Extreme Bench Rest 2023 will be held on Oct 5th-8th!

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Nice that this was posted long after the registration date, which NEVER GOT POSTED. Unlike RMAC, which had event dates and registration dates posted for all to see. It’s BS for guys like myself that missed registration.

Traditionally it seemed EBR registration when it was announced here, was usually within the first two weeks of august.

For a major event such as ebr, on its 12th year, you’d think it would be a sticky notice like it’s always been. This year, only two notifications, a month ago letting all know the event dates snd this one here, showing EBR registration is full and closed.

July 24th?? Who would think to look on that for a date?!
 
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I totally agreed, last year was the same thing, I spoke with Darren this morning and he said “ did you sign up we us ? Because we send emails to everyone 2 day prior the Registration) and I said I bought 3 rifles from you guys and all kind of stuff through the year so you should have my email, and he said you need to sign up for all events. which is BS they should make public at least a week before . Now where is AGN IN ALL THIS? No body knew until this morning when AoA made it public which is an other BS.
 
I totally agreed, last year was the same thing, I spoke with Darren this morning and he said “ did you sign up we us ? Because we send emails to everyone 2 day prior the Registration) and I said I bought 3 rifles from you guys and all kind of stuff through the year so you should have my email, and he said you need to sign up for all events. which is BS they should make public at least a week before . Now where is AGN IN ALL THIS? No body knew until this morning when AoA made it public which is an other BS.
Who knows that? That by signing up with AOA you’ll get email notifications about EBR? I’m signed up with UAG and I only get sale or new product notifications, never an announcement about RMAC. I relied on AGN for the initial announcement, which has always happened since I’ve joined AGN back in 2017.

Oh well, on the bright side, it’ll give some guys a chance to redeem themselves from the 2023 RMAC and their chances of placing in the top 20 will be easier, with some of the stiffer competition not being present
 
I bought a gun and scope dedicated for the 50 yard event and stocked up on Ammo to resume practice come August first. I guess it’s just some bling eye candy for now cause I’m not going.

Besides this whole two monkeys and a football fiasco, another pisser is I’ve made a pact with a couple of other competitors I met at last years RMAC, and we agreed whoever found out first about registration dates would let the others know. For RMAC this year I let these guys know a week ahead when the registration date and time was, as we agreed to do so.

I got a text from one of them at 6:00 pm yesterday asking if I made registration yesterday, on the day of, and hours long after it closed up..WTF

Thinking about the earlier comment about getting on AOA’s email list, the reason I’m not on it is I rarely shop there.

So take an opposing vendor like UAG or SPAW or whoever, how do they get wind of the dates? I wouldn’t think that UAG would get on AOA’s email list just to get notified about EBR, right?
 
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Like many, I got the email notice 1 hour before the opening of registration for being a prior competitor. I got right in to register at 10:00AM sharp. In 1 minute at 10:01 AM the 50 yard and Field Target were both full. So I went back to the top and withdrew my Extreme Benchrest submittal. I don't want to shoot one event. I got thru the last 2 years but it is extremely (pun intended) difficult for Joe public to get registered once the factory shooters and manufacturer shooters and distributor shooters and all the other sponsored team shooters all get auto punched or early registration, there are very few spots open for average Joe Public. Basically fills up in minutes. I guess 10 minutes max and all was closed. Sorry we were all frustrated but it is what it is! Limited capacity at the location and all the sponsored shooters almost fill the event.
P.S. The other major competitions are no different, this isn't just EBR.
Thx
Dan
 
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So I guess I gotta get myself sponsored in order to “fill a pro spot”. And here I am thinking all this time to go pro or be at the top you gotta earn it.

Being new to all of this, I was wondering why when looking at the overall RMAC scores with Sportsmans and pros grouped together I saw A LOT of Sportsmans class guys with better scores than pro level folks. Hmmm.

I guess if John Candy worked for MMA Pro Nutrition products as a salesman that qualifies him to compete against Arnold at the Mr Olympia?

I guess I better start doing YouTube vids and earn it that way
 
On one hand it's great to see such enthusiasm for our sport. On the other it's sad that the registration process resembles trying to get a campsite in Yosemite NP in the summer. How about taking 25% of the spots and create a lottery drawing that may give a few of us mortals an opportunity to participate or maybe it's time for a mini RMAC/EBR contest on the left coast (central Cal. interior). Just an old man thinking out load. Mike
 
In a perfect world.....qualifying events.

And EVERY participant (regardless of affiliation or sponsorship or YouTube channel size or, etc) would have to qualify (at alesser/regional match sort of thing) to get a bench at the big show.

Qualifying for the biggest events (RMAC/EBR/PA Cup) would make them more of a true competition, and less of a product showcase/exhibition match.

Kinda wild that a large # (perhaps most of the contestants ?) of those that get to shoot now are the folks with some sort of "in" that gets them one of the coveted spots in the competition, versus actually earning that spot.

Just my two cents.
 
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Totally agree. When I saw my first RMAC and EBR video I kept telling myself “one day”. Then in all the vids you see people getting interviewed saying “come on out! Bring what you got! It’s about having fun!”

Then we see vids on supposedly “pro” shooters being asked what would they tell a newbie coming into this and what would they tell a seasoned vet. Like they were some form of royalty, or a Tom Brady or something. Some of these guys getting asked weren’t even in the top 50 of their class, but so what, right? Take from them their suggestion of “just come do it!”

