The NRA National Matches at Camp Perry, first held in 1903, have become a huge, national shooting sports festival with well over 6,000 annual participants. The National Matches include the CMP National Trophy Rifle and Pistol Matches, CMP Games rifle events and the NRA National Pistol, Smallbore Rifle and Highpower Rifle Championships. The matches are conducted jointly by the CMP, NRA and the Ohio National Guard.
For those planning to shoot at Camp Perry this summer, we’ve assembled some valuable resources to help with your planning.
You’ll also find some valuable tips from a current Camp Perry Thread in our Shooters Forum. Those who have attended in years past offer advice on lodging options:
Q: I was told the 4-person huts are very primitive. Are they really that bad?
A: FDShuster replied: “Yes, they really are that bad. Nothing more than a plywood, particle board “shelter” sitting on a concrete slab. Sitting out in the middle of an open field, in July and August, the temps in the huts will be very high. Plug-in electric outlets are available, so some bring a portable window air conditioner. If you would be able to reserve one of the newer units it would be closer to that of a motel room, a big jump up from a tent, and a whole ‘nuther world from the huts. My last times [at Camp Perry], I reserved an off-post motel room. Made the whole trip much more enjoyable, and I was actually able to sleep at night”.
RonD added: “The huts were made to house German WW II POWs. Take a sheet of plywood 1/2 or 3/4″ the size of the military bunks, or you’ll be sleeping on the floor( spring sag). I took a sleeping bag that I placed on top of the mattress, and put my sheets inside. Take your own pillow. You’ll need screw-in fuses for the outside exposed fuse block. Take 15-20-25-30 amp so you’ll have a variety. There is one light bulb in the center of the ceiling. Take a few spare bulbs. I took a box fan, cooler, card table, clothes line and clothes hangars, duct tape.”
Q: What about staying in the Modules or the Barracks?
A: The newer Modules, we’re told, are not available this summer. But the modern Barracks provide a good alternative. KenO writes: “They built new Barracks recently, and some of the shooters stayed in them last year and said they were real nice. Four beds to a room, and air conditioned. Same price as the huts.” KenO added: “I’ve stayed in the huts many times, but since they built the RV park, I have been staying there.”
CMP Resources for National Matches
To help serve those shooters, the Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP) has a web page dedicated to the National Matches at Camp Perry. The CMP’s National Match Page offers easy-to-use links to Registration Forms, Match Schedules, Rules, and event photo galleries. It’s very handy to have all these links in one place. If you are thinking of visiting Camp Perry this year, whether as a shooter or a spectator, you should bookmark this page.
CMP No Longer Issuing Ammo at CMP Matches
The CMP will no longer issue ammunition to competitors for the Garand, Springfield, As-Issued Garand, Carbine or any other CMP matches. This includes the National Matches and all Regional Games Events (Eastern/Western Games, Oklahoma Games, Georgia Games, etc.). Competitors may purchase ammunition at the match or bring their own. Ammunition will be for sale at all CMP National Matches at a special discounted match price. For the 2012 National Rimfire Sporter Match, Lapua will donate 50 rounds of .22LR ammunition to every competitor.
We like rifle matches that include reactive targets. As the huge success of the Top Shot TV show proves, it’s fun for both shooters and spectators alike to see targets that break or explode when they are hit. This also provides immediate feedback to competitors, which can help develop good gun handling and aiming.
The 4R Rifle Club of Alex, Oklahoma has a fun match each spring that employs a variety of reactive targets set from 100 yards to 500 yards. This year 36 competitors turned out for the May 5th Spring Shoot. The course of fire consisted of four (4) mini clay pigeons at 100 and 250 yards and four 4″ balloons at 400 and 500 yards. Each competitor was allowed 18 rounds at the bench to break the 16 targets within a 15-minute limit. After the initial go-round, the top six shooters return for a shoot-off.
Dean Morris, Mark Deluia, and Matt Hohnstein all hit every target for “clean” scores of 420, securing spots in the shoot-off. B.J. Baily and Rick Jensen had the 4th and 5th highest scores, but the remaining sixth shoot-off spot required a tie-breaker — a single shot closest to center at 250 yards. Adam Roberts drilled a nearly perfect shot to win the tie-breaker over Tim Mulrine.
