BADLANDS
LONG RANGE
TACTICAL (Sniper) RIFLE MATCH
BY SFC Pete Carpentier JR
TXNG
On 22-23 September 01 I attend and shot in the Badlands Tactical Rifle Match. This match was put on by the BADLANDS Tactical Training Facility which is located in Grand field Oklahoma. This facility is run by Bobby Whittington and he also has Steve Suttles as his Chief Instructor. Both of these men did a great job in running the match. Badlands put on two matches a year and also runs several different schools during the year. They usually run a Basic Sniper school the week before the match.
In this article I will cover the events and course of fires we shot on both days. This was a individual match, but you were able to use a spotter for one match. There was a total of 20 shooters that shot the match.
Day One
On Saturday at 0800 we meet for a Safety briefing and a run down on the course of fire we would be shooting for the next two days. Bobby informed us that he likes to run on a timeline and they stick to it and believe me they do. This made the match run smoother and help us stay ahead of schedule. After the briefing we started the first event which was the KIM S GAME. We were taken to an area where there was 10 items on a ground sheet that was covered. After we were all around the covered sheet, the sheet was pulled back. We were allowed two minutes to view the items. We were not to touch the items or to write down anything we see. After two minutes the items were covered up. This is a exercise that is used to test your memory.
The next event was a Range Estimation exercise. We were taken to a large field where there was 10 IPSC type targets set out at different distances. The dimensions of the target was 18"x36". Three of them you had to judge the distance with the Naked Eye and 7 targets you had to judge the distance with your rifle scope or binoculars. You could not used a Laser Range finder. You were allowed +/-20% of the actual range with the Naked Eye and +/-5% with the rifle scope or binoculars. This was a test of your ranging skills and the used of the Mil-dots in your scope. A lot of the shooters used calculators or the Mil-Dot Master to figure out the range. All the events in the match were worth 100 points. For all the ranges you got right you would get 10 points.
After those two events we moved out to the range. We were given a block of time in which to zero. We had a maximum of 9 rounds in which to fire at 100 yards to check our zero. After that we split up into two groups. One group would do the Target Detection exercise and the other would shoot the Known Distance match.
The next event was the Target Detection exercise. We were taken to a large field. In this field there was 10 objects hidden from a distance of 5 feet to 100 yards. We were given 20 minutes in which to view the area and find the 10 items and recorded them. All this from the prone position, using only your rifle scope, binoculars or spotting scopes. They used all kind of items. Some items very large and some very small. You could find them, but you really had to look.
The Known Distance match was the next event we fired. We were to engage one stationary target at 600 to 1000 yards. We had 30 minutes in which to engage each target with four rounds each. It was a paper target with scoring rings. Each hit was worth 5 points. We were allowed to used a spotter for this event. This helped, there was some wind and a lot of mirage.
The next event was different. We engaged a steel half-silhouette target at 500 yards from the kneeling position. The only support you could used was a sling. You had about one minutes to fire one shot. You did this 10 times for a total of 10 rounds. This was easy to score. You either heard the steel ring or you did not. There was several perfect scores on this event.
The next event was the moving target match. In this event there was a mover at 300 yards. The mover had a board in which 5 balloons were stapled on. Two on top and three on the bottom. The mover would go from left to right, then right to left. It went across five times. Each time it went across you engaged one balloon. You were only allowed to fire five shots. This match was very interesting. There was several perfect scores fired in this event. There was also a lot of shooters that hit 4 out of 5 also.
The next event we shot for the day was the Make it and Take it match. This also was a very interesting match. There was a target setup at 100 yards. The target had a 1.5 MOA, 1.0 MOA, .75 MOA, .50 MOA and a .25 MOA square. You had 3 minutes to engage the squares. You could fire only five rounds. Each hit was worth 20 points. The first time you missed on any square you got a zero for the event. You could stop at any time and take the points you had. There was a few that went down to the fourth square and several that had misses. Some would miss on the second square or some would miss on the fourth square.
The last thing we did for the day was the KIM S Game. We were given a sheet of paper and 2 minutes to write down what we saw from the 10 items we viewed in the morning. We had to write down Size, Shape, Color, Condition and Appears to be.
Day Two
On Sunday we met at the range to fire the three events we had left, plus the side match. The first event of the morning was the Cold Bore Shot. There was a 1.5 MOA square setup at 300 yards. The shooter lined up behind his rifle, at the signal, the shooter dropped into the prone position, loaded one round and fired. He had 30 seconds in which to make the shot. If there was a hit any where in the square, the shooter got 100 points. If there was no hit, he was allowed to fire a second shot. If he hit with the second shot he would get 50 points, if he missed again he was allowed to fire one more shot. If he hit with the third shot he would get 25 points. If he did not connect with any of the rounds the shooter would get a zero. Half the shooters hit with the first round and there was only two that needed to fire three rounds.
The next event was called Waltzing the Barrels. In this event there was a set of barrels setup in a pyramid. The shooter started in the prone position firing from the left side. If you were left handed you started on the right side. The idea was for you to fire off your weak side. You engaged a steel Half-silhouette target at 400 yards with 2 rounds. After that you took up either a sitting, kneeling, or squatting position and again fired two rounds. You had to remain behind cover while firing. After firing both rounds you then took up a standing position and you fired two rounds again. You then either took up a sitting, kneeling, or squatting position and again fired two round. After that you took up a prone position and fired two rounds, for a total of 10 rounds. Again you are firing on a steel target and its hit or miss.
Another event they had was a side match. The winner of this match would get 500 hundred dollars. It was a Unknown Distance match. You were brought up to the line. Down range there was 5 Iron Mikes at unknown distances. The dimensions of the targets were 20"x40". You had 6 minutes and 30 seconds to complete the course of fire. That means that you had to find the targets, range them and engage them. If you missed, you were allowed to engage again, but this would added 5 seconds to your time. You also had to hit a target before you could go to the next one. One of the targets was not painted and was hard to find. Out of the 20 shooters that fired it, only 5 shooters ended up with a score. The rest had zeros.
The last match of the day was the Run and Gun. The shooter started 100 yards from the Three story tower. On the signal you ran to the base of the tower and took up a standing position. You then engage a half-silhouette target setup at 400 and 500 yards down range. You engage each target with one round each. You then dropped down to a kneeling position and again engage each target at 400 and 500 yards with one round each. After that you took up a prone position and again engage each target with one round each. You then picked up and moved up to the first floor of the tower and engage each target with one round each. You then picked up again and went up to the second floor and engage each target with one round each. The time limit was 5 minutes. Total number of rounds fired was 10. Again you fired on steel targets and it was either a hit or a miss. There was several shooters that shot a perfect score.
This was my first time shooting in this match and it had some good course of fire and tested your shooting ability. Bobby and his staff did a great job in running and putting on this match. I recommend this match to anyone and i will sure be back to shoot again next year.
