30 Cal Gal

NRA High Power Competition - What Is Its Future? - Part 1 of 2 Series

2012-01-30T08:51:00.000-08:00

I liken High Power to Rowing. I used to row crew for the U. Of Washington. The U. of W. had and still has one of the best rowing teams in the world. But, have you ever been to a regatta? Do you know any famous rowing names? Seen it on tv or used in a beer commercial? No, I didn't think so. But in the rowing community we know what a glorious and rewarding sport it is. It has been around for generations. It is a precision sport. It is a tradition. But it does not attract spectators. It is difficult to attract new participants. High Power is like Rowing. High Power has also been around for generations. It is a precision sport. In the High Power community it is a glorious and rewarding sport. It is a tradition. But to new and younger shooters it is slow and boring. The number of competitors is dwindling. Nationals at Camp Perry see a decline in registration year after year. My local club championships used to sell out. Not any more. But how can this be? AR 15s and every type of military style rifle is flying off the shelves of every gun store. The sport of NRA High Power is shooting military rifles in competition! What is going on here? What is the NRA doing to make this sport popular again and to attract new shooters?

Other sports like football, basketball, baseball and soccer fill stadiums. They have beer commercials and cable channels dedicated to them. Advertisers, leagues and the networks are continually changing with the times and know how to attract new people to the sports. The huge and popular and "cool" growth in shooting sports is USPSA and tactical rifle. USPSA and 3 Gun Nation are getting new shooters in droves. It is being televised and sponsored. It is fast and exciting. There are famous names coming out that even non-shooters are recognizing. Once again, what is the future of NRA high power and shooting sports in general? Optics.

Optics? I met Mike Krei the NRA Competition Director at Shot Show and picked his brain on the subject. Tactical rifles and optics. To me a tactical rifle is a current military style weapon with hand guards and rails and muzzle breaks and lots of cool "stuff". AND OPTICS. In High Power across the course competition there are categories. There is the service rifle category, which if you read the rule book says it must look like an issued "service rifle" with iron sights that the military uses. (plus or minus a million details). First that was an M1 Garand, then an M14 and now most use an AR 15. These were upgrades made to weapons over time. They can have custom barrel, action and trigger but the exterior must look like it came off of the rack. There has been a match rifle category where almost anything goes but it still must be iron sights. Lately the true definition of service rifle has become vague. The military is now using all types of tactical rifles and of course with optics. But their choice weapon of the day changes so fast. How can the NRA rule book keep up? Make a new category. Again, optics.

Now this would make every high power shooter out there roll over in their future grave. Scopes? Are you kidding? You are messing with tradition. But the NRA sees the writing on the wall. There is a category 3.2 Any Rifle. It has always been there but no one uses it in Across The Course. I hate to say it but it may just help the sport. Tactical rifles with all of the bells and whistles are attractive to shooters. And guess what? The NRA is willing to take a gamble on this. Unofficially officially, this year at Nationals David Tubbs is donating a Tubbs 2000 rifle with a NightForce scope on it to the winner of the Any Rifle category during NRA week. That set up is worth a few thousand dollars. That might even change the mind of some "Old School" shooters! Chance of winning should be high if there are only a few takers. I think this will be great! As for the future of Long Range High Power that I shoot? Optics. Am I repeating myself here?

I shoot sling support and iron sights. The last few years another category of shooter has crept in and now almost out number the iron sight "slingers". FTR Class. Long range bolt action rifles with bi-Pod and a scope. To me as an iron sight gal I used to think this was sacrilege. But I get it now. It is way cool.** And hey, their numbers are growing. The US FTR team won a gold medal at Worlds in Ireland last year. They have sponsorship from Nightforce and Berger and others. My friend Darrell Buell is the FTR Team captain. He was beaming when I ran in to him at Shot Show last week. He was there to present Berger and Nightforce with Gold Medals thanking them for their support and faith in the team.

Change can be difficult to accept. Like the saying, "kids these days!" "How dare they change what has been tradition for so many years. It has been this way forever." Well, sometimes we may not like it. But if it keeps any discipline of shooting sports alive and well? I am all for it. Come on. Say it. "Optics."

30calgal
"Shoot Like A Girl! If You Can..........."

**Note! I am still a huge fan of the traditional High Power and I will still shoot it. I do like the tradition. But I have no problem with trying out the new categories. Besides, I would love that Tubb 2000!

Practice Tactical Rifle Match - Renton Fish and Game

2012-01-29T20:42:00.000-08:00

Not only was it a first tactical match for me but it was for the Renton Fish and Game Club and our new Stag Arms 3G rifle. Normally the tactical matches are held up north of Seattle about 2 hours a way. A trial practice match was approved by the board of Renton (which was what we shot yesterday) and it looks like they will be hosting this once a month now, last Saturday of each month. This will be so great to be able to practice tactical rifle so close to home. Not many people get this opportunity. I will be a regular!

Since it will be several weeks until my JP rifle is done, Charles is kind enough to let me share his Stag Arms he just bought. We just sighted it in a day prior and put it through its paces at the match. Both of us shooting it put about 400 rounds through it. Make that about 500. Our friend Brian's rifle was accidentally tipped over and the red dot sight shattered. We loaned him the Stag and he was quite happy. The trigger is a Geissele and awesome. He loved it. That rifle really is sweet. But with a new gun comes bugs to work out.

We both had issues with mis-feeds and mag releases. We learned the hard way not fill magazines to full capacity. The other issue was that some of the magazines dropped right out when released but others stuck and had to be pulled out. Not good when you are timed. You can see this in the video above toward end of string. (**Sorry about the intro to the video. I have to start making videos of products and matches and need an intro. You may get sick of it) This was a string with mandatory mag change. The farther targets were about 25 yards away and were head shots. Clean run. Yea! A bonus for us is that we had Tom Kettel on our squad who was very helpful in getting Charles and I with the program. He can coach me any day.

I am pretty happy with my performance. The first two stages I cleaned and kept a decent cadence. The unfortunate part was I did not step in to the box all the way on one target and was penalized 7 seconds. Ouch! The worst was stage 4 where the magazine being too full would not stay in. Not knowing the problem on the first mag I threw it to the ground and grabbed my second one with the same issue. Then I struggled pulling a round out to get it to lock in finally. Shooting that stage went great after that. In fact I had to shoot left handed around a wall and did so clean. But the time I lost was painful. Alas that is why I am excited to have these matches so close and once a month now. This will be beneficial for 3 Gun.

30calgal
"Shoot Like A Girl! If You Can....."

Twas The Night After Shot Show 2012....................

2012-01-22T12:31:00.000-08:00

Twas the night after Shot Show and all through The Sands
Not an exhibitor or attendee with a gun in their hands.
All 60,000 people home and tucked in their beds
with overloads of thoughts of cool toys in their heads.
Bloggers like me don't know where to begin
to promote all the vendors we cherish from within.
My fellow GunUp.com network walking miles and miles
to interview and promote new products with smiles.
On Blade-Tech, On Browning, On Sig Sauer and Smith & Wesson,
On Glock and Kahr Arms and HK and Crimson (Trace)
Kudos to Kimber and Ruger, CZ and Colt
We owe you shout outs on The Net for a promotional jolt.
From Flash Bangs to designer concealment purses for ladies with guns
there are cool new carry pistols to make concealment very fun.
The Kimber Micro CDP and the beautiful Ultra II Saphhire
The revived Colt Mustang and CZ ProTek
and the Sig P938 gives us all much to desire.
Now for my own personal bragging I have much to be proud
of the awesome sponsors I received that will surely draw a crowd.
My ESS Suppressor Eyeshields will protect me from blindness
Bullets from Nosler will win me long range matches. What kindness!
Thank you to PNW Arms for having faith in my skills
your ammo will surge me ahead in pistol and 3 Gun thrills.
I mostly wait impatiently for my new rifle to be built
This could only be done by the great JP Enterprises
And asking for the best I have no guilt.
To all of the other vendors and people I met for the first time
I hardly have enough space to add you to my rhyme.
It does not mean I don't love you or think you are not worthy
that would be absurdly. (I know, pushing it there)
I thank NSSF for a Shot Show to be remembered
Until next year to you all, may success be tendered.

30calgal
"Shoot Like A Girl! If You Can..........."

600 Yards - .308 Rifle Barrel and Action Test

2012-01-13T14:09:00.000-08:00

I was thinking that I could also title this entry "Excuses, Excuses". Quickly to recap, I switched to a new Palma rifle about a year ago from the Hall action I had to a Quad Lock action. I bought the QL used from a friend competitor. They don't make these actions anymore which is too bad because they are amazing. The first 6 months I fired it I had the time of my life. I got my national 300 yard records and the BC Championship and other awards with this rifle. I went to Camp Perry right after BC and just could not perform well. Same at 29 Palms in November and some local matches. I had serious elevation issues. So of course you (and I) are thinking that it is just pilot error. But I don't normally have wacky elevation shots. And my performances early in the year were great. So what was going on? Isn't it possible I was just not meant to do well in every match? One never really knows these things. It just takes trial and errors to maybe find a solution. So here come the "excuses".

