Photo shows Joseph (“Skeet”) Borden, with match rifle built by his son, Jim Borden.
On this Father’s Day 2024, we celebrate three pairs of fathers and sons who enjoyed competitive shooting together. This story can remind us how shooting together can help build life-long bonds between fathers and sons.
Joseph Borden and Jim Borden
A while back, Jim Borden made a post on his Facebook Page that made us think about how shooting can build important connections between father and son. Jim recalled how he would go to Piedmont, North Carolina with his father every year for a shooting match: “17 years ago this weekend was the last time dad was able to make the trek to North Carolina for the annual Groundhog contest and the match at Piedmont. Loved the time we spent together. Dad shot competitive benchrest with me from 1980 until June 2001. He passed in August 2001.”
This prompted others shooters to respond with cherished memories of their own fathers:
“I’d give a year’s pay to have my Dad back for an hour, let alone a day. Spend all the time you can with them while they’re here”. — Kerry S.
“I think how lucky some folks are to look back in life and have fond memories of doing things with their parents that both enjoyed. I have missed my dad for 44 years and think of him every time I hunt, fish, trap or work on a household project. We did it all together.” — Bill McC.
Another poster explained how he now attends matches with his own young son:
“The time you spent with your father meant as much or more to him. Always cherish [those memories], as I know you will. Last year, I spent … over 400 hours with my then 10-year-old son going to rifle matches. This year will be similar. This photo was from today of my 11-year-old son.” — John C.
So here’s a message to all dads — take some time to introduce your sons (and daughters) to the joys of shooting. Spend quality time with your youngsters while you can. Time passes quickly, boys grow up into men. Ensure you enjoy a life outdoors together whenever you can.
About Jim Borden and Borden Accuracy
Jim began shooting high power silhouette and benchrest matches in the mid 1970s while working for a Fortune 500 company as an engineer. In the early 1980s he began building rifles for himself and then for others. Jim has a background as a gunsmith, machinist, registered mechanical engineer, engineering instructor, project manager, hunter, and benchrest competitor. In benchrest competitions he has set ten world records and won 11 National Championships thereby earning induction into the Benchrest Hall of Fame. Jim also served six terms as President of the International Benchrest Shooters (IBS).
Jim operates Borden Rifles/Borden Accuracy with his wife Joan, sons Jim Junior and John, daughter Andrea Mecca and son-in-law John (Mike) Mecca. Jim is also an outstanding photographer.
Another Father/Son Duo — Sam Hall and Hunter Hall
Sam Hall is a multi-time IBS 600-yard Shooter of the Year, who holds many IBS mid-range records. It’s tough to beat Sam when he’s on his game. But it looks like Sam has a worthy challenger — his own son Hunter Hall, now in his late teens. At age 12, Hunter won the North Carolina State 1000-yard Light Gun Group Title.
At a very young age, Hunter Hall showed an interest in his father’s shooting hobby. It turns out Hunter has the God-given talent for hitting the target. Yes there would be another champion in the Hall family. Here is Hunter, at age 12, winning the NC 1000-Yard Group title. Not bad for a kid not even in High School yet!
Even at just 6 years of age, Hunter showed a keen interest in shooting. Back in 2012 Sam reported: “This weekend we practiced freehand shooting with his BB gun at cans. After that I was needing to zero my Light Gun and get started with a few loads at 100 yards. To my amazement my 6-year-old wanted to accompany me. I could not believe it when he wanted to shoot my competition rifle. I had just put a new barrel and scope on it and needed to zero it. After two shots to get it zeroed he hit a .25 inch dot at 100 yards. I let him do everything — loading it, ejecting rounds, and even working my Farley joystick rest.”
Ken Klemm and Ian Klemm — Father and Son F-TR Aces
Over the last 30 years, a family saga has been playing out in rural Wisconsin: a father fosters within his son the joy of competitive target shooting. It started in a basement shooting range of a small-town elementary school, shooting single-shot rimfire target rifles while cementing the fundamentals of sight alignment, breathing, trigger control, and safety. With a background of competitive smallbore shooting in school and the U.S. Navy, Ken Klemm coached his son, Ian, in a father/son indoor winter shooting league. Ian was determined to shoot as well or better than his Dad and would pursue that goal for the next 30 years. Even after his engineering career took him to the Washington DC area for defense-related work, Ian continued to compete with his Dad by mailing “postal match” targets back and forth for many years.
Father and son shooting together. Her Ian spots for his father Ken Klemm, who is shooting.
Ian has now risen to the pinnacle of his F-TR discipline. Ian Klemm has now won three National F-TR Championships in four years. Ian captured back-to-back titles in 2017 and 2018, winning at Lodi, WI in 2017, and Raton, NM in 2018. Ian also finished second at the 2019 Nationals. Ian put on another great performance to win the F-TR National title in 2020 under very challenging conditions.
Here is Ian with proud parents Karen and Ken Klemm after Ian won his Second Straight F-TR National Championship in 2018. Father Ken also competed at the 2018 F-Class Nationals, shooting great in both individual and team events.
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Learn About VihtaVuori Powders with Informative Videos
This video shows how VihtaVuori powders are produced. The video covers the multiple production phases and the sophisticated testing procedures.
