Old Shooter

[butchlambert]

Not unbelievable at all. It works.

Well, with 2 plates in my neck from surgery, two rods in my lower back, and one in the middle of my back does prevent shooting prone. Exercise is great, but will not allow the plates to bend.
I hunt shooting offhand or out of an elevated blind and BR from the bench.

 

[TAJ45]

I’m not just a pretty face, Tom.

Never having met you in person, I'd probabl give odds on that - ZING.

 

[6fatrat]

pm sent

 

[Daddymac]

Bench, I don't know how old you are, but glad you're still shooting.

After watching my parents age and pass, I know there are just some things that are going to change and we have no choice in the matter. Our brain will tell us, sure you can still jump over that, but our legs say no, and when all of our body parts don't agree, we either find a way around or you better know a good Orthopedic surgeon and hope your bones aren't too brittle.

If there is no cure for your problem, a pain management clinic my be an option, patches and or injections can give you a longer term relief than oral opioids. I would at least talk with my doctor about the pros and cons of pain management, especially if the pain kept me from doing something I loved.

 

[Deleted outa08]

Bench, I don't know how old you are, but glad you're still shooting.

After watching my parents age and pass, I know there are just some things that are going to change and we have no choice in the matter. Our brain will tell us, sure you can still jump over that, but our legs say no, and when all of our body parts don't agree, we either find a way around or you better know a good Orthopedic surgeon and hope your bones aren't too brittle.

If there is no cure for your problem, a pain management clinic my be an option, patches and or injections can give you a longer term relief than oral opioids. I would at least talk with my doctor about the pros and cons of pain management, especially if the pain kept me from doing something I loved.

Bench, Ditto to what Daddymac said. I had two injections in the neck 15 years ago and only recently started having pain again. As soon as the covid bug leaves town I will not hesitate to get the injections again. I`m 68 and when the pain flares up I feel like 108. Good luck. Jeff

 

[INTJ]

Whats a old shooter to do.
I have hit the age where I can no longer shoot FTR prone position but do not want to give up shooting.
Bad neck and back are going to put me on the sidelines because of the old age effect.
I do not want to shoot benchrest as I am geared for FTR and if I could shoot from a bench that would be great.
What are my options???

Bench

Why not try LR BR? There is a lot of commonality between LR BR and F-Class. Yes, LR BR does have a lot smaller x-rings and 10-rings, and we shoot for both group and score; but the transition would be very easy.

 

[INTJ]

We do the same thing every week at the matches I run. We have 11 benches and 11 prone platforms so anyone is able to participate and it's been fantastic.

Here's a pic of our line (you can see one of the benches in the bottom left corner and there's obviously a line of them you can't see)

View attachment 1187202

On a side note, that stack of cinder blocks at the rear of the bench should be much smaller. Its awkward to find a comfortable bench position that allows good tracking. If the rear blocks were half the length it would be fine. Also, one of the benches on the far left isn't usable because it's obstructed by a barrier--I forget which one. Those minor issues aside, I am very grateful just to have a place in Oregon to shoot LR BR this year.

 

[bench]

Fellas,
Thanks for all the good info I will try to put it to good use.

Bench

 

[SGK]

I would add "teach". Pass that knowledge along. Perhaps seeing development in others will be almost as rewarding?

 

[Will Henry]

I must admit, I am a lot more beat up at the end of a day of shooting prone, especially with a sling, than the end of a day of off-hand M-S. My neck is a problem to shoot prone and I almost always have to sit up at some point during a string. Farquharson must have been 80 or so when he started advocating "F" class for older shooters but I know a lot of us in our seventies who are already struggling. A few shoot off the bench. WH

 

[Retired Grunt]

Whats a old shooter to do.
I have hit the age where I can no longer shoot FTR prone position but do not want to give up shooting.
Bad neck and back are going to put me on the sidelines because of the old age effect.
I do not want to shoot benchrest as I am geared for FTR and if I could shoot from a bench that would be great.
What are my options???

Bench

https://adaptiveshooting.nra.org I have issues, back neck, legs and the such. I shoot F-Class from the bench now. I did the Adaptive shooter program in case I ever travel to shoot, Local matches aren't a problem the Match Director decides. My club just wants people to participate. Sorry, I tried to post this the other day but had Browser Issues.

 

[JMS597]

If shooting F-Class from a bench, do the scores still count? I mean, somebody might consider that an advantage and complain about it.

I can't do prone myself, and currently shoot short range benchrest. F-Class does interest me, but raising my head while prone is a no-go for me.

It would still be fun to do, even if the scores are discounted I would think.

 

[Retired Grunt]

If shooting F-Class from a bench, do the scores still count? I mean, somebody might consider that an advantage and complain about it.

I can't do prone myself, and currently shoot short range benchrest. F-Class does interest me, but raising my head while prone is a no-go for me.

It would still be fun to do, even if the scores are discounted I would think.

Probably depends on the club and match director. If you have a NRA Adaptive shooting card you should be good.

 

[Mulligan]

When the cancer started winning the battle with my Pops, the NRA was very helpful, all they needed was a form filled out by dads Dr. it was easy and they were good to work with. Kept him at the range a while longer.
CW

 

[JMS597]

Probably depends on the club and match director. If you have a NRA Adaptive shooting card you should be good.

Thanks for that info. Until this thread, I was unaware of the program. I'll look into it.

 

[bsekf]

TEACH!!! Great Idea! Nothing gives me more feeling of pride than coaching an interested/ing kid into a one hole group and seeing the expression on their face. Girls especially...... they smell better and PAY ATTENTION to direction. Memories are all we get to take with us. I never forget the tear in my Granddaughters eye when she turned and mouthed "I broke the bird" Grandpa!

 

[Charliemac]

Not unbelievable at all. It works.

It works for me. An hour and a half of a moderate exercise. I do some stationary bike and cables - pulleys w/ light weight 3 days a week. I feel 50 years old all over again. Of course that is if you don't have some serious issues. I have arthritis in both knees and I find it helps me with the pain.

 

[M14AMU]

Shoot by yourself! You'll have way more fun....and don't have to worry about being pressed for time! Use George Carlins' philosophy:

"Contrary to popular opinion I really do love people; I love people for...Oh....say one and a half minutes and then they can carry their arses!"

George Carlin

 

[Retired Grunt]

Shoot by yourself! You'll have way more fun....and don't have to worry about being pressed for time! Use George Carlins' philosophy:

"Contrary to popular opinion I really do love people; I love people for...Oh....say one and a half minutes and then they can carry their arses!"

George Carlin

If you shoot by yourself, you will always have the top score.