My thought was possibly a bad barrel. But we put the same barrels on both guns at the same time. The Hall is shooting perfectly. There are only about 2000 rounds through my QL barrel. But maybe it is just a bad one? Then came ammo. I have been testing that also and we have used the same loads as before. So yesterday I went to a 600 yard practice to ease my
conscience a bit and shoot both rifles back to back with the same load of ammo. As usual the conditions at Cascade were pretty calm so I knew I did not have to fight that. I have included photos here of my plot sheets for both rifles. Some of you may think there is not much difference between the two but I think there is. The top photo is of the Hall action. We were shooting late in day and it was actually very low light during this string of 2 sighters and 20 for record. You will notice that all shots are in a nice tight group in and just on edge of X ring. I had one flyer 9 that I called. Not only was it dark but I had not fired this rifle in a long time and had to figure out sling position, cheek and shoulder piece, etc to get at least a bit comfortable. And it still shot great! The lower photo is of the Quad Lock.

Now, most would not complain that all shots except for one wind at 3:00 are still in X and 10 rings. But the shots in the 10 ring are considerably out there compared to the Hall. This is a much wider group than the other! At the further distances of 1000 yards at Perry and 29 Palms the elevation shots were much wider and in the 9 ring. Not good. I was shooting with Gary yesterday and he suggested something. He asked when was the last time the pin springs had been replaced. I looked at him blankly. I can shoot well. Just don't ask me too many technical questions. Apparently this can cause elevation issues. Many shooters replace them once a year as just maintenance. The problem though with the Quad Lock is that this pin spring is really contoured washers in funny positions rather than a coil spring. There are really only a couple of gunsmiths I know that could figure out this thing. I think it is worth a try to see if it will make a difference. This sport is full of "excuses". Can we blame ourselves ever? Well yes. But in seeing the two plot sheets next to each other I feel there is something going on besides just me. This game is about X counts. I can't afford wide groups.

Other than stealing back the Hall action rifle from Charles..... hee-hee, I need to find out if the QL can make a come back. I'll take the rifle to my gunsmith when I return from ShotShow next week. In my head I feel better that I did have a great group with one rifle and I am still shooting well. I'll be posting updates from Shot. Stay tuned for my journey to get started in USPSA and Multi-Gun!

30calgal
"Shoot Like A Girl! If You Can........."

AR 15 Bolt Face Necklace - Gun Jewelry!

2012-01-02T16:04:00.000-08:00

I have to say I am very excited about this. If you did not know already, I also make jewelry as a hobby and side business. I have been trying to come up with an idea of something pretty yet related to guns as jewelry. Well, I think I did it this time. I use a product called PMC - Precious Metal Clay. Cool stuff. It comes as a clay. You make what you want, fire it in a kiln and it turns into a metal. 99.9% Fine Silver. A little softer than Sterling. PMC comes in gold, bronze and copper as well. Not going to test the gold with prices as they are. Mitsubishi invented this product years ago for engine repairs.

I made a mold of the bolt face on my AR 15. I create the shape with the clay, let it dry then file and sharpen, add findings and a tiny cubic zirconia where the firing pin hole is. Fire it in a kiln, polish it up to a beautiful shine and voila! Gun jewelry! I have other colors of cz's I can use also. Each piece will be slightly different and meant to be a little rough since it comes right off bolt face. A thick chunk of silver pendant and it is on an 18" sterling silver chain. Edgy yet elegant noh?

Let me know what you think. I already have two orders placed. Exciting! Now, to find the time to make them. If you are interested they can be found on my Etsy.com site at this link - AR 15.

30calgal
"Shoot Like A Girl! If You Can......"

Hot Chicks With Guns

2011-12-29T14:17:00.000-08:00

Did I get your attention? Thought so. Hot Chicks with guns is one of the most popular search terms for women and guns in the Google world. Here are more that I found; "Hot girls with guns, Hot babes with guns, Women and guns, Girls with guns, Beautiful girls with guns, Tactical girls, Babes with machine guns." Nice. And of course the photo above of the four hot gun babes of West Coast Armory (where I work) had to be included.

Women are screaming into the gun industry. Not so much news to me since I am in it already. I see how many gals are shooting now and buying guns. But to the non-shooting world I think they are amazed to see the stats. Here are two stats I found. There are 15 - 20 million women in this country that own guns and women account for 1 in 6 Concealed Pistol Licenses. Wow. There are books, movies, reality tv shows, websites, magazines, Facebook pages all dedicated to women and guns. In fact, a few of those search terms mentioned above are actual websites that are worthy. "Chicks With Guns" is a new fabulous book by photographer Lindsay McCrum with stories and beautiful photographs of real women in all walks of life with guns. Check it out. There is a documentary called "A Girl And A Gun Film". I have only seen the trailer but it looks interesting. Unfortunately I don't think it was finished since they have been looking for donations. I hope they do. There is a new movie coming out in 2012 called Haywire starring the MMA fighter Gina Carano. This movie looks like a lot of fun and she is doing all of her own fight scenes. Her gun skills looked fairly accurate as well. Can't wait. "Women and Guns Magazine" has a web publication called WomenShooters.com.

Although not a big fan, there is a Reality Show called Sons of Guns featuring a family owned business. They have a gun store and build custom firearms for people. An overnight sensation is the daughter Stephanie Hayden who "mans" the store. I will say that she alone has peaked the curiosity of thousands of women. She convinced her dad to make a Ladies Saiga Rifle for women in a variety of colors. Pink is one of them of course. They can't keep them in stock. Her Facebook fan page has over 95,000 fans.

Just a few of the FaceBook Fan pages I follow are; Girls Guides To Guns, Women Outdoor News, Women of the USPSA, Shelley Rae, Stephanie Hayden - Sons of Guns, Women's Tactical Association, Julie Goloski Golob, Top Gun Tori, and of course my own, Anette Wachter- 30CalGal and many, many more.

This is only the beginning of a rapidly growing trend. Women who want guns for self-defense, competition and hobbies. I am going to ShotShow in Vegas in a couple of weeks. The largest Gun Industry trade show in the world. It is 4 days of miles and miles of guns and gun related stuff. There are many nationally ranked competative female shooters that will be there and many women in gun related businesses. Shelley Sargent aka Shelley Rae had the idea to have a Happy Hour event for "Women in the Industry" one night. We hope to get as many ladies as possible to join us. We hope to make it a tradition and possibly something that will be sponsored in the future. Cheers to the ladies! May we one day be the largest population of gun owners.

30CalGal
"Shoot Like A Girl! If You Can...."

To The North Pole - My Christmas Wish List

2011-11-27T15:24:00.001-08:00

Dear Santa,

I must say it has been awhile since I have written you. But I figured so many kids still write to you and I see all of those kids getting such cool gifts I thought I would give it a try again. I am still a kid at heart right? My wish list isn't too long and I have been good this year. I think. I would like everything on this list but I understand if you can only fit a few items in your sleigh. It's not too much stuff really.

First for my High Power list;
*6.5x284 barrel to switch out on one of my Palma rifles and the ammo components to go with. Tired of loosing X's to those who have this rifle. Ah heck, make it a whole new rifle.
*Nightforce Scope for the once a year 1200 yard match I shoot in Wisconsin. I know it's only once a year. But I want to win that match.
*Sponsorship from Sierra, Nosler, Lapua, Federal and Varget. Come on, ammo is expensive!
*Leopard print shooting mat to match my range bag
*Light weight scope stand made by Mark Nyberg. Hate lugging mine around. Too heavy!
*24 more Leg points to get my CMP Distinguished Badge. I have 6 already. If you gave the rest to me I could save ammo, gas and expensive air travel. Thinking Green here!

Second, my USPSA list; It's not too much stuff really;
* Several 21 round magazines for my .40 cal Tanfoglio. Ones that work please.
* a 9mm Sig 5X - I need to try out different competitive categories you know. Can't get tied down to just one.
*Competition holster for the Sig and extra magazines
*Duracoat finish on the slides of my two pistols in either a leopard print or rich red roses. Yes really.
*10,000 rounds of .40 ammo light loads. Oh, make it the same for the 9mm while you are at it.

Third, my 3 Gun list; This one might be a bit long but you can do it.
*If I am in the Tactical Category I can keep my Tanfoglio. I still need the extra mags (See above)
*For a rifle I would like the new Stag Arms 3-Gun AR15.
*The added canted iron sights
*and the 1-4X Scope by US Optics
*Can I duracoat the hand-guard or stock? If so please do. Rich red roses print.
*Benelli M2 shotgun. Oh and please hand carve "30calgal" in the stock.
*race belts, mag pouches and magazines for all the above. And ammo.

*If I am going in to the Open category I want the 2011 Razorcat pistol by J.J. Racaza. Its a 1911! My favorite format. Try not to pay too much attention to its price. JJ is really cute and he was on TopShot.
*For my rifle I want a JP Enterprises AR15 with 2 scopes not just one
*A Trigicon Holographic Sight and a Schmidt and Bender 1-6X
*Harris Bi-pod
*A Leica Range Finder. Just because they are so cool. And I can use it in any category!
*For my shotgun I NEED the new Saiga 12. Well yes. You want me to compete at my best don't you?
*Magazines, mag pouches, and LOTS and LOTS of ammo.

*Oh and sponsorship from all of the above manufacturers. I really want to wear one of those cool shirts with all of the logos all over it. Ask them to pay for all of my match fees and travel too.

*I can't forget, World Peace.

Well, that should be about it for now. If I think of more I will just email you directly. I can't wait to see all of this under the tree Christmas morning Santa. I plan on going out to practice right after. And don't forget we live in a condo so you have to come in off of our deck. We don't have a chimney. Any thing to help you out Santa.

30calgal
"Shoot Like A Girl! If You Can........"