VihtaVuori marked its 100th Anniversary in 2022. Today, VihtaVuori Powders is stronger than ever and is respected by serious competitive shooters, accuracy enthusiasts, and hunters. In this video, Team VihtaVuori shooter Ian Klemm shows how he loads with VihtaVuori powder. One of the best F-TR shooters on the planet, Ian is a 4-time F-class National Champion.
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The question of barrel break-in is controversial. Some folks advocate an elaborate, lengthy cycle of shooting and brushing, repeated many times — one shot and clean, two shots and clean and so on. This, it is argued, helps barrels foul less and shoot more accurately. Others say minimal break-in, with patching and brushing after 10-15 rounds, is all you need. Still others contend that break-in procedures are a total waste of time and ammo — you should just load and shoot, and clean as you would normally.
We doubt if there will ever be real agreement among shooters concerning barrel break-in procedures. And one must remember that the appropriate break-in procedure might be quite different for a factory barrel vs. a custom hand-lapped barrel. This Editor has found that his very best custom barrels shot great right from the start, with no special break-in, other than wet patches at 5, 10, and 15 rounds. That said, I’ve seen some factory barrels that seemed to benefit from more elaborate break-in rituals.
What’s the best barrel break-in procedure? Eric Mayer of Varminter.com decided to ask the experts. Eric interviewed representatives of three leading barrel manufacturers: Krieger, Lothar-Walther, and Shilen. He recorded their responses on this video. In order of appearance, the three experts are:
Shilen, Krieger, and Walther Experts Talk about Barrel Break-in
Do I Need to Break-In a New Rifle Barrel?
Eric Mayer of Varminter.com says: “That is a simple question, [but it] does not necessarily have a simple answer. Instead of me repeating my own beliefs, and practices, on breaking-in a new rifle barrel, I decided to answer this one a bit differently. While we were at the 2016 SHOT Show, we tracked down three of the biggest, and most popular, custom barrel makers in the world, and asked them what they recommend to anyone buying their barrels, and why they recommend those procedures. We asked the question, and let the camera run!” Launch the video above to hear the answers — some of which may surprise you.
Barrel Break-in — Initial Inspection and Cleaning
This video explains that you should always inspect and clean the bore of your barrel before sending rounds through it. There may be remnants of the production process, such as lapping residues, that you’ll want to get out of the bore. We’ve even seen a few tiny metal pieces in some factory barrels. And it’s always wise to borescope a new barrel to see if there are visible defects in the rifling such as lands that have flawed edges — we’ve seen that on some cheaper barrels.
Barrel Break-In — Ian Klemm’s Surprising Observations
Here’s a 10-minute Vortex Nation interview with Ian Klemm. Ian, a 4-Time F-TR National Champion is one of America’s best long-range shooters. In this video, Ian explains his approach to barrel break-in, which may surprise you. Does barrel break-in even matter? Conventional wisdom says “Yes” and perhaps there’s some truth to that, but Ian argues that break-in is NOT nearly as important as the internet wants you to believe. Ian believes that you don’t need to waste a ton of time/ammo to get your barrel ready to shoot extremely accurately. This may be particularly true with premium hand-lapped custom barrels.
Barrel Break-In Procedures with Keith Glasscock
Keith Glasscock is also one of America’s greatest F-Class shooters who has finished second at the Nationals multiple times. Keith is also a highly-respected wind coach who has a popular YouTube video channel, Winning in the Wind. In this video, Keith explains his procedure for breaking-in his match barrels. He starts by bore-scoping the barrel and cleaning it. If he finds some burrs he may use some JB Bore Paste, a patch, and a worn brush and “give that throat a little scrub” (See 1:30 time-mark). He used different stroke lengths to avoid putting a “step” in the throat. When he’s satisfied he goes to the range. He fires the first five rounds, then cleans. He then fires quite a few rounds before cleaning the barrel again and beginning load development (See 8:25 time-mark).
General Barrel Break-in Procedures Recommended by Brownells
Brownells Gun Techs Steve Ostrem and Caleb Savant tackle a thorny topic: breaking in a new barrel. What IS breaking-in a barrel? And WHY do it? The rifling of a freshly machined barrel has microscopic burrs and sharp edges. “Breaking-in” is the process of putting bullets down the bore to smooth out those rough spots. The goal is to round down the sharp edges so they’re not stripping copper off a bullet as it travels the bore, which leads to fouling that leads to reduced accuracy and inconsistent groups. In a very minor way, you’re actually lapping the barrel. The breaking-in process works best on cut-rifled and button-rifled barrels. Cold hammer-forged, chrome-lined, or nitrided barrels — such as commonly found on AR-15s — may not benefit much from the process. Pistol barrels really don’t need to be broken in because larger-diameter bullets are not so much affected by tiny variations in the bore. Likewise, break-in is more helpful for a .17, .20, or .22 caliber rifle than a .45 caliber rifle.
George Gardner of G.A. Precision Talks About Barrel Break-In
G.A. Precision’s George Gardner is a leading figure in the PRS/NRL world. In this video, George makes the valid point that not all barrels require the same amount of break-in. George says some barrels require very little break-in, while others benefit from a more elaborate break-in process that helps reduce future copper and powder fouling. He calls this “seasoning” the barrel so it fouls less. For a typical barrel, George’s recommended process (4:25 time-mark) starts with one shot, then clean for three one-round cycles. This is followed by three shots then clean, with repeat 3-shot cycles if need. For cleaning George prefers nylon brushes (5:50 time-mark). NOTE: George also makes a very important point — you MUST swab the chamber and get it dry between cleaning cycles (5:30 time-mark).
