Jessie Duff won her 8th Ladies Class Title at the 2017 U.S. Steel Nationals in Daytona, Florida.
It’s drag racing with guns! Draw your gun then shoot five steel targets as fast as humanly possible. The U.S. Steel Nationals is the fastest action pistol sport on the planet. Splits are blazing fast — in the top tier of shooters, standings are settled by hundredths of a second. The Steel Nationals has recently has also expanded to include rimfire firearms, and that’s lowered the cost of competing. In this week’s episode of Shooting USA, John Scoutten and Tony Pignato have the highlights of the final round of the 2016 U.S. Steel Nationals, held in Daytona, Florida.
Watch Full Episode of Shooting USA
Air Times by Time Zone
Eastern Time: Tuesday 3:00 PM; Wednesday 9:30PM, 1:00 AM
Central Time: Tuesday 2:00 PM; Wednesday 8:30 PM, Midnight
Mountain Time: Tuesday 1:00 PM; Wednesday 7:30 PM, 11:00 PM
Pacific Time: Tuesday Noon; Wednesday 6:30 PM, 10:00 PM
The show airs tonight on the Outdoor Channel on cable TV. If your cable service doesn’t include the Outdoor Channel, you can watch the entire episode on your computer or mobile device right here. Just click the above video to start the 47-minute show.
Pro Shooter Experience in Las Vegas
Along with the U.S. Steel Nationals Coverage, this week’s episode features the Pro Shooter Experience (PSE) in Las Vegas (starting at 32:22 in video above). Participants enjoy three days of training with three world Champions: Max Michel, JJ Racaza, and Travis Tomasie.
Max explains: “The whole premise was to get three world champion shooters together [who are] great ambassadors of the game, and really give back…” Max and Travis are both former USAMU shooters with multiple championship wins. JJ is one of the fastest pistoleros on the planet. The PSE features 1-on-1 training sessions, shooting competitions, speed drills, and some very impressive shooting by the pros.
We recommend you tune in to Shooting USA on the Outdoor Channel tonight. Tonight’s episode features both a Vintage Sniper Rifle competition and the GAP Grind, one of the most popular tactical matches. The show airs at 9:30 PM ET, 8:30 PM Central, 7:30 PM MTN, and 6:30 PM Pacific.
Vintage Sniper Rifle Match at Talladega
This week, Shooting USA features the Vintage Sniper Match at the CMP’s Talladega Marksmanship Park. This is a two-man team event, for shooter and spotter, using military rifles in service up to 1953. One added challenge is the time limit. The team has only 20 seconds to complete each shot — That’s 20 seconds for the spotter to read the conditions, and for the shooter to pull the trigger.
Guns of Grandfathers…
In this episode two USAMU marksmen, SGTs Daniel Crody and Robert Shoup, compete with an Springfield M 1903 A4 reproduction topped with a vintage optic. “For me it holds a little bit of sentimental value,” says SGT Crody. “I did have two grandfathers in World War II. It is definitely a pleasure holding a piece of history… and to be able to see and feel what these guys had as far as tools to operate with.”
Who can identify this rifle, with its unusual scope mount?
“It’s a match that brings a different type of competitor out. It brings a nostalgic competitor out. You’ll see World War II time-period rifles, sniper-type rifles that were used during World War II, Korean War era,” says the CMP’s Chief Executive Officer, Mark Johnson. “The optics are either original optics or current reproduction of old optics.”
GAP Grind on Shooting USA
Tonight’s Shooting USA episode also features the Bushnell GAP Grind, a tough tactical/practical match in Tennessee with 300 competitors. The Grind runs a Pro-Am format — new shooters partner with an experienced shooters for the two-day, 25-stage event. This year John Scoutten teamed up with new shooter Jen Hodson. Even with the challenges, Jen had a great time at the GAP Grind. “I will definitely be back!” says Jen, shown here:
Ramia Whitecotton Facebook photo.
On the first day of the Bushnell GAP Grind, teams are scored together. On the second day team members still work together but scores are logged individually. This is a difficult event with awkward positions, barriers, and other challenges. Targets vary in size, shape, and distance. One of the toughest targets is the 500-Yard Mover.
