|
|
July 6th, 2010
 The 2010 National Rifle and Pistol Championships kick off July 12 at Camp Perry in Port Clinton, Ohio. Conducted by the National Rifle Association (NRA) and the Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP) with assistance from the Ohio National Guard, these matches have long been considered the “World Series of the Shooting Sports.” A tradition at Camp Perry since 1907, the event is divided into five separate phases: Pistol, Smallbore 3-Position, Smallbore Prone, High Power, and Long Range. The popular CMP clinics and matches will be held from July 30 through August 7. MidwayUSA is the Title Sponsor for the 2010 National Championships. (FYI: MidwayUSA is also currently offering special discounts to AccurateShooter.com readers: $10 off $50 – Coupon Code 2437210.)
The National Matches begin each year in early July with the National Pistol Championships and conclude in August with the Long Range High Power Championship. Competitors represent a vast array of experience including novice shooters, Olympic medalists, law enforcement officers, military personnel, and international competitors.
 2010 Nat’l Matches Schedule:
July 12: First Shot Ceremony
July 13-17: Pistol Championships
July 21-24: Smallbore Rifle Position
July 25-29: Smallbore Rifle Prone
July 30-Aug 1: CMP SAFS & Clinics
August 2-7: CMP Rifle Matches
August 8: Springfield M1A Match
August 10-13: High Power Rifle
August 14-17: Long Range Rifle
The NRA Blog will provide timely reports and the latest match results during the Championships. For more on the Camp Perry National Championships, or other competitive shooting events or programs, visit www.nrahq.org/compete or call (703) 267-1450. Go to the CMP Website for information on CMP Clinics and Trophy Matches.
July 2nd, 2010
 On June 19, the 4R Rifle Club in Alex, Oklahoma hosted its Spring Balloon Shoot. This challenging “fun shoot” drew nearly 50 competitors from five states. In this multi-yardage event, shooters try to break four balloons, one each at 100, 250, 400, and 500 yards. A total of 18 rounds were allowed. The balloons were worth 10, 20, 30, and 45 points respectively. Shooters attacked the balloons in 12 relays. Even with challenging winds, some impressive scores were fired. When the smoke cleared and all the competitors had tried their luck, only two had perfect scores of 420. Jim Fowler turned in a pair of 410s to win the Two-Gun award, youth winner Dalton Ernst shot a 390, and factory gun champ Don Johnson managed a 365 with his Savage 6BR.
Exciting Shoot-off Decides Match Winner
The top six shooters of the day returned to the bench with clean scorecards for the Shoot-off. They would repeat the same course as earlier in the day — one balloon each at 100, 250, 400, and 500 yards, with 18 rounds. Two competitors, Don Johnson and Rick Jensen, emerged from the Shoot-off tied, having both shot clean scores of 420. The balloons were set up again, only this time, Don and Rick were allowed just 8 rounds. Hard choices had to be made. Both men elected to start at 400 yards, breaking all four balloons before moving to 500, where both Don and Rick broke three. As a final tie-breaker, each man fired a single shot at a distance of 300 yards. When the targets were retrieved, Don Johnson prevailed as the Overall Champion, with Rick Jensen in second. Don was shooting a .243 Win, while Rick had a .284 Win; both guns featured Surgeon actions. Finishing 3rd, 4th, and 5th respectively were: Shane Herman, Jim Fowler (2-Gun Champ), and Arthur McMeans.
Top Ten Shooters’ Equipment List (in alphabetical order)
Match organizers offer special thanks to the many match sponsors who filled a rich prize table, and thanks to the Reeves family for hosting yet another great match at the 4R Rifle Club.
June 30th, 2010
 The July digital edition of Shooting Sports USA is now available for free online. In this latest edition of the popular “e-zine”, Managing Editor Chip Lohman reports on recent major collegiate matches, including the first ever Intercollegiate Rifle Club Championship.
This July issue also features an excellent article by Scott Pilkington on Airgun Maintenance. This is an important topic which needs more coverage. Pilkington is a respected air rifle expert who served as the official gunsmith for the U.S. Olympic air gun squad at the Sydney Olympic games. He also runs his own Tennessee-based business, Pilkington Competition Equipment, www.pilkguns.com.