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The final individual match results have been tallied and there are two new NRA Long Range F-Class National Champions: Ian Klemm in F-TR and Tod Hendricks in F-Open. Congrats to both of these men for their outstanding performances. Ian, a multi-time Champion, has really dominated the F-TR field in recent years. This is now his FOURTH F-TR National Championship, having previously won in 2020, 2018, and 2017. That is dominance! And Tod has long been a top competitor, including past F-Open team (Grand Agg) and individual (Mid-Range) wins at the Berger SW Nationals.
Finishing second in F-Open was Forum member Keith Glasscock, host of the popular Winning in the Wind YouTube Channel. Second in F-TR was Matt Schwartzkopf, a great guy who also supervises the Berger SW Nationals at Ben Avery. Matt is a double amputee below the knee, but he has never let that issue hold him back in competition.
Comments from F-Open Winner Tod Hendricks
Tod told us: “The heat and humidity were very challenging, but everyone had to deal with that. I struggled a bit on the first two relays on Day One, actually shooting an 8 due to a mental mistake on relay one. Both those relays were cleanable and I dropped 6 points. Being able to refocus myself and only drop 3 points in the last six relays is something that I will forever use as a mental tool. I’ve been close to winning a few big matches. I never felt like I choked at the end, but after a while you start to question yourself a little. Of course, this win got that monkey off my back.
I’d like to thank my sponsors Lapua, Brux barrels, Borden Accuracy, and Kahles, as well as my teammates on Team LBB — they were pulling for me and I felt it. Shout out to X-Ring Rifle Stocks — the owner Jason and I developed a new F-Open stock a couple years ago. He’s a very smart and hard working guy who took the time to listen to a few unconventional ideas.”
Matt Schwartzkopf (center, dark blue shirt) with Michelle Gallagher at 2021 F-Class Nationals. Photo by Forum member Turbulent Turtle.
Here is one of Keith Glasscock’s fine videos from his Winning in the Wind YouTube Channel:
Keith, who finished second overall in F-Open, offered these insights about the F-Class LR Nationals: “The key to performing well in Atterbury revolved around keeping yourself healthy in the heat and humidity. It is difficult to make good decisions when overheated or dehydrated. Winds were only marginally readable, but changes were not ‘sharp’ in nature. With so many excellent competitors at the event, the chances of getting target service in less than 7 seconds was better than even. For the record, the draw of these events is the opportunity to spend time with my F-Class family doing the thing we love.”
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The NRA F-Class Team Championship was held July 29, 2021. Congrats to the winning squads, Team Indiana (F-Open) and Team USA Blue (F-TR). Conditions were fairly difficult with plenty of rapid wind switches to challenge the wind callers. It was great to see a large number of teams on the firing line, both in F-TR and F-Open.
Second place was very close in both divisions. F-TR was decided on X-count. In F-0pen, Team Kelly McMillan finished second by just one point, but with a huge edge in X-count. Team Kelly McMillan had 83 Xs compared to 66 Xs for Team Indiana. Tim Vaught and Norm Harrold both drilled 23 Xs while Doug Skogman had 20 Xs. Kelly, who sadly passed away recently, would have been proud of this team. His team’s outstanding performance honored his memory.
In F-TR division, Team USA Blue’s Luke Ramsey shot brilliantly to score 396-21X to lead his team. Ian Klemm, currently in first place in the individual F-TR competition, also shot great to tally 392-16X.
Ray Gross joined six good friends to squad up as Team Creedmoor, which finished a very close second in the F-TR division. The top two squads had the same 1559 Aggregate point total with Team USA Blue earning Gold with 57Xs vs. 44Xs for Team Creedmoor.
Ray was proud of his team’s performance: “After a 3-year hiatus, we got the band back together to finish Silver (by Xs) at the U.S. F-Class Long Range Nationals. It was a fairly tough day, living off the flags, with a lot of quick switches. I’ll coach you guys anytime!”
Team Creedmoor team-mates (L to R): Daniel Pohlabel, Paul Phillips, Ray Gross, Brad Sauve, John Droelle, and Jeff Rorer.
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V² Finale Double Elimination Tournament at 1000 Yards
A new kind of F-Class Tournament is being held in Tennessee over the next three days. The V² (“V-Squared”) Finale, sponsored by Vihtavuori and Vortex Optics, is a double-elimination shooting match, conducted much like a basketball tournament. There are 32 competitor places each in F-Open Division and F-TR — for 64 places total. In each round there is “pair firing”. Two shooters compete head-to-head with three, 15-round strings, all at 1000 yards. The winner of each two-person match-up proceeds, while the loser goes into a loser’s bracket… so everyone has a second change to win some of the prizes. This event is about more than trophies and glory — it is also about winning big piles of cash — $28,000 in total.
64 shooters, who earned entry with points garnered in previous matches, have been invited to compete for $28,000 in prize monies. The V² Finale is held at the Dead Zero Shooting Park in Tennessee, an impressive, modern facility. The Dead Zero 1000-yard range is equipped with ShotMarker electronic targets. That means that scoring is quick, there is no waiting for targets to be marked, and, importantly, no pit duties for the competitors.
