TRAC match – March 23, 2021

Only 5 guys today, and with only 5 lanes, we shot one shooter per lane and were done inside of 2 hours….mercifully.  Within the hour after we finished, it was raining…..sideways!  the day started out with the temperature in the upper 50’s.  It would warm to 62 F. by the end of the match and it didn’t feel that cold.  Either that or we have just gotten used to it.  The sky had heavy, grey cloud cover with no sunshine poking through anywhere and no glare at all.  Perfect conditions for shooting.

The wind was also behaving itself, for once.  It was quite mild initially, built up a bit, then died back down.  At the beginning of the match, it was coming out of the ESE at around 7 mph, then shifting to the S and built to 10 mph, then finally out of the WSW and back down to 8 mph.  Where we were positioned to shoot was in the shadow of the 100-yard berm, so we were protected.  While pulling target strings, you could really SEE the wind working to bend it, especially around the ends of the berm.

The course was set up with our usual 5 lanes / 2 targets per / 2 shots at each / shoot through once / move targets back another 5 yards or so / shoot through the second time / 40 shot match.  Today, with Gene not in attendance, and with knowledge of what the winds could be like (fortunately we didn’t get the 20 mph gusts that were predicted), the course was set without the tiny targets at extreme distances.  It was still challenging.  Regardless, this didn’t seem to bother Mike one little bit.  He cleaned it…..

Mike 40/40 – good shooting behind his Thomas platform.

Barry 38/40 - I was on the lane next to him when he missed his second shot of the match.  He made a good comeback shooting his redwolf.

Wayne 36/40 – Watch out for this guy.  He just put a new scope on his Brocock Sniper, and if he keeps this up, is not going to be fit to live with.

Mark 32/40 – Shooting Miss Diana after some minor corrective surgery.  Missing only 2 the first half, but getting caught by the wind on the second half.

Joe 23/40 – After having made some adjustments on his HW97, he now is shooting well and is building a level of confidence.  He was happy with the results.

After pulling the targets and related, we gathered to announce the scores and remind the guys of this coming Saturdays match.  Targets were stored back into the Conex, and 3 of us adjourned to Wild Horse West for their juicy burgers.  It was when we exited afterwards that we were greeted with the sideways, much colder, stinging rain.  Glad we finished before that hit!

See you next week.  The range was reserved again for the 4 Tuesdays in April.  Maybe the wind will take a hiatus somewhere else, as we are looking forward to warmer weather, too.  We are REALLY enjoying these Tuesday matches.  ‘Tis good to be retired.  Gets us out of the house and out of trouble….sort of.

Respectfully submitted,

Mark Kauffman
Secretary, Airgunners of Arizona, Inc.


Field Target Club