If you watch just one episode of Shooting USA TV this year, it should probably be this week’s hour-long SHOT Show Special. Tonight, March 1, 2017, enjoy a full hour of SHOT Show coverage. Jim Scoutten’s team of gun journalists work hard every January, bringing you highlights from the gun industry’s largest trade show. Jim, son John Scoutten, and other staffers prowled the 12 miles of aisles in the Sands Convention Center in Las Vegas, visiting many of the 1,600+ exhibitors. This episode provides a “first look” at the new guns, optics, and gear introduced for 2017. Click HERE to learn more about this week’s SHOT Show episode.
2017 SHOT Show Highlights: Savage MSR Rifles, GA Precision Tempest Action, Smith & Wesson M&P 10 in 6.5 Creedmoor, Colt double-action Cobra, STI Match pistols and a whole lot more.
Shooting USA Hour AIR TIMES
Shooting USA’s SHOT Show Special will air for a full hour on Wednesday, March 1, 2016 on the Outdoor Channel. Here are the air times, but you should check your local schedule. Look for Shooting USA TV on the Outdoor Channel.
Wednesday Night Schedule:
Eastern Time – 9:30 PM; 1:00 AM (TH)
Central Time – 8:30 PM; Midnight (TH)
Mountain Time – 7:30 PM; 11:00 PM
Pacific Time – 6:30 PM; 10:00 PM
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Here are some of the 50+ new products featured on the SHOT Show Special:
This Wednesday, February 22nd, Shooting USA TV features the Bushnell Brawl, a tactical competition that draws top long-range shooters from military, law enforcement and civilian shooting communities. The match is held at the famed Rifles Only range in Kingsville, Texas. The Brawl is a one-of-a-kind physical and mental challenge that tests shooters’ abilities to read wind, figure ballistics, and adapt to difficult shooting scenarios. There is even a helicopter stage.
Helicopter Stage at 2014 Bushnell Brawl in Texas:
Shooting from a helicopter, shooting off of a wire, and shooting from the physically demanding maze called the Mouse Trap. These are just a few of the unique courses of fire at the Bushnell Brawl, part of the PRS series. Over the course of two days, competitors tackle more than a dozen stages. In addition, Bushnell hosted a special one-day event for the new PRS Production Class. This new division should attract new shooters by limiting the cost of equipment — making PRS competition more affordable.
This image is from Bushnell Brawl Barricade Stage (SEE Video):
New PRS Production Division — Lowering the Cost of Entry
The Production Division is a new PRS classification. Under Production Division rules, the rifle must not exceed $2000.00, and rifle + scope combined must not exceed $3000.00. All other accessories, such as bipod, rear bag, and the sling, can be added at the shooter’s own discretion. Even with these cost limits, you can put together a great rig: “There’s a lot of gear out there that’s not that expensive,” says Production Division Match Director Jacob Bynum. For example, you can get the new Tikka T3X TAC A1 in 6.5 Creedmoor for $1798.00.
Shooting USA Hour on Wednesday Primetime
AIR TIMES BY TIME ZONE
Eastern Time: Wednesday 9:30PM, 1:00 AM
Central Time: Wednesday 8:30 PM, Midnight
Mountain Time: Wednesday 7:30 PM, 11:00 PM
Pacific Time: Wednesday 6:30 PM, 10:00 PM
This Wednesday (February 1, 2017), Shooting USA TV features the GAP Grind Pro-Am held at the K&M Shooting Complex in Finger, TN. Conducted in association with the Precision Rifle Series (PRS), the GAP Grind features a Pro/Am format with professional and amateur competitors vying for individual glory and team honors.
Here is Shooting USA Host John Scoutten (in Blue/White shirt)
Lots of Action, with 20+ Stages
The GAP Grind is a notoriously challenging, “high tempo” match with minimal down-time between stages. Over the course of 20+ stages, competitors will fire 200+ shots at a variety of steel, paper, moving, and reactive targets out to 1,200 yards. Targets vary in size/difficulty based on the shooter’s position, distance, and time allotted. Most stages include “stressors” — i.e. time limits or required movement(s).
Ramia Whitecotton Facebook photo.