This video, created last year explains the V² Finale Rules and Course of Fire.
The V² Finale itself is conducted over three (3) days. It’s a double-elimination tournament — this means that everybody has the opportunity to shoot at least two matchups. A loss in the primary bracket will seed you into the elimination bracket, where you will have the opportunity to continue on and potentially work your way back to shoot for the overall Championship.
The V² Finale is a pair-fire, best two of three format, with 15-shot strings (45 rounds max per person per bracket). If one shooter wins the first TWO strings, the third string is not fired. The idea behind this pair-firing is to have both competitors for each stage shooting at the exact same time, in the exact same conditions, on the exact same target. The only person you are competing against is the person next to you. The competitors who wins two out of three matches in the matchup will advance.
V² Finale Bracket Match Results
READ THIS!! You can scroll UP and Down with your mouse, and thereby see the Loser’s bracket for both F-Open and F-TR.
READ THIS!! You can use the BRACKET Pull-Down Menu (Upper Right) to select Winner’s and Loser’s Brackets, or choose Top 16 and Top 8.
READ THIS!! You can pull box to left to see more on the right side, using mouse (or finger on smartphone).
READ THIS!! The boxes below are live feeds from the Match Website. Click links below to view Bracket Results on FULL SCREEN.
READ THIS!! This is NOT a static image, it will change as results are filled in. You can come back to this page and see more results as the event progresses.
F-Open Event Results in Real Time — Use Mouse to Scroll!
F-TR Event Results in Real Time — Use Mouse to Scroll!
The V² Finale match, sponsored by Vihtavuori Powders and Vortex Optics, takes place June 11-13 at the Dead Zero Shooting Park in Tennessee. This is a limited-field event for the top 32 F-Open and 32 F-TR competitors who have accrued the most points for the 2020-2021 season. The match will be a double-elimination bracket system (e.g. NCAA March Madness) where shooters are matched up against a single opponent for each round. As opposed to a typical match where you shoot against the entire field, this type of competition allows for two shooters to go head to head pair-fire style, competing under the exact same conditions. No wind alibis. No relay roulette. No excuses. Keep advancing and you will find yourself in the finals where you’ll have a chance to win the prestige of being the best F-Open or F-TR shooter in the country plus some serious prize money and awards.
The V² Finale firing line on 6/11 at the Dead Zero Shooting Park.
Thanks to the generous support from Vihtavuori Powders and Vortex Optics, more than 85% of the entry fees are awarded back to the shooters in the form of cash prizes, awarded all the way down to 8th place for each category. The creators of the V² points series noted: “This type of reward for performance is one of the core reasons why we created the V² Finale and why you won’t find any prize tables.”
Vihtavouri Supports Innovative V² Finale Match Format
“Vihtavuori is honored to partner with Vortex Optics for the inaugural V2 F-Class Point Series Finale. We’re excited to be onsite and support the world’s best long range shooters who will compete in a match they designed themselves,” stated Geoff Esterline, Marketing Director for Capstone Precision Group.
Why Was the F-Class Points Series Created? (Official Statement)
Everyone in the F-Class world knows about their local, state and regional matches and many of those shooters attend the Southwest Nationals and F-Class National Championship each year. These matches are often challenging and feature some of the best shooters in the country at any given time. As great and exciting as those matches are, they have some key limitations – they don’t answer the question of consistency over peak performance. They allow for random chance to play a role in results, in the form of target service, conditions, or “relay roulette”, among other factors. Basically, they don’t allow for a true measure of shooter performance over time, and more specifically, in a true test of head-to-head competition. It was partly with this in mind that we created the F-Class Points Series to collect and award points with the ultimate goal of putting on a one-of-a-kind, limited-field, matchup-style event that will give competitors a format to prove that the best indicator of skill is reliable consistency, not peak performance. A points system will allow us to track consistent performance over the course of a yearlong FPS season, culminating in an invitation to join the limited field of the V² Finale for the top 64 qualifying competitors.
Map for Dead Zero Shooting Park
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The 2020 NRA F-Class National Championships are now complete. We hail the new Champions Pat Scully (F-Open), and Ian Klemm (F-TR). We also give congratulations to all the competitors who dueled often-tough conditions at Ben Avery Shooting Facility in Phoenix, Arizona, with periods of very high winds. CLICK HERE to see all 2020 F-Class Nationals Results for all participants.
Top-Ranked Shooters at 2020 NRA F-Class National Championships
F-Open Top Competitors
1. Pat Scully, F-0pen Champion, 1575-73X
2. Keith Glasscock, 1575-60X
3. Tod Hendricks, 1574-83X
4. Eric Wuestenhoefer, 1572-59X
5. Tim Vaught, 1565-76X
6. Patrick Fulghum, 1564-60X
7. Ken Dickerman, 1563-64X, High Senior
8. Bret Solomon, 1562-58X
9. Emil Kovan, 1562-53X
10. Erik Cortina, 1561-70X
Christine Harris, 1543-60X, High Lady
Kaycie Blankenship, 1517-35X, High Junior
Larry Bartholome, 1541-53X, High Gr. Senior
F-TR Top Competitors
1. Ian Klemm, F-TR Champion, 1561-56X
2. Keith Trapp, 1555-47X
3. Brad Sauve, 1553-40X, High Senior
4. Luke Ramsey, 1551-42X
5. Scott Harris, 1551-39X
6. Nancy Tompkins, 1550-44X, High Lady
7. James Crofts, 1546-52X
8. Henry Rockhill, 1543-37X
9. Brian Harder, 1539-37X
10. Nick Abbott, 1535-45X
Morgan Abbott, 1495-34X, High Junior
Raymond Weaver, 1534-30X, High Gr. Senior
Pat Scully (right) is 2020 F-Open National Champion while fellow team-mate Tod Hendricks (left) finished third overall, just one point back.