June 27th, 2010
The 2010 National Junior Air Gun Championships in Albuquerque, NM concluded yesterday. The new champions were crowned last evening at an awards ceremony. Here are the top three individual and team winners from both the Sporter and Precision classes. Note: these results are preliminary, and are not final until the challenge period has ended.
| Precision Rifle Division
Individual Aggregate (1200 possible points):
1. Landon Shankles, LaCueva HS, MCJROTC, 1179
2. Abigail Stanec, Ohio Rifle & Pistol Assn., 1177
3. Dan Lowe, Washington State Rifle & Pistol Assn., 1172
Team Aggregate (4800 possible points):
1. Ohio Rifle & Pistol Association, 4667
2. LaCueva HS, MCJROTC, 4634
3. Washington State Rifle & Pistol Assn., 4633
A record number of JROTC teams competed in this year’s championship. |
Sporter Rifle Division
Individual Aggregate (1200 possible points):
1. John White, Maryland State Rifle & Pistol Assn., 1106
2. Dahkota Hayes, Montana Rifle & Pistol Assn., 1094
3. Shaley Clements, Ohio Rifle & Pistol Assn., 1085
Team Aggregate (4800 possible points):
1. Montana Rifle & Pistol Assn., 4267
2. Venture Crew 123 Aloha Council BSA, 4223
3. Maryland State Rifle & Pistol Assn., 4156
This was the second year in a row than the Montana Rifle & Pistol Assn. won a team championship. |
June 26th, 2010
 Impossible Shots, a spin-off of the Shooting USA TV show, is now the most-watched series on the Outdoor Channel’s Wednesday Night line-up of gun-related broadcasts. Reflecting its growing popularity, Impossible Shots will now also air on Saturdays, at these times: 4:30 PM EST, 3:30 CST, 2:30 MT, 1:30 PT. Impossible Shots features amazing trick-shooting challenges performed by six top professionals: Pistoleros Bub Munden, Jerry Miculek, and Gil Guerra, rifleman George Sutton, and archer Byron Ferguson. There are also regular appearances by Team Winchester’s Patrick Flanigan, considered the world’s fastest shotgun shooter. In the video below, Flanigan shoots 12 shells in just 1.442 seconds!
June 23rd, 2010
 One of the best hike-and-shoot, field-style long-range rifle challenges is the Steel Safari match — a 3-day event conducted in New Mexico’s high desert. The Steel Safari is a contest that examines “practical hunting skills, including target recognition, range estimation, wind doping, trail skills, and marksmanship”, according to the match entry form. Competitors locate small and medium-sized steel targets, range them, and engage with one shot only, under a challenging time limit. Some movement on the clock is required, and shoot positions are always improvised. Shooters may have to go prone on a rock slab, shoot a steep angle down a gully, or lean out the side of a truck. Both the North course and the South course are approximately 3.3 miles in length starting and ending at the “front range”, and looping around the rim of different parts of elevated terrain features.
 The 2010 Steel Safari, held June 4-6, can be characterized by one word: HOT. Temperatures started ramping up on Friday for the Long-Range Side Match, reaching about 100 degrees Fahrenheit, and peaked on Saturday with a high of 109. The shooting was hot too, with winning scores higher than ever before. Among the 36 competitors, Steve Mann finished first with an impressive 95 score. Close behind, with a 93, was B.J. Bailey. Jimmy Holdsworth and Tom Freeman, both scored 88s, but Holdsworth prevailed on the tie-breaker for third place. In the Long-Range Side Match, Jon Beanland took first with a 111 score, followed by Jim Jensen (109) and Brian Whalen (99).
Equipment List — Two-Thirds of Competitors Use 6.5s or 6mms
The most popular rifle/action make was Surgeon (28%), followed by Remington (22%), then Accuracy International and Stiller (11% each), then Savage (8%), Big Horn Arms (6%), and one each of Barrett, Borden, DTA, GAP Templar, and Howa. The 6.5mm caliber totally dominated with 39% of all rifles; 6mm was next with 28%, then .30 (22%), and then 7mm (11%). Chamberings of choice were: .260 Remington (25%), .308 Winchester (17%), 6.5×47 Lapua (11%), 6% for each of 6XC, 7mm WSM, 7mm RSAUM, .260AI, and then 3% each for .300 WM, 6mm-250, .30-06, 6.5-284, 6 Dasher, .243 Winchester, and 6CM/243.