Interview With Brianna Rachinski - 2011 Junior National Long Range Champion

2011-11-10T14:18:00.001-08:00

A year and a half ago I met a YOUNG new shooter at a 500 yard match at the range at Machias in North Seattle. Her name is Brianna Rachinski. She is from Ferndale, WA and she just turned 15 years old. She was the first of a new group of juniors from the north end of Washington to get involved in high power. She shoots mid and long range, 300 - 1000 yards with a .308 bolt action long rifle. Yes, folks. Iron sights just like I shoot. Her rifle is taller than she is I believe. Brianna kept showing up to matches and she kept creeping up behind us all and in no time got her NRA High Master card in Mid and Long Range Competition. In fact she was so excited she had to call up the NRA directly and ask them where her official high master card was. "They were taking too long" she said. This year in August at Camp Perry she won the National Junior Championship. 4 national awards actually. She beat the boys too. There is no women's category in this sport. Not only that but she got a last minute invite to be on the US Under 25 Rifle Team and went to Australia last month only to come home with two team gold medals. She started a year and half ago gang! 15 years old! Brianna was first on my list to interview and I am sure you can understand why.

Anette: Hi Brianna, You have had an amazing year. Ronnett and Jeff your mom and dad (Photo of Bri and mom and dad at right) must be so proud of you?

Brianna:

Yes, and I think I have lost count of how often they say it! They are very supportive!

Anette: What age were you when you started shooting and what were you shooting?

Brianna:

I was 3 1/2 when I started shooting. I was just shooting pop cans with my bb gun ;) My dad got me started in shooting.

Anette: You were Junior National Champion this year! How cool is that? Did you set goals to get there? Any events stand out?

Brianna: Well, I knew that I could win it, and I thought it was an attainable goal. I went up on stage 4 times to get my awards. (At the National Awards Ceremony) It is definitely one of my goals to win next year.

Winning high junior, and standing up on the stage was the most memorable moment there. Also, during the big rain storm, Hannah Gaddie and I decided to run around in the "puddles" because we were already soaked, that was pretty fun!

Anette: To my readers, I was there also. We had the most amazing rain storm that flooded that area of Ohio. About 2 feet of water. Some puddles! I recall Brianna and Hannah losing there flip flops and falling face first in the "puddle".

Anette: A 21 hour flight to Australia last month must have been exciting. You represented the United States for the Under 25 Team at the World Championship. Were you nervous or were you able to relax and have fun? Any memorable moments?

Brianna: I was having so much fun in Australia. I wasn't too nervous.

My team took home 2 gold medals! The Australia match medal, and the World Long Range Championship medal. The beaches and the island that we (my team and I) went to were very memorable, they were so pretty. I can't think of a specific moment, there are too many! At the range, I shot a 71/75 at 1,000 yards. I thought that I didn't do too great, but I ended up being about 20th at that yard line!

Anette: Wow Brianna. That is 20th in the world! Not just juniors!

Anette: I heard your rifle got run over on the range there! What in the heck?

Brianna: I was coming back from lunch, and one of my teammates (and a few people from my target) was standing by my gun, starting to pick it up. I asked what happened, and a few people just told me to make sure my gun wasn't broken. I was sorta freaked out! I asked them what happened, and Abe (one of my teammates) told me that the range official had ran over my gun with a golf cart! My gun is fine, he just ran over about 5" of the but stock. I'm just glad nothing was broken! My team took home 2 gold medals! The Australia match medal, and the World Long Range Championship medal.

Anette: Sheesh! A range official of all people. Must have been an Australian.

Anette: With the success of this year you have won many medals, plaques and trophies. Where are you displaying all of these?

Brianna: Well... um, I'm not really displaying them. I have my gold medals from Australia in our living room right now. My plaques from Camp Perry are in my room in a box along with a few small medals and trophies. I will eventually display them somewhere, but right now it's not that important to me.

Anette: Boy, I wish I could be that humble. My readers know how much I exploit my wins and medals. Note to self, take down my trophy case above our bed.

Anette: So Brianna, do you have a boyfriend or any crushes?

Brianna: I don't have a boyfriend right now. Crushes? Yes!!!

Anette: Oh my Jeff and Ronnett. It is starting!

Anette: After your performance this year you must have some amazing goals for next year?

Brianna: Next year, my goals are to win high junior at Camp Perry, become a better wind reader, set another national record, win the Long Range State Championship, win the Long Range Regional Championship (Canada, Oregon, and Washington), and, if the Young Eagles go to Great Britain, be on the winning team. I am also going to start shooting smallbore 3P next year.

Anette: Funny. I had some of those same goals. I had better get back out to the range and practice. I am in big trouble.

Thank you Brianna! Best of luck to you this next year and many years to come.

30calgal

"Shoot Like A Girl! If You Can........."

It's Not Just About Me

2011-11-07T12:13:00.000-08:00

I realized after writing this blog for a couple of years now that all articles are about me. Ok, I noticed this quite awhile ago. After all, it is supposed to be about me right? I have been writing about my competitions and adventures of shooting. So not to bore you to tears all of the time I want to start interviewing others. I compete with so many talented and interesting people. I was also looking through my list of my Facebook fan page and there are some very interesting fans I have. Many of which are in gun related businesses. Getting in to shooting USPSA and 3 Gun I have met great people there as well. I am starting with interviews of some of the women I compete with. All of which have won National awards and championships throughout their careers. I am starting with a local Washington gal named Brianna Rachinski from my lovely State of Washington. She is from Bellingham about 2 hours north of Seattle. She won the Junior National Championship this August at Camp Perry Long Range Nationals. She is 14 years old and only started a year and half ago. And she beat the boys.

Stay tuned for Brianna. She needs to answer my questions I had for her in the midst of all of her school studies. So I am waiting patiently. But so excited!

30calgal
"Shoot Like A Girl If You Can...."

Guns Myths Thanks to the Movies

2011-11-03T12:00:00.000-07:00

How many of you watch movies or tv shows where the characters good and bad are handling or shooting guns and what they are doing just makes you cringe? At work at the range pro-shop they are always running films in the background. A scene caught my attention again the other day and I felt I had to write about this because they can be so funny. I suppose most non-gun owners don't have a clue and I am guessing the production companies count on that. But in this day they have to realize that there are enough of us out there watching these shows and laughing at the blatant negligence or silly affects portrayed on film.

The most famous (or infamous?) has to be Charlie's Angel's, the original, stance of walking or running with the pistol pointing straight up the air and finger on trigger. We use that as a "running" joke here at the range. And I don't know about you but when I fire guns I have ear protection on. If I fire a gun without, which I have accidentally, it knocks you to the ground and leaves your ears ringing for a day or more. Exceptions to military who have become deaf from shooting that way. Most of the film characters don't even flinch. Not possible!

The scene I saw the other day was in Die Hard 2. To be fair I went on line and researched silly guns scenes and got more movie titles to share. This Die Hard 2, most if not all James Bond movies, Shooter, In The Line of Fire and No Country for Old Men all have one thing in common. Silencers. One can't just stick a potato on the end of a barrel or better yet as in Shooter a water bottle stuffed with socks??? and have the gun be silent. A silencer does not even make a gun silent. They show gunmen/women sneaking around in a quiet library and blow someone away "quietly". Except for a .22 pistol with silencer there is not going to be a "pffft" when the gun is fired. It is loud still. Duh! Speaking of sneaking around. How about the over obsessiveness of cocking guns?

People are sneaking around quietly only to cock the gun or rifle or shotgun to show how cool that noise is. Shot guns are the worse offenders in movies. I thought the gun was already loaded and cocked and ready to fire? So cocking it means you have to un-cock it to cock it again which also means you flew a round out of the chamber. Not so sneaky and quiet. Boondock Saints is a funny example. Video is above. They had to have the extra noise before they assassinated some guy. They had to un-cock to cock to get that cool noise. Now. Explain to me about full autos.

Whenever anyone pulls out a full auto machine gun they seem to have 3000 rounds in there 30 round magazine. 30 rounds is 30 rounds. Done in 3-4 seconds. Tops! But Tony Montana seems to have an infinite amount of ammo in his machine gun. (Scarface for those of you not fans like I was) Arnold and Stalone could hold a machine in gun in one hand and a belt of ammo in the other and fire away. Did not even get short of breath. Amazing studs I tell you! Revolvers are guilty of this as well. Somehow a gunman can kill 10 people with a 6 round cylinder. Go figure.

Yes, you have to admit that the scenes are fun to watch. But when you know the down and dirty and not so glamorous details of firearms, these scenes make you roll your eyes. I wonder how many times the cops have come upon a crime scene in real life and found bits of potato or socks splattered all over the dead guys? Hmm. I'll have to research that.

30calgal
"Shoot Like A Girl! If You Can........."

Shooting Bloopers

2011-10-31T14:10:00.000-07:00

Awhile back I posted about my embarrassing moment of when I left my brand new rifle at the 1000 yard line in Sacramento as I drove back to Seattle, WA. (If you did not read that post I did get it back). I realized I have had actually quite a few situations that are head shaking, embarrassing or blooper like. So if I do than I am guessing many other shooters do also. I sent out a request for other people's stories and I got quite a few. A concurring theme of most is being forgetful. I will start with my list and Charles and then add the contributers. (The names have been changed to protect the guilty. Or embarrassed.)

