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April 15th, 2010
 The 2010 Eastern CMP Games and Creedmoor Cup Matches will be held May 8th through 16th at Camp Butner, NC. The event is hosted by the North Carolina Army National Guard. The 4th Eastern CMP Games and Creedmoor Cup Matches are co-sponsored by the CMP and Creedmoor Sports, Inc. CMP Games Matches will take place on 8-11 May while Creedmoor Cup Matches will be held 12-16 May. All interested shooters, (of all ages and skill levels) are invited to participate in these popular competitions. You’ll want to get your entry form in soon. There’s less than four weeks before the match starts.
CLICK for Match Program | CLICK for Match REGISTRATION
The Eastern CMP Games begin with a clinic on Saturday, 8 May. Three days of Garand, Springfield and Vintage Military Rifle Matches take place on 8, 10 & 11 May. The CMP Games Matches also include an “As-Issued” M1 Garand EIC Match on 9 May, a Rimfire Sporter Match and As-Issued Military Pistol Match on 9 May and an M1 Carbine Match on 10 May. New this year is a “Vintage Sniper Rifle Test Match” for two-man teams on 11 May. The Creedmoor Cup Matches begin on Wednesday, 12 May, with an advanced clinic. The Creedmoor Cup Matches include a Practice Match, a NMC team match, the 80-shot Creedmoor Cup Match and an EIC service rifle-NMC match rifle event. Both competitions feature special hospitality events and prize awards. Remington Firearms is sponsoring the High Power Rifle Clinic and a Practice Match (NMC). Creedmoor Sports is sponsoring a Four-Man team match (4 x NMC), the Creedmoor Cup 800 Aggregate and the Creedmoor EIC Match.
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November 19th, 2009
SFC Emil Praslick III sent us this report on the U.S. Palma Team tryouts at Camp Butner, NC. You can read other reports from Coach Praslick on the U.S. National Rifle Team Blog.
Last Tryout in the Books… On to the National Team
By Coach Emil Praslick
It was a hardy and intrepid group of US Palma Team hopefuls that braved the last vestiges of Hurricane Ida last weekend at Camp Butner, North Carolina. Camp Butner is the home range of the North State Shooting Club, which hosted the US Palma Team’s third and final tryout session. Temperatures in the 40s, winds from 20-30 mph, and a driving rain tested the mettle of both coaches and shooters.
 US Team Captain, Dennis Flaharty flung his net across the entire United States in a search for the best team shooters. By adopting a regional format for the tryouts, and separating the country into three areas (West Coast, Midwest, and East Coast), the team maximized the potential for attracting the best shots our vast nation has to offer. The three venues were: Sacramento, CA; Lodi, WI; and Butner, NC. At each venue, the top performers were invited to become members of the United States National Developmental Team.
New Team Tryouts Format
The format for the tryouts was different than any ever conducted by the United States. In the past, these events were held very much like individual matches. Shooters were evalauated by the scores they shot in a series of matches. While this undoubtedly picked the best individual shooters, those who experienced difficulty doping the wind, or those who simply shot during more difficult conditions, were often deselected early in the process. The current procedures call for shooters to be supervised by coaches at all times. This not only removes a shooter’s ability to negotiate wind from the process, it also gives the team management the opportunity to evaluate prospective coaches and to work on firing line procedures. Shooters are graded on their ability to shoot “elevation”, their speed, and their overall performance as part of the team.
The intent of forming a National Developmental Team was to establish a pool of skilled, international-quality shooters; not only for the upcoming 2011 Palma Match in Australia, but as the nucleus for future teams. The US National Team has an ambitious schedule for 2010, with trips to Canada, Camp Perry, Raton (NM) for The Spirit of America Matches, and Australia.
 The next milestone for the US National Developmental Team is to finish the processing of the shooter’s elevation data, and to begin planning which shooters will represent the United States at the planned events. Shooters will then be evaluated in match conditions and recieve further training/evaluation prior to the final Palma Team selection in the Fall of 2011.
I would like to thank all of the volunteers who assisted with the target pulling, scoring, running the firing line, and the host of myriad tasks that are necessary to conduct an event of this complexity. I would also like to thank the coaches who coached 400 rounds per day at 1000 yards with no complaint. It was a grueling (but very beneficial) exercise for them. We will announce the final US National Developmental team soon.
TWITTER: You can also follow the US National Team on Twitter. Visit www.twitter.com/usnationalrifle for the latest news.
