TRAC match – October 27, 2020

Last match for October and what a dramatic difference!  Whereas the last couple of Tuesday’s were mild and autumn-like, today was downright…..chilly!  Although the skies were crystal clear blue with bright sunshine, the temps were remarkably cooler.  After setting up, the temp was noted as being 48 degrees, that only warmed to 56 degrees by the end of the match.  Sweat shirts or jackets were definitely needed for the first time this year.

The biggest factor that affected us today was the WIND!  Wind speed was 12 to 18 mph with sustained (at times) gusts as high as 25 – 28 mph.  What a game changer that turned out to be!  There was a high-power match on the next range at 600 yards, and had their wind flags out on the flagpoles.  Those flags were being blown straight out and audibly snapping.  They sometimes coincided with the wind direction at ground level, but at other times were completely opposite.  The wind was blowing everything around and not consistent in direction.  It came right, left, and head-on, but not from behind us.  Just…..blustery!

That being said, we had 4 actual shooters who challenged Mother Nature, who in turn just laughed at us.  There were 5 of us there, but Bill opted not to shoot, even after driving all the way over from Lake Havasu City.  Mike awarded him with the “pink panties” title for the day.

We had our usual 5 lanes set up, but out beyond the berms.  The venturi effect underneath the canopy caused the wind to HOWL and roof to vibrate audibly.  Only two of the targets were set inside the 25-yard distance and extended out to only 50 yards today.  Old man Mike, shooting his Thomas, was high shooter with a 35/40, which was fantastic shooting.  Ben was number 2 man with 33/40 and shooting his Red Wolf.  Barry was next in line with a 26/40 and shooting his Concept, and yours truly was using his TX200 and finished with 22/40.  Not stellar scores, but good practice for Kentucky windage.  Knockdowns were a source for celebration, but most times 3:00 and 9:00 o’clock misses were the norm.

We did have a forced break about half-way.  BASF staff needed to go down range to the rifle silhouette berms for a quick inspection for some upcoming work.  When they were done, we got back to shooting, but the wind did not let up the entire time.

When finished and all targets put away, I needed to go the main range office to pay for the days match and ran into our range liaison officer.  He smiled and asked if we had a little wind today….in jest.  He then stated that we should have been there yesterday (Monday).  He said it was worse!  Even Bill commented that the wind in LHC was blowing near 50 mph (according to him).

It was a fun and challenging match.  We were glad we did it, but more appreciative to be done and heading over to Wild Horse West for some juicy burgers.

Next Tuesday is election day.  We will be shooting, and then voting thereafter.  If you haven’t voted by mail yet, make sure you get to the polls.  I like to do that in person.

Respectfully submitted.

Mark Kauffman
Secretary, Airgunners of Arizona


Field Target Club