In tough conditions, the top shooters put on impressive performances. Competition was tight and it went down to the wire. After multiple days of shooting, F-Open Champion Pat Scully and runner-up Keith Glasscock ended up tied on points (both scored 1575), but Scully did have a huge edge in X-count with 73X vs. 60X for Keith. In F-TR, LR Champion Ian Klemm posted an impressive 6-point win. Ian also recorded high X-Count (56X) among all F-TR shooters. Phil Kelley posted: “Ian is now only the second 3-Time F-TR National LR Champ and he has won 3 of the last 4 years — an amazing run.” Phil also observed that his fellow Team USA shooters took 7 out of the top 10 F-TR places.
Overall, the “top guns” in both divisions performed amazingly well given some very tough conditions. Forum member ShootDots noted:
“On the last day I was on the line with Keith Glasscock [Second Overall] on my immediate left. I was scoring for Pat Scully [F-Open Champion]. With wind conditions that would make a brass monkey flinch, these two gents made it look easy! I have shot with some REALLY good shooters over the years [but] these two are at a different level altogether!
I do not know Ian Klemm BUT I do know how he shoots! When you are surrounded by the finest, you get a first hand view of what REAL shooting is all about. My hat is off to the winners and to those who came within a hairsbreath of them! A B-I-G hearty CONGRATULATIONS to them!”
Our Forum tech staffer Praveen (who shot F-Open) concurred, praising the top-finishing Open-class competitors, noting that 3rd-place Tod Hendricks amassed an amazing 83 Xs. Praveen posted: “Congratulations… I witnessed some really fine shooting this year while experiencing some very tough wind conditions. Pat, Keith, and Tod — hats off to you. And Tod — so many Xs!” Forum member RonatSpokane also noted Tod’s stunning X-Count: “Sheesh Tod, you’re … bogarting those Xs. With 83 Xs, more than 50% of your shots were under 1/2 MOA. In those kinds of conditions, that’s nothing short of stunning.”
Forum member Carlsbad noted that the final day was very tough: “What a match. Every day had different challenges. The last day was challenging. We had one guy clean the afternoon string on Friday and then shoot 180 in the afternoon string on Sunday. That was tough. I don’t know how guys shot high 190s in those conditions. Congratulations to Ian Klemm and Pat Scully.”
Three National Titles in Four Years for 2020 F-TR Champ Ian Klemm
Ian Klemm has now won three National F-TR Championships in four years. Ian captured back-to-back titles in 2017 and 2018, winning at Lodi, WI in 2017, and Raton, NM in 2018. Ian also finished second at the 2019 Nationals. Ian put on another great performance to win in 2020 under very challenging conditions.
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Ian Klemm won back-to-back 2017/2018 USA F-TR National Championships. His next big challenge will be the 2021 World Championships, where his father Ken Klemm will be one of his teammates on Team USA.
Over the last 30 years, a family saga has been playing out in rural Wisconsin: a father fosters within his son the joy of competitive target shooting. It started in a basement shooting range of a small-town elementary school, shooting single-shot rimfire target rifles while cementing the fundamentals of sight alignment, breathing, trigger control, and safety. With a background of competitive smallbore shooting in school and the U.S. Navy, Ken Klemm coached his son, Ian, in a father/son indoor winter shooting league. Ian was determined to shoot as well or better than his Dad and would pursue that goal for the next 30 years. Even after his engineering career took him to the Washington DC area for defense-related work, Ian continued to compete with his Dad by mailing “postal match” targets back and forth for many years.
Ian and Ken Klemm have shot successfully together as members of Team X-Men.
Ken even came to visit Ian out east, with rifle in tow, where they entered the Virginia State 1000-yard Benchrest Championship on a whim with their entry-level (factory) F-Class rifles. Ken’s record target measured 0.003″ smaller than his son’s but Ian was getting closer to matching his Dad. Ian eventually moved back to Wisconsin after taking a design job with Vortex Optics, only a few miles from his hometown, and now he and his Dad could compete in earnest, both against each other and as teammates on the X-Men F-Class club team.
Ian’s trigger time increased significantly with his new vocation and he was lucky enough to design a new competition scope, the Vortex Golden Eagle, for both to use. Armed with two nearly identical new rifles and their new optics, Ian and Ken began traveling cross-country together to compete alongside their X-Men teammates, winning multiple National F-Class Championships together.
Matched F-TR Rifles with Kelbly Actions, McMillan X-It Stocks, Bartlein Barrels
Both Ken’s and Ian’s match rifles are built using the same winning hardware — Kelbly actions, McMillan X-It stocks, and Bartlein barrels. Also, Ian and Ken both run similar loads: Lapua .308 Win Palma brass, Vihtavuori N150 Powder, and Berger 200-20X bullets. In addition to the components listed below, they use some special equipment: bipod lowering kits from FClassProducts.com, large rear bigfoot bags from Seb Lambang (SebRests.com), and “Dri-Gun” rain protection from BarrelCool.com.