Josh Temnnen Facebook photo.
GAP Grind Hardware Shelley Giddings, a skilled shooter of both firearms and cameras, snapped these images of state-of-the-art tactical rifles at the 2014 GAP Grind. See more firearms images on Shelley’s Facebook Page.
Want to upgrade your AR’s trigger? Shooting USA and Brownells have created a video tutorial that shows how to remove a factory AR trigger and replace it with an upgrade. This video illustrates the procedures to follow and the tools you’ll need. Step-by-step, the video explains how to swap the factory trigger group for a self-contained ‘box style’ drop-in trigger module or a traditional (multi-part) trigger system with enhanced performance.
Many AR-15s come from the factory with a military-type trigger that has a long, gritty, heavy pull. Replacing that trigger is one of the best ways to improve your AR’s performance. You’ll be rewarded with a smoother pull, shorter take-up, and reduced pull weight. You will also have a choice between a single-stage and a dual-stage trigger.
The box-style, self-contained drop-in systems from companies like AR Gold, CMC, Timney, and Wilson Combat are the easiest to install. John Scoutten explains: “These self-contained systems … are very simple to install. In fact, all you do is remove the factory parts, drop in the whole system, replace your pins, and you’re done.” Conventional two-piece trigger groups are offered by DPMS, Geissele, JP Enterprises, and Rock River.
The key points of the video tutorial are also explained on the Shooting USA website with text and still pictures. Before you start your trigger project, review Shooting USA’s AR Trigger Upgrade Page. You’ll find helpful close-up photos on that page.
Tonight (12/7/2016), Shooting USA television features the Remington Bicentennial — celebrating 200 years of continuous production by one of America’s most legendary companies. The history of Remington Arms is a remarkable story. No large American enterprise — not Ford, not General Motors — can match the 200-year continuous history of Remington. The Remington enterprise is nearly as old as the United States. This story began in 1816, when a young man, Eliphalet Remington II, wanted a rifle…
According to historians, Eliphalet told his father he wanted a gun, so his father told him to build one himself (Eliphalet had been trained as a blacksmith). And so, in 1816, Eliphalet did just that, with the help of a hired gunsmith to bore and rifle his barrel. Eliphalet then took the finished flintlock to a local shooting match. “And his gun shot well,” says Remington Historian Richard Shepler. “So neighbors and friends asked, ‘Could you make me a barrel?’ Over time there was more and more demand.”
By 1828, Eliphalet moved into a factory in Illion, New York. In 1845, he jumped at the opportunity to secure the first of many government contracts. When the Civil War broke out, Remington stayed busy producing firearms. While later in the 1890s during peacetime, Remington manufactured cash registers, sewing machines, knives and even the first successful typewriter.
Whether fulfilling government contracts during wartime, or manufacturing cash registers and sewing machines during peacetime, Remington’s story continues today, arming sportsmen, hunters and armies around the world.
Shooting USA AIR TIMES BY TIME ZONE
Eastern Time: 9:00 PM, 12:30 AM (Wed); 4:00 AM (Thur)
Central Time: 8:00 PM, 11:30 PM (Wed); 3:00 AM (Thur)
Mountain Time: 7:00 PM, 10:30 PM (Wed); 2:00 AM (Thur)
Pacific Time: 6:00 PM, 9:30 PM (Wed); 1:00 AM (Thur)
Tonight, August 10th, ShootingUSA TV covers the 2016 NRA Annual Convention, held this past May in Louisville, Kentucky. Host Jim Scoutten and his team spotlights hot new products, including Hornady ELD ammo, Busnell scopes, a Les Baer 1911, plus the Victory, a new .22LR pistol from Smith and Wesson. In this episode, Shooting USA also focuses on the important political issues facing the NRA this year.
Watch Preview of Shooting USA’s 2016 NRA Meeting Episode:
This year, the NRA’s Annual Meeting took place during a critical election year. More than NRA members came to Louisville, showing their support for Second Amendment rights. One of the NRA’s oldest members, 99-year-old Wayne Bird, said it’s important to stand up and be counted: “I’ve been a member of the NRA 78 years and I’m 99 years old. And ever since that time they have been fighting for our freedom, for our Second Amendment freedom….”
