Here in Yuma AZ, there are about 100,000 snowbirds each winter season along with a larger-than-normal number of retired residents, all looking to have fun. Our club decided five years ago to put on an event know as "Snowbird Silhouette". We put up two complete sets of Lever Action .22 silhouettes, at the normal distances. These are for the fellows who are not experieced target shooters. We put a set of Smallbore Rifle swingers for those who shoot that discipline (only two of us right now). We put up a set of Pistol Cartridge Lever Action swingers for those who want to shoot that. We shoot all events shoulder-to-shoulder.

We shoot a regular NRA style course of fire. Although we keep score as usual, we dont announce anyone's score, or give any first place prizes or anything like that. We dont give a hoot for classifications or categories of equipment- whatever .22 you show up with, that's what you shoot. If you want to shoot the 1/2 scale targets, that's just fine, and that's what most of the fellows do. Keep in mind most of our shooters are over 65 and have never been to an organized shoot of any kind.

We always have a door prize drawing for some gun-related item of about $20.00 value. We give away a new rifle as a raffle prize twice a season.
We charge $5.00 to shoot.

We have been very sucessful with this. We get about 25-30 shooters out every Friday morning, and maybe a dozen or so for the practice sessions every Wednesday morning. There a probably around 40 total people involved. We feel our success is due to not having any knock-down drag-out cutthroat competition, we have reqressed silhouette back to what it was in the early 1970's, a way for friends to get togather and have some fun with the guns they have without anyone getting all anal about the rules, the equipment, the classifications or all the other nitpicky BS. One of the guys commented that it was just organized plinking and that pretty much sums it up. We have 30 guys shooting silhouette once or twice a week. How's YOUR club doing?

jnyork, What are the requirements that a shooter must have to participate in your matchs or plinking? Do they have to be club members or NRA members or anything like that? Do you give out scoresheets or assign starting positions? Are the matchs run as flow imhsa or NRA style?As a Match Director for Smallbore Rifle Silhouette, I would like more details about the mechanics of how these matchs(paperwork) are arranged?

Thanks,
Bobby R. Huddleston

The match is open to anyone who shows up. Most of them do wind up joining the club, but we dont require it. ( We ARE a 100% NRA club!!) When a new shooter shows up, he is given a briefing on the procedure for the match and the safety rules, then he will be teamed up with an experienced member who will coach him through the first match and closely monitor him for safety reasons. Before the match, we make up score sheets for 3 relays, 8 shooters in each relay. When we sign up, we just collect the $5.00 entry fee and the shooter draws a score sheet from on top of the pile, which is face down. The sheet tells him which animal and firing point he starts on. From then on, it is just like any other NRA style match, relay 1 shoots, then relay 2, then relay 3, then start over. We have extra firing point for the shooters who shoot the swingers, they just fit in wherever they choose. We dont do ANY other paperwork!! We endeavor in all cases to remain as unencumbered with bureacratic nonsense as possible. We DO have a safety meeting before each shoot. The shooter set whatever targets they knock down, we have no target setters. IF a shooter is physically unable to hike down to set targets, someone will go do it for him. The shooters set up the targets and the firing points before the match, no signups are allowed before all the work is done, everyone pitches in. Same with putting away the targets and stuff after the match, nobody gets out the gate until everything is done. We have never had a slacker at any of our shoots. We do not keep a timer on the relays. When we give the command "Ready", the range officer will wait until everyone appears to be ready, the gives the command "Fire". When everyone is done, he gives the command to cease fire and ground the firearms. We require the use of empty chamber indicators at all times, we keep a supply of these at the range. When the shoot is over, we collect the score cards and use them to draw from for the door prize.

I am at a minimum of 8 years from retirement but this sounds like a whole lot more fun than golf. I am going to keep this in mind for a match to put on a weekday morning in my area when I retire. Our range will be empty on a weekday also.
Thanks,
Bobby R. Huddleston