| Date | Location | Offhand | Sitting | Rapid Prone | Slow Prone | Aggregate | |
| 4/4/04 | Bonfield | 94-0 | 99-5 | 100-3 | 196-8 | 489-16 | 97.8% |
| 4/20/04 | Bonfield | 91-0 | 100-5 | 98-3 | 197-8 | 486-16 | 97.2% |
| 4/25/04 | Bonfield | 192-2 | 200-12 | 194-6 | 198-11 | 784-31 | 98.0% |
| 5/2/04 | Bonfield | 97-2 | 99-4 | 95-1 | 200-11 | 491-18 | 98.2% |
| 5/15/04 | Milan | 193-4 | 200-8 | 194-5 | 197-9 | 784-26 | 98.0% |
| 5/20/04 | Racine | 97-3 | 98-2 | 98-3 | 194-5 | 487-13 | 97.4% |
| 5/27/04 | Racine | 94-1 | 99-5 | 99-3 | 185-5 | 477-14 | 95.4% |
| 6/3/04 | Racine | 96-2 | 100-4 | 98-8 | 187-7 | 481-21 | 96.2% |
| 6/5/05 | Milan | 195-2 | 198-10 | 196-3 | 194-7 | 783-22 | 97.9% |
| 6/6/04 | Milan | 193-7 | 200-13 | 198-10 | 195-6 | 786-36 | 98.3% |
| 6/12/04 | Racine | 190-3 | 195-4 | 197-7 | 189-4 | 771-18 | 96.4% |
| 6/13/04 | Racine | 93-3 | 100-5 | 100-4 | 194-8 | 487-20 | 97.4% |
| 6/17/04 | Racine | 96-1 | 100-6 | 97-0 | 196-6 | 489-13 | 97.8% |
| 6/19/04 | St. Louis | 189-1 | 198-10 | 197-10 | 193-7 | 777-28 | 97.1% |
| 6/20/04 | St. Louis | 97-3 | - | 97-2 | 99-5 | 293-10 | 97.7% |
| 6/20/04 | St. Louis | 93-1 | 99-5 | 96-5 | 198-1 | 486-12 | 97.2% |
| 7/1/04 | Racine | 94-1 | 100-6 | 98-2 | 188-3 | 480-12 | 96.0% |
| 7/8/04 | Racine | 94-1 | 90-5 | 97-2 | 196-6 | 477-14 | 95.4% |
| 7/10/04 | Bonfield | 95-1 | 100-4 | 100-4 | 196-8 | 491-17 | 98.2% |
| 7/11/04 | Bonfield | 95-3 | 100-2 | 95-2 | 199-12 | 489-19 | 97.8% |
| 7/17/04 | Van Meter | 95-1 | 99-6 | 98-3 | 197-10 | 489-20 | 97.8% |
| 7/17/04 | Van Meter | 97-2 | 100-5 | 100-3 | 197-8 | 494-18 | 98.8% |
| 7/18/04 | Van Meter | 193-8 | 198-8 | 194-4 | 190-3 | 775-23 | 96.9% |
| 7/22/04 | Racine | 97-4 | 99-8 | 99-3 | 195-3 | 490-18 | 98.0% |
| 7/24/04 | Lodi | 190-5 | 198-5 | 194-7 | 196-2 | 778-19 | 97.3% |
| 7/25/04 | Racine | 192-4 | 200-12 | 199-7 | 191-5 | 782-28 | 97.8% |
| 8/3/04 | Camp Perry | 95-0 | - | 98-0 | 97-6 | 290-6 | 96.7% |
| 8/4/04 | Camp Perry | 96-1 | 98-5 | 85-0 | - | 279-6 | 93.0% |
| 8/6/04 | Camp Perry | 90-2 | 99-5 | 97-1 | 194-6 | 480-14 | 96.0% |
| 8/8/04 | Camp Perry | 91-1 | 100-6 | 99-7 | 193-4 | 483-18 | 96.6% |
| 8/10/04 | Camp Perry | 195-6 | 199-7 | 197-7 | 194-5 | 785-25 | 98.1% |
| 8/11/04 | Camp Perry | 186-3 | 200-11 | 191-5 | 195-7 | 772-26 | 96.5% |
| 8/12/04 | Camp Perry | 190-3 | 199-8 | 199-10 | 195-8 | 783-29 | 97.9% |
| 8/19/04 | Racine | 95-3 | 100-5 | 98-3 | 198-10 | 491-21 | 98.2% |
| 8/21/04 | Lodi | 94-2 | 99-4 | 93-0 | 195-9 | 481-15 | 96.2% |
| 8/22/04 | Lodi | 180-2 | 198-12 | 196-3 | 387-8 | 961-25 | 96.1% |
| 8/26/04 | Racine | 93-3 | 94-4 | 97-1 | 195-5 | 479-13 | 95.8% |
| 9/4/04 | Milan | 194-6 | 197-3 | 196-3 | 195-6 | 782-18 | 97.8% |
| 9/5/05 | Milan | 189-2 | 196-4 | 195-8 | 196-6 | 776-20 | 97.0% |
| 9/11/04 | Bonfield | 190-2 | 200-9 | 199-12 | 200-8 | 789-31 | 98.6% |
| 9/12/04 | Bonfield | 93-0 | 98-2 | 100-4 | 198-10 | 489-16 | 97.8% |
| 9/25/04 | Bonfield | 196-7 | 199-11 | 197-4 | 199-10 | 791-32 | 98.9% |
| 9/26/04 | Bonfield | 194-4 | 199-12 | 198-4 | 198-6 | 789-26 | 98.6% |
| 10/2/04 | Milan | 195-8 | 195-4 | 195-6 | 190-4 | 775-22 | 96.9% |
| 10/3/04 | Milan | 191-5 | 198-7 | 198-8 | 195-7 | 782-27 | 97.8% |
I haven't been training as hard before this season as I have in year's past. My attitude towards highpower is more relaxed now but I still realize that there is work to be done. My dry-firing has been confined to getting back my position comfort level from last year. This should put me at the same level as I left off.
