Shot a double match Sat in very windy conditions. Wow, the wind blew so hard that it would about knock me over. I adjusted my stance to try and not make such a great big sail in the wind. I feel good about my performance as I was able to get 10 and 14 in windy conditions in only my second match.

Is there a stradagey that works better in the wind that someone could pass on to us newbies?

Also, I have promised myself a custom when I get to AA. Which leads me to a question. How is the 2013 action? Is it legal? Is he lock time as fast as the 54 msr?

By the way, we had 70+ entries. Sweettttt

70 guns or shooters? Either way, that's great!
The basics, as I understand wind shooting, are these:
Be happy the wind is blowing because that will challenge those of your competitors who are distressed about it.
Resign yourself, before you start, to the fact that your scores will be lower.
Grip the rifle a little harder.
Approach the target into the wind. Do NOT allow the wind to blow the dot to the target.
Be aggressive with the trigger. Be ready to stroke it confidently on through when the dot sees white.
Basically, we have to be ready to abandon our calm conditions technique, realize that the dot is not going to settle on the target and try something different.
I hope this will draw out the really good shooters as it's a question we all face from time to time.

Shooting in the wind will teach you very bad habbits. The worst thing it will do is make you slap the trigger. Don't learn that, keep control of your trigger.

ajj is right, most shooters hate the wind and shoot very poorly in it.

70 guns is a great turn-out.

Ok, AJJ, you got my attention. I've shot Phoenix and Wyoming in the wind. Wow, did that ever blow my confidence. Therefore I want to hear more. I already made a list of you points but would expland more on them? Approach into the wind? Be aggresive with the trigger? My inquiring mind wants to know more.

JerryG, you shot with us in Lander in 2005. I was donating all those empty boxes to your vest pocket in an attempt to divert myself from my crappy shooting in the wind. You were a gentleman about that and I appreciate it. Will we see you in Lander or Raton this year? Hope so. Got to see that new gun of yours.

dwl

I was really upset I couldn't go to the match Tim's referring to. That is until I was outside later that morning!!! It was the Hassayampa Rod and Gun Club's Memorial Match.
70+ guns, great!
What time did you all get out of there? I shot the HP match Sunday.

Wind sux. I shot the match at Rio Salado (we missed you) Feb, and the wind was so bad the rams and turkeys needed masking tape to stay on the rails.........needless to say I shot rather poorly.

Hey Tim, when you get tired of that 64MSR, let me know ...........

dwl: There are many more accomplished shooters than I posting here. I don't want to be posing as an authority. I don't learn from experience as quickly as I might wish, but I read a lot. I should probably have another look at Tubb's new book before posting this, but here goes.
If the wind is blowing so strongly from the left that it is moving the rifle (or me) I try to bring the dot to the target by starting at least slightly to the right and then leaning myself and the rifle into the wind.
If I get fairly steady on the left (upwind) side, get a gust that starts the dot toward the target and try to take that shot, I don't have a prayer. I miss right every time. I'm pretty sure this is very standard advice.
Aggression with the trigger is not bad advice for calm conditions. The hard part is to stroke it right on through quickly and with confidence and then follow-through without jerking the trigger and moving the rifle. When the wind is bobbing the rifle around I just have to realize that the dot is not going to settle. I try to see the approach shaping up (happens fast!) and stroke it on through as the dot reaches the edge of the target. You may get twice as many "start-overs" in a given period of time. Keep breathing!
It's amazing what you will see happen if you follow through on every shot, ESPECIALLY those bad ones that break so far off the target you just KNOW they don't have a chance.Read a great piece in Precision Shooting years ago about a team of high-schoolers who won, or almost won, a major smallbore match at Perry because their coach gave them the right pep-talk before a really windy match. "Everybody's scores will be down. You're going to miss a lot. Forget that and get into the fun of stroking the trigger aggressively the first time the sight sees the bull."
We're not talking here about doping wind and remembering whether a right wind moves the bullet up or down a millimater at 77 meters. We're talking about gusty, hard wind that makes a stable offhand hold impossible and threatens to ruin your day if you let it. We're going to get those gusts (or let-ups) that bounce the muzzle up or down just as the trigger breaks, even though we've done everything else right. If we let those frustrate us, we're lost. Lower scores is what wind shooting is all about.
When it's really gusty, I may put a couple of minutes on the scope for what seems to be the "prevaling" wind and I may not.
Treat the wind as a new adventure, a training session that will stand you in good stead someday, and you'll be surprised how far up a mediocre score might get you.
I do tend to ramble on. Some genuine champions post here. Maybe they'll weigh in.

Ajj;

Thanks for the reply. I certainly do appreciate it. I spend all winter shooting indoors as the is either frozen or muddy until April or May. Thus I have to remember what the wind was like and remember to compensate when I get to the out of state matches. Arizona would be great practice if it weren't for the long drive.

As I understand your writing, aggressive trigger stroke doesn't mean snatching. It means pressing the trigger through faster than we would in calm conditions; decisive but not desperate?

Maybe I need to find a big fan to use on the indoor range.

Thanks,

dwl

Yes, a fast and decisive "press." That also comes in handy for waiting for the three-second lulls and popping them then. GTS and the Chickster use that technique most effectively.
Ringer, Mary, Dave, others, help us out here.

