BLAIR ATHOLL
INTERNATIONAL F/TR REPORT
US lady shooters: Sierra LoRee Scott (nearest camera) discusses tactics with Michelle Gallagher at 1,114yd. Sierra produced the top US score in the team matches.
The weekend individual matches’ overall F/TR winner was Paul Crosbie on 405.23v (ex 450.90v) narrowly leading Stan and Michelle. With Nancy Tompkins and Sierra Scott also in the top half-dozen, prospects looked fair for the visitors in the following day’s international team match, especially as the remaining competitor in this group – me – was shooting the
I’ll put this down to coach Hamish Hunter’s expertise and his confidence in conditions holding, which saw him instruct me to take a long string of rapidly fired shots mid match. I’ll mention that coached shooting at Blair is an even stranger experience than usual, as the electronic monitor is turned towards the coach and the shooter is unaware as to where shots have gone unless informed verbally. A ‘clean’ target is visible through the riflescope on each and every shot of course.
By the time we relocated to 1000 yards, the overcast had gone and warm sunshine now alternated with moving shadows from big white puffy clouds passing across the range - absolutely typical Scottish Highland summer weather. It also produced freshening and very variable winds, not to mention intermittent boiling mirage. Scores tumbled now and there were often long gaps between shots as the wind coaches stayed their hand waiting for a previous condition to return or trying to read a new one. A different approach to wind-doping between the local and visiting coaches became apparent. Scotland’s Hamish and Tom relied on the wind-flags and developing plots while the USA’s Nancy and Michelle spent considerable amounts of time glued to a pair of massive spotting scopes trying to read the mirage. Hamish didn’t even have a scope set up, using the electronic monitor alone, eyeballing flags and other indicators. The Americans’ approach likely
The mouse gun worked fine at 1,114yd.
.223 Rem. and at least some of those about to be involved in these proceedings expressed doubts about how well the ‘mouse gun’ cartridge would cope at 1100 yards (actually 1114 yards at Blair Atholl).
Independence Day
July 4th started out cooler and cloudy with near calm conditions ranging through light fishtailing breezes from behind but, it was obvious the sun would burn through, lifting temperatures and this would produce stronger and more variable winds. 900 yard scores benefitted from this lull with both of the six-strong teams averaging 70 or more per shooter out of the possible 75, the USA taking an early lead on 427.24v against Scotland’s 420.20v. In terms of individual scores, I came out top on 73.4v ahead of one home and no fewer than four US shooters on 72s.
19 Michelle Gallagher gets down to business at 1,114yd.
stemmed from their experiences in the individual matches where the ladies were heard saying they considered the flags ‘untrustworthy’.
In any event, the Scots’ local experience started to pay off now and it was this team that produced more
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