As part of the convention coverage, Shooting USA interviews top competitive shooters Jerry and Kay Miculek, and Smith & Wesson Team Captain Julie Golob. This week’s episode also includes a feature on the Colt Detective Special and the Scholastic Action Shooting Program (SASP) Championships at the CMP Talladega Marksmanship Park in Alabama.
Shooting USA Broadcast Times by Time Zone
Eastern Time: 9:00 PM, 12:30 AM, 3:00 AM (Thurs.)
Central Time: 8:00 PM, 11:30 PM, 2:00 AM (Thurs.)
Mountain Time: 7:00 PM, 10:30 PM, 1:00 AM (Thurs.)
Pacific Time: 6:00 PM, 9:30 PM, Midnight
The Talladega Marksmanship Park boasts Kongsberg electronic targets at 200, 300, and 600 Yards.
The CMP’s Talladega Marksmanship Park — the most impressive (and high-tech) shooting facility in North America, will be featured on this week’s episode of Shooting USA television. The show tours the Talladega facility and spotlights Talladega’s first-ever competition, the inaugural D-Day Memorial match last year. (Talladega recently held its second D-Day match on June 4-5, 2016).
Shooting USA Television Air Times (Wednesday/Thursday) on the Outdoor Channel:
Eastern Time: 9:00 PM, 12:30 AM, 3:00 AM (Th)
Central Time: 8:00 PM, 11:30 PM, 2:00 AM (Th)
John C. Garand Match — Part of D-Day Memorial Event
Talladega is known for NASCAR and its super-speedway, but now there is another destination for sports enthusiasts, thanks to the Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP). Congress created the CMP in 1903 with an original mission to promote civilian marksmanship, but in its 110-year history, the CMP never had its own range. So, the organization built the CMP Talladega Marksmanship Park, a $20 million sports facility, one of the most advanced shooting sports facilities in the world.
“You won’t find another place like this in the United States, and I think in most of the world,” says Rep. Mike Rogers of Alabama. “You know, I brag on the Talladega 500 all the time, being the fastest NASCAR track, and now I’ll be able to brag about having the best, if not the most world-class marksmanship facilities in the world here in the same neck of the woods.”
This Wednesday, July 6th, Shooting USA features End of Trail, the Cowboy Action World Championship. Hosted annually at the SASS Founders Ranch in New Mexico, End of Trail attracts over 700 shooters, hailing from 50 states and many foreign countries. The event is part shooting competition, part family reunion, and part Wild West jubilee. SASS, the Single Action Shooting Society, is one of the most popular shooting organizations on the planet, having issued over 90,000 member badges. This special Shooting USA broadcast of the 2016 End of Trail airs at 8:00 PM, 11:30, and 2:00 am (Thursday) Central Time on the Outdoor Channel. This year’s End of Trail took place June 16-26, 2016.
Past Champions Randi Rogers (“Holy Terror”) and Spencer Hoglund (“Lead Dispencer”)
If you like multi-gun competition, you’ll enjoy watching Cowboy Action Matches. The top male and female shooters are experts with three kinds of firearms: Lever Rifle, Single-Action Revolver, and Shotgun (which can be a double-barrel side-by-side, or a pump, or even an 1887 lever-action). Generally speaking the guns must be originals or reproductions of pre-1900 designs to be used in competition (however 1911-style pistols are allowed in “Wild Bunch” side matches). A typical stage will require 5 shots from each of two six guns, ten rounds from the rifle, chambered in a pistol caliber, and 6 to 8 shotgun rounds.
24 Rounds from Four Guns in under 13 Seconds
To give you an idea of the action you can see on Shooting USA, here is a video of past world Champion Spencer Hogland, aka “Lead Dispencer”. In this video, Spencer fires 24 rounds, with four guns, in just 12.81 seconds (look at the timer in lower right corner). Spencer shows blazing speed with his lever gun and note how quickly he loads his shotgun. Fast loading is key to a successful stage run. Unlike modern multi-gun comps, normally Cowboy Action Shooters must start with empty shotguns.
Guns of Grandfathers…
This Wednesday, February 22nd, 
Tonight (12/7/2016), 
