports and drew eventually drew its name from the NRA’s range. The 2011 championship currently being conducted at the Whittington Center is based on the original course of fire in keeping with the tradition of the match.