Last year could be considered relatively successful with some very good performances. My improvement goals for 2004 are in 300 rapid consistency and overall match attitude. I have seen where my performance has risen when I'm relaxed and not worrying about my score or winning. Hopefully with a more relaxed attitude I'll be able to raise my shooting up a notch. We'll see.
Cold and breezy is not the most pleasant way to start off the season but there I was shivering with a winter jacket and gloves. The skies were clear with only a few passing clouds. The gusts were moving me a bit in offhand but it was my trigger control that was really causing the frustration. Sitting felt good but the group was big with one shot just out the bottom. For 300 rapid my position was good but the sight picture was hard to get because of the heavy mirage through my sights. Same story with slow prone. Though it wasn't the score that I wanted, it was acceptable considering the uncomfortable conditions for the day.
Offhand: 94-0
Sitting: 99-5
Rapid Prone: 100-3
Slow Prone: 196-8
Aggregate: 489-16
Quite warm with blue skies but windy with a lot of gusts. My offhand was just plain awful as I shot 9 after 9. While the breeze didn't help, my general hold doesn't feel as good as it did last year. Sitting was acceptable but the group needs to be smaller. My first two shots in rapid prone were on the left side so I wound up holding over on the right. Slow prone went well with an unexpected 8 in the middle of the string and a 9 on the last shot because I let it go without being fully ready. At this point I really need to work on my offhand to get back to my previous form from the end of last year.
Offhand: 91-0
Sitting: 100-5
Rapid Prone: 98-3
Slow Prone: 197-8
Aggregate: 486-16
I can't seem to find a day to shoot that doesn't have a lot of gusty wind. The skies were mostly overcast with rain threatening most of the day. While windy, I was able to be patient in offhand and wait for the sights to move across the black. An aggressive trigger pull broke the shots as they were momentarily centered up. My sitting position felt solid as I realized that my elbows need to be a little more inboard of my knees. Rapid prone was disappointing and this is the area that I really need to work on. The overcast sky allowed me to get a very good sight picture in slow prone with a sharp front sight and a relatively clear target.
Offhand: 192-2
Sitting: 200-12
Rapid Prone: 194-6
Slow Prone: 198-11
Aggregate: 784-31
It's good to finally get a day without gusting winds. Although chilly, the sun kept showing itself which added a little warmth. My standing was borderline acceptable with the rifle never really settling down. I felt that I could have done a point or two better if I was more relaxed. I dropped a nine out the bottom in sitting with my position feeling more closed in than normal. My position in rapid prone was good but my entire group was on the left side. Since I wasn't sure of the wind for that string I'll shoot some more before I start to make judgments. Slow prone went real well because the front post was very clear. Overall a decent day but there were too many mistakes and it should have been at the 99% level.