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October 4th, 2009
As the trophy presentation concluded, our correspondent, John Whidden, filed this report from the 2009 F-Class Nationals at Camp Butner, NC. John reports that Charles Ballard (1328-62X) successfully defended his 2008 F-Open Title, edging Jim Murphy (1327-59X) by just one point. Both men were shooting 7mms — Ballard a straight .284 and Murphy a 7mm short magnum. The duel between Ballard and Murphy went down to the wire, but Ballard is now the F-Open Champ for the second year in a row. In F-TR class, Danny Biggs also won his second straight National Championship, finishing first with 1288-38X, four points ahead of Jeff Rorer (1284-34X). Congratulations to Charles and Danny on their back-to-back victories, and all the shooters who competed at the Nationals!
| F-Class National Championships, 2009 Final Results |
F-Open
1st Charles Ballard: 1328-62X
2nd Jim Murphy: 1327-59X
3rd Brian Otey: 1321-47X |
F-TR
1st Danny Biggs: 1288-38X
2nd Jeff Rorer: 1284-34X
3rd Derek Rogers: 1283-33X |
Milder Winds on Saturday, but Challenges Remained
Whidden reported that conditions were better on Saturday (Oct. 3) than on Friday: “On Friday it was tricky — winds were whipping everyone’s tail.” On Saturday, John said: “Winds were generally lighter, predominantly from the left, and a good deal more readable. We didn’t see the fishtailing winds as before. Saturday was a warm day, with highs about 85° and lots of sunshine.”
Even with milder weather, shooting at Butner can be challenging. John told us: “Having shot the Butner range before is definitely an advantage — experience helps. There are a few nuances you have to learn. For example, there is some vertical that comes off the berms, particularly if you have headwinds or tailwinds.” However, John added, “this vertical treated everyone pretty much the same. One side of the range wasn’t worse than another.” John noted that squading changes on Saturday (shifting from 4 relays to 6, with fewer firing points) created some initial confusion and made for a longer day. After shooting about half the match with six relays, shooters were re-organized back to four squads. Overall, however, everything went pretty smoothly.
Image courtesy NRAblog.com.
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October 2nd, 2009
Congrats to Team Sierra Spindle Shooters and Team Sinclair. The Sierra-sponsored Spindle Shooters won both the 600- and 1000-yard team events for F-Open and the F-Open Team Aggregate. Likewise, Team Sinclair won both 600- and 1000-yard events and the Team Aggregate for F-TR. In the process of winning the F-TR Team Championship, Team Sinclair set new records. Brad Sauve, Team Sinclair shooter, posted: “I am proud to announce that Team Sinclair, sponsored by Sinclair International and Sierra, set new national records at the 2009 F-Class National Championship at Camp Butner. The new 600-yard team record is now 784-40x and the new 1000-yard team record is now 774-20x. Paul Phillips did a fine job coaching the team (and also shooting) along with Jeff Rorer and Derek Rodgers.” Finishing second in F-TR Team competition was the USA Veterans Team, while Charles Ballard’s Precision Rifle & Tool Team was runner-up to the Spindle Shooters in F-Open class.
Sierra Spindle Shooters: Shawn Ahrens, Jeff Cochran, Brett Solomon, Jeff Traylor.
Team Sinclair: Paul Phillips, Derek Rodgers, Jeff Rorer, Brad Sauve.
Click Here to View All TEAM Results (PDF File)
Individual Results through Friday
There’s one more day left in individual Competition. Currently, after two days of shooting, Charles Ballard (893-48X) leads F-Open, followed by Jim Murphy (888-43X), and Larry Bartholome (885-29X). In F-TR Class, Danny Biggs (866-31X) is in first place, with Jeff Rorer (864-28X) two points behind, and Darrell Buell (859-18X) in third. There are 87 competitors in F-Open Class, and 56 in F-TR.
CLICK HERE for All Individual Standings Through Friday (Excel file)
 Whidden’s Report from Butner
John Whidden writes: “Today’s conditions have been very tough and most shooters have been humbled! Clearly the leaders figured something out but most of us struggled. Danny Biggs has a 2-point lead lead in F-TR while Ballard is up by 5 in the F-Open class.
Winds started out fairly mild for the first string but all of that changed shortly afterward. Winds were from behind the firing line and fishtailing. Wind velocity climbed through the middle of the day and any slight angle change could easily have shooters crying the blues. Mirage offered little help mostly looking like a boil. As the time for team match arrived things were starting to calm a bit. The last shooters to shoot the team match all had realtively easy conditions.
Again the day at the range was long. Firing was completed near 6:00 PM. Tomorrow’s schedule holds three, 15-shot strings of individual fire and no team match. Weather is forecast to be milder with highs of about 82° F.”
