Average BR shooters age

A

Andy Cross

Guest
This is a subject that might be construed as rude to ask so I am prepared for the abuse I get in return. I am curious as to what the average age of bench rest shooters might be. It seems in Oz most of the participants are over 50 years of age. Only a small number would fall into the just over 40 bracket. Is this situation similar in the USA, UK, Europe etc ?

Second question is if this is the case why ?

Third question is what would it take to attract younger blood to the sport ?

Andy.
 
FBecigneul said:
I would say in the US it is about 73
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I agree that there seem to be a lot of folks in that age range; however, that age (for an average) strikes me as too high. I also agree that most BR shooters that I've seen (but that is not a large number) appear to be over 50; however, I've seen some that look no older than mid-30s.

As to why? Not enough action?
 
Andy Cross said:
This is a subject that might be construed as rude to ask so I am prepared for the abuse I get in return. I am curious as to what the average age of bench rest shooters might be. It seems in Oz most of the participants are over 50 years of age. Only a small number would fall into the just over 40 bracket. Is this situation similar in the USA, UK, Europe etc ?

Average age......................A bunch of Old Grumpy Ba$tard$

Second question is if this is the case why ? Cause they are old or boring, young and boring, no fun, or have been shootin for a long time.............

Third question is what would it take to attract younger blood to the sport ? Hot, naked, young women........have you ever looked around to see all the tongues hanging out at a match when a hot chick rolls in???????? Not many gay dudes in this sport.........sport...

Andy.
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Dave-one of them.............G-O-B's
 
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Off the top of my head, I'd say that the mean age (half younger & half older) would be well into the 50's. And there's no question people in their 70's handily outnumber those in their 30's.

I think benchrest and the qualities necessary to enjoy and do well in it are out of tune with this particular society. I guess the sport could be renamed "Bustin' Caps", require the range master to call the match in rap and shorten the course of fire to be 3 three-round groups to fit short attention spans but it wouldn't do any good. If BR is sufficiently changed to fit now, it wouldn't be BR any more.

It's also getting more and more expensive.
 
I am 38 as is my best good friend that i shoot with. We also have another good friend that shoots benchrest and he is 35 i do beleive. There is a few of us under 40. Lee
 
TomD said:
Off the top of my head, I'd say that the mean age (half younger & half older) would be well into the 50's. And there's no question people in their 70's handily outnumber those in their 30's.

I think benchrest and the qualities necessary to enjoy and do well in it are out of tune with this particular society. I guess the sport could be renamed "Bustin' Caps", require the range master to call the match in rap and shorten the course of fire to be 3 three-round groups to fit short attention spans but it wouldn't do any good. If BR is sufficiently changed to fit now, it wouldn't be BR any more.

It's also getting more and more expensive.
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LMAO....or if you could do the whole match with a joystick and monitor.
 
here in Montana 1k br it is a mix. we have some younger shooters to bring the average down more than most places. unfortunately most kids my age and under(38), think you're supposed to hold a pistol 90 degrees from conventional thinking. don't see how it will change myself, they get their trigger fingers to busy texting.

Tom
 
Andy Cross said:
This is a subject that might be construed as rude to ask so I am prepared for the abuse I get in return. I am curious as to what the average age of bench rest shooters might be. It seems in Oz most of the participants are over 50 years of age. Only a small number would fall into the just over 40 bracket. Is this situation similar in the USA, UK, Europe etc ? My best guess for the average: 61.

Second question is if this is the case why ? Less responsibility, more disposable income, after raising a family.

Third question is what would it take to attract younger blood to the sport ? Lowered costs. LOL!

Andy.
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See notations above. :)
 
I'm 61. I've been seriously competing in various rifle disciplines for about 10 years, learning more and more and wanting to know more as I go along. I see bench rest as the most all-around complex of the shooting sports. I got into it only last year, and so far, only shoot at our club. I get the impression that I am certainly no older than average, and perhaps a bit younger. I think that focus, maturity and discipline are needed for bench rest, and these often increase with age, as does the desire to really test yourself at a high level. My increasing lack of mobility has also made it more attractive to participate in a sport where I can drive close to the firing line and don't have to schlep my stuff all over the place. I'm about to get new hips, so I expect that service rifle will compete with bench rest for my time once again.
 
Money and time
Time and money

Serious BR shooters are those who have both.
Generally this doesn't fit middle aged family guys.

IME

al
 
Pure and simple, its turned into a money sport and the family guys have other priorities.
 
From my own estimations, I would say 50 years old.
And would say there are more over 55 then under 45, and very few under 30.

I also wonder what the percentage would be to those who are either gunsmiths and/or machinist. Betting this percentage could be upwards of 40% (at least in Long Range).

Interesting subject !!!!
Donovan
 
Ok when I got into 1000 yard benchrest I was 26,I did a lot of woodchuck hunting and thought this would be fun. Well I'll be 67 years young this coming season. I don't think I have any more money than the rest of you, I just try and buy a few things when I do save a little extra cash. I stay away from the Impulse buying. I think your heart has to be in it to last this long, the shooting that is. And I think the biggest thing would be the people I shoot with, or that I have met from other clubs. And just sharing Ideas. So yes there are a lot of people my age still shooting and some older. My youngest boy ask me when I was going to stop shooting, I told him when I can't carry my heavy gun to the bench anymore.

