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Competition, Tactics & Training
Shooting Chat
DARC 'William Wallace 2.0' AAR, 21June2014
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<blockquote data-quote="english kanigit" data-source="post: 2564063" data-attributes="member: 4701"><p>Personal notes:</p><p></p><p><strong>Fitness is key.</strong> </p><p></p><p>Though I've fallen away from it in the last few weeks due to work schedules for most of this year I have been hitting it fairly hard with CrossFit and then running a bit whenever I have time. This paid huge dividends both in this match and in some other stuff I've done this year because I am less fatigued after moving around obstacles or manipulating a heavy rifle for longer periods of time not to mention wearing armor which I did for the first run. </p><p></p><p></p><p><strong>Hydration is life.</strong> </p><p></p><p>The weather during this event fluctuated rapidly between extremely hot and muggy to very cool with light rain and then worse than before after the sun came out. Because of the humidity it was almost impossible to stay cool as the body's sweat would not evaporate. This only gets exponentially worse wearing something like armor. There were actually a couple of folks who suffered from near borderline heat exhaustion by the time they got to the metal rappel tower and had to spend extra time there 'cooling off'. Hydration for something like this during the time of year that we are in is not a "day of" sort of affair.</p><p></p><p></p><p><strong>Food.</strong></p><p></p><p> The body is a machine, machines need fuel. Some things burn more cleanly than others and the effects of this can be very real. I tend to pack a lot of nuts, granola and fruits for things such as this and eat in small quantities regularly throughout the day which tends to serve me very well.</p><p></p><p><strong>Gear prioritization.</strong> </p><p></p><p>I tend to be a completely unabashed pack rat. I had actually put together a hybrid chest rig/backpack and planned to run with it but thought better of it once I got on site. There's a very fine line which delineates the stuff that is critical from the stuff that is nice to have and that is usually determined by the task at hand. This is something I'm still trying to get the hang of. </p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Shooting notes:</p><p></p><p><strong>Zero.</strong></p><p></p><p> Know your zero and if necessary your holdovers for your given optic/caliber combination. While there are many free ballistics programs available for open use keep in mind that all of this stuff is purely theoretical until you actually put it into practice and tested for you, your weapon as well as your environment. The zero for your weapon must be refined at distance to have any predictability. </p><p></p><p>Corollary to the above - Understand your limitations and that of your equipment but don't ever be afraid to push those boundaries. We were having some difficulty hitting the targets between 500 & 1,000 yards on the buddy run. While I took it upon myself to try and engage the 500 yard steel target and later found out that I was successful connecting with it several times I didn't think of trying to engage any of the others with my partner acting as a spotter. As I was shooting 7.62x39 it likely would've been a waste of ammunition and time but I won't know because I didn't try. </p><p></p><p></p><p><strong>Shooting at night.</strong> </p><p></p><p>Getting to shoot in true darkness is not a common opportunity, sadly. For the most part we used many of the same targets, even shooting out to 200 yards via white light from the Surefire FURY mounted on our rifles. A few points of consideration on this: we had already run through the exact same course of fire at least twice already that day, the targets were for the most part still painted white which gave great aid in reflecting any available light from the shooter and no target discrimination was required. Realistic practical engagement distances at night will be much, much shorter without the need of some more advanced technology. </p><p></p><p>One problem that is not normally considered but becomes immediately apparent when shooting with white light is that of smoke and other ejecta from a weapon. Light, especially that from the newer high-powered LEDs, is easily reflected back by this airborne particulate matter and will quickly obscure the target if more than a couple of shots are required. While I had run into this before in a shoot house class I did not expect it to be just as much of an issue outside. One trick I was taught previously is that making a level change such as going from standing into a slight crouch, kneeling or squat can immediately get you under what's blocking your view. Lateral movement can work too if you're alone but forming this habit can be a safety issue if working with other folks.