Well, no one told me it would be like pulling teeth. Registration is actually stressful, as you do everything right, you practice, put in the time, then on registration day in the first minute into it you’re told FULL! SOLD OUT!!! Better luck next time!

I meet this guy last year at my first RMAC. He’s sighting in on the Wednesday at the pro field after registration. I asked him what he placed the year before to make it to pro. He says this is his first time. I asked him “snd you’re competing in pro? Why?”

His words- “Mo money, baby, Mo money”

I’m not used to that type of competition. To be at the top, you gotta earn it.

So now when someone says they shoot pro, that doesn’t mean anything to me. At one time I was in awe of these guys in the vids, but now I’m wiser.

I’m gonna end my frustration with this- how about hosting a vendor or sponsored shoot out, like this EBR, and put all the sponsored and YouTube actors in one place for the great shoulder rub, then actually have a separate “for reals” competition where the real pros compete, and to be able to attend you must have prior winnings in past events. Put the big prize money in that, just like they would a World Series or super bowl event.

Meanwhile more folks would be allowed a place to participate, like a novice level, then the sportsmans, then the pro, with no worries of spots getting taken up by folks doing YouTube vids of regulator installs or bling bling reviews for a vendor
 
Like many, I got the email notice 1 hour before the opening of registration for being a prior competitor. I got right in to register at 10:00AM sharp. In 1 minute at 10:01 AM the 50 yard and Field Target were both full. So I went back to the top and withdrew my Extreme Benchrest submittal. I don't want to shoot one event. I got thru the last 2 years but it is extremely (pun intended) difficult for Joe public to get registered once the factory shooters and manufacturer shooters and distributor shooters and all the other sponsored team shooters all get auto punched or early registration, there are very few spots open for average Joe Public. Basically fills up in minutes. I guess 10 minutes max and all was closed. Sorry we were all frustrated but it is what it is! Limited capacity at the location and all the sponsored shooters almost fill the event.
P.S. The other major competitions are no different, this isn't just EBR.
Thx
Dan
Well this tells me that within a year, maybe two, that it will be a closed event. If you’re not part of some crew, you’re not shooting. This is why I had no interest in taking my hobby to the next level. Politics. With pellet guns for gods sake. Good grief.
 
Now for a bit of devils advocate here......

The logistics of putting on such a large match are mind-blowing. I was at last years EBR and I noted how insane the organizing and running of such an event has got to be. And running it well is VERY important, as it's not a fly by the seat of your pants sort of thing.

So, I guess I'm essentially saying that competitive airgunning has almost outgrown venues like EBR and RMAC. Historically they've been one weekend events held at one facility, and in the case of both, rather small facilities. Maybe the time has come for them to be a week long event at a much larger shooting venue, like Ben Avery in northwest PHX. Ben Avery is 1650acres and has LOTS of developed shooting ranges, Rio Salado is officially 140acres, but much less than that is used by the what? 4ish shooting ranges there.

So an appropriately sized (to the apparent interest) venue, held over a week to accommodate all those who want to shoot.....who's paying all the staffs wages to run this larger event? Entry fees would have to go up substantially. And they're already steep.....

So back to the more feasible route seeming to be to have smaller regional matches as qualifying events, and let the "finals" be similar to what it is now, limited # of shooters, but a true representation of shooters who have earned a spot to be there.
 
It is too bad that it’s come to this.
Seems like it became a growing snowball and got too big too quickly.
Hopefully it can be restructured to separate the people who are serious about it and practice and set up a rifle specifically for the event.
I bet that prize money enters into the dreams of everyone who has an accurate air rifle and they believe they have a good shot at it lol!
Maybe it would be good to make it so somehow folks would have to qualify for a spot in the match.

Or just add a new rule that says if you don’t place in the top 10 then you have to pay a penalty fee of $100, that would weed out the dreamers 😂.
I’m one of those dreamers, but someday I’ll hopefully get to try it.
 
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Yes, the answer is run qualifiers. week or 2 before the registration. 4 groups of 10 that register for this. take the top 3 or 4 from each group to enter the big stage and they will have at it with the youtube/ club personal to round out your field. Yes, the big names will be greased in, but that will happen anyway. The play in regular guys fill out the groups. Flaw is regular guys need to travel twice, not sure it is feasible. Unless create a seperate tourneyment with no participation from youtube / group shooters. Just regular joe's. Smaller prize money. With top 5 finishers getting automatic entry to big stage if they wish.
 
Just some input from a sponsored Pro Class shooter… In order to get a shooters slot it has to be offered up by the company organizing the event, the amount you donate indicates how many slots you’ll get. Last year the team/companies I shoot for were sponsors and did not get any shooter slots, and they donated quite a bit. This year majority of the sponsors still haven’t received their sponsor packets yet which I’m guessing that means no shooters slots for their shooters, but I hope I’m wrong. Most of the events were filled by the people that were able to get in through pre registration which opened the Saturday before open to the public. Pre registration was offered to people who participated in any of the Extreme Field Target events put on by AoA, or if you’re a Daystate shooter, I’d guess any other teams that AoA supports as well. So yes there’s going to be a lot of regulars not making it this year, including myself. And as far as the time it took to fill the complete event when it opened to the public it was 2-3 minutes and most of these people will only be signed up for one event maybe two if they got lucky.