Offhand: 97-2
Sitting: 99-4
Rapid Prone: 95-1
Slow Prone: 200-11
Aggregate: 491-18
A gorgeous day to shoot with my first traveling match of the year. For some reason the rifle held real still for my first sighter in offhand but it got a little more wobbly for the start of the record shots. I need something to calm me down in the morning. Sitting was just fine but rapid prone was a disaster. Both groups were misplaced even though they felt fine through the sights. OK, maybe things did get fuzzy on the second string. Slow prone was going real well until I shot and noticed that the mirage was going in the other direction. Oops, an eight. I waited and thought the condition at least came back to center. I fired and had a nine. Oh well.
Offhand: 193-4
Sitting: 200-8
Rapid Prone: 194-5
Slow Prone: 197-9
Aggregate: 784-26
Humid with dark skies but we were fortunate in that we didn't get rained on. I got my usual case of the shakes as soon as I had to start shooting offhand. This caused me to snatch at the trigger. My sitting position wasn't quite as stable as it had been recently but it looked better through the sights than a 98. I'll chalk this one up to an off day. I took my time in rapid prone with good breathing and dressing up the sight picture. The group was good but slightly off-center. Slow prone was a case of shooting a couple of tens and then a nine. This pattern was repeated throughout the string. This day will be considered as one where I made a bunch of small mistakes that I shouldn't have and I'll move on.
Offhand: 97-3
Sitting: 98-2
Rapid Prone: 98-3
Slow Prone: 194-5
Aggregate: 487-13
A cool breezy day. My instability in offhand has given me some worries recently. Everything seems more wobbly than normal. In addition to this my trigger control is moving the rifle when I fire. Even sitting had more pulse than normal. Today's 300 rapid group was smaller than normal but the real disaster was in slow prone. There, I was fighting shots that were going from 8 ring on the right to 8 ring on the left. My elevation was fine but the side to side was quite frustrating. We'll just chalk this up to a bad day.
Offhand: 94-1
Sitting: 99-5
Rapid Prone: 99-3
Slow Prone: 185-5
Aggregate: 477-14
Another cool night but the wind was much steadier. Another case of not being entirely comfortable in offhand. But I can feel myself getting more stable and confident. In rapid prone I couldn't believe the score when it came up. I had a great group of 8 shots in the x-ring and two nines at 6 and 5 o'clock. My position felt good but I question my sight picture for a few shots. I'll just have to concentrate on the front post a little bit harder. I just can't figure out what's happening at 600. I'm calling good shots but some of them are going out in the 7-ring. I also finished with 5 clicks of elevation more than my zero. Wierd!
Offhand: 96-2
Sitting: 100-4
Rapid Prone: 98-8
Slow Prone: 187-7
Aggregate: 481-21
I got back into the swing of things with my offhand today. The trigger broke at the right time and most shots were inside of my call. Things didn't go as well in sitting with my first string having two nines that were as far as mid-ring. The cause was me snatching at the trigger. My prone rapid groups were more of the same vertical stringing as I've had before. I don't have a solution for this. Prone slow would have gone a lot better if I hadn't pushed an eight and two nines out the top. There's that front sight focus again.
Offhand: 195-2
Sitting: 198-10
Rapid Prone: 196-3
Slow Prone: 194-7
Aggregate: 783-22
Today is a team match and I just love shooting team matches. Especially when you have experienced shooters that work together well. I had a couple more nines in offhand than yesterday but it was still a decent performance. Sitting went as it should have. After my first string of rapid prone a member of my team suggested a different buttplate placement so that the rifle wouldn't slip down my shoulder. I cleaned the second string so I will have to see if this new position is a solution. I experimented even more at 600 by shooting 77 grain bullets. The test to compare to the 80s was inconclusive and I think I should work more on getting a relaxed position.
Offhand: 193-7
Sitting: 200-13
Rapid Prone: 198-10
Slow Prone: 195-6
Aggregate: 786-36
There was a fog delay this morning so we didn't get to shoot until early afternoon. My offhand is still in the toilet with a large wobble. The shots are on call but I'm calling them in the nine ring. Even sitting was horrible. The groups were fair but there was nothing to the right of center. My rapid fire groups were actually pretty good but there were a few shots that I dropped out the bottom. My thoughts are that I'm putting the butt of the rifle too low in my shoulder and that allows it to slip down giving me uncalled elevation shots. Slow prone saw me shoot nine after nine in what seemed like an endless bleeding away of points. Here the problem is tension in my upper body as I'm breaking the shot. This leads to either a flinch or relaxing just as the shot lets go.
