Design a perfect field target facility
- Thread starter cavedweller
- Start date
There will be two courses shot each day, with 50 shots per course. Also, very few people use all thier time at every lane. You can expect 2 shots to take about 1.5-2min.
After running 7 matches this way I can safely say that with two, fifty shot courses, and 3 man squads we can comfortably accomidate 100+ shooters daily with an average time on the course bein 3-4 hours.
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Don't knock it till you try it. There have been a few complaints about the 10 extra squats and how the match will be boring, or take forever, or blah blah blah. All from folks who've never done it.
I'd like to ask all the naysayers to have thier MD's set up a single shot match. After that we can discuss the issue on even footing.
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If we are putting up our wish lists.......
Multiple terrain features
Ability to adjust weather....etc....hot, humid, cold, windy, bright, low light
Elevation changes, both high targets and elevated shooting positions
Universal air line for every few shooting positions. Think of a large tank that anyone can fill from and not have to worry about carrying a tank.
Indoor and outdoor opportunities
Moving targets are always fun as well
Good solid concrete benches for zeroing and or benchrest comps
I am sure I can think of a few more
Multiple terrain features
Ability to adjust weather....etc....hot, humid, cold, windy, bright, low light
Elevation changes, both high targets and elevated shooting positions
Universal air line for every few shooting positions. Think of a large tank that anyone can fill from and not have to worry about carrying a tank.
Indoor and outdoor opportunities
Moving targets are always fun as well
Good solid concrete benches for zeroing and or benchrest comps
I am sure I can think of a few more
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I believe it's 3 minutes per lane, not per target. So it should be 75 minutes to shoot 25 lanes if I'm doing the math correctly. Don't worry, if I'm wrong there will be someone along to correct me within the next 10 minutes.
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Add lodging to your list, either close by hotels or camping on site..... this list is starting to sound like Cardinal Shooting Center in Ohio where the Pyramyd Cup is held.
Also don't forget Sherwood is having a GP on 6/21/24 thru 6/23/24 and I think your Sapphire Wolverine would look great on the course, hope to see you there.
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Of all the things i would have the least control over - lodging would be at the mercy of the nearest municipality infrastructure. it is very important, when hosting a significant event that it is reasonably available. The Mobile Alabama area has lots of choices. Right now I'm trying to acquire the right piece of property in order create a venue which currently doesn't exist along the Alabama Gulf Coast area. Regarding the Sapphire - as good as it looks it shoots even better :} but it has to work for my body in the forced lanes, not just the sticks.
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Wow, if i understand you, your course will have over 100 knock down targets on hand! impressive.
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Additional proposals, in the vein of needing 'facility' pieces to make it happen, but is a distinctive change to American (and probably world, but I know less about what is done across the pond) Field Target. In some ways combines the positional aspects of NRL22 with FT and changes the game to be (to me) more fun/dynamic.
More 'hunting sim' style lanes. IE:
A 'standing' shot leaning over a fence for support. It's not a full offhand shot, nor is it a bucket and sticks or bum-bag style shot.
A lane where there's a fake barn wall with a gap of missing board(s) to shoot at the rat target that's in your 'barn'.
"Pappy's Chair" lane (inspired by my great grandfather) - a lane where you're shooting out your back window, while sitting on pap's favorite rocking chair. yeah, it has a back and arms...but with a rocking chair, will they even be useful here?
Mixed positional targets in a regular lane. Instead of taking 4-6 standing shots in a row on their own lane, you have a regular seated target or two, and then 1 target (2 shots) standing/kneeling.
KYL style lanes...5 targets of varying difficulty, pick 2...scoring system rewards higher troyer shots...do you go for the tough ones to get 1.6 points per knockdown? Or take an easy one for a nearly guaranteed .9 points?
"junior"/newbie friendly lanes. 1 different colored target per lane at a stupid easy troyer. not for people looking to 'win' against the big kids, but something where people with an off the shelf pyramydair gun can get some points and really compete with other newbies without being discouraged by harder targets that the pro's want. maybe that goes with the KYL style above.
speed lanes. either lower the time limits per lane across the board, or have a number of lanes with a much lower time. i get wanting to wait out the wind for a few seconds, or struggling to find a dark target in the shade while your scope's being washed...but overall, particular groups tend to spend too much time overall addressing the lanes and having comments between shots or whatever that hold up groups behind them.
heavier duty targets to handle .22 off the shelf guns. Last I looked there were about 50% more .22 than .177, and the .177 difference between a really stupid walmart gun and a "supergun" is night and day. IMHO there are less 'mid' .177 out there overall. many mid tier manufacturers produce more lines in .22 or only in .22 shooting in the high-20/low-30 fpe.