The shoot-off proved to be a tight battle between Adam Roberts and Dean Morris. Both men shot perfect scores so the targets were reset again — only this time Adam and Dean were allowed just 9 rounds to score as many hits as possible. When the dust settled, Adam Roberts was the new 2012 Champion and the first repeat winner of this eight-year-old event. Congrats to Adam! Mark Deluia was the Two-Gun Champion, Don Johnston won the Factory Class, and Ross Reeves was top Junior shooter.
Equipment Lists for Top Shooters
Adam and Dean both had rifles smithed by Jon Beanland. Adam’s gun was a 6.5 CM with Savage action, Krieger barrel, McMillan stock, and S&B scope. He loaded Berger bullets in Hornady brass with Hodgdon H4350 powder. Runner-up Dean Morris shot a 7mm RSAUM with Kelbly action, Bartlein barrel, PR&T stock, and Nightforce scope. He was shooting Berger bullets with H4350 in Norma brass. Interestingly, the next two shooters also shot 7mm rifles. B.J. Baily ran a straight .284 Winchester, while Rick Jensen had another 7mm RSAUM.
The Varmint Hunters Association (VHA) announced last week that the 2012 VHA Jamboree and competition would be cancelled for 2012. The Jamboree has now been cancelled two years in a row. Last year the Jamboree was called off because of extreme flooding in South Dakota.
This year, according to VHA President Jeff Rheborg, the Jamboree has been cancelled for financial reasons. In addition, “all shooting events will be suspended for the 2012 shooting year at the VHA range”. On Friday, May 4th, Jeff issued this statement:
RE: 2012 Shooting Events
I hope this letter finds you enjoying the spring weather many are having. With much regret, all shooting events will be suspended for the 2012 shooting year at the VHA Range. With the uncontrollable events of last year and the financial loss we incurred, we feel the overall cost of repairing, maintaining and preparing for these events is not financially viable for this year. The foundation of VHA is stable; we feel it necessary to protect it in this uncertain economy. If you were registered for the 2011 Jamboree your refund will be forthcoming.
We apologize for any inconveniences this may cause. Thank you for your continued support!
Recently, an AccurateShooter team including contributing writer German Salazar visited the Nammo Talley facility in Mesa, Arizona. We were given access to the new Rimfire Service Center and the .338 Lapua Magnum loading facility. The Rimfire Service Center is a brand new facility dedicated to supporting top-level rimfire shooters in all disciplines, including Prone, 3-Position, Silhouette, Benchrest and more. Lapua has over 2 million rounds of various grades of match ammunition on hand for shooters to test and purchase. The RSC has a 100-meter test tunnel where groups are measured under ideal conditions with electronic sensor-equipped “paperless” target frames placed at 50 meters and 100 meters. Shooters can make appointments to visit the center and test ammo in their own rifles. A detailed report on the RSC has just been released on German’s Rifleman’s Journal website.
.338 Lapua Manufacturing and Testing
The .338 Lapua Magnum facility is a super-sized version of the rimfire facility. With a 300-meter tunnel and pressure testing equipment on hand, Nammo’s engineering and loading staff have the ability to develop perfect loads for government clients with a variety of specific requirements. The loading facility has equally impressive technology and is well worth reading about. CLICK HERE to read German’s article about the .338 LM facility.
AccurateShooter.com will have more information on these two state-of-the-art facilitites, including video footage in the coming weeks. So stay tuned!
For the second year, the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) will make available $100,000 in challenge grants to help expand shooting sports programs at local Boy Scouts of America Councils. The challenge grants from NSSF are available to qualifying BSA Councils that plan to expand their activities in the shooting sports. Such programs teach Scouts marksmanship skills, firearm and range safety, and teamwork.
“Our challenge grant program extends our longstanding partnership with the Boy Scouts of America and presents councils with a great opportunity to teach Scouts about the shooting sports and safe, responsible firearms ownership,” said Melissa Schilling, NSSF’s director of recruitment and retention. “Target shooting is one of the most popular Scouting activities, and NSSF hopes even more Scouts will gain knowledge of the shooting sports by taking advantage of these grants.”