Offhand: 190-3
Sitting: 195-4
Rapid Prone: 197-7
Slow Prone: 189-4
Aggregate: 771-18
A warm clear day for a team match. Another poor offhand performance. Most shots were left of call but my hold was also bigger than normal. I think the problem is that I'm forcing my left hip out too much. This causes my upper body to be thrown off balance. Both rapids went well for a change. Slow prone didn't have any weird elevation shots because I was able to focus on the front sight better.
Offhand: 93-3
Sitting: 100-5
Rapid Prone: 100-4
Slow Prone: 194-8
Aggregate: 487-20
While it was a bit overcast the conditions were very calm. Even though my scores don't show it I feel I'm improving my offhand. My trigger control was better even though my hold needs work. I believed my sighters in rapid prone and was rewarded with an over-corrected group on the left side. In slow prone the shots were in the middle when I concentrated on the front sight but I would lose focus when a few shots broke.
Offhand: 96-1
Sitting: 100-6
Rapid Prone: 97-0
Slow Prone: 196-6
Aggregate: 489-13
Boy, my offhand has really tanked recently. Everything seems wobbly and I'm having a hard time breaking a center shot. I even wound up shooting two eights. On my first string of sitting I dropped the first two shots out the bottom. Rapid prone had three shots just barely out of the ten ring with some good groups. Slow prone wasn't great but I felt that I'm making progress in relaxing when I shoot a shot.
Offhand: 189-1
Sitting: 198-10
Rapid Prone: 197-10
Slow Prone: 193-7
Aggregate: 777-28
President's course team match. Now it's time to change things in my offhand. I've modified my left hand position to get the rifle up higher. It seemed to go reasonably well. But rapid prone didn't. I felt rushed with a position that was too stressed. By the time I shot 600 my sight picture was fantastic. The front sight was sharp and even the target was clear.
Offhand: 97-3
Rapid Prone: 97-2
Slow Prone: 99-5
Aggregate: 293-10
My first leg match since Camp Perry last year. A disastrous standing showed me that my new position needs a lot of practice. Sitting had a misplaced group at 1 o'clock but it was rapid prone that let me down. I started off in the x-ring but then had some massive body lurches that caused the shots to go all over the nine ring. The only saving grace from today was my slow prone. I was relaxed, had a good sight picture, and was able to squeeze the trigger. Yes, the x-count is not a typo. The shots were going over most of the ten ring but I can't complain too much.
Offhand: 93-1
Sitting: 99-5
Rapid Prone: 96-5
Slow Prone: 198-1
Aggregate: 486-12
I've been dry firing with a modified offhand position in an effort to get the rifle higher. The results have been fair in practice but tonight I put them into practice. The rifle seemed shaky and the sights would never settle down. It was more difficult to control and really affected my confidence in making a good shot. I finally got fed up and went back to my normal hold for the last three shots. The two shots that I dropped out the bottom in rapid prone were due to bad sight picture, a problem that was bugging me for the whole match. In slow prone I wound up shooting with three clicks more elevation than my normal zero. In addition to this, I was going from nines on the left to nines on the right. I never got centered up.
Offhand: 94-1
Sitting: 100-6
Rapid Prone: 98-2
Slow Prone: 188-3
Aggregate: 480-12
I'm back to my old left hand position in standing. It's still far from perfect with each shot feeling like it takes a lot of effort. But I can see the rifle movement slow down a bit. In sitting I made the mistake of trying to scope my first two shots and then dressed up the sights too much for each shot. The result was firing when the target was going back down into the pits. That netted me a miss. My rapid prone group was out on the right and I can't figure out why. I shot most of slow prone with about 4 clicks of right windage. I shot 4 nines in the first ten shots and cleaned the rest of it. While my overall score wasn't great I do feel like I'm beginning to climb out of my performance rut. But it really comes down to standing.
Offhand: 94-1
Sitting: 90-5
Rapid Prone: 97-2
Slow Prone: 196-6
Aggregate: 477-14
Team practice today with warm temperatures and blue skies. Offhand was a little shaky with the shots not breaking when I want them to. I was finally able to clean prone rapid. My rapid fire scores always seem to be better in team matches. I think that when I hear feedback that a shot is "centered", I remember the sight picture that it took to shoot that center shot and try to repeat it. Also, being in a team situation relaxes me more. I shot two nines and one eight in slow prone. After I shot the completely off-call eight I realized that after each shot I was relaxing my right shoulder. This means that as I'm shooting I'm pushing my shoulder into the butt of the rifle. Maybe I am anticipating the recoil, maybe I am doing this to get more length of pull. Either way I have to concentrate on being relaxed as I break the shot.
