Ongoing Highpower XTC Journal

[milotrain]

In the spirit of Konrad Powers' ongoing highpower journal, I figured it might be useful for people to share their recent match experiences in a sort of "debrief" style.

Make sure to include:
• Location and Name of the match (so other locals can show up if they want)
• Course of fire

But then just talk about what was important to you in that match. What worked really well (remember we don't care why we shoot 8s, just why we shoot Xs).

[milotrain]

Los Angeles area - Gopher Flats/Lopez Canyon - Fourth Saturday of the month.
200 Yard Reduced Course - 50 round National Match (with pits)

I shot much better than I expected in this match. I had just changed my front sight post out from an .056 to .072. Unfortunately this post is a bit shorter, and my up2 200y elevation zero was no good anymore. With the rear sight decked out I needed a 6 o'clock hold. I haven't shot a 6 o'clock in maybe two years so it was interesting and fun to shoot it Saturday.

Offhand wobble has shrunk significantly due to a bare minimum of dry firing during the week (3 clean breaks before a shower in the morning, 3 clean breaks before I go to sleep. No coat, no glove. 12min total). I still pulled on some stupid shots, netting me four 8s but all the rest were 10s or Xs.

Sitting rapid has improved since friend Johnny helped me with a higher position. This higher position removes all the cant, and any chance of bouncing the sights off my glasses. A 6 o'clock hurt me in some vertical stringing but a 99 was nothing to complain about. I'm excited to get my sitting groups down into xring knots.

Prone rapid was also good. I've been fighting the prone position since getting back into shooting at the beginning of the month (after a 3 month break). A bit more padding in the form of a heavier sweatshirt, and the low target carriers at Lopez made for a comfortable position that I could really lean into. I shot a little too quick and had some vertical but still shot a 98 and was pleased with it.
•Shultz and I both shot in transition for practice and I really made a point of taking the time to get my NPA right for both rapid stages. Typically I didn't get a round off until the other competitors had shot their first round form their second magazine, but I still had plenty of time.

Slow prone was a bit above what I expected, but not as good as I really want it to be in a reduced course match. I dropped four 9s and called a pair of them. The 6 o'clock hold really became a flat tire hold. I shot my first sighter 9 out the bottom, thought I would try a COM hold and put a 9 out the top. So I stayed with the 6 o'clock and dialed up into the 10 ring. Foggy glasses are still biting me, and are worth 9s if I try to shoot through them.
•Slow prone at a reduced match (that is run straight through) nets me consistently higher scores. I attribute this to a position prep period that is the entire length of the rapid prone string. By the time slow prone happens I'm well comfortable with my position an trusting my NPA. It just means I need to have a tighter prep program for full course matches so that pre-prep, and prep are all developing position.

485-12x which is just a high master score. It's not really a score I deserve, with the benefits of a 200 yard range, low targets, and no position change from prone rapid to slow prone and a 50 round course of fire. I consistently shoot well on this range because each of those are bonuses for me. It was however a real good boost to know that I can get back into the game pretty quickly.

Takeaway from this last month of practice (some shockingly low scores) and this recent satisfying match was:
FRONT SIGHT FOCUS COVERS A MULTITUDE OF SINS
I'm pretty good about front sight focus, it's something that I learned to pay attention to early on but for some reason I forgot (maybe due to bad dry fire practice) in the off months. I shot a round consistent 9 ring prone group early this month and Johnny called me on me what I was doing wrong.
Remember:
• If your shots are outside your call it is very likely that your focus is on the target.
• If your shots are inside your call it is very likely that your focus is on the post.


Pendleton - SoCal Regionals - Wilcox Range - annual - (9-30-15)
Full Course - Sat 500 point Leg match

I came into this match with a lot of confidence. I have been shooting well and I knew I could win points today. I made a mistake in Sitting that I shouldn't have made, no reason to beat myself up about it, I won't do it again.