NSSF Grants Supplement Matching Funds
BSA Councils applying for a grant must specifically earmark funds for shooting sports programs and provide matching funds at least equal to the grant request. NSSF will provide funding to the first 50 qualifying applicants up to a maximum of $2,000 in matching support.
Councils must use awarded funds toward the purchase of equipment and supplies for their shooting sports activities from an NSSF member retailer. Examples of qualifying purchases are ammunition, eye and ear protection, firearms, targets and shooting vests.
How to Apply for NSSF Grants
Applicants may view NSSF BSA Council Challenge Grant guidelines and application procedures at www.nssf.org/bsagrant. For more info, contact Melissa Schilling at NSSF at mschilling [at] nssf.org.
Dennis DeMille, Gen’l Manager of Creedmoor Sports reminded us that the Eastern Creedmoor Cup event is filling up fast. This popular match is limited to 200 participants. As of Friday, April 27th, 174 competitors have entered in this year’s Eastern Creedmoor Cup. Only 26 spots remain. If you want to compete, be sure to sign up soon. The event starts with a Free Clinic and Team Match on May 9th. This is followed by three (3) 800-point Aggregates conducted on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday (May 10-12). Each 800-point Agg will be a stand-alone match with awards; however, Creedmoor Cup champions will be crowned based on the 2,400-point Grand Aggregate scores. The weekend concludes with an EIC match on Sunday.
In related news, Creedmoor Sports announced some special discounts for catalog items. Through the end of this weekend, if you purchase three (3) DVDs you get an additional fourth DVD for free. Also, Creedmoor now offers the Crosman Roll-Up Shooting Mat for just $49.95.
On April 17th, the Sportsmen’s Heritage Act of 2012 (H.R. 4089) passed the House of Representatives with a 274-146 vote. Sponsored by Rep. Jeff Miller (R-Fla.), the bill combines four legislative priorities that will expand recreational hunting, shooting and fishing opportunities and also reaffirms existing law and heads off determined bureaucratic efforts to deny hunters and shooters from using traditional ammunition. This important legislation is supported by more than 35 national conservation and sportsmen’s groups.
“NSSF thanks Rep. Miller for his exceptional leadership in helping to expand access and opportunities for sportsmen and in protecting and preserving America’s hunting and shooting heritage,” said Lawrence G. Keane, NSSF senior vice president and general counsel. “We look forward to seeking passage of the bill in the Senate.”
Bill Would Bar EPA from Banning Lead-Core Ammunition
Included in H.R. 4089 is the Hunting, Fishing, and Recreational Shooting Protection Act. The bill amends the Toxic Substances Control Act to clarify the original intent of Congress to exclude traditional ammunition — ammunition containing lead-core components — and fishing tackle from regulation by the Environmental Protection Agency.
H.R. 4089 includes other key legislative priorities of the sportsmen’s community:
The Recreational Fishing and Hunting Heritage Opportunities Act, which requires federal land managers to support and facilitate use and access for hunting, fishing and recreational shooting.
The Recreational Shooting Protection Act, which requires National Monument land to be open to access and use for recreational shooting.
The Polar Bear Conservation and Fairness Act, which will allow the importation of polar bear parts taken in a hunt in Canada, if legally harvested before certain dates.
Last week, we reported that Bank of America (BofA) had told McMillan Group International (McMillan) to find a different business banking provider. The Daily Bulletin was one of the first media sources to break the story — our report appeared a few hours after Kelly McMillan posted the details on McMillan’s facebook page. According to Kelly’s post, he had been visited by a BofA Sr. Vice President who, in essence, told McMillan to find another provider of banking services within six months. BofA’s stated reason for terminating its long-standing relationship with McMillan was that the family-run, Phoenix-based company now manufactures rifles (and not just fiberglass stocks).