My Bloopers:
*Leaving rifle in Sacramento on 1000 yard line as I drove back to Seattle
*Not bringing enough ammo to finish a match. Thought it was 60 rounds and it was actually 80.
*Forgot all of my shooting accessories (glove, elbow pad, hat, Stats book) when I went to Canada for BC Championship. Borrowed gear. Won Championship. :)
*I usually wear flip flops in the car to and from matches. Don't like to be in heavy boots for ride. And they can get muddy. But this one day I wore my rhinestone studded flip flops. Got to match and realized I forgot my boots.
*At this high power match we were going backward from 600 yards forward. It was a leg match so no sighters allowed. I shot my 300 yard rapid fire string. The Range Master asked me if I got all of my rounds off. Yes, I said. Are you sure he said? I never moved my sights from 600 to 300. All 10 rounds were at tippy top of target.
*Cross Firing. More than once in same match.
Many more I am sure I am forgetting.

Charles:(I can say his name. He is my husband.)
*After having a couple too many drinks the night before a match, he thinks it is a good idea to clean his M14 trigger group. Not so smart. Next day there were some issues.
*Shots are going all over the target. Can't figure out why. I notice as I am scoring for him that his rear sight is flopping back and forth.
*Caused a range alibi at Perry. Pulled a target down after only one shot during rapid fire. It's just my way of saying "Hey! Look at ME". Not really the best way to get attention!

Other Contributors:
*Forgetting ammo
*Worked very hard to become a member of this rifle club just so he could win the club championship and drove 2 hours to get to match and realized he forgot his rifle.
*Wa Junior coach drove motor home to Camp Perry with all of the kid's gear and AMMO. Motor home breaks down and catches on fire! (No catastrophes thank goodness)
**One of our Juniors on the US Rifle Team had her rifle run over by a range safety officer in Australia at the World Cup. He must have been Australian.
*Gun goes off during Prep Time. A big no-no
* "The only really embarrassing thing to happen to me was shooting a 4P smallbore match. Shooting offhand I was taking too long for a shot, got flustered put my rifle down too hard on the offhand stand and popped a round into the ground (the triggers are light enough that opening the bolt before setting them down is prudent). Everyone close to me on the line sort of looked at me then went back to shooting, no one said anything."
*A Development Team junior who shot an entire air rifle match full of nines down and to the right because his scope was focused on the target next to his during the sighters and he heeded his coach's instructions about not looking in the scope again after he started for record.
*Smallbore nationals and Olympic selection, 1995 - could not figure out why my prone scores were getting progressively worse and worse during the match. Sight extension tube had never been tightened in the collar, and was wiggling its way off the rifle.
*Started driving to a match about 75 minutes away, got 45 minutes into trip and realized I forgot directions (pre-smart phone era) - I drove to gas station to ask, to hardware store, looked in phone book at store, couldn't find, drove home without shooting.

*Showed up at a match without a holster, belt, or ammo pouches after driving an hour to get there, - no luck finding any subs

*Showed up at a match w/o ammo, was able to buy some from friends

*Showed up to a range to practice for a match there the following week, shot for 1/2 hr with 2 friends, started driving back, got chased down dirt road by angry range master in battered pickup who wanted $3 guest fee from one of my friends (no signs posted or history of requiring guests of members to pay a fee)

I am sure there are hundreds more stories out there. Feel free to add yours.

30calgal

"Shoot Like A Girl! If You Can....."

Good Cop Bad Cop - Seattle Police

2011-10-23T18:51:00.000-07:00

An unfortunate event happened today down below our condo in downtown Seattle. At midday this Sunday I heard yelling and then "pop. pop, pop". No mistaking that they were gun shots. "Just great" I thought. I already was complaining about how Seattle streets have become more menacing but I did not need it to be proven again. And so close to home. Lots of caution tape and 20 police cars later I learned what really happened.

Yesterday an 80 year old clerk at a storage facility near by was robbed and stabbed and later died. The suspect took his wallet and went on a spending spree with the man's credit card. Not so smart bad guy. Don't you think the cops would be tracking your purchases? Well, he was cornered right below our window. Confronted and he tried to strike and the policeman shot him. I do not know at this time if the suspect is alive or dead. Personally I hope, (I am going to hell for this) he died. He murdered someone and was going to try to kill the police officer also. We do not need to pay for his jail and court time. To me he is a worthless human being. I really know I am going to hell for this. Or at least the liberals will come after me and send me to hell.

My point with this blog entry is that lately Seattle Police have been given a bad rap. According to the media we have a bunch of trigger happy, control freak cops around here. I will have the local liberals all over me for this also. I can tell you what. You could not pay me enough money to be an officer. Especially in Seattle. Our Police have been stripped of any approval to do anything to protect themselves and its citizens. They get spit on, hit, kicked and shot at. Not to mention just the words thrown at them. A friend who is an officer here went back east to a convention for police officers. The instructor was going over maneuvers police need to do in certain situations. Every situation he mentioned he would stop and say "Oh, you guys from Wash St can't do this because your laws don't allow you to." I get so perplexed when I hear people comment how "out of control" our police are. Really? Ok people. For everyone 100 of them there are 100,000 of us idiots they need to look after. I have seen from my window a gang at 2 in the morning start chaos on the street. A police officer was in his car just watching. He was not about to get out of his car alone. If he did and was confronted and shot someone out of self-defense it would have been all over the news that cops are racist. "They were just kids" the newspaper would say.

Seattle's last and current mayor and city council have made downtown Seattle a homeless and halfway house mecca. For every new condo or apartment that was built the developers had to build homeless housing. We have no loitering laws and people are allowed to panhandle and sleep anywhere. I know. What a cruel heartless GOP I am. But for the last 5 years I have watched downtown Seattle get worse and worse with the drug dealing, crack whores and meth heads and nasty street kids. Pretty much every doorway has someone sleeping or passed out in it. Sunday mornings walking downtown is like the land of the living dead. It should be pleasant on a Sunday morning or any morning at that. But it is not. We received a letter from the city recently asking if the new "Urine and Feces Cleanup Crew" was doing a good job. WTF? How about getting rid of the problem of who is making that mess!!! I hear friends who live in the suburbs say that downtown is eclectic. "It adds flavor" they say. Fine. I am bussing all of that "flavor" to your neighborhood. How about a couple of the halfway houses with the registered sex offenders I found on my "registered sex offenders" iphone app?

Whatever. I am on the side of the Seattle Police. Good Cops.

30calgal
"Shoot Like A Girl! If You Can........."

Palma Trophy - Wolrd Championship Rifle Match

2011-10-20T10:39:00.000-07:00

As most of you know, the US Palma Rifle Team is in Australia right now for the 2011 World Cup. I will be with you next time gang! (I am on the training team but started one year too late to go with them this time.) Hey I only started two years ago! They are finishing the final week today and tomorrow of the Palma Team match. I wrote awhile back about the Creedmoor Cup and how it started in the late 1800's and the Palma Trophy is part of that tradition. The matches even then were fired at 800, 900 and 1000 yards. Yes, iron sights. What I find interesting about the trophy itself is that the original one is "missing".

The trophy was at first named The Grand Centennial Trophy in honour of the Centennial celebration of the Independence of the United States of America. It was commissioned from Tiffany's for about $1500. It stood 7 1/2 feet tall made of bronze, silver and gold inlay. On the banner was engraved "In The Name of The United States of America To The Riflemen Of The World." Above the banner was the word "PALMA" which in Latin means palm tree and to the Romans signified victory or the ultimate in excellence. Unfortunately the original trophy has not been seen since 1954. Who took it I wonder?? I can only imagine how much it is worth now. A new one was made again by Tiffany's from the old blue prints for a bit more. $32,500. It is worth several times that now.

I am watching Facebook and emails around the clock to get updates from team mates. Good luck to the US men and women over there. Our name needs to be on that trophy. Again.

30calgal
"Shoot Like A Girl! If You Can....."

It Takes 2

2011-10-09T13:53:00.000-07:00

I do realize that most of the time I write these blog entries in a very "Me" sort of way. Okay, a very selfish, all about me kind of way. But it is my blog and I am writing of my adventures, etc. But one thing I have taken for granted at times and have not mentioned enough of is that I would not be where I am as a successful shooter without my husband Charles. From getting me started to a continued support as my success grows. Yes, I am pulling the trigger and winning matches but I had to get to that point. And, I also tend to have more of a man's personality in that I don't show emotions often as I should. Don't get offended guys. You know a bit what I mean. So here is a statement to Charles that still won't do justice to how wonderful he is.

Thank you Charles for introducing me in to the sport of High Power. First with the service rifle in across the course and then to long range. Thank you Charles for getting up earlier than I on match days and getting gear together and packed in to the truck while I snooze just a little longer. Thank you Charles for loading all of my ammunition!!!! Yes I help at the end with the easy part of powder and seating bullets but he does the tedious cleaning, resizing and priming, etc. (I know Charles' friends would snicker when I write that "I loaded ammo") Thank you Charles for supporting me in all of my travels. I think I spent about one week a month away from home this last year at peak season. Thank you for driving us to many of the matches. Thank you for cleaning my rifles and pistols after every match. Thank you for including me in some of the guy shooting trips. Thank you for pushing me to write my blog. Thank you for helping me promote 30calgal. But mostly on a personal level thank you for being so patient of me. I can be stubborn. Umm....really stubborn. Thank you for your confidence in everything I do. All of my wacky business adventures and hobbies. This goes back to patience again. Thank you for giving me an amazing life style. Thank you for all of the adventures we have taken together. Thank you for the best surprise birthday party on my 40th of my 84' Prom theme. (The lovely photo at top right) Thank you for taking Kozmo out for the late night walks every evening so that I don't go out alone in the streets of Seattle. Thank you for taking care of MY mom when I could not be around to do so. Thank you for opening my car door every single time from our very first date to today 9 years later even when I am in my workout clothes. Thank you for letting me move my office back home and in to your gun room. Thank you for loving me so much. I can truly say you do so unconditionally. Thank you for 9 amazing and fun years. I can't wait for the next 9 and more.

