Rapid Fire Silhouette

 

 

I have never had anyone say “marksperson” to me, but I know it is just a matter of time. ;)

Rapid Fire Silhouette

Rapid fire silhouette, some folks would call it *rabbit fire* which may be more to the point, you don't study a target, you just shoot it. Or so I thought.

At Extreme Benchrest in Arizona, we shot a rapid fire silhouette match. It had another name, but it was too steeped in the gunfight at the OK Corral. Besides, didn't the Clantons and McLowerys get to shoot back? Also if you’ve shot metallic silhouettes, it was nothing like the game you know. Set that all aside, because only the targets are the same.

We shot at 1/5 scale metallic silhouettes. They were placed according to species: chickens at 30 yards, pigs at 40 yards, turkeys at 50 and rams at 60. There were four at each distance for a total of 16 shots, You could shoot from a bench or you could sit or stand any way you wished, but the bench was the best choice because you started with an unloaded gun,unloaded magazines and an open pellet tin.

What a great idea. Unloaded magazines levels the playing field between magazine loaders and single shots in one fell swoop. It also changes the match strategy with magazine shooters having to concentrate on loading while hearing the sounds of shots and hits. Lots of them.

In the 2013 match, single loaders had the advantage with top scores (the shortest time knock over 16 targets) all loading pellets singly. Shean Kaller won the Pro division with a time of one minuet

five seconds. You can see his first place run, as well as his 57 seconds practice run on You
Tube at the Airgun Gear Show channel.

The Rapid fire silhouette shoot is not only timing the time you take to shoot, but is also timing the time you take to load.

Getting ready for this match I worked out aim points for 25, 30, 40, 50 and 60 yards. I also shot the course of fire twice. Hitting the steel animals at those ranges with my S400 was easy. I worked on speeding us my trigger squeeze. This was not enough. At he match, while I fumbled pellets, knocked over my pellet tin and hunted for targets through my scope set at 32X, other shooters smoothly and quickly loaded their guns to mow down targets. They called time and I had three rams left to go.

Now, older and wiser, I will work on how fast I can load my air rifle as much as how fast I can shoot it.

Ron