Trying to convince a gun club to do airgun field target matches. The problem is that they have a strict “no blue sky” (no pointing the muzzle skyward) policy at their rifle and pistol ranges. I am planning on joining the club but will face some opposition from firearm shooters. What information would you tell them to alleviate their safety concerns? I want to create a wooded course that 3D archers or shotgun sporting clay shooters can use as well. One concern would be the maximum distance a 20 FPE rifle can travel. Any suggestions?
Leo
RBGC has the same policy. However, when I voiced a concern about this as piston shooters can't get around this, they smiled and flat out said we're not concerned about air rifles (toy guns in their eyes).
Be careful. My guess is that the shotgun people will start using it and declare it as "theirs" and then you lose your place to shoot. I know you're trying to give yourself the best shot at a location for field target, but the other people just aren't that nice and will take it if they can.
@rochesterfieldtarget
Sean,
Thanks. Got it. The shotgun event director was the one who suggested using the club property next to their trap & skeet facility for air gun matches. They want to do sporting clays but it is in the planning stages. They have 131 wooded acres. He warned me of the potential difficulties.
Leo
We use the Archery 3D course for our FT matches and it has Sporting Clays and Skeet fields adjacent to it. Work up a ballistics chart to show the club that the max range of a <20 ft. lb. air rifle is about the same as a shotgun. Maybe if they understand airguns better they may be more friendly to your request. They would be likely to listen more if you were an active member.
Though inconvenient, spring guns can be handled in a way that they can be loaded without pointing the muzzle skyward. I had to learn how to do it in order to use the indoor NRA range in Virginia.
a 12 FPE 8.4 grain pellet can travel 550 yards at some of the higher BC's I get out of my rifles (.029-.030). I don't know about 20 FPE but it's easy to get out of chairgun.
Some jurisdictions also require that any projectile fired doesn't leave the property. If that's the law at your club, it'll pronbably be easier to comply.
Knobs
Knobs,
Thanks for the info. According to the Chair Gun app, max range for 20 FPE .177 10.3 grain JSB Exact Heavy domed pellet is 579 yards at 27 degrees. 0.55 FPE (130 fps) terminal energy.
I also found this article on the NRA page.
https://www.nrafamily.org/articles/2019/11/7/gun-safety-ammunition-maximum-range/
1,588 yards max range for a standard velocity 22 long rifle rimfire (104 foot pounds) at 30 degree angle from horizontal.
I think I can also use that as a comparison to a 20 foot pound air rifle.
Regards,
Leo
If it would help, I run the FT, Airgun Silhouette, and 10 meter matches at our Concord, Ca range. We are sharing the Action Pistol range currently, but will be moving to a larger Multipurpose range in 2020, within the same grounds.
We have a generally no blue sky policy, but the air gunners and bow people have an exception due to the ballistic properties of the projectiles being used.
If your club would like to discuss, I can make myself available via phone or address questions via email.
I hold a CRSO and am a NRA and Cal Hunter Safety Instructor as well, which may help add credence to the conversation?
Email- NRAInstructor @ Outlook.com
Update: The gun club approved the air gun field target events but they have not approved the wooded location as proposed. This year they will have the field target matches on a police gun range 30 yards wide and 110 yards long. It's a start anyways. They want to get kids interested in the shooting sports and they think this is a good starting point for them.
Try to set expectations with the gun club that the kids seldom come more than once. We've seen maybe 6 kids under age 20 come to Dallas FT Matches in the last 6 years. Usually they come with a parent who is more interested in Airgun games than they are. The kids never return a second time. Never.
Today's kids are not accustomed to being outside. They look around the FT woods in amazement, like deer staring at headlights. Ask them to sit on the ground to shoot the rifle, and they look at you like you are nuts.
Most can't be bothered with FT... Too slow to captivate attention, and not enough immediate gratification. More exciting to sit inside on a comfy recliner, in front of the TV, cultivating early-onset arthritis with Thumbs twerking on the X-Box controller.
All the hobby stores have disappeared, too. Same problem... Kids these days can't be bothered gluing together a plastic model.
I used to be an NRA certified RSO at an indoor gun range. The owner reserved an indoor bay of twelve, 25yd range lines for two hours on two evenings a month for adults to bring in their kids to shoot 22 long rifle (or ariguns). He thought this was the solution. He gave up after six months.
Sorry to sound so negative. Gun clubs and FT clubs can dream all they want, but it doesn't work.
Bob,
Unfortunately you are correct Over the years have tried just about everythimg
Rick
Bob, you are Sooooo right. Coming from a school teacher I've seen this behavior for years.
When I was a kid, I thought my parents were pretty strict. With age, I'm now convinced my folks were very liberal in letting me "discover my world." During the Summer months, I was generally out the door after breakfast, only to return for lunch (sometimes) and dinner (always)
I swam in a pool in my back yard without supervision...
I climbed trees I probably should not have climbed... Tried to parachute from a couple, too...
I even climbed a 100-foot power transmission tower on occassion. The static elec. kept me from climbing too high...
I dug foxholes and unsupported tunnels in a vacant lot 1/4 mile from home where my buddies and I played Army... I wore out two "BB guns" shooting my friends (and receiving the same), and no one got hurt, or complained about it.
The same crew played golf during the day, and flashlight tag at night, running across 5 properties, etc. No one complained.
I frequently rode my bike 2 miles to a friend's house so we could listen to Beatles records. The route was along a very busy street, without sidewalks. I had only one nasty encounter with a car, and his insurance paid for the cast on my leg, to include a couple hundred bucks "pain and suffering" thrown in. Cool beans!
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Today, most properties in suburban areas have privacy fences. No ranging across yards. Not many big, climb-worthy trees, either. The pools are an improvement, but heaven forbid a kid being allowed to swim alone, or have friends over.
And more important today, more than half of all marriages end in divorce. That means that any children must be closely monitored to ensure they don't injure themselves. My 43 year-old divorced son trembles at the idea of allowing his boys to ride their bikes around the block sight unseen. (Two miles to a friend is out of the question.) Just not worth it to risk having the "EX" drag you into custody court to explain a broken bone, or even a bruised arm.
In this backdrop, I see how kids get zero opportunity to "discover their world" outside. Better to keep them inside with the electronic babysitter (TV, videogames, etc). Bottomline, we now teach our kids not to be outside in the woods, especially with a BB gun.
And we want to recruit youngsters to Field Target?