AJJ,
You are doing a fine job. There are several factors with wind that I get around, one being short and able to duck behind some of the larger shooters helps. LOL
Further being able to cycle my action in a motion that I would describe as being similar to an IPSC shooter changing magazines, fast and almost unconsciously helps in being prepared for the split second opportunity to take a shot. This moting comes with another 250K rounds shot through the same rifle!!! Don't worry it will come to you too.
I can say at ranges where there was a backstop such that I could see the shot myself people observing would describe my movements as being "in tune" with my rifle, knowing where I called the shot, where it actually impacted and the subsequent change of the scope while reloading appeared as one action.
If any of you dryfire, train yourself to visualize the shot, cycle the action and squeeze the trigger to the point that it becomes like changing gears driving a stick shift. This will help in limited time conditions that are often presented in windy contidtions.

Mary

AJJ and Mary,

I would like to add listen and feel the wind, you can develop a timing with the wind, in my part of the country this time of year is windy and I train in it a lot.
1. When I get to the range I find the direction and constant of the wind
2. When I'm under the cover I listen to the wind to hear the ebbs and tides
3. I feel the wind and listen, but I also watch indicators down range to see what is going on there.

After a tide there will be an ebb, be prepared, I never let the rifle off my shoulder and I breath normal till the tide has passed then I start the shot sequance. It worked for me two weeks ago in Gonzales LA, 25-45 gusts and a steady 10-20. All I said to myself when I got to the range was "It is like me to shoot good in the wind." Everyone shoots under the same conditions, but not everyone uses the same information.

Mr. Dawg makes an excellent point as long as we're talking basics. It couldn't hurt anything to pay attention to what's going on at the range. I don't know from personal experience because I've never tried it. I spend my time between relays shooting the bull and griping about the wind. That's not a joke, it's the truth.

Thanks for the great replies.

I never grip about something that effects everyone. Maybe I moan and bitch, but never grip

I had a great time. After I posted this subject I talked with one of the better shooters. The good advise I received stated that she times the wind. When it dies down she will get on target and fire moving quickly to the next target and so on. When the wind gusts, she holds until the wind calms down.

This advise is what was referred too by AJJ. With this plan, I will practice, practice, and practice some more.

By the way, I was very happy that in the second match, I almost made an A score in a strong wind.

Steve,

Match was over by 4:15. It was fun man. Wish you had made it. I finished 4th out 12 in the A standard class.
The more I shoot the 64 msr the more I like it. Probably getting used to the feel and trigger. It is accurate. Yoshi and I decided that when we get to AA we are going to treat ourselves to a custom standard rifle.

Evelio will get a call for sure when I reach AA and I hope I can get on the list for one of his outstanding custom rifles.

DWL, I have a friend in utah interested in finding out more about smallbore silhouette there. Who should I have him contact.

Kevin

A lot of good advice has already been given here but I will try to add my two cents to the topic. I feel that the wind has to be experienced and learned to deal with. Shooters that live in areas where the wind does not blow hard can be overwhelmed when going to places like Raton, NM. I was there for the first time in 1979 for the HP Nationals and saw a lot AAA class shooters get scores that were more like A and AA class scores, I was a AA shooter then and only got 40X120.

The main thing when shooting in the wind is maintaining a positive attitude because it can be very disappointing and disheartening for a lot of people that have trained hard to go to a match where they can only hit one or two targets out of every five in the wind.

I used to train in the wind but try not to do that a lot any more because it is not conductive to shooting good scores when going to matches at places where the wind is not a factor since when training in the wind one learns to wait for a lull in the wind to break the shots and also the rifle is gripped harder and more forward on the stock, techniques that do not work very well in no wind conditions.

The wind affects everybody the same but knowing that more than half of the competition is not ready to deal with severe windy conditions, having the patience to take the shots when the time is right and being prepared mentally to shoot in the wind are very important things to remember if one wants to do well when shooting in it.

I was in Phoenix last Saturday and went with the intentions of shooting well since this was going to be my first match of the year. I have been shooting my air rifle at home regularly. Slowstdy, Chicken George and I have a postal air rifle match going which has given me the push needed to train and be competitive again.

I checked the weather forecast all week before going there and it was supposed to be fair but when I got there Friday people were talking about how the weathermen had said it was going to be windy the whole weekend.

Saturday the wind blew so hard that some shooters quit and did not finish the morning match. I was shooting my hunting rifle on both classes on two different relays (something I have learned to do when shooting in windy conditions because the lighter rifle with heavier trigger is easier to control for me).

I started on pigs and only got three rounds off before I ran out of time and ended up with 2 pigs out of ten and I got 9 pigs two relays later in the hunting rifle match, then got 2 and 7 turkeys. I thought I was going to end up with less than 10 total score in the Standard rifle match if things continued the same but then I hit enough of the other two targets to get a 16 in Standard and 27 in Hunting which was high score for the morning matches.

In the afternoon the wind calmed down enough for me to shoot 29 and 31 again using the same rifle in both classes. Lee O

I know that when i first started I got very discouraged when trying to shoot in the wind. I learned patience alot and feel that shooting in the wind here in colorado at times can be a learning experience, as we have wind gusts here too. Trying to shoot in the snow is difficult too. Seeing targets on all that white is challenging. I hope that I learn from adverse conditions so that when I make a match like Raton this year or maybe Lander, WY, I will be up for the challenge if conditions are poor.

Remember that challenge makes us stronger only if we learn from it. It is too bad that some people give up in the face of adversity.

Kevin