Joe Salt
 
Commitment!

Some time ago there were two brothers that frequently competed. I remember seeing their pictures in either PS mag or the NBRSA mag. Their name was something like "The Hudson Brothers". To say they were old was an understatement - ancient would be a better word. One particular issue reported that one of them fell ill and died while they were attending a match. I was greatly saddened but received a bit of relief and a lesson in commitment as I read further. The other brother won the heavy varmint agg the following day "In honor of his brother...." Further, if that's not accurate as to what actually happened please don't correct me because that's the way I need to remember it.

I've written one article over my 63 years and didn't finish that one. I'll bore you all with an excerpt from that article as I believe it's mildly pertinent. The context was to evaluate in advance whether or no, competitive benchrest shooting is viable:

1) Do I have the time?

The possibility exists that sanctioned Benchrest Shooting is not something you can do. Attending a sanctioned match will very likely (if not always) require traveling hundreds of miles and the expense of a weekend from early Friday afternoon to late Sunday night. In many locations, that would be a minimum. Do some homework to determine where you will have to go to compete.

Later, there will be a suggestion to travel to a match just to look around and get a feel for "things". If following that suggestion gives you the slightest heartburn then perhaps a re-think of the whole idea is necessary. A "problem" with time resources is not a show stopper in some cases but a significant consideration in every case. Don't fail to factor in family commitments - both real and perceived.

2) Do I have the money?

The purpose of this question is not to have you evaluate your relative net worth. Trust me, you have ENOUGH money. The real question is whether or not you have THE money? I talked with a spectator at a match one Sunday and he stated that he would dearly love to get into benchrest shooting but just couldn't afford it. Later, I was cleaning my rifle and saw him driving away in a brand new custom painted chrome plated pickup truck pulling a real nice trailer. There was a four wheeler in the bed of the truck and three more on the trailer. I figured the 4 wheelers were a family thing and that was how his priorities aligned. On the way home that night my Caravan shuddered past 170K and I paid the light bill plus late charge on Wednesday. It was either pay the light bill or get my wife's partial plate fixed. It all worked out well at the time because I bought a jug of powder and all we could afford was soup and mashed potatoes anyway. Money is not a show stopper either. Just give it some direct thought before you end up taking a loss on your purchases.

3) Am I a competitor?

Last but by no means least is the will to win and a tolerance for losing. It's OK to have a little internal bleeding because your last shot knocked you out of a 3 Gun win at the nationals. That's the way it should be. Try not to let it trickle to the outside. It's not OK to be satisfied with less than the win nor is it OK if warts grow on your lips if you don't win. Nobody wins every time and nobody is expected to win every time. If you already know that you can't laugh it off or don't believe that you can win then pass on Competitive Benchrest Shooting. This IS a show stopper. If you are so disposed, you can't have fun and it's the fun that keeps you going.
 
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Wilbur said:
I talked with a spectator at a match one Sunday and he stated that he would dearly love to get into benchrest shooting but just couldn't afford it. Later, I was cleaning my rifle and saw him driving away in a brand new custom painted chrome plated pickup truck pulling a real nice trailer. There was a four wheeler in the bed of the truck and three more on the trailer. I figured the 4 wheelers were a family thing and that was how his priorities aligned. On the way home that night my Caravan shuddered past 170K and I paid the light bill plus late charge on Wednesday. It was either pay the light bill or get my wife's partial plate fixed. It all worked out well at the time because I bought a jug of powder and all we could afford was soup and mashed potatoes anyway. Money is not a show stopper either. Just give it some direct thought before you end up taking a loss on your purchases.
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Wilbur,
I always love it when you tell that story. I had my Caravan with about 150K on it have the fuel pump die on the way to the Fairchance Hog Roast one year.
Dick
 
Hidden in that story is a cookie of importance. You simply can't do it if your spouse ain't on board. As Leonad Worthy said..."Somebody had to get the best one and I reckon it was me."

I sold that Caravan with 282K on it. It had been sitting in the back yard for two years. We hooked up jumper cables to start it and the guy drove off. Real good ride for benchrest shooting - 2 sliding doors with the back seats out make it almost a pleasure to unload. A big fat meadow mouse set up housekeeping in the back seats on the carport and carried the foam cushioning away piece by piece. Pretty sure he was a bigamist of sorts..."was" being a key word.
 
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Wilbur;

Your humor always brings smiles to many faces, i'm sure. Speaking of vans, My 98 caravan has 216,000 on it. Just put a set of 80,000 mile tires on it but don't expect anything to be left of the body before they wear out.

Wisconsin :(
 
Joe Salt--I believe I started the same year (1971) the same place just a little older and my passion also was hunting groundhogs. You always shot good, you are one of the best. You won't quit shooting until you can't carry your LIGHT gun and then you'll whittle it even lighter if you have to. Even Earl gave up his heavy gun at the end.
 
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