Offhand This was a good match for offhand. Not a great score as I shanked a 5 (WHAT?) when wind was pushing and I was leaning into it. I saw the 10, jumped on the trigger just as the wind let off. I was rushing the 10 minutes because I was a bit over confident. For a windy day with 1MOA on the rifle at 200 and a 5 I shot an 85-0. Not unhappy but not thrilled. Take your time, the 10 will present itself again.

Sitting rapidSo I made a doozy of a mistake. At the mag change I glassed the target, saw a shot in the 9 ring at 1:30. Took the 1MOA off the gun, switched to a 6'clock hold and ran the string. Target came up and my "shot" was a paster. 1-x 1-10, and a tight 10 ring group in the 9 ring at 7:30. Stupid. I don't glass between mags for this reason. I wasn't confident in my wind call and I should have been. 90-1. Group was good not pleased, but happy with the group.

Prone rapidGood wind call, but a bit more vertical than I wanted. Position felt right but not quite as tight as it could have been. I saw a let off half way through the second mag, took 1/2 off which was a good idea. 98-2. That'll work.

Slow proneIt felt so good. Just like when it's all going right at 100. I had been watching the wind since squadding, just to get an idea of it's attitude. It was a gusty one, maybe between 6-10mph, sometimes up to 12. Direction was changing with the gusts from full value to 1:30. Seemed like the wind was biggest at 1:30 and lighter at full. Wind behind the 300 yard line seemed minimal and it might have been due to the palm trees north west of Wilcox at the 600 yard line. So I called it a 300 yard wind with 1/2MOA more on the rifle, so 3-1/2MOA. Opened the string with a 10 out the side, but the good news is that I went down on the gun at a 1:30 and when I glassed it after the shot the wind was full so I was pretty sure that I could go across the 10 ring without touching the knobs. I just kept my head on the rifle and shot good shots, I ignored everything else. I did get lazy towards the end and I should have put on a bit more wind as I netted a 9, and followed it up with a 9 in the same place. 196-2 which was the high slow prone of the day.

Takeaway from this match was not to change up the program in a match that matters. Shoot your match, don't look for points in the margins. The other take away is that the prone work is working, and shooting 10s with little regard to the wind works very well. It's better to have a hard ***** hold than it is to have a good wind call.


Coalinga - Coalinga Regionals - annual. (10-3-15 + 10-4-15)
Full Course - Sat 800 point NRA course, Sun 500 point Leg match

I came into these matches without much practice but I've been shooting better than ever. I attribute this to an improved mental game and some good drilling at 100yards in slow fire prone.

Regional
OffhandGood offhand, shot too many 9s but I got a lot of "free 10s" from front sight focus and extra weight in the hand guards. It felt really good. I was really watching the plan "On Target? FOCUS, only shoot 10s". 192-4 personal best.

Sitting rapidGood first string, too big though and I realized I wasn't breathing after every shot. Was better on the second string but for some reason this printed the group right out at 12. 98-0 + 92-1. Gotta figure out sitting.

Prone rapidBack in the money. Good wind call, excellent position. Rifle barely moved in recoil and came right back on target with no work. 100-2 with a haloed x ring. Took 1 click off the elevation, 100-2 smily face. Well I can't be upset with that. High score for the match in rapid prone, personal best.

Slow proneFeeling pretty good from 300 I was lazy about building the position. I could feel it, just wasn't right. Opened with some good shots, arm started hurting (this is a great sign that the position is poor). Missed a wind call, but so did everyone else. Light was bad, sun behind the target and my 10 ring elevation spread became a 9 ring elevation spread. Too many 9s out the gate. Pocket 7 (always a sign of position) so I worked to build it again and shot a water line 8, well hell I guess it was wind, waited until it calmed down a bit, took some off, Pocket 7. Woof, haven't shot that bad in a while. I know it was position because the calls I missed were when I was f*ing about with position. 182-4. Almost everyone in the Master class shot in the 180s that day so it wasn't just me. High score was a 194 followed by a 190.