BofA Action Provokes Criticism from Gun Owners
Over the past week, BofA been the focus of a torrent of criticism from gun owners and those who support Second Amendment freedoms. Bank of America (the recipient of $45 billion dollars in federal TARP bailout loans) responded with a notice saying that it does NOT have a corporate-wide policy preventing BofA from doing business with gun manufacturers. BofA pointed to its participation in a very large financing for the Freedom Group (which includes Remington and Bushmaster). Nonetheless, the BofA Sr. VP’s message enunciated to Kelly McMillan — i.e. find another bank within six months — has not been repudiated.
Major Media Pick Up Story — And Glenn Beck Sounds Off
Public interest in this story grows by the day. Major newspapers and media outlets are now running the story.The BofA/McMillan controversy was the focus of Glenn Beck’s April 24, 2012 radio show. Beck opined that BofA’s response was confusing at best — BofA may say that it has no written policy against doing business with gun manufacturers, but this does not prevent BofA’s executives or regional bank managers from denying lines of credit to gun-makers.
NRA Interviews Kelly McMillan
On April 23rd, NRA Radio host Cam Edwards interviewed Kelly McMillan via telephone. In the interview, Kelly provided more details of his recent interactions with Bank of America. Those interested in this controversy can listen to the full interview by clicking on the YouTube Video embedded below:
Forum member Jerry Brandon isn’t just an excellent craftsman of Ballistic Edge annealing machines. He’s also a skilled writer who has authored six fiction novels. Writing as “JK Brandon”, Jerry has penned a series of books that should appeal to anyone who likes a good thriller with plenty of gun-related action.
We recently had the pleasure of reading Jerry Brandon’s book The Kennedy Rifle from start to finish. It’s an entertaining page-turner, with a fast-paced plot, well-drawn characters, sharply-written dialog, and some fascinating insights into the Kennedy assassination, drawn from years of research by the author. Brandon hooks the reader with this intro: “What would happen if you suddenly gain possession of the very rifle that killed President John F. Kennedy? And it’s not a 6.5 Mannlicher Carcano…and it wasn’t the only gun used in the assassination…”
The book’s protagonist is Michael Cole, a firearms and ballistics expert based in Arizona. Brandon says the Cole character is a “cross between Massad Ayoob and Clint Smith”. Those who’ve read much contemporary fiction will also notice that Michael Cole shares some qualities of John D. MacDonald’s Travis McGee and Lee Child’s Jack Reacher — and that’s a good thing. This Editor has read most of the Travis McGee series of books by MacDonald, as well as many popular Elmore Leonard titles. I can tell you that Brandon writes very convincing dialog that fans of MacDonald and Leonard will appreciate.
In many “best-selling” crime novels and techno-thrillers, the actions of the central character are all-too-often implausible — and sometimes completely “over the top”. That ruins a story for me. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve read a current novel and the protagonist does something so completely stupid, irrational, or implausible, that the book loses its appeal. You won’t encounter that problem with Brandon’s Michael Cole. The Michael Cole character is not a gun-slinging cartoon. Cole makes plausible decisions that draw on a sophisticated understanding of how real guns work. You won’t find Cole “releasing the safety on his revolver” or shooting down an airplane with a flare gun. The Cole character has another quality missing from most of the current techno-thriller heros — humor. Cole has a clever, dry wit that gives the book another dimension (Rockford Files fans will enjoy the humor.)
AUTHOR TALKS about BOOK
CLICK “PLAY” to hear Jerry Brandon TALK about his new thriller, The Kennedy Rifle.
[haiku url=”http://accurateshooter.net/Video/jkbrandonkr.mp3″ title=”JK Brandon Re Kennedy Rifle”]
If you like the Bob Lee Swagger books by Stephen Hunter or the Jack Reacher books by Lee Child, you’ll enjoy The Kennedy Rifle by Jerry Brandon. And certainly if you have a serious interest in the Kennedy assassination, this book is a must read. Brandon’s book uncovers many of the puzzling facts left out of the Warren Report. Though The Kennedy Rifle is a work of fiction, it makes a convincing argument that important aspects of the Kennedy assassination were never revealed to the American public.