Offhand: 95-1
Sitting: 100-4
Rapid Prone: 100-4
Slow Prone: 196-8
Aggregate: 491-17
It was a hot and muggy one today. I was sweating before I even stepped up to the line for offhand. For my second shot in standing I saw a good sight picture and decided to shoot. Just then the sights flew down to 5 o'clock in the white and it went off for a seven. That hurt as I was mostly inside of call with my called 10s turning out to be X's. My rapid prone group was big and off-center to 10 o'clock. Another mystery with no answer. Slow prone went well as I tried to be calm despite the heat and the throbbing in my ears. Not as good as yesterday but I'm starting to feel that my offhand is improving.
Offhand: 95-3
Sitting: 100-2
Rapid Prone: 95-2
Slow Prone: 199-12
Aggregate: 489-19
Team match. Offhand had a lot of off-call shots. I would call it on the side of the x-ring and it would be an outside 10 or worse. Sometimes I'm getting a little sloppy in sitting and that caused a nine that was just out. Dropping two points in rapid prone seems to be typical for me. But it all seems to be related to sight picture. Slow prone worked well with seven x's on the last 10 shots.
Offhand: 95-1
Sitting: 99-6
Rapid Prone: 98-3
Slow Prone: 197-10
Aggregate: 489-20
My second leg match of the year. Things were going pretty well in standing until the 6th or 7th shot. It looked good and as I was breaking it the sights flew across the black to 11 o'clock for an 8. Even rapid prone went well with a nicely centered group. All three nines at 600 were caused by me not pointing the front sight in the same place on the target. Three elevation shots were the result.
Offhand: 97-2
Sitting: 100-5
Rapid Prone: 100-3
Slow Prone: 197-8
Aggregate: 494-18
Iowa Regional Championship. All I thought about in offhand was "don't give up on the shot". It worked well enough for me to start to get some confidence back in this position and I had a decent x-count. I cleaned my first sitting string but didn't get the same position for the second. Rapid prone was another disaster with one shot even going out to the 8 ring. Unfortunately, slow prone didn't go as well as yesterday. My position wasn't fully relaxed and I was muscling the rifle.
Offhand: 193-8
Sitting: 198-8
Rapid Prone: 194-4
Slow Prone: 190-3
Aggregate: 775-23
It's good to see my offhand scores coming back to where they should be. I don't think I'm doing anything different other than maybe putting more tension on the pistol grip. Today's hold was decent but I was also breaking shots that didn't disturb the rifle. The x-count at 200 yards was also pretty good. For the second half of the string of 300 I lost front sight focus and wasn't able to discern it's position against the target very well. That gave me an enlarged group with one lost shot at 5 o'clock. My slow prone started off well because I had good contrast between the sights and the target. As soon as it got darker I started to have problems but I could still call the bad shots.
Offhand: 97-4
Sitting: 99-8
Rapid Prone: 99-3
Slow Prone: 195-3
Aggregate: 490-18
Today's offhand was certainly sub-standard. There weren't any really bad shots but many shots that broke where they shouldn't have. My hold was fair but it seemed like I was shooting the shots when they were on the way out. Excessive cant put my sitting groups all the way out on the right. My wind estimation at 300 was very light and my first string had 6 nines on the right. The conditions were quite calm for 600 and I lost 3 of my 4 points to elevation (out the bottom).
Offhand: 190-5
Sitting: 198-5
Rapid Prone: 194-7
Slow Prone: 196-2
Aggregate: 778-19
My last time shooting until I get to Camp Perry. I was going along pretty well in standing until my last shot. I'm not sure if I held too long or if I just gave up but I shot an eight. My rapid prone position was better than it has been for most of the season. That was quite a confidence builder. My sight picture gave me all kinds of problems in slow prone. Things were going along well and then I shot a 7. I started to notice that I was having a hard time getting contrast between the front sight and the target.