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October 2nd, 2009
John Whidden, our correspondent at Camp Butner, NC, provided an early report after the 600-yard stage at the 2009 F-class Nationals. Charles Ballard is leading F-Open while Danny Biggs is leading F-TR class. Ballard is the reigning 2008 F-Class Open Nat’l Champion.
Whidden reports: “After the 600-yard stage, the top three spots in F-Open are held by Charles Ballard 449-29X, Don Nagel 448-22X, and Robert Bock 447-28X.” We’ve learned that, in F-TR, after today’s 1000 yard phase, Danny Biggs is in front with an aggregate score of 866-31X, followed by Jeff Rorer with a 864-28X, and Darrell Buell with a 859-18X.
“Classic Butner” Conditions at Nationals
Whidden tells us that “Classic Butner” conditions (as described by F-Open shooter Tom Guercio) are prevailing: “Early in the day there was a switching headwind that turned around into a switching tailwind by the end of the day. Winds were relatively light, but changes came quickly making it easy to have shots in the 9 Ring.”
Whidden adds: “The match ran smoothly but shooting three 15-shot strings plus a team match made for a long day. The schedule is the same for tomorrow. Everything today was fired form the 600-yard line. The remainder of the match will be from 1000 yards. Weather was cool in the morning and warmed up very comfortably near mid day. Tomorrow the forecast predicts winds increasing to 15 mph with gusts to 25 mph, so I suspect that we will see changes on the scoreboard.”
We also asked John Whidden if Whidden Gunworks has any new products in the works. John reports: “We have new angles available for our pointing dies. Bryan Litz has helped us develop two new dies to better match the shape of a number of different bullets. These dies are available as an accessory for those who already own our Pointing Die System or we can supply a Pointing Die System with any of the three dies.”
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September 30th, 2009
 The 7th Long-Range World Muzzle-Loading Championships were held September 24-27 at Camp Butner, North Carolina. Shooters from seven nations competed at distances between 300 and 1,000 yards. Competitors employed percussion target rifles of 19th-century design (though many were modern reproductions). Typically between .40 and .50 caliber and weighing around fifteen pounds, these rifles represent the apogee of mid-1800s firearm technology.
The World Muzzle-Loading Championships, held since 1972, is the highest level of target shooting with muzzle-loading arms. Guns used range from Japanese matchlock muskets, through the flintlocks of the American Revolution, to the percussion arms of the Civil War era. Individual competitions are held in eight rifle, four pistol, and two shotgun events. Original antique arms and modern replicas compete in separate classes.
CLICK HERE for complete match results. American competitors excelled in the original-arms division of the matches. Firing 150-year-old antiques, Karl Kuehn took gold in the 1,000-yard match and silver in the 900-yard match, carrying him to triumph in the overall long-range aggregate and earning a bronze medal in the Grand Aggregate. Nor was Kuehn the only medalist. Al Roberts won the original division of the 600-yard match, while Mon Yee took bronze at 300 and 500 yards — scores which earned him bronze in the mid-range Agg as well.
The Long-Range Muzzle-Loading World Championship was held under the auspices of the Muzzle-Loading Associations International Committee (MLAIC), the world governing body for black powder competition. The 8th World Long-Range Championship will be held in 2011, at the famed Bisley range in Great Britain. Shown below is a Pedersoli Gibbs target rifle at Bisley during the UK National Championships. Repro rifles like this won 10 gold medals at the 2007 World LR muzzle loading championships in South Africa.
More information on long-range muzzle-loading is available at www.lrml.org and www.usimlt.org (USA Team website).
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September 30th, 2009
Speaking of Camp Butner (NC)… the 2009 F-Class National Championships commence today, Sept. 30th, at that range. America’s top F-Class shooters, and many competitors from overseas, will compete for honors in the nation’s fastest-growing long-range discipline. Competitors will be divided in two classes: Open and F-TR. Open Class allows any chambering under .40 caliber with a total weight of about 22 pounds, and a front pedestal rest may be used. F-TR class is limited to .223 Rem or .308 Winchester chamberings, with a max weight of 18.15 pounds. In most F-Class matches, F-TR shooters are limited to bipods — no pedestal front rests allowed.
Hosted by the North State Shooting Club, the Nationals kick off today (Sept. 30th) with open and team practice sessions. Thursday (Oct. 1) is the 600-yard phase of the event, followed by 1000-yard phases on both Friday and Saturday. Sunday is reserved as a make-up day in case of rain. On both Thursday and Friday, a 4-person team match follows the individual events. Barring rain delays, the National Champion will be crowned on Saturday after three final individual 1000-yard matches.
For more information, visit the North State Shooting Club website, or CLICK HERE to download the complete 2009 F-Class Nationals Program.
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