Gun Specifications
Vortex Golden Eagle 15-60x52mm scopes
Kelbly Panda actions
McMillan X-It stocks
Bartlein 1:10″-twist, 30″ barrels
Phoenix Precision Bipods
Father and Son Share their Winning Strategies
Having each other to share tips and techniques and confirm winning strategies with has certainly helped Ken and Ian compete successfully together over the last few years. Common between them are the strategies of bracketing wind conditions with sighters as well as using the Golden Eagle’s aperture stop ring (ASR) to more effectively observe mirage and ultimately quantify wind value. They both try to shoot in a building wind condition as it more slowly increases in velocity while challenging each other to stop during a string at the first sign of a potential “let off” or sudden decrease in wind velocity.
Ian and Ken competed successfully as teammates on Team X-Men. They shared winning strategies, such as bracketing wind conditions with sighters.
The only significant difference in how each of them wins is in their gun handling. Ken maintains the most consistent form and smallest groups by assuming very light shoulder pressure and virtually no grip contact with his rifle. In contrast, Ian is most competitive with a medium-firm pressure on both the grip and forearm of the McMillan X-It stock as well as medium shoulder pressure. Both techniques have proven themselves during competition when employed consistently.
Unlike many F-TR shooters, two-time F-TR National Champion Ian Klemm grips the fore-end of this rifle when he shoots. Ian explains:
“I use a piece of Kydex thermoplastic (commonly used in holsters) that I formed around the forearm (see photo above). I index off it when gripping the stock with my weak hand to ensure that I’m always contacting [the stock] in the same spot. I grip this while shooting, for every shot. It was quickly assigned to my subconscious since I was so used to gripping the fore-end after years of hunting. It felt unnatural to me to not be doing anything with my off-hand. By letting my subconscious do what comes naturally, I am able to achieve a higher level of consistency that if my conscious mind was ‘trying’ to accomplish something with that other hand. The relatively stiff McMillan X-IT stock feels like it benefits from more contact in terms of vibration during the shot as well.”
Father and Son Will Shoot for Team USA in 2021 World Championships
The United States F-Class Rifle team has just completed a 2-year tryout period consisting of multiple tests and scored drills designed to determine which developmental candidates would be named to the final travel team ultimately representing our country against the rest of the world during the next quadrennial World F-Class Championship in South Africa, April 2021. Ken and Ian were just recently informed that they had both been named as shooters on that Final Team USA Selection. This is the first time, to our knowledge, that a father and son have shared that honor as teammates on a USA Rifle Team.
Here are Ken and Ian on the 2019 FCNC Team. Both father and son have been selected to shoot with the 2021 USA National F-TR Team which will compete at the World F-Class Championships South Africa.
The level of competition from the leading countries around the world is expected to be even stronger this cycle than in previous ones, with correspondingly slimmer margins of victory. Along with the rest of their US teammates and coaches, they will practice and prepare as a dedicated team over the next year to build a sense of confidence and trust in one another. Ken and Ian are thankful for the opportunity to share this experience of a lifetime together and for the 30-year long practice session leading up to it.
Ian Klemm and Ken Klemm at 2017 Berger SW Nationals.
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Ian Klemm, 2017 F-TR USA National Champion, is one of America’s top F-Class shooters, both shooting individually and in team competition. Ian is known for his consistency, smooth gun handling, and an uncanny ability to shoot well even in the toughest wind conditions. In this Vortex Video, Ian and fellow long-range shooter Niles Richardson, reveal some of their competitive secrets, and wind-reading techniques. This video focuses primarily on F-Class competition but Ian and Niles also talk more broadly about the myriad factors that contribute to rifle accuracy. Topics include: match strategies, wind and mirage reading, barrel harmonics, bipods, and optics.
Vortex Nation Podcast Episode 57 Summary
From Vortex: Our original intent was to have just a podcast about the sport of F-Class shooting, but when you get these brainiacs (Ian Klemm and Niles Richardson) talking about their obsession… er… “Hobby” you better believe it’s going to turn into a full on long range shooting information assault to the brain. Fact of the matter is, in F-Class, the only thing that matters is long range accuracy – and when we say “Accuracy”, we’re talking about sub-MOA groups on paper at 1000 yards with .308 Wins. Every single aspect of an F-Class competitor’s game is completely dialed in for long range accuracy.
We talk about the guns, their bipods, wind, mirage, barrel harmonics and the special scopes F-Class competitors need for their rifles. Ian even goes so far as to tell us how much his rifle has moved prior to the bullet leaving his 30-inch barrel. Just a simple equation involving acceleration, terminal velocity, moment of inertia of the rifle and coefficient of friction of the bipod and rifle on the ground.
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The Creedmoor Cup is an historic challenge match between American and Irish marksmen. The first match was held in in 1874 between American and Irish Teams in Creedmoor, New York. (Read Match History). The Match was revived in 2011 and is now held every four years.
In 2019, the match was held this week at the Ben Avery Range in Arizona, following the Berger Southwest Nationals. It proved to be a great match, with Team USA coming out on top. Erik Cortina stated: “What a great experience this has been. Team USA won the 2019 Creedmoor cup vs Ireland. It had been over 100 years since match was shot in the United States. Glad to see this tradition continue.”
