Rifles Only
Match
By
SFC Pete Carpentier Jr
TXNG
On 24-26 May 02 Rifles Only held a three day match in Kingville TX. This was the first match Rifles Only has put on and it was invitation only. The match was planned and put on by Jacob Bynum. It was held at his new range that was just built. This was a test match and he numbered the amount of shooters to be able to easily manage and have more events to shoot. This allowed more bang for the buck.
Competitors checking there zeros.
24 May
On this day we registered, had a safety briefing and had a rundown of the events we would be shooting over the next several days. After that we made our way over to the range. We were allowed ten minutes to check our zeros at 100 yards. I found that I was hitting high on the target. I had to come down 1/2 minute to hit center. Also the wind condition for the next two days were running about 10 to 15 mph. The wind was blowing across the range at full value. This is typical in south texas. The winds can be as high as 35 mph coming off of the Gulf. This cause some problems for some of the shooters. The shooters were constantly checking the wind.
The first match we shot was KNOW YOUR LIMITATIONS-on steel. There was four plates down range at 500 yards. The plates decreased in size. The shooter would engage the target with one round. If he hit the first plate he would get 20 points. If he missed the first plate he would get a zero and that would be it for the event. You could continue if you hit the first plate and the points would increases each time you hit, but if you missed at anytime after that, you would lose any points you had and receive a zero.
The next event was FIVE DOT AT 600 YARDS. In this event there was 5 diamond shape plates at 600 yards. The plate were 12x12 inches. You had 30 seconds in which to engage each plate with one round. Each plate hit was worth 20 points for a total of 100 points.
The next event was GROUP SIZE AT THE BENCH. In this event the shooter was given a prep time to set-up his rifle. He could shoot off the bipod or he could use a mechanical rest that they had on the bench. A bench rest style target was set-up at 100 yards. You had three minutes in which to fire five rounds. There was also a zero target, that you could use. The only thing is if you took all the time to check your zero, you would lose points if you did not get five rounds into a group. I fired two rounds to check my zero and then shot my five rounds for score. The smallest group would get 100 points and then they broke it down from there, until every one had a score.
The next event was a mover. The shooter would engage an 8 inch steel plate at 400 meters while moving. The plate would make one pass across and the shooter had to engage the target five times. This also was a hard event. The plate was not moving very fast and it had quite of bit of distance to travel, but also you had the 15 mph wind blowing. Each hit on the plate was worth 20 points for a total of 100 points. There was several people that got 5 hits on the plate.
Competitors shooting the 5-dot drill.
The next thing we did was shoot three different events at one time. The first was KNOW YOUR LIMITATIONS-on paper. Again this was a event in which you engage four decreasing size targets at 100 yards. If you hit the first target, you would get 20 points. If you missed you would get a zero. If you would hit on the first target and stop, you could keep your points. If you went on and miss anytime after that you would lose all the points you had and would get a zero. The next event was the 10 DOT DRILL. In this event you engage 10 one inch dots at 100 yards with one round each. Each hit was worth 10 points for a total of 100 points. The next event was the 5-DOT DRILL. In this event you engage 5 one inch dots at 100 yards with two rounds each. Each hit in the circle was worth 10 points for a total of 100 points. You had 40 seconds in which to do this.
In this match there was also a night shoot. We shot four events at night. Again we shoot all four events at one time. The first event was 5 ROUNDS AT THE LEOPARD. The target was a leopard that had a three inch dot on the body. Once the shooters were in place and on there targets the lights were turned off. Once the lights came on, the shooter fired 5 rounds at the circle in 30 seconds. 20 points per hit in the circle, for a total of 100 points. The next event was a 10 SHOT DRILL. In this event you engage 10 one inch dot with one round each under full illumination. Once you were on your targets, the lights were turned off. Once the lights came on you had 60 seconds to fire 10 rounds. Ten points per hit on the dot for a total of 100 points. The next event again was a Ten shot drill, but you shot it under partial illumination. This time you had 90 seconds in which to fire. Again 10 points for each hit in the dot for a total of 100 points. The last event was INCREASING CIRCLE, DECREASING LIGHT. In this event there was 3 circles of different sizes. A one inch circle, a 1.5 inch circle and a three inch circle. The first circle you engage was the 1 inch. Once the shooters were set-up the lights were turned off. Once the light came on, you fired one round at the one inch circle. The lights were turned off again. The second time the light came on, it was not full light, but only partial light. When this happen, you fired one round at the 1.5 inch circle. Then the lights were turned on and you set-up on the 3 inch circle. Once you were set the lights were turned off and that was your signal to fire one round. Each hit in the circle was worth 30 points and if you had a hit in each circle you got a bonus of 10 points for a total of 100 points. All the event were fired at a distance of 90 yards. One shooter cleaned the event. He got the whole 400 points for the events. There was a full moon that night and if you had a big objective on your scope this helped. This was the last event of the day.
