Shooting my 22-250 in competition.

[Sitting Duck]

I just returned from the NBRSA website and am confused. I'm looking for a factory class that shoots off of front bags but doesn't allow rear bags. In the 100-300 yard range. I'm shooting a factory 22-250 with a sporter barrel.

Is there such a classification within NBRSA and I'm just missing it? Perhaps, if not in NBRSA in another organization.

Any help would be appreciated.

 

[Larry Elliott]

The NRA has a class I believe for "sporter highpower" that's designed for sporter rifles and is fired offhand (standing), sitting, and prone. That's the only class I can think of that you might be able to shoot with your rifle.

Maybe I'm just a little simple (some say I'm a LOT simple), but what's the point of shooting off bags in the front and no bags in the rear. BR is shot off a bag (on a pedestal of some kind usually) in front, and a rear bag. If a club near you has factory benchrest matches your rifle could be shot in them with or without a rear bag. If you wanted to shoot in a registered BR match your rifle likely weighs under 10.5 lb ready to go, so it could be shot as a light varmint rifle in competition without a rear bag. The only problem is that you'd be guaranteed to end up dead last unless someone else really blows it.

 

[Sitting Duck]

Thank you, for the response. Is the rifle resting on the rear bag when it's being fired?

My confusion (I'm confused a lot) is the requirement that the rifle touches the shoulder. Do shooters touch the rifle to the shoulder but are basically shooting off the rear and front bags?

Just trying to understand how the game is played and where I might fit in.

TIA.

 

[Larry Elliott]

Thank you, for the response. Is the rifle resting on the rear bag when it's being fired?

My confusion (I'm confused a lot) is the requirement that the rifle touches the shoulder. Do shooters touch the rifle to the shoulder but are basically shooting off the rear and front bags?

Just trying to understand how the game is played and where I might fit in.

TIA.

Short range (100-300 yd) benchrest rifles are usually fired "free recoil", that is the rifle rests on the front and rear bags, and the only part of the rifle that the shooter touches is usually his trigger finger and thumb (2 oz trigger pull allows this). The rifle recoils into the shooter's shoulder. I think that the rule you refer to was intended to ban machine rests or remote firing devices similar to cable releases for camera shutters, but I may well be wrong on that.

If there are formal benchrest matches near you it might be informative and educational to just go to one as a spectator and see what the rifles and rests look like and how a match is run. If you catch someone who's not loading or doing something else off the line that might require some concentration they would likely be happy to answer questions as time allows.