Thank you Charles.

Love,
Anette

Testing! Testing!

2011-10-03T07:58:00.000-07:00

An online ammunition distributor, AmmoForSale.com approached me recently through my 30calgal blog to ask if I would test and review some ammunition for them in my own style. Who am I to turn down an opportunity to shoot! They asked what I would be interested in testing. I mentioned all of the calibers I shoot and said that I only shoot a custom 308 hand-load in my Palma rifle so no need to send any 308. I know, what a snob I am. Clever guy, he sent me a couple boxes of 308! 2 boxes of 20 rounds of S&B 308W 147G FMJ. Of course it makes perfect sense. My specialty is mid and long range competition with a hand load of a 155g 308 and each expensive component that goes in to it. I have never fired a factory load through my Palma Rifle. I am so curious now! Is all the effort I go through worth it? Well, yes perhaps. But! I was VERY satisfied with the groups I got with this ammo.

A majority of my matches are at 600 yards so I took my boxes of S&B out to that range. The conditions were perfect for testing. It was an overcast day and there was not a stitch of wind. Easy to get zeros. I treated it as though I were at a match which is 20 shots for record with unlimited sighters in a time limit of 25 minutes. Unlimited to me is 5 rounds. I had my target puller mark all of the For Record shots with white pasters so we could get a photo of the results at the end. I also plotted all shots in my book. Once I went for record I never touched my sights in elevation or windage. Since the conditions were so calm I just held my position and let the bullets fly down range. Out of 20 rounds only 4 went out of the 10 ring. (As seen in photo) I call all of my shots when fired and promise that to the best of my ability I held center on those. And remember, most testing for groups are shot from the bench. I use a sling for support in the prone position. Factory loads I believe are machine made and inconsistencies may happen. Trust me, it can happen with hand loads also. But look at the results in the photo! This is from 600 yards! Most shooters are not going to be that far out.

So for my final review. Would I use this ammunition in one of my competitions? No. Would I use it for plinking or target practice? Yes! Would I use it in a 3 Gun competition. YES! Would I trust my life with it against Zombies? Absolutely! And that is worth every penny.

30calgal
"Shoot Like A Girl! If You Can........"

"Guns Scare Me!"

2011-09-26T10:13:00.000-07:00

I was having dinner with my family last night and of course Charles and I were talking shop about recent shooting events and it came around again to my brother who also owns handguns and competes occasionally. Charles asked my sister-in-law if she had gone out shooting with Peter recently or ever. "No" she said. "Guns scare me." In fact, I hear this so often from many women who's spouses have guns around. As you would expect, comments like that send my hackles straight up. I mentioned that if your spouse has guns in the house wouldn't you like to be more familiar with them in case you should ever need them? OK, let's take a step back here.

I know all of you reading this who love shooting also deal with this. This is old news. This has been and always will be a battle. Just look at the fight to keep and bear arms. I do understand people's fear of guns. I really do! If one has never been around them and all you hear are horrible things in the news and the movies you would understandably hold a grudge against them. I never grew up around guns. I was a city girl. I had to be introduced in to this world of shooting through my husband. In fact even though I got in to competition with rifles I was still very apprehensive around handguns for several years. But that is because I had never really spent time with them. Like the rifle, I needed to use it a lot and become familiar with it. We kept a handgun in MY nightstand for years before I really went out to shoot it. But Charles made me unload and load it and make safe every night. I learned to respect it and understand it can't go off by itself. Then I started shooting pistols and entering competitions and I can't get enough of them. I do not expect people to take up shooting like myself but I do expect them to make an effort to be familiar with them if they are going to have them in their house or around them!

I do have many girlfriends who beg me to take them shooting. Some of these gals do not own any guns but really want to shoot. Some have guns but had not really gone out to use them and were so excited to do so. (Photo at right is of myself and some of my brave girlfriends at the range) I would send them home with homework to make ready and make safe drills. Make them second nature like driving your car. Safety first in driving also right? It is funny, I will be somewhere where the topic of guns come up and people get all huffy and disgusted and then they hear me say I am a national competitor, blah, blah, blah. The reaction on their faces is priceless. They immediately soften up to the topic seeing that this woman in front them who seems normal (be nice gang) is actually an experienced gun person. I am on the US Team? Cool! They hear that guns are used for sporting and not for the violence they are stuffed with.

To my sister-in-law and friends who are "afraid of guns", it is my personal goal to reach you one at a time! Maybe having another woman teach them about firearms and shooting would be better than their spouse. I am on a one woman crusade to reach you all.

30calgal
"Shoot Like A Girl! If You Can......"

Let Gear Be Your Guide!

2011-09-22T11:17:00.000-07:00

Now that I have competed in several shooting sports I am amazed at the difference of equipment and funds needed to get into competing. People wanting to get in to competition in any gun discipline may have a tough time deciding which one to start with. I can honestly say one way to go about this is, "LET GEAR BE YOUR GUIDE!" All shooting sports are expensive but if money or space is a factor you may want to consider some options. Competing with pistols is a great start. One can do Bulls Eye an NRA and CMP event, IDPA, USPSA and I am sure there are some others similar. These pretty much require a handgun, belt, gun and magazine holsters, eye and ear protection and your bag to carry them in. See photo at right. Easy! One bag of stuff! Traveling by plane is nice with this also. Of course your ammo can weigh a bit depending on how big the match is. And yes, pistols can run you $1000 - $4000 depending on class and accessories but you can get started at the lower end. Now my sport of high power rifle is a big money and space killer.

I use a custom AR15 for high power and my custom Palma .308 rifle for long range. Crazy expensive pieces of hardware there. The AR can run about $1500 - $2000 with specific barrels and triggers. The Palma or long range rifles are $2000 - $6000 with all of the goodies attached. YIKES! Now add my leather shooting jacket. shooting mat, spotting scope and stand, rolling and/or standing cart, shooting glove, elbow pad, special glasses, special hat (dorky hat really) and lots of ammunition for these matches. Flying with all of this can be a chore and spendy extra baggage fees. And most airlines only allow for 11 pounds of ammo. Then there is 3 Gun.

I was humbled after the match last weekend. Granted I don't need the coat and mat and scope but with the 3 firearms needed which includes pistol, shotgun and rifle one also needs belts, MANY holsters and magazines, a stroller (yes, guys buy the jogging baby stroller) and more ammo than you could possibly imagine you are in for a really expensive and space consuming treat. My waist was not big enough to even wear all of the holsters needed! I see now that competitors had thigh holsters also. Flying to a match? Forget it. I personally would drive to every match across the country with all of that stuff. Better yet, my future sponsors will have it all there waiting for me.............

30calgal
"Shoot Like A Girl! If You Can......."

One 3 Gun Match Down. Infinitely More To Go!

2011-09-19T12:56:00.000-07:00

Rattlesnake Ridge - Richland, WA

All of my gear, guns and myself are covered in dust. I have bruises, cuts and blisters. But I want to do it again. I know, all of you regular 3 gunners are rolling your eyes. But let me have my moment here. Overall, for my first 3 Gun match I did pretty darn well. I was happy to hear from the regulars that yesterdays match was quite a bit bigger production than most. There were only 4 stages but we did not walk off the range until after 6pm. Each stage required all 3 guns. At least 28 rounds of bird shot each time. As you will see in the video attached, there was a lot of shooting going on. WARNING - long tedious video of me trying to quickly hand load my shot gun. But as you will see, it was not very quick.

It is painful for me to watch. It seemed at the time I was moving in slow motion as I was re-loading. I know with practice that can be done better. Watching some of the great shooters, they can manually load 8 rounds in a few seconds. I learned quickly that success at this and any game really is all about the gear. I know a little now at least what I don't want to compete with in the future.

I was able to use my own Tanfoglio pistol so that was nice. I had zero problems. I had to borrow the rifle and the shot gun. The shotgun was a Bennelli. It did not have rifle sights and I was misreading my elevation. It seemed as though I was aiming center mass looking down barrel to front sight but in the precision shots they all were high. That is just a matter of getting used to it but I had borrowed Charles' pump action and with the rifle sights on it I was dead on. Then there is the re-loading. I was watching with envy those that had huge shotgun magazines holding 20 rounds. Not to say that they did not have issues. Magazines were not sticking and lots of jamming, etc occurred. But I wanted those magazines! My thumb on my left hand is all scraped and blistered from the loading. I know, I know.... Cry me a river. As for the rifle I borrowed, it was a Sig 556 with a scope and the scope had the dot lens not a cross hair lens. I do not like the dot. Once again, not being familiar with the zeros on this rifle I had a hard time getting to the targets 100 - 300 yards away. Charles had it zero'd for 100 but anything beyond that I was not confident to know where my favoring should be. I need to make my own notes when I sight it in at those distances. Now if I had cross hairs I would have enjoyed that more. Listen to me! I am an iron sight snob and am wanting a specific scope. I really wished I had my AR15 with me. (minus the extra 9 lbs in it). I would have killed every target at the long range. One guy had his AR and another had his M14. They rocked those long targets. See! Iron sights are better! Scopes are for .........