Offhand: 192-4
Sitting: 200-12
Rapid Prone: 199-7
Slow Prone: 191-5
Aggregate: 782-28
Heading for Camp Perry this year seems to be more of a grind than something I am looking forward to. My motivation level is not as high as in past years and that worries me. I don't feel like I'm performing at the level I should but we'll see how it goes.
While I certainly wanted to make the President's 100 for the third time I wasn't very focused on it. I just stepped up to the line and shot but I wasn't concentrating on it like in past years. Standing was fair with three 9's in a row. I felt the wind was light at 300 so I only put on two clicks left. That seemed to be the right wind call but my sight alignment allowed two nines to get out. At 600 the conditions were still mild and I put on 1 minute right. My first three shots were X's. But I also had a nine and an eight before I was done. My 290 was good enough for the top 50.
Offhand: 95-0
Rapid Prone: 98-0
Slow Prone: 97-6
Aggregate: 290-6
This year's NTI was stopped after standing and sitting because of rain and high winds. I wished it was never started again. When we shot the 300 rapid portion the next day the wind was blowing. My three minutes left was about a minute too much. This yielded me five nines and 5 eights. Oh well.
Offhand: 96-1
Rapid Prone: 98-5
Rapid Prone: 85-0
Aggregate: 279-6
The NTT is the match that I really come out here for. As an omen for the day I stepped on my sunglasses that morning. Could things get any worse? Well, the wind that appeared for offhand showed that it could. I was swaying around but I didn't want to give up on the shot. Even shooting a team match couldn't get my motivation level up. It's hard to concentrate on doing well when you really don't care about doing well.
Offhand: 90-2
Sitting: 99-5
Rapid Prone: 97-1
Slow Prone: 194-6
Aggregate: 480-14
I shot a 490 last year in the Rumbold so I knew I could do well. It would all depend on if I could focus on achieving a higher level of performance than I have been. My hold in offhand was pretty bad. This is the same hold I've been using but for some reason it didn't want to settle down so I could break the shot. Sitting didn't let me down. The x-count in 300 rapid was good but I still had a nine just off the 10-ring at 7 o'clock. A mediocre score that was directly related to my mediocre attitude.
Offhand: 91-1
Sitting: 100-6
Rapid Prone: 99-7
Slow Prone: 193-4
Aggregate: 483-18
The first day of the championship with overcast skies but no precipitation. Since my offhand hold has been so bad recently I changed to something different to get the rifle up higher. This seemed to steady things a bit and I had more time to break the shots. Sitting was acceptable but rapid prone had two inconsistent groups. One was low and left while the second was good with me throwing a shot way out to the left. Still, I finished the first day only down 9 points.
Offhand: 195-6
Sitting: 199-7
Rapid Prone: 197-7
The second day of the championship is traditionally the most difficult and this year was no exception. There was a stiff breeze blowing and it made offhand tricky. I came back strong in sitting with two good strings. Most people seemed to be guessing about 6 minutes left for 600. I didn't think it was worth that much and finished my shots with only 4 minutes. It was still strong enough that there wasn't any mirage to watch and I wound up just chasing the spotter.
Offhand: 186-3
Sitting: 200-11
Slow Prone: 194-5
This should be an easy day with two rapids and a slow prone match. I shot an alibi in sitting because the last round in my first string didn't feed right. I knew I had to clean my alibi string to keep my clean but I blew it and shot a nine. For 300 my sighters were on the right so I kept putting on more left and shot the first string way out to the left with 8 nines. My second string was centered up but the damage was already done. At 600 the wind was less than yesterday but it was still running along. By now I was down 44 points and was third civilian service rifle shooter.
Sitting: 199-8
Rapid Prone: 191-5
Slow Prone: 195-7
The last day and I just wanted to wrap things up. It was a cool calm day and perfect offhand conditions. I couldn't capitalize on this though and dropped 10 points just in standing. My sight picture and position in prone rapid was very good with a nine on the second string being the only point dropped. The wind at 600 was about as calm as you will ever have at Camp Perry. It would change direction but it did so very slowly. But I still managed to shoot 3 nines and an eight.
Offhand: 190-3
Sitting: 199-10
Slow Prone: 195-8
I thought that a 2340 was a disappointing score. But it turned out that only two civilian service rifle shooters shot better. Overall I think that my lack of desire to shoot at this year's nationals affected my performance. I'll have to examine why this was the case. After all, I can't come to Perry as an underachiever.
