Texas Service Rifle Championship

[Blackfork]

This, the Highpower Rifle Championship, and the NRA Regional at Panola are the big three Texas rifle competitions.

The Service Rifle Championship will be held this Friday, Saturday and Sunday at Camp Swift on hwy 95 between Elgin and Bastrop east of Austin.

Friday is Team day. First will be a 4-man Presidents 100 match. The 3-man Infantry Trophy team matches will be shot second.

Saturday is the Service Rifle Championship, 80 rounds with sighters across the course from 200 to 600 yards. I'm sure it will take 785 plus to win. Over 100 people will be shooting. Justin Utley is the current Texas Service Rifle Champion.

Sunday is one of the biggest CMP/EIC "leg" matches outside of the one at Camp Perry during the National Matches. 50 shots across the course, no sighters. I think we will be giving seven legs.

Barracks are open. Central aired. 20 bucks or less a night on the base near the range.

Public welcome to come watch. You probably would enjoy it more with binocs and a folding chair. Weather supposed to be perfect. If you have never seen people shoot iron sights from 200 to 600 yards, or seen a Highpower Rifle competition, then you ought to come out and watch it done.

 

[plexreticle]

I've been to this. It's an awesome match with great people running it.

 

[taliv]

SEVEN LEGS??? holy crap!

 

[Blackfork]

Biggest LEG match outside Camp Perry and the Nationals

At least that's what we are saying. If it isn't, congrats to the match that IS.

Camp Swift has excellent firing positions and safe and workable pits. The wind can be tricky there, but other times is very predicatable. I shot a 10-shot clean at 600 in a Presidents 100 team match two years ago.

Taking two 14 year olds along, but I'm hoping to be competitive with my team and individually.

 

[Blackfork]

How I lost the Texas Service Rifle Championship

Well, besides going to a match where Justin Utley was going...I shot too many eights.

We did have a hell of a time. Team Blackfork won the 4-man team match and the Infantry Trophy Match on Friday with scores that would win at Camp Perry. I picked a junior girl, Katye Foster for my team and she outshot me. Everyone was 287 or better out of 300.

In IT the team only had about 8 misses in 192 shots. Justin Utley only missed ONE hit. Wallace McDaniel only missed 3-4 and I missed 3-4 while shooting the "swing". (two targets) Infantry trophy is three firers shooting at four targets starting at 600 yards, then 500, then 300, then 300 with 50 second target exposure. Each team has 192 rounds to shoot. Hitting each target at least six times gives a bonus of the square of the number of targets. Hit all four targets and get 4X4 extra points. A hit at 600 is worth four points, 500: three points, 300: two points. 200: one point. You shoot 600 and 500 prone, 300 sitting and 200 standing. I shoot my team with two men firing straight away and one shooter covering the "swing". That way everyone can keep up with their hits. We don't shoot at 200 but expend all our ammo at 600, 300 and 200. One point hits at 200 just aren't worth it. We had nearly all of our hits and squared all the targets. 785. Second place team was more than 100 points back.

Saturday I was a distant second place among 100 shooters for the Service Rifle Trophy. Justin Utley, my friend and teammate repeated as Champ. He shot a 783. I shot a 773. Everyone else was behind that somewhere.

Sunday we gave seven LEGs and David Wallace got his Distinguished Riflemans badge. The wind was very tricky Saturday and Sunday as it fishtailed from south to north over the north facing range. It was hard to find a reliable indicator. I looked at mirage on two crossing roads and the target faces and the three range flags and never got it sorted out. I shot several 10s and xs...then you would hit a seven at nine or three without seeing a change. Pretty crazy. I walked down to watch Utley shoot 600 and he was making two minute adjustments on his windage knob between shots to stay in the 10 ring.

The barracks were comfortable and cheap. The area food was good. I took two 12-year olds and they got along all weekend and avoided any major trouble, though they were boys.

Full results at www.epcgc.com