LEG
OffhandGreat offhand. I made a mistake in putting the rifle down once so when I took a break with a setup that wasn't working I rested the rifle on my chest. Resetting it felt great and was on target so I broke the shot. Cross-fired, first time ever (not ever in competition, ever ever). Shot an 86-2, good score with that 9 on a target one down.

Sitting rapidWell this is interesting. Tried a tighter position (remember when I said not to mess with the program at a match? I forgot.). Felt great, two shots called good, good breath. Mag change tight, wrenched it back in, 3-4-5-6-7 odd... dust is coming off of one target down. F*CK, reset, 8-9-10 on my own target. Well crap. 50-2, target next door is a 148-8 (two 9s that the guy next to me says he called). Ok then, got all my cross-fires in for my whole competitive career I hope.

Prone rapidNothing left to lose, lets get back in the game. Light winds, called 1/2-3/4 Right. It all felt right, this position has been working well, it's just the slow fire prone position with all the work done to build it right and a slight grip on the guards. 99-5, high score at 300 again today.

Slow proneOk, don't let the position be relaxed, build it right take the time. Call it the same as 300 but active across the range so doubled. Give it a full minute. Flags are doing their Coalinga thing but the mirage is good. Opened up with an X. We are in, let's go. Shot the whole string in 10 or 12 minutes. Gary Linafelter pulls a target fast. Wind shifted from 1 Right to 2 Left, I was surfing the spotter left when I saw the mirage flop over. Put 1 Left on and copped a 10 out the no wind side. Good, I'm going to keep it there incase it lets off. On the rifle, about to take the shot and I hear "seven" hold up. Get off the rifle, target next to me (good junior shooter) comes up with a 9 out the no wind side. Ok so it is worth more than it looks. Put on another 1 Left, X. Yeah buddy. Whole first string was a clean, dropped 3 9s in the second for a 197-6, tying for high score at 600, personal best.

Takeaway from this match is that I didn't listen to my own advice about running the program. I've also never had to check the boards, now I do. That's now part of the program.

Offhand
Sitting rapid
Prone rapid
Slow prone

[OpenSightsOnly]

Hoping that the OP would indulge the unsolicited comments.

a) Try using an elbow/knee pad, the $8 special from Big5, the coat padding is not enough and it also slides out of place. Noticed that when I switced from web to leather sling. Left arm is much more relaxed, less friction on outside part of the elbow, also less horizontal movement, limits the wide 9s.

b) 072 sight post is the way to go - more surface area to focus! Much more and easier to relax the eye especially during standing since its as wide as the target frame. Also, sounds like the sight post could use a full rotation up since you are using six as opposed to COM.

c) How are your eyes doing? Always good to get an eye exam so that you know if your eyes can still tolerate the sight radius of the service rifle. For me, a 1/4 diopter change makes a difference at 300 and 600. Also, I use eye drops, Systane works very good.

[highpower790]

A shooter with 30cal service rifle background will be a better than a Ar shooter with no 30cal background,because with the AR you can be "sloppy" and still do good,but to be as good or better with a 30cal one has to be "solid"in their position.

[OpenSightsOnly]

A sling shooter has to understand, feel, and master NPA.

If not, being sloppy aint gonna help to really appreciate NPA, regardless of cartridge.

Without NPA, sight alignment and trigger control are useless because the body mass is not being used to guide the rifle.

[highpower790]

A sling shooter has to understand, feel, and master NPA.

If not, being sloppy aint gonna help to really appreciate NPA, regardless of cartridge.

Without NPA, sight alignment and trigger control are useless because the body mass is not being used to guide the rifle.

If a shooter uses both a 30cal and 223,it is a more difficult to master the 30cal.My point was the mind will focus on the recoil before anything happens,causing errant shots and flinching.
IM sure at some point I have told the OP my background in service rifle,so I know he understands.

[OpenSightsOnly]

Yep, without any doubt, from standing to sitting and 60 seconds on the clock, 30 cal is a challenge.

Snapping in and trying to memorize that position will take time with 30 cal. With 223, mastery of fundamentals will be faster.

Service rifle taught me that its all about fundamentals.