</p><p></p><p> I actually serviced my very first target on the night run without the suppressor mounted on my Kalashnikov just to see what difference it would pose and surprisingly there was even more smoke and junk that ended up in the air. Muzzle flash was non existent to my observation with and without the suppressor. This was probably due to a combination of the über-efficient 3-prong flash hider and the 500 lumen weapon light being turned on&#8230;</p><p></p><p>Ek</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="english kanigit, post: 2564063, member: 4701"] Personal notes: [B]Fitness is key.[/B] Though I've fallen away from it in the last few weeks due to work schedules for most of this year I have been hitting it fairly hard with CrossFit and then running a bit whenever I have time. This paid huge dividends both in this match and in some other stuff I've done this year because I am less fatigued after moving around obstacles or manipulating a heavy rifle for longer periods of time not to mention wearing armor which I did for the first run. [B]Hydration is life.[/B] The weather during this event fluctuated rapidly between extremely hot and muggy to very cool with light rain and then worse than before after the sun came out. Because of the humidity it was almost impossible to stay cool as the body's sweat would not evaporate. This only gets exponentially worse wearing something like armor. There were actually a couple of folks who suffered from near borderline heat exhaustion by the time they got to the metal rappel tower and had to spend extra time there 'cooling off'. Hydration for something like this during the time of year that we are in is not a "day of" sort of affair. [B]Food.[/B] The body is a machine, machines need fuel. Some things burn more cleanly than others and the effects of this can be very real. I tend to pack a lot of nuts, granola and fruits for things such as this and eat in small quantities regularly throughout the day which tends to serve me very well. [B]Gear prioritization.[/B] I tend to be a completely unabashed pack rat. I had actually put together a hybrid chest rig/backpack and planned to run with it but thought better of it once I got on site. There's a very fine line which delineates the stuff that is critical from the stuff that is nice to have and that is usually determined by the task at hand. This is something I'm still trying to get the hang of. Shooting notes: [B]Zero.[/B] Know your zero and if necessary your holdovers for your given optic/caliber combination. While there are many free ballistics programs available for open use keep in mind that all of this stuff is purely theoretical until you actually put it into practice and tested for you, your weapon as well as your environment. The zero for your weapon must be refined at distance to have any predictability. Corollary to the above - Understand your limitations and that of your equipment but don't ever be afraid to push those boundaries. We were having some difficulty hitting the targets between 500 & 1,000 yards on the buddy run. While I took it upon myself to try and engage the 500 yard steel target and later found out that I was successful connecting with it several times I didn't think of trying to engage any of the others with my partner acting as a spotter. As I was shooting 7.62x39 it likely would've been a waste of ammunition and time but I won't know because I didn't try. [B]Shooting at night.[/B] Getting to shoot in true darkness is not a common opportunity, sadly. For the most part we used many of the same targets, even shooting out to 200 yards via white light from the Surefire FURY mounted on our rifles. A few points of consideration on this: we had already run through the exact same course of fire at least twice already that day, the targets were for the most part still painted white which gave great aid in reflecting any available light from the shooter and no target discrimination was required. Realistic practical engagement distances at night will be much, much shorter without the need of some more advanced technology. One problem that is not normally considered but becomes immediately apparent when shooting with white light is that of smoke and other ejecta from a weapon. Light, especially that from the newer high-powered LEDs, is easily reflected back by this airborne particulate matter and will quickly obscure the target if more than a couple of shots are required. While I had run into this before in a shoot house class I did not expect it to be just as much of an issue outside. One trick I was taught previously is that making a level change such as going from standing into a slight crouch, kneeling or squat can immediately get you under what's blocking your view. Lateral movement can work too if you're alone but forming this habit can be a safety issue if working with other folks. I actually serviced my very first target on the night run without the suppressor mounted on my Kalashnikov just to see what difference it would pose and surprisingly there was even more smoke and junk that ended up in the air. Muzzle flash was non existent to my observation with and without the suppressor. This was probably due to a combination of the über-efficient 3-prong flash hider and the 500 lumen weapon light being turned on… Ek [/QUOTE]
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