Category: Shooting

The Irish aren’t even being discrete about it:

Mr Ahern said he was determined to stamp out a practice known as “practical shooting”. His department had monitored with concern “competitions in which people shoot their way through multi-stage target courses based on real life combat scenarios, such as a home invasion or a hostage rescue”.

He said: “This activity is one that seeks to glorify and normalise attitudes to high-powered handguns and promote their use and ownership,” he said. Mr Ahern said “practical shooting” was a “highly undesirable” recent development in Irish shooting sports.

So government bureaucrats get to decide what is and what isn’t a shooting sport?  No consideration for police to participate in these types of sports to hone their self-defense shooting skills?  That’s why they are called “practical” sports, and apparently it appalls Irish authorities that people might make a shooting game out of it.

I kind of wonder if Airsoft and Paintball are illegal in Ireland, which involves people actually pointing guns at other people, and practicing things like assaults on fixed positions, etc.  How appalling is that?  I’ve also heard there might be some kids playing army in Derry.  Gotta put a stop to that!

Olympian Jamie Beyerle was in the news a few weeks ago for taking fourth place in Milan, but earlier this week she took first in USA Shooting National Championship in Women’s 50 meter three position rifle.  Looks like we also had another Pennsylvania shooter score third place in the match, Emily Holsopple, from Wilcox, PA.   Second place was Sandra Fong, of New York City.

Looks like women shooters in Pennsylvania do a good job of representing our state.

First, for recognizing their first web site was deficient, and two for using twitter to tell us about their site redesign. Brownells new web site looks pretty good!

Guns and hunting profiles the new National Match Air Rifle, based on the AR-15 platform.  It’s expensive, but it’ll keep you shooting for next to nothing.  For instance, I just ordered 1000 pellets, match grade pellets, for 15 dollars.

Hat Tip to SayUncle

It’s a bit more problematic than running with scissors.  Fortunately, if safety rules are followed, it’s more an embarrassment than anything else if you trip and fall.  That’s probably why IPSC and IDPA are considerably less forgiving of safety violations than other shooting sports.

Looks like The Ten Ring stopped by Whittington Center to do some shooting when they passed through New Mexico on the way to Phoenix.  They shot on their silhouette range.  I know Pennsylvania is a bit of a drive from where they live in Maryland, but my club does handgun silhouette first Sunday of every month.  I’d be happy to introduce Denise and Sam to the sport, or anyone else for that matter.  Silhouette shooters are always happy to have new people on the range.

From the Casper Star-Tribune.  They donate proceeds from the shoot to the local volunteer fire department:

Looks like Gun Pundit is getting the royal treatment from Blackhawk.  They were one of the sponsors of the Gun Blogger Summer Camp last year in North Carolina.  We stopped by their HQ and they gave us some freebies, and presentations on their products.  I’ve found their shooting gloves to be a great asset shooting this winter.  Not arctic survival gear, to be sure, but they aren’t meant to be.  They will take the edge off the cold while leaving you with enough dexterity as not to interfere with your gun handling.

In these times of outrageous gun sales, there are some parts of the industry that aren’t doing too well.  The Outdoor Wire reports that Knight Rifles, maker of in-line muzzle loaders, is shutting its doors.  Market forces at work, but I think it’s a bit unfortunate.   As the number of hunters decline, leaving the field through death, age or illness, they will begin to sell off their equipment. With fewer younger hunters to take up the supply, a surplus will be the result, which means we don’t need as many manufacturers of hunting equipment, including rifles.

I think the future of the shooting sports is in three places: pistols, practical rifles, and air guns.  Anything you don’t need a huge range for probably has a future.   They aren’t building 600 yard ranges in suburban areas these days, or even many rural ones.  But you can set up a pistol or air gun range just about anywhere.