Today's conditions were quite calm and a good day to shoot a good score. Unfortunately my offhand was pretty shaky. Nothing would settle and it felt as if I was shooting from the deck of a ship in a storm. I shot two 8s. Sitting was a good score but a rather large group with some off-call shots. Rapid prone had a decent group between the X and the 10 ring at 10 o'clock. There were also two 9s at 10. My first four shots out of the rifle were Xs at 600. I started off with no wind and gradually moved to 2 clicks right. Both 9s were out at 5 o'clock. Even though I was shooting X's there was still a lack of contrast between the front sight and the target. I think the shots that were out were caused by this.
Offhand: 95-3
Sitting: 100-5
Rapid Prone: 98-3
Slow Prone: 198-10
Aggregate: 491-21
Team match. Another wobbly offhand makes me wonder if I could ever shoot this position. A jerked shot in sitting and a bunch of nines at 300 really blew my day. Even so my 600 yard score was pretty good for the conditions.
Offhand: 94-2
Sitting: 99-4
Rapid Prone: 93-0
Slow Prone: 195-9
Aggregate: 481-15
All the wind in offhand didn't help my confidence any. I do feel that I need to control the rifle better. A little firmer grip with the right hand maybe. I can't remember the last time I shot an eight in sitting. Rapid prone had passable groups but I do feel that I got the wind call right. The first 600 match had fairly even light conditions with a left to right wind that had some pick-ups and let-offs. I dropped two shots out the bottom and the other four were due to wind. In the second 600 the sun came out and I shot two 8s out the top.
Offhand: 180-2
Sitting: 198-12
Rapid Prone: 196-3
Slow Prone: 194-4
Slow Prone: 193-4
Aggregate: 961-25
There wasn't much point in shooting tonight. It was overcast and so dark that seeing the targets and the front sight was a struggle. My calls were way off because I couldn't tell where I was putting the front post in relation to the target. In addition to this I took too long in sitting and shot a five as the target was going into the pits.
Offhand: 93-3
Sitting: 94-4
Rapid Prone: 97-1
Slow Prone: 195-5
Aggregate: 479-13
The state service rifle championship. I started off hot in offhand not dropping a point through my first 9 shots for record. Things got a little shakier in the second half though. It was sitting that surprised me. While it didn't look like a bad group it was off center. My 300 was just as bad as it has been and slow prone was just as mediocre as it has been. I wound up third overall.
Offhand: 194-6
Sitting: 197-3
Rapid Prone: 196-3
Slow Prone: 195-6
Aggregate: 782-18
A team match today. We split up the usual team members and shot with some juniors so that they could get some coaching. My standing wasn't anywhere near as steady as yesterday and my score shows it. I pair fired it and was standing up there for a long time. My rapids were the low point of the day. While I've come to rely on a good sitting score it was no where to be found today. In rapid prone I spent almost every shot forcing the sights back to the target after recoil. I really need to do something about this. Relying on luck to clean the target isn't good enough. Elevation hurt me on a few shots in slow prone but overall it was acceptable.
Offhand: 189-2
Sitting: 196-4
Rapid Prone: 195-8
Slow Prone: 196-6
Aggregate: 776-20
Today's weather was great with lots of sun and no wind. I started offhand rather rough. There were two 8s and two 9s in my first 10 shots. I had a hard time finding a comfortable position. It seemed like my vertical NPA was at the bottom of the target frame and I had to work to bring the sights up. I finally lowered the butt position in my shoulder and that brought the sights up. My sitting was what it should be. My position in rapid prone was much better than it has been with a 7-x clean on the first string. I spent lots of time getting ready when I dropped into position and then shot the string VERY fast because the sights were coming to the target. I got a little sloppy in the second string though. Slow prone seemed very easy with two groups forming on the target. One in the right side of the x-ring and another one in the 10-ring at 8 o'clock.
Offhand: 190-2
Sitting: 200-9
Rapid Prone: 199-12
Slow Prone: 200-8
Aggregate: 789-31
A poor 200 yard performance today. My hold in standing wasn't all that bad but I would break the shots as they sat in the 9 ring. Just bad judgment. In sitting, I shot my second shot as I was anticipating the magazine change. The sights flew off to 10 o'clock and the rifle went off. My coach said "Wow" as he looked through the scope. Rapid prone position was good and I shot the string quickly. Slow prone didn't go as well as yesterday. I had two nines both out on the right even though things felt good..
Offhand: 93-0
Sitting: 98-2
Rapid Prone: 100-4
Slow Prone: 198-10
Aggregate: 489-16