Scopes: Nightforce (28%), U.S. Optics (25%), Schmidt & Bender (17%), followed by Leupold (14%), Vortex (6%), and 3% each for Hensoldt, Burris, Pentax, and Premier. Laser range-finders were dominated by Leica (50%), followed by Swarovski (19%), Zeiss (17%), Vector (8%), and 3% each Leupold and Newcon. Bipods were mostly Harris (78%), followed by Atlas, AI, Caldwell, and Sinclair.
Propellants: Hodgdon powders totally dominated (80%) with Alliant second (20%). Of the Hodgdon powders, H4350, H4831SC, and Varget were the most popular, while RL17 was the most popular Alliant powder by far. The most notable trend in powder choice is that RL17 has replaced H4350 and H4831SC for many shooters.
Bullets, Brass, Ammo: Sierra (31%), Berger (25%), Lapua (25%), and DTAC 6mm (11%). Winchester and Lapua cases dominated with 33% each, followed by Remington (16%), and then Black Hills, Norma, and Lake City (3%). Only 2 shooters used factory ammo: one was Federal GMM (.308) and the other was M118LR (7.62×51 NATO).
CLICK HERE for full, 6-page report on 2010 Steel Safari
June 21st, 2010
We are just three weeks from the start of the 2010 National Rifle and Pistol Championships at Camp Perry, Ohio. The National Championships, which have been held since 1907, draw more rifle and pistol competitors than any other shooting match in the Americas. The physical “playing field” is impressive — Camp Perry, situated on the southern shore of Lake Erie, boasts the largest outdoor rifle range in the world.
The NRA’s Competitive Shooting Division has just released a “Welcome to Camp Perry” video, which covers the history of the National Championships along with pistol, smallbore rifle, and highpower rifle disciplines. This entertaining, professionally-made video shows the diversity of the competitions and the overall scale of this big, annual event. If you watch carefully, you’ll see cameos by champions such as Carl Bernosky. The video is highly recommended….
 Registration, Programs and Entry Cards
If you want to compete at Camp Perry, it’s easy to register. Simply CLICK HERE to REGISTER ONLINE.
Note: Programs and entry cards for 2010 will only be mailed to those individuals who did not register online in 2009. Those who registered online may again do so for 2010 or they may request that a program and entry packet be sent to them. All others must request a copy of the National Matches Program by writing to:
NRA Competitive Shooting Division
11250 Waples Mill Rd., Fairfax, VA 22030
Please state which phase (Pistol, Smallbore Rifle or High Power Rifle) you plan to enter. You can also send E-mail to compadmin@nrahq.org.
June 19th, 2010
16-year-old Kelsey Moral from Sharpsburg, Georgia looks like any other teenage precision air rifle shooter. But unlike most teen shooters, Kelsey has cerebral palsy. For Kelsey the pain has always been there, and therapy has always been a way of life. “I was born with a mild case of spastic cerebral palsy,” Kelsey says. About 80% of the approximately 800,000 CP sufferers in the US fall into Kelsey’s type, known as spastic diplegia, which primarily affects leg muscles.
Kelsey’s condition is characterized by having one or more tight muscle groups which limit movement. That’s why she walks with a limp and has difficulty getting into and out of shooting positions. “Prior to joining the [East Coweta HS JROTC] rifle team, she would never tell anyone what her disability was,” Kelsey’s mother Janice said. “By no means is CP going to get the best of me,” Kelsey said emphatically. “Thankfully, it only affects my legs,” Kelsey explained. “Because of my CP, I have had some hurdles to overcome. Some days my legs hurt so bad, I can hardly stand it – other days they’re okay.”
Kelsey’s first appearance in a big match came in February at the Marine Corps JROTC Championship at Camp Perry. Though she finished in the middle of the pack, she scored second highest on her high school team in the postal qualifier leading up to the Service Championship, scoring 277 out of a possible 300 in Three-Position Air Rifle (3PAR).
Kelsy Moral (center) with mother Janice (right) and USMC coach Msgt Joel Skinner (left).