So, to wrap this up. I love my Tanfoglio. I want a Bennelli or FN shotgun with rifle iron sights and I want to jump up to the Open category so I can have the magazines. For the rifle, I think I want an AR15 with iron sights believe it or not. And I might stick a bi-pod on there. Might as well if in the Open group. :) Now I just need to be sponsored and I am good to go. Oh yea. Ammo. I spent a fortune on ammo and went through it all!! Need sponsors for that too. My goal at Shot Show next year. :) Yes, I need to stand in line. But hey. I am 30calgal. Maybe that will mean something.

30calgal
"Shoot Like A Girl! If You Can........"

Feeling Light and Airy with My Ruger SR9C

2011-09-09T11:07:00.000-07:00

Not light headed. A light feeling on my belt and hip. Charles found me a basic light holster at a local gun show last weekend. It fits my new Ruger SR9C perfectly. It can be worn on outside or inside of belt/pants. I wore it and of course the gun at work the other day. I almost forgot I was wearing a gun on my hip! Don't get me wrong, it is still a big enough gun that I can't conceal it under my shirt (remember, I'm a girl) but when I am at work I get to walk around openly carrying anything I want. Compared to my 3 1911s I have it was hardly noticeable. The top photo is of the Ruger and the bottom is of my Kimber Pro Carry. A huge size difference! Wearing the 1911's I am actually bumping in to door ways. You really notice you are wearing it. But with the Ruger, I actually forgot I was wearing it. Once again, because I am a girl I won't wear the holster and gun inside my pants because all of my pants "fit" me. I am not going to up-size my wardrobe to do this. Did I mention I am a girl? We don't do that.

The lightness of it also feels better in my purse. I was able to safely clip it to an inside pocket and it does not drag me down. I am still not sure carrying a gun in my purse is a good idea but I have been "trying it on for size" in many options. My point is that this gun is a pleasure to lug around. Now to wait for my new FlashBang holster and I can try it out with the new Sig P238 that I am going to get. Oh! Hee-hee. Charles did I mention I am getting another gun? My co-worker at West Coast Armory and gun blogger Shelley Sargent is also getting the FlashBang to try with her LCP. We shall have some interesting stories to compare. What is a FlashBang hoslter? Click the link and you will find out. Trust me, if you are male you will dig it. Now you might keep reading my blog to find out how our testing on that goes eh?

30calgal
"Shoot Like A Girl! If You Can........."

200 Series Pocket Pistol - Get In The "Zone"

2011-08-23T17:54:00.000-07:00

It is not very often you come across a gun that is not only reliable and affordable but one that is both of those things as well as the ultimate in self-defense confidence. Especially offensive manouvers. Large capacity magazine supported me with anywhere from 25-35 "shots". The grip has an unusual texture that allows for a firm hold. I would say the only fault we found in the testing phase was the slow trigger pull. Sometimes even a bit sticky depending on who has fired it before you. One other trick is the way you pluck it out of the hands of your tiny assailant without too many tears erupting. But the further you run away with it in the opposite direction the quieter the sobbing becomes. We found this is defenitely more of a drive by weapon. The more your target is unsuspecting the better. Targets over 4 1/2 feet tall can be surprised if not even a little miffed when suddenly opened up on with the ice cold contents of its magazine. This gun is easily concealable under your hat or in your polka dot bikini holster. The panel here at 30calgal headquarters in Lake Chelan, Wa give this gun a 9 out of 10 on the "FunTastic" meter.

The H2O Zone 200 Series. Get yours today. Gun - $1.99.

Polka Dot Bikini Holster - Priceless

30calgal

"Shoot Like A Girl! If You Can......."

Look What Was Waiting For Me When I Got Home! My Ruger SR9c

2011-08-18T17:40:00.000-07:00

My new Ruger SR9c is here! My new Ruger SR9c is here! I am somebody now! (OK, a remade line from "The Jerk". I guess that dates me a little) A happy boost to my not so happy shooting at Nationals. I ordered my compact 9mm just before I left for Camp Perry. I was purchasing it from work, West Coast Armory and they did not have the stainless steel slide one I wanted so I had to wait a week to get it. I almost forgot I ordered it. Why did I choose this pistol?

Right now all of my handguns are 1911s. Not that there is anything wrong with that. It is my favorite style. But I wanted something to carry in my purse and be able to use in any classes or certification courses I take. The 600 rounds I shot in my InSights Training General Defensive class with my Kimber Pro Carry almost killed me. I also want to get the P238 which would be even better to conceal on my person but for now I wanted a compact that I can shoot for fun as well. We have this and many others in our rental gun case at work and I have tried all of them and kept coming back to this one. It has a short grip but you can put the "pinky" extended base on it and even my large hands can hold it comfortably. The basic magazine holds 10 rounds and it also comes with a 17 round mag! Of course that makes it pretty big to conceal but nice to have the option. I kept coming back to this handgun because it is actually pleasant to shoot. I can play with this for target practice a while without my hand hurting. I also loved the stainless steel slide instead of the all black. It just has a bit more sex appeal. The SR9 the bigger version of this pistol has a design called "Black Ice" a very shiny black slide. Super fun but they don't make the SR9c with it. Listen up Ruger! Make it! Please!

I got a nice holster cover for it so it conceals the trigger guard when in my purse. I have two purses that have the perfect outside pocket. One of them the pocket is a bit short inside so I am going to cut it and sew in more length. There are some companies that make nice leather purses for concealing firearms but still not the style I really want. So I am going to adapt my current favorite purses to work for concealment. Tomorrow I will go back to the range and get the new gun dirty. I have to break it in right? I bought lots of ammo. A lot of basic target or ball 9mm to practice with and of course some hollow points for... well you know... Hopefully those rounds will never have to leave the barrel.

30calgal
"Shoot Like A Girl! If You Can......"

Camp Perry Long Range Nationals 2011 - Final Days

2011-08-18T10:56:00.000-07:00

Yea for the women! We had several of the national trophies got to women this year. Noma Zinsmaster-Mayo from California won 2, Michelle Gallagher and her sister Sheri Gallagher (Palma Champion) and mom Nancy Tompkins and Washington's own 14 year old Brianna Rachinski won 4 national junior awards and overall Junior National Champion. So awesome! Impressive scores she had.

The day after the rain storm we had muddy grounds beneath us but were able to complete the 3rd day. In fact the sunny skies came back around noon and except for the existing standing water one would never know there was a 24 hour Midwest storm. I never did get to use my fancy new rain guard. Oh well. I am sure a match here in the NW will take care of that. My team match on the 3rd day was pretty good. We came in 4th overall. The Palma Individual match on day 4 I had a good score but conditions were so nice that there were 7 450's (cleans) and many 448's. Last year my score of 445 would have made the Palma 20. Not this year. I got scooted way down the pack. But my score was about 10 points
better than last year. Slow baby steps. My big
disappointment was yesterday in the final team event. The 5 team members are from left to right in photo, Dave Cloft, Bud Solis, Rick Hunt, myself and Eric Smith.
The same 5 of us were together and Ricky was coaching up a storm. We were on fire. Then I crossed fired. I had a clean string too. There goes 10 points and there goes any chance of winning. I was deflated. They tried to cheer me up but I felt awful. Then it happened again. Not with me but Bud did it on his next string. I guess deep down it relieved me a bit that I was not alone in my misery but it was deflating. Then to add insult to injury I was the last person to fire at 1000 and something weird happened with my sights. My zeros were set as they were all week and my 2 sighters went over the target. We brought it down and then it was too low and we could not get the shots to come back up no matter how many clicks we put on. Something was loose or malfunctioning. We could never figure it out. Half way through the string the shots went in and stayed in the middle. Not sure why all of a sudden. When finished Rick asked me where my sights were. I said they ended up where we started. My 1000 yard zero. Yet the first 6 shots did not go there. No explanation. I am sure there is, trust me. But we can't figure it out as of now. I am shooting a 600 yard match in Seattle on Sunday so I will test it out there and see if rear sight knob is turning and adjusting correctly. Or if anything slips. What a heart break that was. We knew we were not going to win anything but to finish my day and trip like that crushed me. Welcome to the fickle world of shooting.

Let's put this behind me and chalk it up to learning and experience. Heck, this is year 2 for me. All the women shooters I mentioned earlier who are and have been national champions a few times have been shooting for 20 - 30 years. I have time.

Thank you to the NRA and CMP and all of their volunteers for keeping the tradition of shooting competitively alive and putting on this amazing event every year for pistol, small bore, high power and long range. See you again next year.

30calgal
"Shoot Like A Girl! If You Can......."

Camp Perry National Long Range 2011 - Day 2

2011-08-14T16:56:00.000-07:00

My rental car is stranded in my hotel parking lot in 6" of water. It is 7:30 at night and it has finally stopped raining. For now. Ricky Hunt and Bud Solis drove Brianna and her dad Jeff and Haily and her dad John in to Port Clinton to pick me up so we could go out to dinner. Rick's was the only vehicle big enough to get through the flooded streets. I know we get a lot of rain in the North West but I have never seen anything like this. The midwest knows how to put on a rain storm. Complete with amazing funnel clouds and lightning and thunder. There were several funnel clouds/tornado whirls starting all day. Thank goodness none of them ever made it to the ground.

