Benchrest Match Report
May 7th, 2016
This match started out with the expectation of some rain, however it had passed over night. this made it for perfect conditions, not to mention dust control as well. The winds were intermittent and on occasion constant. Gusts were present, ranging from four to 10 mph. As seen by the scores, optimum conditions for shooting.
In the mornings before the match, we get a constant stream of arrivals. Each shooter wants to set up, get their guns out, put up targets and wind flags. However, this is always not possible when hot or cold. Listening to our shooters, we have decided structure our set-up and practice times in the morning. We decided to pull out our clock we use in pistol. Sometimes shooters arrive almost two hours before the match to get some practice in. So what we have implemented was a 15 minute hot and 15 minute cold line to both accommodate for new arrivals, target and flag set up. This worked with resounding success. No more bitchin about if the range was not what shooter wanted it to be. Just look at the clock. We are looking to get something more permanent set up that faces both directions, so everyone can see it a lot easier. Based on feedback, next time we will try 15 min hot, and only 10 min cold.
With scoring we also tried something different. This time, once all the targets were collected, we only scanned them and didn’t address any user-interface needs (like missed or double taps), or any reviews until the end. Scanning literally only took 6 minutes after the first round, and 7 minutes after the second round. This made the efficiency of the morning another resounding success.
After all the targets were scanned, at the end of the three matches, we then proceeded to address the scoring. At this time, preparation was underway for setting up for the 100m match. We throughly review every bull on every target. The best thing about the electronic scoring is that you can blow up the holes to well over 100x to view on a giant screen. This makes it difficult to argue about the accuracy, the score, and the hole. It also gives you great insight on the anatomy of a hole. (yes... i went there.) It is amazing what a high resolution scan will reveal, beyond only looking through a 5x loupe. You really see things that you very easily would otherwise miss.
After the scores were printed, it looks like we had a 250-13X shot by Garrett and his Thomas. Perfect cards are rare around here, due to the incredible wind characteristics and conditions. There is something to be said about the caliber of the shooters here. Winners are depicted by one point or x counts. Maybe its time for decimal scoring? You already know that decimal scoring is a much better barometer for determining the “better” shooter. Well, food for thought.
In June, the next 25m match we will be closing registration at 0720 instead of 0830 to allow for more time for target prep. and we will be moving to our summer times.
Thanks to John Lenio for setting up the benches on Friday. Thanks to Ben Spencer for helping round up target stands. Shout out goes to Andy for helping with the scoring and target prep.
Until the next match...