Congrats to the Members of Winning Team USA:
F-TR Riflemen
Alan Barnhart
Ellis Berry
David Conrath
Tracy Hogg
Ian Klemm
Matthew Schwartzkopf
Ed Shelley
Keith Trapp
F-Open Riflemen
Larry Bartholome
Erik Cortina
Ken Dickerman
David Gosnell
Rick Jensen
Jim Murphy
Pat Scully
Keith Weil
Coaches
Kent Reeve (Head Coach)
James Crofts
Scott Fulmer
Bob Seabold
Nancy Tompkins
Team Staff
Captain Phil Kelley
Vice-Captain Dan Bramley
Adjutant Stephen Ireland
Team USA Captain Phil Kelly told us this was a great match: “USA wins the Creedmoor Cup in a great competition with Team Ireland! Two days of cold and windy conditions challenged both 16-shooter teams. Final ceremonies included Native American dancers and great camaraderie among all the competitors. Thank you to all from Team Ireland who made the trip! The best of competitors and friends.” Phil added: “Special thanks to additional Creedmoor Committee members including Michelle Gallagher, Pete Ricci, and Mark Walker. We look forward to the next gathering in four years. Safe travels all.”
Nancy Tompkins looks down-range. With the wind-chill, competitors and coaches dressed warm.
Not Your Typical Warm Arizona Days at Ben Avery
There were variable conditions at the match — first easy, then tough. USA Captain Phil Kelley reported: “On Day 1 of the 2-day match, things started good then got tougher. The morning and 800-yard line saw 34° and light winds leading to high scores.
That changed as the 16-shooter teams made their way to the 900-yard line as sun, moderate wind and building mirage hit the range providing more challenging conditions.
After an excellent lunch both teams were in for a challenge. Winds of 12-16 mph with constant angle changes and surging mirage made communications and coordination among five coaches critical. The wind chill also dropped as teams stayed on the line for the majority of allotted time.”
The First-Ever Creedmoor Challenge Match in 1874
The Irish International Shooting team arrived in New York on the 16th of September and proceeded to “take in the sights”, which was understandable, before some practice at the Creedmoor range. On September 26th they presented themselves for the match with confidence and in high spirits. The crowds that day were reported to be between 5,000 and 10,000 strong, which showed the huge support already growing for the fledgling sport in America.
The course of fire was 15 shots to each man at 800, 900, and 1000 yards. Unfortunately, the details of each mans scores at the individual distances have been lost to time but we do know that the Americans were well ahead after the 800-yard shoot. The Irish then caught up after the 900-yard and finished the 1000-yard shoot ahead by 1 point. The Americans still had one man left to shoot and it came down to his very last shot with which he scored a 4 giving the American team the win over the Irish by 3 points.
Post-Competition Camaraderie and “Craic” at the Pub
“Craic” is an Irish term referring to positive interaction among people through conversation, stories, and music. The Craic was strong after the 2019 Creedmoor Match.
Desert Sharpshooters posted: “The ‘Craic’ is amazing tonight with the Irish rifle team to finish the Creedmoor. Thank you to the USA team members that came out tonight to show the Irish a good time. This is truely what the Creedmoor Cup is about, Friendship and good times.”
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“A big congratulations to Bob Mead (1582-68X), who utterly destroyed the competition in tricky wind conditions to take the Gold.” — Jay Christopherson, F-Open Second Place.
The 2017 F-Class National Championships in Lodi, Wisconsin are now history. Hail the new Champions: Robert Mead, F-Open (1582-68X) and Ian Klemm, F-TR (1557-56X). Hosted by the Winnequah Gun Club, the Nationals drew about 75 F-Open shooters and 45 F-TR competitors, down from last year. In F-Open, Robert Mead shot brilliantly in tough conditions to finish 14 points ahead of his closest competitor, AccurateShooter.com’s System Administrator Jay Christopherson. Erik Cortina was just one point behind Jay, but Erik had the high X-Count for the match at 71X.
Photos of Robert Mead and Ian Klemm courtesy Erik Cortina.
In F-TR, Ian Klemm also won by a margin of 14 points. This was an impressive win by Ian, given the challenging winds and weather. F-TR runner-up Todd Sanders also shot remarkably well, considering he is a relative newcomer to F-Class. Forum member KyBountyHunter observed: “Outstanding shooting this week gentlemen, in some of the most challenging conditions that I’ve seen. Congrats to all the winners. Ian — fantastic job taking First Place (well deserved) [and] special congrats to Todd. For this only being his second year in F-TR, he’s going to be force to be reckoned with for a long time!”.