So I woke up last night to thunder but by this morning it was only overcast. We managed to get all 4 strings of fire done for the Leach Cup. I was in the pits for the 4th string and as soon as the last shot was fired the drops started falling. We got the targets on the truck and covered with plastic and jumped on the tractors to get back to the 1000 yard line. In that small trip we were soaked. My gear was well covered by a rain tarp so I just grabbed my rifle and started to head for my car. I came upon a metal shack that had about 50 shooters standing in it. I stopped and hung out there for about an hour. Quite fun actually. It never stopped so I thought I will make it to my car and drive to the shack to get my rifle then drive to my gear and get it in inside. When I got to my gear I saw my cart standing in a lake. (The picture at right.) The cart bag is made of canvas and it only hung in to the water a couple of inches but it soaked the water all the way through it and all my stuff. Completely soaked. My tennis shoes were now water shoes walking to my stuff. At this point who cares. Guys in there trucks were sitting there watching me and laughing. As they should. They had to do the same thing. Got it all in the car and pealed apart my log book and score cards for the week and laid them out on the dash and the seats and cranked the heated defrost. After another hour they finally called the matches. I barely made it back to the hotel. The police shut down the road as soon as I passed. But the whole strip in town was bad. I have a tiny compact rental car and I thought I would get stuck for sure. The parking lot at the hotel was not so bad when I arrived but in a few minutes my car was in 6 or more inches. I took my shoes off and waded around grabbing all I could and hiking to my room. My room smells lovely. Musty wet. Looks like a tornado hit my room.

Well, we made it to dinner and made it back. Great adventure all of us riding in Rick's shooting van. It is a hollowed out tall van with a tool shop and loading benches and gun safes in it. We were standing and sitting on anthing we could find. Very funny if you were there. The rain has stopped and we will see if it goes away for tomorrow. We still don't have stats for today's shooting. I did fairly well. Only dropped 2 points but 14yr old Brianna beat me by 3 X's. She is in the lead for National Junior Champion. What did I tell you? "Shoot Like A Girl!" Way to go Bri.

30calgal
"Shoot Like A Girl! If You Can......"

Camp Perry Long Range Nationals 2011 - Day 1

2011-08-13T18:04:00.000-07:00

Wow. Way to be humbled. I suppose one can't have a great shooting day every time. I will add today to my "experience library". To start I did not sleep well last night. Most likely the time difference from west coast to midwest. But for me that is pretty normal not to sleep well. Then when the alarm went off at 5:30am it was really 2:30 for me. Painful! I was told that firing started at 7:30. So I usually arrive an hour early. Especially here because if you don't you are parking a mile away. I find out start time is 8:30. I am there 2 hours early! And so tired. I am on relay 2 for the day and I am squadded with Scott Grant from the AMU team. My first string at 1000 yards was ok. I dropped 3 points, 197/200 with 6X. This range is very difficult to get a crisp black target. There is no background behind the targets. Only Lake Erie. The morning light was odd and I had one bad elevation shot. Well, I was going to shrug it off and do better at the second string.

The way the relays are set up, relays 1 and 2 go to pull target for 4 strings. We were down there forever! I was falling asleep and the weather was getting hotter by the minute. But I thought maybe that would relax me to shoot well next string. No go. Scott shot first and had a strong wind but it was pretty consistent. I had 8 minutes right wind to start and within 5 minutes it stopped then switched then switched back. I got caught in all of them. It was ugly. I dropped 14 points! I don't think I have ever done that except when a crossfire happened. My only consolation for the day was that I could share my misery. Many top shooters became human today. Scores overall were very low in the string. Even Brian Litz dropped 7 points. Sorry Brian. But it does make me feel better! Scott my squadding partner kicked butt and got in to both shootoffs for the service rifle category. He did not win those but he had a good day overall.

Tomorrow again is at 1000 yards for The Leach Cup. Then we have the team event. I am shooting on a great team. I am excited for this. I believe we will do well. Ricky Hunt is coaching. Then after the team match is the shootoff for the Leach Cup. I hope to be in that one! There were no women in today's shoot off. Usually there are a couple.

They say a storm is coming through tomorrow and we will get wet for sure. I am ready! I have my rain gear and of course my new rifle rain guard! As my friend Karen called it, "A Rifle Cozy". I may have to just call it that Karen. It is perfect.

30calgal
"Shoot Like A Girl! If You Can....."

My Last Minute Rifle Rain Guard

2011-08-11T17:36:00.000-07:00

I am leaving on a red-eye flight tonight to Cleveland for my trip to Nationals at Camp Perry. The weather forecast for Saturday and Sunday does not look good. Lots of rain showers. And in that area the rains are crazy. The field will flood in no time at all. What's a little rain? Not sure if you remeber my post a couple of months ago when I was in Oregon. I had an entire string of 20 rounds where each round a primer blew. It was raining and even though my ammo was covered, getting it from box to chamber got the water in there. The extra pressure from the moisture blew the primers. When it stopped raining later I never had a problem. Now granted that brass was on its last firing but I never want to experience that again. Sort of messes with your head a bit!

This is not the first time anyone has thought of making a rain guard. In fact Noma, a fellow female shooter from California has made some with a different fabric. I did borrow one once and it helped a lot. My only complaint was it was very soft fabric and had extra fabric that bunched around rear site and my face. It may have been because it was made for someone elses rifle too. So here I am making my own version! There is a great outdoor materials store in Seattle. This fabric is waterproof and heat resistant. The barrel can get hot! They had some fun colors so I chose this bright blue. It is fairly stiff material and with the velcro closures will not flap no matter how much wind there is. I enclosed a flexible but stiffer piece of plastic above action so it sticks straight out to allow easy access to loading. The only thing I will do differently on the next design is make the opening around the rear site smaller and have a velcro closure behind it so it wraps around sight rather than fit over it. Thank you Charles for that idea! Great since everyone has different sights. The length can be shortened for those who do not have a 30" barrel like mine.

The true test will be on the line in the rain! If it fails I can easily rip it right off and manouver my coat and hat and whatever else I can find to cover the action. Eek. That sounds miserable. Lets hope it works. And lets hope it works so well that I get orders for more! :) See you in Camp Perry! Saturday first shots down range at 7am.

30calgal
"Shoot Like A Girl! If You Can......."

127th B.C. Target Rifle Championship - Day 4 - I DID IT!!!!!!!!!

2011-08-01T21:37:00.000-07:00

Chilliwack, BC, Canada

I did it! I got The Chair! No, not the electric chair. The Sedan Chair! The Lt. Governor's Trophie! I am the second woman and first American woman to ever win in the 127 years of this match. I also won the entire BC Open Championship as well as several other individual and Grand Aggregates! Look at all of the cool silver trophies in the photo. I am sitting in the Sedan Chair they carried me in. Video of chair is also attached here. I do not get to take the trophies home however. I don't think I would want to try to get them through the border. Some are 100 years old and real silver. They took photos of me with each one up close. And my name will be engraved on them forever. I am so much on cloud 9 I can't begin to explain. I knew I wanted it. I managed a perfect score for the final shootoff of 75/75 with 9 V's. (15 shots for record each worth 5 points) I was almost embarassed how many times I got up to accept a trophy at the ceremony. But...not really. So cool!

I am waiting for the final results with all of the names of the matches and I will post that when I get them. But as you can see in the photo I had about 12 trophies plus several medals that are not shown. Picture at bottom is of gold embroidered patch for the Lt. Governors.

I can't leave out Charles in this entry. His first match like this and he also won about 5 or 6 trophies. Way to go Babe! We even won a high scoring family trophy.

You will notice one trophy is a large wooden and glass case with a rifle in it. This was a Martini Henry Rifle given to the BCRA by the London Shooting Club back in 1884 approximately. Took a couple of people to hold it up with me.

A strange feeling I have tonight. Did that just happen? Did I get carried in the chair? Seems a blur. But I am watching it on film. It really did happen. I need to pinch myself. Thank you all for your well wishes! It worked!

30calgal
"Shoot Like A Girl! If You Can....."
Boy did I hear that repeated to me a few times today!

127th B.C. Target Rifle Championship - Day 3

2011-07-31T17:06:00.000-07:00

Chilliwack, BC - General Vokes Range

YEA!!!! I have kept my lead and made it to the playoffs tomorrow for The Life Governors Cup and The Lt. Governors (The Chair!). And I am still the 1st place leader for the overal BC Open title. How exciting! There is still work ahead of me tomorrow but if I keep my head straight and just keep shooting like I do than all will be well. Wish me luck gang.

Charles is also shooting extremely well. Between the two of us we should have lots of silver to photograph with. My standings for today are; Lt. Governor's Stage 2 - Me 1st place. Short Range Aggregate - me 2nd. Lord Mayors Rifle, Agg of 400
and 500 meters - Me 1st place! BC TR Open - Me
1st place, Gary Rasmuseen in 2nd. Grand Agg - Me
1st and Tom Walters 2nd. Lt Governors Prize - Me
1st Place, Bob Pitcairn 2nd and Gary R 3rd. Life
Governors - me 2nd and Bob Pitcairn 1st and Gary
3rd.

At the end of the day today we had the 500 meter portion of the International Team Match. Our US Team smoked Canada. We were only down 7 points to their 16. So we are in the lead to tomorrow. We finish the Agg at 600 meters. I did not drop any points during my shooting and I coached Gary with only one point lost. (photos at right)

Highlight for today - We had an unexpected downpour and rain on and off all day and I did not bring my jacket. Kathy Millanuk, wife of Monty loaned me her US Rifle Team jacket she had from being on the US FClass Team that went to Ireland last month. Someone got a photo and I had to post it. I hope it will bring me good luck that I am on the 2015 Team. (photo at top of page)

Now let's see if I can sleep tonight. Too excited and nervous!

