GSAC 1000 Yd Benchrest - 5 November 17

[Panda]

5th of November and the first real frost of winter is upon us but it doesn’t last long as the sun soon burns it away……the sun!!! Winter at Gelston!!! Those of you that follow the reports will recall the range runs north to south and the sun causes us problems at this time of year, but from experience and some judicious placement of the shutters and sheets of cardboard the problem is negated and we’re good to go. How many? Well, we were expecting 14 and if trends followed the normal we expected to see around 12. Did we? Nope, 18 people turned up today including several of the new faces from last month’s competition. Good to see you all again.

As promised last month, factory class is up 1^st with those that didn’t get to shoot up first. The wind was hard to read during zeroing and what looked like a 2 minute wind from the right was actually in the 4 to 6 minute area depending on calibre and how stoked the cases were. Relay 1, detail 1 and I’m on bench 1 and the timer starts but I hold back as I feel the wind is changing slightly, and yes it does. Peter beside me is out in the 24s, Davie Sharp in the 16s and Ken Story shooting his 1^st time at 1000 yards with a .308 and 20” barrel is on target with a 28”. Despite holding back I’m still in the mid 13s. Detail 2, just after the sighters were taken the wind picks up quite a bit with Peter in the 21s, Davie staying in the 16s and Ken improving and into the 17s. Me, I get a mid 9” because I waited. I guess those years shooting at Diggle did teach me something….. you think? Well you wouldn’t have thought so in the next detail!!! I’m way out into the 19s this time after 1 drops in low, Peter in the 14s after tightening up his bipod, Ken slipping back out and into the 23s but with the only shot worth measuring for closest the bull all day at 0.452” and Davie recording the best with a mid 7. Final detail and with only a few inches separating myself and Davie I stick in a high 6 strung right through the centre of the target, however, the scorers can only find 4 holes despite 5 shots being fired (have I been “Darrelled”?) so a 10” penalty it is handing the opportunity to take the lead to Davie. However, as the scores are relayed back over the radio it becomes apparent that the wind must’ve picked up significantly during the detail as the others were scoring a 16”, 20” & 25”, so despite my penalty I take the lead with Davie registering the 20”.

Relay 2 and it’s a mix of 3 light guns and a factory with Mak Crellin joining us for a bit of fun with his .308. Darrel, despite not feeling the best starts with a nice mid 7” while trying out new combinations of neck clearance and tension on his 7mm, having already attained an unassailable lead in the class and James Arneil gaining a respectable mid 11 as the wind was still doing enough to catch the unwary. 2^nd detail and Darrel is still leading the field with a low 9, Martin Bell catching a bit of wind a getting a penalty and James just under the 20”s. detail 3 and Darrel still leads but this time slipping into the 10s, closely followed by Martin with James in the mid 15s and Mark staying where he was in the mid 25s. Final detail of the relay and Darrell maintains his winning ways getting back into the mid 9s while Mark & Martin appear to catch some wind and James finishes with a mid 13.

Relay 3 continues with a mix of light guns and a heavy this time. Lewis trying to beat his dad using the Booboo again starts with a mid 14. Davie Rankin, the winner of the class on the last 2 shoots, is at it again and scores a mid 6 and Mally Johnston with his heavy gun in the 16s. Ian Black using a borrowed 6.5 x 47 is in the 13s. Detail 2 and Lewis improves with a 12, Davie slips just into the 11s, Mally slips 5” on his first detail but Ian puts in an amazing 4.724”. Unfortunately for him there’s also a penalty as his group was on the edge of the target. Lewis halves his previous score and is into the 6s with his 3^rd shoot, Davie stays in the 11s but Mally improves and is now in the 11s as well. Ian unfortunately adjusts the scope the wrong way and is now off the target with all his shots, don’t worry Ian, it happens to all of us at some point. Detail 4 and Lewis stays in the 6s, has he done enough to beat his dad? Unfortunately not this time, Darrell takes it by just under ¾” over 4 shoots at 1000 yards. That’s pretty tight. Davie’s run of wins has come to an end as he records a 15, joining Mally in slipping further out with his final shoot. However, Ian recovers well from his faux pas and finishes with a 12.

Relay 4 and a change of butts crew. Geordie Hunter is back with his 6.5SLRimproved, Ross McLean is using his 6-6.5x47, Geoff McLuskey his AI in 308 with a Sassen Border Barrel on it he hasn’t been able to get working properly yet and John Gilpin with his 6BR. The sun has come over the top now and requires some alterations to the shades but with that quickly accomplished we’re underway. Geordie kicks off with a 10, Ross in the 12s Geoff (remember that barrel?) in the 5s. Let’s see if it continues. John out in the 16s. This time Geordie is in the 5s, Ross in the 9s along with Geoff and John now in the 8s. Looks like the wind is starting to ease although you do have to pick the time to shoot. 3^rd detail and Geordie slips into the 11s, Ross in the 12s, Geoff records a 14 and John a mid 11. Remember that wind? Well you’re about to witness what happens when you pick it right, and get it wrong. Geordie sticks in another 5, Ross a 17, Geoff a mid 7 and John is in the 18s. That’s the difference between picking the time to shoot right and wrong. Hold on though…. Geoff has got the rifle working and not only that, he’s split Darrel and Lewis with only 2 light guns to shoot. So why is that rifle suddenly working? It looks like a change to Lapua Palma brass has made a drastic difference to it as everything else is unaltered.

So, the final detail of the day is our trusty spotter Glyn Cartwight and Bruce Bell. How will they do? Both get caught by the wind picking up in detail 1 scoring a 17 & 20 respectively, however they both pick the wind better for the next detail with a 10 & 11 being relayed back by the Butts crew. The 3^rd detail sees a 12 & mid 10 and the 4^th, and final detail of the day seeing a 14 & low 10.

That’s us all finished by 3pm which allows us to get the range closed down and presentations completed by 4pm. The next 1000 yd benchrest shoot is scheduled for the 10^th December. See you all then.

 

Results

LG

1^st D McIlreavy           9.133”

2^nd G McLuskey          9.399”

3^rd L McIlreavy           9.872”

Smallest Group G McLuskey 5.944”

HG

1^st G Hunter                8.257”

2^nd M Johnston            16.742”

Smallest Group G Hunter 5.59”

FS

1^st D Leslie                  14.822”

2^nd D Sharp                 15.187”

3^rd P Cousar                 19.153”

Smallest Group D Sharp 7.483”

Closest the Bull K Story 0.452”                  

 

Full Results

https://www.dropbox.com/s/s6xd1t2vo3g6tdb/Gelston 20171105.xlsx?dl=0

League Standings

https://www.dropbox.com/s/7zjhks4cpsz72t7/Gelston league 20171105.xlsx?dl=0

 

[onslow52]

Thanks for the write up David.

[25dynod]

[hunter686]

Thanks for taking the time to write this up David (Y) 

[No i deer]

You could of been a good horse racing commentator ?

[devon flighter]

On 16/11/2017 at 7:23 PM, No i deer said:

You could of been a good horse racing commentator ?