More 'hunting sim' style lanes. IE:
A 'standing' shot leaning over a fence for support. It's not a full offhand shot, nor is it a bucket and sticks or bum-bag style shot.
A lane where there's a fake barn wall with a gap of missing board(s) to shoot at the rat target that's in your 'barn'.
"Pappy's Chair" lane (inspired by my great grandfather) - a lane where you're shooting out your back window, while sitting on pap's favorite rocking chair. yeah, it has a back and arms...but with a rocking chair, will they even be useful here?
Mixed positional targets in a regular lane. Instead of taking 4-6 standing shots in a row on their own lane, you have a regular seated target or two, and then 1 target (2 shots) standing/kneeling.
KYL style lanes...5 targets of varying difficulty, pick 2...scoring system rewards higher troyer shots...do you go for the tough ones to get 1.6 points per knockdown? Or take an easy one for a nearly guaranteed .9 points?
"junior"/newbie friendly lanes. 1 different colored target per lane at a stupid easy troyer. not for people looking to 'win' against the big kids, but something where people with an off the shelf pyramydair gun can get some points and really compete with other newbies without being discouraged by harder targets that the pro's want. maybe that goes with the KYL style above.
speed lanes. either lower the time limits per lane across the board, or have a number of lanes with a much lower time. i get wanting to wait out the wind for a few seconds, or struggling to find a dark target in the shade while your scope's being washed...but overall, particular groups tend to spend too much time overall addressing the lanes and having comments between shots or whatever that hold up groups behind them.
heavier duty targets to handle .22 off the shelf guns. Last I looked there were about 50% more .22 than .177, and the .177 difference between a really stupid walmart gun and a "supergun" is night and day. IMHO there are less 'mid' .177 out there overall. many mid tier manufacturers produce more lines in .22 or only in .22 shooting in the high-20/low-30 fpe.
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I think Palmyra's nearly perfect if we could reduce the walking difficulty a bit down in the woods. And maybe air conditioned restrooms right there at the covered range. But I'm truly nitpicking.
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One thing a good friend told me is that every course is unique and has something special to offer. What makes it different is what makes it awesome. If you're from the UK, you long for a beautiful sunny course, and if you are from the desert, you long for big trees. It's all relative. There really is no "perfect course"... Almost
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I used to set up my clubs FT match for nearly a decade.
Trying to change things up the tiniest bit almost got me fired. Darn it that almost worked but wouldn't you know it they kept me on instead.
Turns out old people don't like crackers with their whine.
Trying to change things up the tiniest bit almost got me fired. Darn it that almost worked but wouldn't you know it they kept me on instead.
Turns out old people don't like crackers with their whine.
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People generally don’t like change but older people hate changeI used to set up my clubs FT match for nearly a decade.
Trying to change things up the tiniest bit almost got me fired. Darn it that almost worked but wouldn't you know it they kept me on instead.
Turns out old people don't like crackers with their whine.
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Generally speaking, rifle ranges and pistol ranges etc... are much more readily available to the general public. A distinct problem I have run into is a traditional powder burning range holds a negative stigma towards airguns / airgunners... never figured out why, but when approaching the majority of local facilities i was hit with an outright NO or HELL NO and or crickets. Archery facilities hold possibility but then there are way less available.
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The perfect course is one you have access to. Be thankful if you have one (or more).
I've read threads where guys wish they had just one within a reasonable driving distance and that’s their only request. When I started shooting back in 2014 I would drive five hours ONE WAY, spend the night at a hotel to shoot for three hours and was darn glad for it and didn't care if it was hot, no weather protection, up or down. It was an organized match with other like minded folks.
Ten years later we have a start up local club (yea!), another (only) an hour and half one way drive. I will still go to shoot the five hour drive matches (this last weekend) occasionally and a couple of times a year I drive seven hours to an EFT match.
So when you pine for a better shooting environment, be grateful and thank your Match Director you aren't sitting in your backyard by yourself pulling on Gamo target strings.
Support your club(s), have fun and shoot well.
I've read threads where guys wish they had just one within a reasonable driving distance and that’s their only request. When I started shooting back in 2014 I would drive five hours ONE WAY, spend the night at a hotel to shoot for three hours and was darn glad for it and didn't care if it was hot, no weather protection, up or down. It was an organized match with other like minded folks.
Ten years later we have a start up local club (yea!), another (only) an hour and half one way drive. I will still go to shoot the five hour drive matches (this last weekend) occasionally and a couple of times a year I drive seven hours to an EFT match.
So when you pine for a better shooting environment, be grateful and thank your Match Director you aren't sitting in your backyard by yourself pulling on Gamo target strings.
Support your club(s), have fun and shoot well.
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