Chilly day at the range

[jnyork]

Over 30 geezers and geezerettes gathered at 0800 yesterday morning for our weekly Lever action silhouette shoot on the 1/2 scale targets. Temp at that time was 39 degrees, overcast and about 10-15 knots of wind from 2 or 3 oclock. So nasty and miserable that about a dozen of them turned around and went home. Rest of us, the truely dedicated, stayed and shot anyway. Nobody took off coats and gloves as the temps did not come up much, nor did the sun peek out at all.

Strangely, despite the nastiness, I managed my best score of the season with my Rossi 1892 lever gun in .357, shot a 29x40 with 10 in a row pigs. We finished about 1030 and went home chilled but happy.

[3leggedturtle]

Was no better in west Texas, 34 windy and rain. At least you were dry and able to shoot! Todd/3leg

[.45colt]

It's a tough life for us old Guys... high of 25* here , We had the four Grandkids all day as there was no school. only one had the guts to go out with Me down to the swamp about 400yds from Lake Erie. Jake is 6 and when we got out of the car the wind was whipping straight off of the lake from Canada . He was all bundled up and We walked down from the beach, got in the woods to the swamp where there is a Beaver dam probably 800' long. it's in a state park and I bet that 99% of the thousands of people who go there have no idea that it's even there. that Kid only hopes that we get some real cold weather so We can go ice fishing. . Stay warm.

[JHarold]

I bet a couple showed up with shorts on?

[Thunder50]

Supposed to have a shoot in the morning, but kinda hope he calls it off. supposed to be 6 degrees and its usually windy at the range, mornings. I might cast some boolits instead.

[Jay Bird]

29 x 40 is a very respectable AAA score. I'm happy with anything 28 and above. My best last year was a 31 in pistol caliber using an original 1873 with a 5 pound trigger and a 35 in small bore with a pre war 39 Marlin.

You guys only shoot one discipline? We start with smallbore , then pistol caliber and after lunch we do big bore...makes for too long of a day for me anymore, starting at 8 and finishing up around 4-5. I've been bunking the big bore as I'm tired by then and shoot sloppy.

We have some sort of discipline every weekend starting next month.
https://www.atglensportsmensclub.org/

[jnyork]

Sixgun, we shoot almost everything on a weekly basis. Our Friday morning shoots (Thursday this week only) are club shoots, not NRA. We shoot .22 lever gun, pistol caliber levergun and plinker silhouette shoulder to shoulder on the halfscale targets. Plinker silhouette is simply we let anyone shoot any rifle as long as it's a .22. Plinker is by far the reason for our club's success, we get over 30 shooters most days. Almost all are over the age of 70. Only a few have ever been to a range before, fewer have shot any organized shoots. We have no prizes, we dont announce anyone's scores, it's just for fun , we found out years ago if you just say "competition" you lose 75% of the people, at least.

[Jay Bird]

Yes...JN...I agree ....most people like to shoot for the fun of it. Competition with voice commands over the loud speaker takes the fun out of it....then there's "classifications" which further add more repulse to the shooting sports......at our club, no one says anything but if your a "B" or "A" shooter, you don't get to hobknob with the AAA or Master class shooters.....well, you do, but it's different.........so ...a shooter will strive to become a AAA or rarely, the Master class shooter and after that you have to focus to stay at your level...hence, the fun fades.

But...as Teddy Roosevelt said, or words to the effect, "Don't chide the man who gets into the arena because if you don't, you will never know the agony of defeat or the exhilaration of winning...I agree on that as when your name is called and are announced as the "Match Winner" it sure makes you feel good.

But the older I get, I just like to shoot for fun.

It's going to be something this year when me and a few buds will be attending the National Levergun Silhouette Championships which is going to be held in Pennsylvania for the first time. Pressures on.----6