30calgal
"Shoot Like A Girl! If You Can........"

127th B.C. Target Rifle Championships - Day 2

2011-07-30T17:06:00.000-07:00

General Vokes Range - Chilliwack, BC

Great Day! As you can see in these photos it was an incredible day. You are looking at our US Team of 8 shooters for the International Team Match. We had to beg for and borrow one Canadian to join us since we only had 7 who came up here. He owns land in AZ so he has at least one foot in. From left to right is Bob Gamboa, Ken (our Canadian), Alex Tanaoka, Charles Mohseni(my sweetie), myself, Wayne Budbill, Mike Dunia and Gary Rasmussen. There are 3 legs to the International Team event and today was the 300 meter portion. We are tied with Canada and they are ahead a few V's. We have to finish tomorrow at 500 and Monday at 600 meters before we can declare a winner.

For today's individuals I had some great results. As did Charles! I am giving the names of the individual matches even though most people won't know what they mean. But they sure sound impressive! The Lt. Governors Cup (the one that ends with the Sedan Chair) has me in First place! Now to hold on for two more days. Charles is in 3rd. The Past President's match I am 1st. The Fred Asher Agg, combining a couple of matches has Charles in 1st and myself in 3rd. The B.C. Open, me in 1st! The Life Governor's Cup I am in 2nd and The McDonald Stewart Agg I am in 2nd. Whew! Tomorrow brings more Cups and more Aggs that will continue from today.

Highlight of today was seeing Mike Dunio's new rifle. He saw a rifle stock in Australia last year he had to have. It is made in Switzerland. A Grunig & Elmiger. His gunsmith had a heck of a time getting it imported here and it cost him so much he won't even tell anyone what he spent. He put a Krieger barrel on it with a Barnard action. Check it out in the photo. It is very much like the innards of a watch. Lots of moving parts. But very cool and shiny and space age. The front part of it looked like I could plug my phone in to it to recharge it. Mike said he is not actually sure he likes it yet. It is taking awhile to get used to all of the adjustable parts. Whatever. I want one just to say I have one. Now for the money.....

30calgal
"Shoot Like A Girl! If You Can......"

127th B.C. Target Rifle Championship - Day 1

2011-07-29T21:44:00.000-07:00

Chilliwack, BC - Canada

Driving through the border with our rifles yesterday was uneventful. I guess I was hoping for some drama but they had several of our American members come through the border that day already so they were almost bored with it. A quick bribe to the Canadian tax payers and we were on our way. We arrived at General Vokes Military Range about 1:00 to start a practice/sight-in at 500 meters. My favorite range as far as appearances go. Beautiful at the foot of mountains. I am glad we did this. I know that there is not much difference between yards and meters and I have 500 and 600yd zeros. But I did not want to show up this morning and have to guess what 300 meters would be and we only are allowed 2 sighters to get on target.

Again, this is a Full bore format where you shoot two to a mound. The round count is small. Only 7 or 10 rounds per string. But these are ICFRA targets. The smallest bullseye you have ever seen. There is no room for error. If you slip in to the 4 ring on this target, it would have still been a 10 on our targets. This scoring is a V Bull instead of an X and then 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Mentally it hurts much more to drop even one point when you only shoot 7 rounds. Any way, we fired two strings each at 300, 400 and 500 meters. We ended the day with a 2 person Family Team match. Of course Charles and I entered this. (Photos at right) I do not know final scores yet but we dropped 3 points. I can't

imagine anyone else dropped that many so I doubt
we receive any trophies. We will find out tomorrow.
For the individuals today I dropped only 2 points all
day. As of now I am in 2nd overall aggregate.

My goal this year is to win the Lietenant Governors Cup. It is a combined score of several random strings throughout the 4 days. If you win you get carried by your countrymen on a Sedan Chair led by bagpipers back to the clubhouse. They pin a beautiful embroidered Gold Medal patch on your jacket. I got the bronze in this last year. I must have this win. If I am so lucky I will definitely have a video attached to the blog entry on Monday night.

30calgal
"Shoot Like A Girl! If You Can......"

Perfect Conditions For A "Hard Hold" Day

2011-07-17T12:03:00.000-07:00

Cascade Rifle and Gun Club - Ravensdale, WA. 7/16/2011

Yesterday was a nice rainy day for an 80 round match at 600 yards. Thankfully the 600 yard line is covered. And I am especially thankful we hired Charles' nieces to pull targets! We did not have to go out in to the elements at all. The weather did improve throughout the day and the wind conditions were perfectly calm. A great day to get a dead wind zero and to practice your hold. What is a hold? When conditions are this calm you really should not have any shots outside of the 10 ring. This a true test of holding elevation. Shots should be waterline from 9:00 - 3:00 across the X and 10 ring. Preferably the X ring only. If you can make it through the day with little or no elevation shots you have reached your goal. At this point it is just a battle of X's. 4 people came out with a perfect 800/800 for the day. I was one of them. I had an 800 with 58 X! I love the photo of my scores at right. All those X's and 10s! Normally this would be a winning score. But Bud Solis was on fire. He broke a range record with an 800 66X! Way to go! The biggest surprise of the day (well not to me) was that Charles was also one of the cleans for the day. This was really only his 3rd or 4th time competing in a prone match. The first 80 round match. He was only 2 X's behind me! Proof he needs to take up prone shooting more seriously. Wouldn't that be cool if we as a couple made the US Palma Team for 2015? I think we can.

30calgal
"Shoot Like A Girl! If You Can......."

NEW! USPSA Women's Classsifier "HOP"

2011-07-17T11:42:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday I participated in a USPSA match at Paul Bunyan range. It had been awhile since I have shot my Tanfoglio so I was happy for the change of pace from the rifle. Although I had a great time my scores for the day were not so happy. Just means I need to practice more. But the highlight of the day was at the Classifier stage. You had to start facing away from the targets and at the beep turn and commence firing. One of the guys early in the lineup did a funny hop to make his turn. Shelley Sargent and I felt it necessary to follow in his "footsteps". We both added our bunny hop turn. At right is a video Shelley made. To add to the "style", in the week hand portion I apparently had my other hand on my hip rather than close on chest. Was not even aware I was doing it. A new definition of "Shooting from the hip"?

30calgal
"Shoot Like A Girl! If You Can......"

2011 41st Infintry Division Regional 600 Yard Championship - Day 2 & 3

2011-07-05T10:10:00.000-07:00

Puyallup, WA - Paul Bunyan Rifle Club

Winner Master Class! Day 2 of this match was Across The Course with either service rifle or match rifle. I entered the service category with my AR15. For not having shot this rifle as much as my prone gun I did very well. I ended up with a Match Win again for the day in the Master Class. Yea! Allen Spiker won the entire match with his service rifle against the match rifle. He is too good. Congrats to Allen and then Gary Rassmussen who took second. Thinking I was on a roll I was hoping to go in to the Monday Leg match with a win as well.

No such luck. Monday I could not seem to pull it together. 600 yards did me in. The mirage was extremely switchy. Everyone had problems but I just could not make it work. 300 rapid was my best string even though the sun at that time of day completely camouflaged the targets. At 200 rapid I did fine but 200 offhand was a disaster. Offhand ends up being the last string of the day. One is so tired and you have to lift the rifle up and try to not have a wobble zone. I was hoping I would be so tired and not care that the shots would just go in the center. Did not happen. First Leather. Do you know what that is? Only 2 people were able to qualify for Leg points. I got third place. In other words, nothing. First Leather.

There is one more Leg Match in Tri-Cities at
Rattlesnake in September. That would be my last
chance for the year. One can only enter 3 Leg match opportunities a year unless you go to Perry which can be a fourth. I sense a long journey to earn these points.

I will be driving North to Chilliwack, BC at the end of this month for The BC Full Bore Championships. This is the match you get carried in the chair back to the club house led by a band of bag-pipers. I can't wait.

30calgal
"Shoot Like A Girl If You Can....."

2011 41st Infintry Division Regional 600 Yard Championship - Winner!

2011-07-02T18:43:00.000-07:00

Paul Bunyan Rifle Range - Puyallup, WA.

What do most people do on a three day 4th of July weekend? Go on vacation. What do I do? Go to a 3 day regional championship. And am I ever glad I did! This three day event consists of a 600 yard prone 60 shot on first day, Across The Course on day 2 and a Team and Leg match on Monday, day 3. Today was the 600 yard event and I was match winner! I broke the 5 year winning streak of Mike Mauer. Final score was 599/600 with 39X. Trent Herring was 1st HM and Mike Mauer 2nd HM. I will have their scores for you tomorrow.

My first string for the day I dropped a point making a score of 199/200 with 10X. For a match like this and with the competition around me it is scary to drop a point. But my second string was a perfect 200 with 15X. Third string I was quite nervous actually. I could have dropped one point and still win but X's needed to be strong to do so. I did not want to drop anything of course. Good fortune came my way and I had another clean with 14X. I knew then I had won the match. I was surprised at my high X count because the mirage would switch almost at every single shot. I think I put on or took off 1/2 minute every single shot. My instincts were right and they stayed in the middle.

Charles won his Expert Class so we both won medals again this week! Tomorrow I pull out my AR15 again and will try to win the Master Class for Service Rifle. And of course Sunday my goal is a win in the Leg for more points toward my Distinguished Badge.

30calgal
"Shoot Like A Girl! If You Can......"