Sports adventure Shooting 30 April 2011

[Emilio]

I placed an order for a V-Ar. If i ever get that licence (in several years) I might wanna tag along. I need to get off this couch :)

[Bushboy]

Emelio, guys are using bolt guns and ronis as well. Use what you have.

[Emilio]

Emelio, guys are using bolt guns and ronis as well. Use what you have.

I have neither. So Semis arent allowed?

[Bushboy]

Semis are very definitely allowed and will make it much easier. when my licence finally comes through , my long gun will be my LM. Until then I use my 30-06 hunting rifle or my .22 for cheaper practice. Some guys are using a pistol in a Roni carbine conversion. You could use a shotgun, or only a pistol but that would limit you in what parts you can participate in, but we are very open minded.

[Emilio]

ok. Once I secure semis or something other than handgun, I will drop a line :)
If I jog to the stop street I will die of exhaustion , so waiting will give me a chance to get into shape :)

[Bushboy]

For sure, fitness is required. 20 second of grappling with 2 guys will get you heart rate up pretty quickly. Dont write off a bolt gun either. They have a definite use as well. Sometimes a team member may be required to knock over plates at 200m or more. If you dont have a good scoped rifle you will have to move much slower and use what you have. Our rules state that when exposed to a target, you must either be moving, shooting or in cover or have some covering fire. So being able to knock over targets at long range is an advantage. The point is, there is a place for everyone, no matter what you have.

[Sean Murphy]

This last session was, for me, the best day we have had so far. It seems that everything is comming together nicely and all of the exercises were a lot of fun as well as having a very practical aplication.

Every one of the participants approach every exercise with a hugely positive attitude and this is one of the reasons that we are making such rapid progress and having so much fun.

Just to add to what Bushboy said above in answer to a few questions:

Come and get started with what you have. Waiting for that magic day when you have the ultimate semi-auto means you will miss out on all of this excellent foundation stuff and by the time you do get involved you will have a massive amount of catching up to do. Just come along and get going. We have a space and a plan for every type of weapon system and at the end of the day it is more about mindset and application than about the type of firearm you have. The most important thing is that you will learn to use what you have in the most efficient and practical way possible. Should'nt that be our first priority anyway. Secondly, it is the principals behind the use of the weapon that are important and these can be translated later to any other weapon system that you acquire later.

Sean.

[camouflage762]

Six hardy souls arrived at 06h30 to start setting up for the days event.
The primary objective was to test our scoring system as we would be working as teams.

Key to this was testing the Power factor.
It is felt that the PF is neccessary to equalise the scoring. Example a .22lr has an advantage in terms of cost & weight compared to say a 30 cal.

Also to identify hits on a target from a 9mm pistol and 375 rifle or .22 lr vs LG or AAA is going to be tedious & time consuming.

Thus it is important that a hits on target are of equal value, yet the team with the heavier/bigger/more powerful calibres ahould enjoy an advantage.

Thus .22lr=1/2 point
Pistol calibre carbine = 1.75 points
Shotgun AAA=1 points
Shotgun LG= 1.75 points
30 cal = 3 points

This is by no means cast in stone but is a starting point.
Thus Time+ points down+penatlies - bonus points - sum of team power factor =Score

By 07h30 we were ready to roll.

Sumo Pistol
The first exercise was a combative/grappling contest in which two attackers would grapple with the shooter for about 20 seconds, and try force him off the mat.
If he was forced off the mat he was given another chance.
At the 20 second mark the RO would call “clear” the shooter would then chamber a round (safety) and had to put 5 rounds on the target whilst being pushed & shoved from the back.

Thus the “attackers” could also disrupt & influence the scoring.
Team alpha won with a time less penalties (misses) of 10.98
The red neck special forces “R*N*S*F” collected a final score of 12.95 because of some poor shooting from the ground by yours truly

“Hike & Shoot”
Teams had to hike 1km then return to a designated team shooting box, from where they had to engage two targets @ 100m, requiring 5 hits each. –1 point for each miss

R*N*S*F won with a score of 941.43
Team Alpha with two points down and a longer time achieved a score of 1000.07



Shoot & scoot.
Starting at the 10m line the team vehicle would accelerate towards the 100m line. Two team members would be kneeling on the back seats, with muzzles already up & out of the windows. The RO was seated on the front passenger seat

On the go signal the driver would drive hell for leather to cross the finish line
It proved to be extremely “exciting”

Those who were operating bolt actions had stowed them and swapped out for pistols or shot guns.

Using a Roni (40 S&W) and a Pump Action Shotte Team Alpha won with a scored 19.35
R*N*S*F using a Semi auto .22lr, a 9mm Tangfolio & a Pump action scored 22.24

This exercise also showed up those whose Level 1 gear was to bulky or leaked thus restricting movement & the ability to get into & out of the vehicle.
“Less is more”



Sweep.
Because of the “scale” of this exercise it was decided to combine the two teams. 18 targets were placed between the 100 & 500 metre firing line. Each target required 5 shots to be neutralised. The range size 600mX200m!

Beginning at from the 50 metre line the teams had to rush to their respective vehicle carrying L1 & L2 kit then drive to the start line 600m distant, then debus, form an extended line and ‘sweep the area’ of nasty rhino horn poachers.

Terrain was covered with 1.5 metre high elephant grass, ant hills and interspersed with earthen berms. Footing was thus very uneven. It was thus very difficult to move fast.

The “rule” was that one was either moving, shooting or taking cover. Standing still is unrealistic and “frowned upon”

Team dynamics were interesting due to the variety of systems used.
The scoped & un-scoped 30cal bolt actions would engage targets as far out as possible. The .22lr & 40 S&W would engage from closer.
Transitioning to pistols happened frequently as those with limited capacity soon ran out of ammo and then found themselves very close to a target.

At certain intervals the team would halt to allow those who needed to reload magazines whilst those who could kept up covering fire.

Team safety was paramount and a thorough briefing was conducted prior to the exercise. Each member had there own medical kit and a medical evacuation plan was in place.

Communication between the members was good and definitely contributed to the safety & success of the exercise.

Total time for the sweep was approximately 25 minutes.
Could it be done faster?
Should it be done faster?
Can we improve
Definitely!
As long as due attention is paid to safety….
Its all very well saying its BIG BOY RULES, but the fact is a team would have to account to someone if blood is spilt, be it a magistrate or family members. Each member is responsible for there & the team mate safety.


Muzzles down range, fingers off trigger, safety on, watch arcs of fire, identify your target & what is beyond it.
KEEP CHECKING YOURSELF and YOUR MATE. COMMUNICATE!

Overall result:

R*N*S*F posted a result of 976.62
Team alpha posted a score of 1030.04 (Time Plus Points down less power factor)
Thus Alpha were within 6% of Alpha score.
Nice & close...

There was some confusion over the result due to the fact that minutes had not been converted to seconds but thanks to Bushboy this was cleared up


Once again my grateful thanks to all those who participated.


Next session is the 28 May 2011

[Emilio]

Noted.
Be warned. I am an X-Noob... (Extreme Noob)

[Sean Murphy]

Here's a nice pic of me taken during the "Shoot and Scoot" drill. Vehicle was moving pretty quick at this point and I was not hitting much but it was a lot of fun.

Sean.