Final Results for F-Open (TOP 10):
1. Robert Mead: 1582-68X HM
2. Jay Christopherson: 1568-59X HM
3. Erik Cortina: 1567-71X HM
4. John Myers: 1558-64X HM
5. Pat Scully: 1558-50X HM
6. Larry Bartholome: 1554-55X HM
7. Robert Sebold: 1554-41X HM
8. Steve Harp: 1553-58X HM
9. Jeff Hopkins: 1551-49X MA
10. Lou Murdica: 1550-46X MA
Final Results for F-T/R (TOP 10):
1. Ian Klemm: 1557-56X HM
2. Todd Sanders: 1543-43X MA
3. Brad Sauve: 1542-44X MA
4. Laura Perry: 1539-46X EX
5. Daniel Pohlabel: 1534-49X MA
6. Josh Moore: 1529-37X EX
7. Ken Klemm: 1528-38X MA
8. Bob Lorenz: 1525-47X EX
9. Raymond Weaver: 1522-36X HM
10. Alan Barnhart: 1521-31X HM
Strong Performances by Members of Team Lapua-Borden-Brux
Jay Christopherson posted: “A big congratulations to Bob Mead (1582-68X), who utterly destroyed the competition in tricky wind conditions to take the Gold. This was a great end to the 2017 competition season for me as I managed to hang on by the skin of my fingertips to win Silver at the 2017 F-Class US National Championships (F-Open).” For the record, Team Lapua-Borden-Brux ended up with all five present members of the team in the Top 8 of the Grand Aggregate.
Jay Christopherson (2nd, 1568-59X, Silver)
Erik Cortina (3rd, 1567-71X, Bronze)
Pat Scully (5th, 1558-50X)
Bob Sebold (7th, 1554-41X)
Steve Harp (8th, 1553-58X)
In team competition, Team Lapua-Borden Brux won the F-0pen Long Range Championship as well as the Mid-Range Championship. Jay told us: “That was some outstanding shooting by great team members. I’m really looking forward to the 2018 season.” Erik Cortina added: “So proud of our team. We conquered the 2017 LR National Championship as well as the Mid-Range National Championship. We could not have done it without our sponsors: Lapua, Borden Actions, and Brux Barrels.”
In the F-TR Team Competition, mighty Team Sinclair triumphed yet again, winning its 10th Long Range National Championship. Team member Paul Phillips offered this interesting factoid: “This year we won with the original four members we had in 2004 plus Dan Pohlabel. It’s pretty awesome to be shooting with the same guys for 13 years! What a great run since 2004.” And those same four also all hail from Midland, Michigan (Midland County Sportsman’s Club). Team Sinclair still holds the 4-man Team 1000-yard National Record. Shown below, L to R, are team members: Daniel J. Pohlabel, Paul Phillips, Raymond Gross (Coach), Brad Sauve, and John Droelle.
All Team Sinclair members use identical hardware: McMillan XiT stock, Kelbly Panda action, Bartlein barrel, Nightforce scope, and Phoenix Precision bipod. All shoot Berger 200-20X bullets in Lapua brass.
The One that Got Away — Almost Matching F-Open 20-Shot Record
Erik Cortina shot a superb 200-16X during the competition (see electronic target scoring screen below). That was just one X shy of the current 200-17X National Record. Erik observed: “So close, yet so far. Almost matched the National Record of 200-17X but shot a ten on my very last shot. Everything felt good but luck was not on my side.”
File photo from Lodi at past F-Class Nationals.
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There’s a talented new team getting ready for the 2017 King of 2 Miles (KO2M) Competition in Raton, NM next month. The team features ace F-Class shooters Ian Klemm and Dan Pohlabel. Here’s a build report from X-Treme Shooting Products, which supplied the impressive XTSP action and two-stage trigger.
Big Gun for King of 2 Miles Event at Raton
XTSP: “It’s exciting — we’re getting closer to the 2017 King of 2 Miles match next month. Here are a few pictures of one of the rifles we will be shooting. Owned and built by Dan Pohlabel, it’s a .338 Lapua Magnum Improved. It has a 40° shoulder and we plan on shooting .338 Caliber 300 grain Berger OTM projectiles at around 3,100 fps.”
“We started off with an XTSP .338 Magnum receiver, custom-built as a single shot with a solid bottom for stiffness. We built +60 MOA rails for each of the rifles. Of course we’re using the XTSP two-stage trigger! We added a 34″-long Bartlein gain-twist barrel which is 1.450″ at the shank tapering to 1.2″ at the muzzle. At the end we added Piercision Rifles’ 3/4 x 24 slabbed 5-Port ‘Muscle Brake’. The action is bedded in a McMillan Super Magnum stock. On top sits a Vortex Optics HD Razor in Vortex 35mm rings. We’ll have another rifle just like it shortly with the machine work by Dan Pohlabel again. That second rifle will be finished up and shot by Ian Klemm of Vortex Optics.”
Here’s a file photo of a .338 Lapua Magnum Improved, alongside a standard .338 Lapua Magnum. We’re not sure about the shoulder angle on this particular example. For the XTSP project, the angle is 40 degrees (40°). Photo Courtesy LongRangeHunting.com.
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Joseph Borden and Jim Borden
We doubt if there will ever be real agreement among shooters concerning barrel break-in procedures. And one must remember that the appropriate break-in procedure might be quite different for a factory barrel vs. a custom hand-lapped barrel. This Editor has found that his very best custom barrels shot great right from the start, with no special break-in, other than wet patches at 5, 10, and 15 rounds. That said, I’ve seen some factory barrels that seemed to benefit from more elaborate break-in rituals.
The NRA F-Class Team Championship was held July 29, 2021. Congrats to the winning squads, Team Indiana (F-Open) and Team USA Blue (F-TR). Conditions were fairly difficult with plenty of rapid wind switches to challenge the wind callers. It was great to see a large number of teams on the firing line, both in F-TR and F-Open.