25 May
The first event of the day was the PRAIRIE DOG. In this event the shooter engage 5 12 ounce Dasani water bottles hanging from a 12 inch string. The range to the target was 330 meters. You fired one round at each target. A hit was worth 10 points for a total of 100 points. It was early in the morning when we first shot this event and the wind had not started to pick-up yet. As the day went on, the winds came up to 15 mph and gusting.
Competitors shooting the Sitting event.
The next event was SITTING AT 600. In this event you engage a Laure target from the sitting position with one round. The target was at 600 yards. In this event there was several different sitting postion used by the shooters. You could use a bipod, but it could not touch the ground. You fired 10 rounds in this event. A hit was worth 10 points for a total of 100 points. Again the wind was a factor in this event.
Competitors shooting the Kneeling event.
The next event was KNEELING AT 500. In this event the shooter engage a Laure target at 500 yards from the kneeling position. Again you fired ten rounds. Each hit was worth 10 points for a total of 100 points. The Laure target is a small silhouette that measure about 12x18 inches. When hit the target goes down and then after a few seconds it comes back up. This type of target is easy to score.
Competitors shooting the Barricade event.
The next event of the day was the most difficult of the match. The BARRICADE event presented the most problems for the shooters. In this event the shooter fired off a barricade. He had to use several different positions. The shooter started in the side prone. The rifle had to be on its left side and you fired though a low port. The shooter fired 5 rounds from this position. Then he switched to left prone. The shooter had to shoot from his weak side. Again he fired five rounds. Then he took up a sitting position and again he fired from his weak side with five rounds. He then took up a kneeling position and again fired from his weak side with five rounds. Then the shooter fired from the standing position. From this point on he could use the strong side. He again fired from the kneeling, sitting and prone position. He fired 5 rounds from each position. A total of 40 rounds was fired in this event. The shooter engage 8 2.5 inch hearts at 100 yards. A hit in the target was scored 2.5 points. They would only score 5 hits per target. The time limit for this event was 10 minutes. Some shooters did not get all there shots off. Also the barricade was low and you had to use it for support.
The next event was the KNOWN DISTANCE 500-800. In this event the shooter engage a target with two rounds at 500,600,700 and 800 yards. The targets were different sizes. Some targets were 20x40 inches and others were about 12x40. Of course again the wind was a factor. Many of the shooters I talk to said that they were using the 168 grain match bullet. This bullet is OK at 500 and 600 hundred, but the bullet had a lot of drop at the father distances and it is not very good for bucking the wind. I used the 175 grain bullet and it help at the longer distances and I did not have to put so much windage on. The wind again was about 15 mph at full value coming from right to left on the target. When I told one shooter how much wind I had at 800 hundred, he did not believe me. I told him I was using the 175 grain bullet and that help. There was one shooter that had 8 out of 8 on this match.
The next event was another MOVER. In this event the mover was at 100 hundred yards. On the mover was a cardboard that held 5 poker chips. Once the mover started the shooter had to engage each poker chip with one round. Each hit was worth 20 points for a total of 100 points. This event was a challenge. You real had to be able to work the bolt and stay on target to get your hits. The best I think in this event was 3 hits. Alot of zeros in this event.
The last event of the day was the CHARGING ELEPHANT. The shooter started in the standing position at 40 yards. Down range at an angle was a stick that had two ballons on it. The stick was on a mover. Once in position and at the low ready the mover would start. At that point the shooter raised his rifle and engaged the ballons with 1 round each. The mover is coming at you at an angle. Alot of thing are happening at once. The mover starts, the ballons are moving you have to raise your rifle fire and work the bolt to get the second shot off. This is happening very quickly. Several shooters got both hits. A hit was worth 50 points. Again every event was worth 100 points. This made it easy to score.
Competitors shooting the 1000 Yard event.
26 May
The first event of the day was the 1000 YARD. In this event the shooter engages a Laure target at 1000 yards. He fire one round each time he is given the command to shoot. A total of 10 rounds is fired in this event. A hit on the target is worth 10 points. The target has to go down to score. Since this was the first event of the day, the wind was very light. Some shooters said they saw some slight wind at about five hundred yards. Again shooters that were using the 168 grain bullets had problems. One shooter claimed that his bullets were hitting the target, but was not taking it down. He had to hold higher in the target to get one hit and it took a while before it knock the target over. Knowing your come-ups and being able to read the wind was a must at this event. This was the only event we shot that day. We done early. Once we were done, we went back to have the scores posted and hand out the awards.
This was a great match. We shot from 40-1000 yards out. This real tested your marksmanship skills. We also shot from different positions and at night. The wind was the real problem. This also tested your wind reading skills and knowing how much to put on your windage knob or holdover. Also again a lot of shooter found out that the 168 grain is not very good in high winds and extended ranges. To shoot that bullet in those conditions takes a lot of work and practice. I myself learn something at every match I shoot.
A big thanks goes out to Jacob Bynum and his staff. The match went smooth, we were always ahead of schedule and the events were great. We were done early on Sunday and this aloud many of the people to get on the road early. Jacob said that there might be another match this year and I hope there is. If its anything like this match it will be great.