Kneeling Position is a Challenge
The MCJROTC Service Championship marked the first time Kelsey was able to get into the kneeling position for an important match. Though she cannot completely flex her legs, Kelsey was able to achieve a stable position and fire the match. “Because of my muscle tone, I have not been able to kneel. So for about a year I shot standing twice. One day I decided that I really wanted to kneel like everyone else. Some days I can’t kneel at all; my legs just won’t let me. I’m in physical therapy and I work hard everyday with exercises to help me kneel more comfortably. Sometimes I worry that I’ll fall over because I feel unstable.”
Kelsey’s coach, USMC MSGT Joel Skinner, is proud of Kelsey’s remarkable progress: “She is a really determined young lady and continues to improve at every match.” Kelly explained: “Coach Skinner has helped me a lot to stabilize myself while kneeling – I have a long way to go, but I work everyday at it. I strive to shoot in every match possible as I know this only builds my experience and my strength. Being on the rifle team has been great, because it has built my confidence up – I like being part of a team.”
Original Report by Steven Cooper for ODCMP.com | CLICK HERE to Read More…
June 18th, 2010
 Haley Dunn claimed her first Gold medal of 2010 at the shotgun World Cup in Lonato, Italy, taking her first step toward the 2012 Olympic Games. Dunn, ranked #1 in the USA, is making her second appearance on the 2010 World Cup circuit. Smashing 73 out of 75 targets, she entered the Final with a one target lead over the rest of the field. Missing only one target in the Final, Dunn ended the day hitting 97 out of 100.
“This is so exciting for me. It’s great to be back on the World Cup podium, it’s been a while”, said Dunn, “I am back and my next aim is the World Championships in Munich.” Dunn, the alternate at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing won her last medal at the World Cup in Kerrville, TX in 2008. She also took Gold at the 2007 Pan American Games in Rio De Janeiro. In a field of 60 women that included Olympic and World Champions, Dunn dominated the competition, never relinquishing her lead. “In 2008, I lost the spot on the U.S. Olympic team by one target,” she said. “After that, it took me a while to reevaluate all my thoughts and feelings. I now feel that I finally made it.”
Dunn has traveled to over 20 different countries representing the United States, competing in Olympic skeet and winning more than 25 Gold Medals and other awards. An alternate on the 2004 and 2008 U.S. Olympic teams, Dunn hopes to represent the USA at the 2012 Olympics in London.
Haley Dunn — From Farm-Girl to International Champion
Growing up on a farm in Eddyville, Iowa, Haley Dunn began shooting with her father at the age of eight. She began shootgunning competitively at age 12. At 14, Dunn entered the Iowa State Sporting Cays Championship and won the Gold Medal, the youngest lady champion in the event’s history. She went on to claim the Iowa state championship three more times, and won the Missouri State Ladies’ Sporting Clays Championship twice.
When Dunn was just 15, she competed in the Junior Olympic Championships in Olympic Skeet. Dunn won the Silver Medal and a spot on the USA Junior Olympic Team. Nine months later at the 2001 World Championships in Egypt, Dunn won the Gold Medal in the Junior Category. She went on to win another Gold Medal at the Junior World Championships in Suhl, Germany. Later on that year, at the USA National Championships, Dunn took the Gold Medal in the Junior Division and with an impressive fourth place finish in the Women’s Open Division.
After high school (where she competed in softball and track), Haley enrolled in the Univ. of Missouri-Columbia, graduating with a degree in Agricultural Business Management in 2007. Active with the Mizzou Shooting Team, Dunn won the Gold Medal and HOA Ladies Championship at the ACUI Intercollegiate Clay Target National Championships.
June 16th, 2010
Chip Lohman, Managing Editor of Shooting Sports USA magazine, has crafted an interesting YouTube video covering the inaugural NRA Intercollegiate Rifle Club Championships, held this past April at Purdue University. The video shows all phases of the event — sign-ups, gun inspection/weighing, 3-position competition, and the awarding of prizes. The Univ. of Michigan (Ann Arbor) team won the event, followed by Clemson (second place), and Indiana Univ. of PA (third).
Every month Shooting Sports USA provides coverage of a wide variety of NRA disciplines, from 10m air pistol to 1000-yard high power matches. Each monthly edition provides features stories, plus schedules for matches nationwide. CLICK HERE to receive a FREE digital edition of Shooting Sports USA, sent directly to your e-mail box each month.
|