Overall, I can recommend the book highly. My only criticism is that I wish the book were longer. By the third chapter I was “hooked” and proceeded to race through the novel in a couple of late-night sessions. When I got to the finish I wished Brandon had added some more twists and turns, and perhaps a few more sections dedicated to ballistics. In paperback version, the book runs 206 pages, including an excerpt from The Steel Violin, another Michael Cole novel by Brandon. You can order both paperback and eBook versions of The Kennedy Rifle and The Steel Violin from Amazon.com. Visit JKBrandon.com to learn more about the author and his Michael Cole novels.
The official results for the NBRSA 1000-yard Nationals have been released, along with final results for the F-Class Bench and 600-Yard Nationals. Congratulations to Bill Johnston, the new NBRSA 1000-yard Champion. Bill finished first with 18 rank points, edging runner-up Richard Schatz (19 pts) by one point. Terry Balding (who won the 600-yard NBRSA Nationals) finished third with 29 points, ahead of Greg Wilson (30, 4th place) and Robert Hoppe (34 5th Place).
LIGHT GUN GROUP — RICHARD SCHATZ 4.801″
LIGHT GUN SCORE — ROBERT HOPPE 288-6X
HEAVY GUN GROUP — BILL JOHNSTON 7.759
HEAVY GUN SCORE — BILL JOHNSTON 552-4X
TWO GUN GROUP — RICHARD SCHATZ 6.585″
TWO GUN SCORE — BILL JOHNSTON 817-6X
NEW 1000-Yard NATIONAL RECORDS
RICK DUNCAN — LIGHT GUN 3 TARGET SCORE 149-4X
ROBERT HOPPE — LIGHT GUN 6 TARGET SCORE 288-6X
RICK DUNCAN — LIGHT GUN 6 TARGET SCORE 283-6X
Jim O’Connell tells us tha several new records were set at both of the National Champonships (1000-yard and 600-yard). Check out the attachments for all the groups and scores as well as the many winners in separate divisions and target categories (LG/HG, Group/Score, Single Target/3-Target/6-Target). We congratulate all the shooters who attended the NBRSA Long-Range Nationals this week. The match directors thank you for your participation and hope to see you next year.
The NRA National Matches at Camp Perry, first held in 1903, have become a huge, national shooting sports festival with well over 6,000 annual participants. The National Matches include the CMP National Trophy Rifle and Pistol Matches, CMP Games rifle events and the NRA National Pistol, Smallbore Rifle and Highpower Rifle Championships. The matches are conducted jointly by the CMP, NRA and the Ohio National Guard.
We like rifle matches that include reactive targets. As the huge success of the Top Shot TV show proves, it’s fun for both shooters and spectators alike to see targets that break or explode when they are hit. This also provides immediate feedback to competitors, which can help develop good gun handling and aiming.
The 
Recently, an AccurateShooter team including contributing writer German Salazar visited the Nammo Talley facility in Mesa, Arizona. We were given access to the new 
For the second year, the 
On April 17th, the Sportsmen’s Heritage Act of 2012 (H.R. 4089) passed the House of Representatives with a 274-146 vote. Sponsored by Rep. Jeff Miller (R-Fla.), the bill combines four legislative priorities that will expand recreational hunting, shooting and fishing opportunities and also reaffirms existing law and heads off determined bureaucratic efforts to deny hunters and shooters from using traditional ammunition. This important legislation is supported by more than 35 national conservation and sportsmen’s groups.
Last week, we reported that Bank of America (BofA) had told McMillan Group International (McMillan) to find a different business banking provider. The Daily Bulletin was one of the first media sources to break the story — our report appeared a few hours after Kelly McMillan posted the details on 
BofA Action Provokes Criticism from Gun Owners
Forum member Jerry Brandon isn’t just an excellent craftsman of 
If you like the Bob Lee Swagger books by Stephen Hunter or the Jack Reacher books by Lee Child, you’ll enjoy The Kennedy Rifle by Jerry Brandon. And certainly if you have a serious interest in the Kennedy assassination, this book is a must read. Brandon’s book uncovers many of the puzzling facts left out of the Warren Report. Though The Kennedy Rifle is a work of fiction, it makes a convincing argument that important aspects of the Kennedy assassination were never revealed to the American public.
