NRA Classification

[jbpmidas]

How many High Masters are there in Mid-Range F-T/r? I've got a long way to go to get there!

 

[Turbulent Turtle]

I do all my long range shooting at 1000 yards in FTR and I find it extremely difficult to get much beyond 190 to 192 and on many days, I happy just to get in the mid-180s. A .308 is very handicapped past 800 yards and I fear I may be stuck at Expert for a long time. But there is always the next match.


Speaking of classifications and now that the "F-class hold" thread has been dissappeared, I want to respond to Monte here about his recollection of the NRA issuing a single F-Class rating for a while. IIRC, the NRA sanctioned the F-Class discipline, issuing the rules and the new targets starting in January of 2007. I do not remember getting a single F-Class card but I do remember getting two cards, one for LR and one for MR. In fact, I still have the Master card for MR that was issued to me in August 2008 and I remember going through the sharpshooter and expert ratings quickly in the spring of 2008. (That's when I got the Krieger barrel on the rifle.) I got my MR High Master card right at the beginning on 2011 (along with stickers.) These cards have always said F-Class Mid-Range on them as far back as early 2008.

I do remember getting my Marksman F-class Long Range and reaching LR SS in early 2009 with my AR. I then switched to a Bolt .308 for LR late that year and reached Expert in early 2010 and have been stuck there ever since. All this to say, I don't think I ever saw or got an F-class card with no range specification it.

 

[jbpmidas]

I got SharpShooter last year with my factory Remington barrel and 175 SMK's. I rebarrelled with a Brux and went to 185 Hybrids. My scores have vastly improved!

 

[Turbulent Turtle]

I got SharpShooter last year with my factory Remington barrel and 175 SMK's. I rebarrelled with a Brux and went to 185 Hybrids. My scores have vastly improved!

Yes, good equipment has a tendency to help you reach your potential. The converse of that is of course that run-of-the-mill equipment can and will limit your growth as a shooter. When your shot does not go where you expect it to go, at first you think you screwed up and most times you will be correct. But after a while, when you know that you are doing things properly and you still have errant shots, you start wondering. When you use great barrels and decent handloads, you own the screw-ups and can then work at getting better without questioning your equipment. That makes a big difference.

 

[Keith Glasscock]

How many High Masters are there in Mid-Range F-T/r? I've got a long way to go to get there!

That depends on what version of mid-range they shoot. If it is 300 yards, there are a lot. At 600, they are weeded down more than a little bit.
I've never shot against the 500 yard target, so I can't comment on its difficulty versus the 300 and 600, but none of them are as difficult as 1000.

BTW, in my opinion, 800 is about 5% easier than 600. 900 is about 5% harder than 600. 1000 is a game all to itself.

If it is of any value, I've shot only one NRA approved or registered match in F-class mid range. It was a 300 yard fullbore match. To say that it couldhave gone better would have been an understatement. I lost the match by a large margin, but I did learn a lot and get a good start at the high-master classification I want. Now all I have to do is get the rest of my 120 shots of Fullbore mid-range to finalize my classification (like a label is going to win me anything).

Sometimes I wonder what it is that I am striving for....

 

[Turbulent Turtle]

Sometimes I wonder what it is that I am striving for....

That's an easy one to answer. The next personal best.

 

[Steve Blair]

Sometimes I wonder what it is that I am striving for....

That's an easy one to answer. The next personal best.

[br]
To win.

 

[Keith Glasscock]

Correct on both accounts. I meant why am I striving for classification X instead of keeping my goal (winning scores) in sight?

 

[Steve Blair]

Don't worry about the classification. Keep the focus on winning and what it takes to get there. The classification will follow. Some of the most satisfying matches are those won with mediocre scores in bad conditions.

 

[Keith Glasscock]

I know what you mean, but I find it embarrassing to shoot a 184 and win. I did that last year, it was gratifying, but also embarassing. I felt like I should have been able to do better in the conditions.

I'm trying something new in my mental game this year. I'm hoping to take the focus off of the scores of the bullets already downrange. I'll see if I can make it work.

 

[nwflycaster]

No more flying under the radar for me anymore with being an unclassified shooter, my NRA classification card arrived this past weekend.

 

[jbpmidas]

And your classification is?

 

[nwflycaster]

High Master

 

[Steve Blair]

Are you a sling shooter, Mid Range F-Class, Long Range F-Class? Regardless, any of them are notable.

 

[nwflycaster]

High power across the course and mid range prone with sling not F class

 

[Immike]

I have the most respect for high power, they are hard core. All shooters share a common goal , we all want improvement.

 

[Steve Blair]

I shoot with some fine HM prone sling shooters at Camp Pendleton. Such as: Gary Eliseo, Trevor Hengehold and Randy Teissedre. They make me glad that I shoot F-Class. [br]
We hold a High Power XTC 80 nearly every month followed the next day with either a 3X600 or a 300-500-600 prone match. We also hold a Palma and 3X1000 weekend, most months. The schedule is at: [br]
http://www.smgunclub.org/ [br]
If you find yourself down San Diego way, bring your rifle.

 

[nwflycaster]

I shoot with some fine HM prone sling shooters at Camp Pendleton. Such as: Gary Eliseo, Trevor Hengehold and Randy Teissedre. They make me glad that I shoot F-Class. [br]
We hold a High Power XTC 80 nearly every month followed the next day with either a 3X600 or a 300-500-600 prone match. We also hold a Palma and 3X1000 weekend, most months. The schedule is at: [br]
http://www.smgunclub.org/ [br]
If you find yourself down San Diego way, bring your rifle.

I would love to travel around shooting all kinds of events but I still have youngish kids at home and don't get to do as much me stuff as we would all like to do. I just started shooting high power last year, but I am seriously considering a trip to Camp Perry if my oldest sons college move in dates don't coincide. It's his first year so he would come first this time.

Those 1000 yrd matches sound like fun, I would love to try shooting that range sometime. But of course I would love it and have to go out and spend another small fortune on new equipment yet again.

 

[Steve Blair]

Well, here's a plan. Last year, German Salazar, Charles Gooding and some other, notorious Phoenix shooters came over in August for our Mid Range Regional prone match. They brought wives and passed it off as a vacation in 80°, sunny San Diego. The wives went to the beach, guys went to the range. We are usually done by 1400, so they had the rest of the day for family stuff. It sounds like a win-win to me. [br]
Charles and German had the bad taste to shoot better scores than me and mar an otherwise fun weekend. [br] Actually, I dropped more points on the last 600 yard relay than in the previous five matches, so I know who to blame. :-[

 

[GermanS1]

As Steve said, we were able to make a good family trip out of the Regional and all of the wives want a repeat visit. When you've been struggling through a 115 degree Phoenix summer, by August 80 degrees and a sea breeze sounds like a winter wonderland and we can't get there fast enough! Add in the hospitality of the local club whose members let us win a few matches and we're all in - hook, line and sinker.