Nov 07

Bushnell Elite Tactical

I have had a few people ask me with puzzling looks “You shoot a Bushnell optic“?  and I always respond “Heck yeah I shoot a Bushnell“!  If you are not familiar with the quality and ruggedness of this scope, let me give you one of the many reasons why I choose Bushnell:

A few weekends ago, I shot the CORE Shooting Solutions Long Range Challenge in Baker FL. The day started off cool with 62 degrees and cloudy skies. The temps stayed steady all day and it was quite pleasant weather. With only 8 stages in the match, you had to stay on top of your game. Mike, Josh and gang picked out the “favorite” stages. I shot really well on most.

Fast forward to the last stage of the day. It was about 2:30 p.m. and the cold front had just came through. The temperature had dropped and it was misting rain. The last stage for me happened to be the tower stage at the lower end of the range. This stage was shot prone. You had 6 steel targets with various distances and sizes. Distances: Prairie Dog1 on a pole: 181 yrds, Prairie Dog2 on a pole: 268 yrds, Pig1: 338 yrds, Pig2: 453 yrds, Coyote 620 yrds, and Kangaroo 731 yrds.  Engage each steel target with 1 round only closest to furthest, then start the same sequence again. 12 rounds max.  I was one of the first four shooters to go up on deck and luck had it that I shot first. It started sprinkling rain. I shot Prairie Dog 1 “Impact”, Prairie Dog 2 “Impact”. Then it started to rain hard.  I shot Pig1 “Impact”. The rain beat down harder and I could make out the Pig2 target. I increased my magnification on the Bushnell XRS to try to get my target in view…Ha, there it was. I shot at the pig target….Ting! “Impact”.  At this point, it was raining so hard you could barely see the Coyote Target at 620 yrds. I came down on magnification to find the pig targets, then increased again and caught a faint glimpse of the coyote target. It was raining so hard I thought the RO would stop the stage until the rain stopped, but noooooo. I pulled the trigger and you could hear a “ting”. The RO even said, “I don’t know how you saw that but you hit it“!  I responded with “It’s all in my Bushnell Baby”!!  I barely could make out the Kangaroo target…”Impact”. Now I had to start over again. I impacted Prairie Dog 1 and 2, Impacted Pig 1 and 2 (barely being able to see them through the hard rain). The Coyote target was next at 620yds and I knew I was getting close on running out of time (2 minute par time). I couldn’t see it at all. No faint glimpse of a target, nothing but hard hard rain. I shot at the pig target again just to get a round down so I could move on to the Kangaroo. The Kangaroo target was a little bit bigger so I barely could see him and pulled the trigger…..Ting! “Impact”.  11 hits out of 12, not bad at all for barely being able to see your target in hard Florida rain! I was soaked from head to toe, cold and ready to change into some warmer clothes.

I definitely owe these hits not only to my badass GA Precision rifle and Federal/Berger reloaded ammo, but if it wasn’t for the quality piece of glass made by Bushnell, there is just no way I would have had that many hits in the pouring down rain. The objective and ocular lenses in the Bushnell Tactical Elite XRS have a water-repellent coating called Rainguard HD. For stages like this one, you are extremely grateful for a quality scope! Here are some specifics of the XRS 4.5×30:

Power/Obj. lens:             4.5-30x50m

Reticle:                           G2

Lens coating:                  Fully multi coated and extra wide band coating

Tube diameter:               34mm

Weight:                           37oz/1049gr

Length:                           14in/356mm

Focal plane:                    First

Not only does Bushnell manufacture some great optics, they have alot of other offerings as well. Check out their website and see what they can do for you at www.bushnell.com

 

Permanent link to this article: https://thelifeofmissy.com/2017/11/07/bushnell-elite-tactical/

Sep 05

CORE Fall Classic PRS match, Baker Florida

Take the guys of CORE Shooting Solutions (Josh Mann, Mike Mangum, John Watts and Bryan Morgan) and add the infamous George Gardner and you got one hell of a PRS match!! With these guys at the helm, this was one tough/challenging match. CORE Shooting Solutions is known for their long range shooting and the many competitions that they have at their facilities. Located just 45 minutes North of Crestview Florida, this range is an adult playground with firearms. When my Husband and I did a TV show called Trigger Time TV, we had many episodes filmed here. I’m not just saying this is a great range, I’m telling you…THIS is a Great Range!

I have been shooting down at CORE since 2013 and I have always considered this range to be my “home” range. I was super excited to shoot this match because not only was the Armageddon Gear “Meat Wagon” in tow but we also brought the Armageddon Gear “Murder Machine” which was used on a stage as a prop. Tom Fuller, hubby Jim Gilliland and myself drove down early Friday morning. Once arrived, the Murder Machine took to its place on its stage and the Meat Wagon was parked and organized inside for sales. That evening, we got checked into our hotel then off to “Bamboo” Sushi restaurant to meet 30 other competitors for dinner. If you are ever in Crestview Florida, Bamboo Sushi restaurant is a must stop!!

Up at the crack of dawn with 2 coffee’s down, I was ready for day One.  After arriving at the range and heading off to our 1st stage of the day, I was excited to see everyone who was shooting on my squad 9. I don’t think I have laughed as hard as I did with this squad ever. All these guys were great to be around all weekend long. Though you are all competing against one another, everyone helped each other. This is probably one of the biggest things I love about this sport is the camaraderie among everyone. Huge Thanks to Christy Sutton for organizing supplies to be brought back to Texas for those affected by Hurricane Harvey. Thank you to Brian & Christine Allen for renting a Uhaul box trailer and to Ryan Hey & Matt Brousseau for volunteering to take the items back. They collected a few truck fulls and a trailer full of supplies from everyone in attendance. This long range community never ceases to amaze me.  

One of the fun stages on Day One was the “2 position TYL”. Upon the command “engage” the shooter went prone and the engaged the TYL rack with up to 5 rounds. The plates were from largest to smallest, hit to move on. Once those 5 rounds were exhausted, the shooter transitioned to a position on the tires and repeated the process for a second 5 rounds. Time: 90 seconds. Round count: 10. Distance: 800 yrds. I didn’t do so well on this one as the winds completely stopped when I transitioned to the tire. The wind Gods must laugh when I get up on a stage and say “Hey look, its blondie” The winds will blow hard and then stop suddenly…ugh. We finished Day One around 3:00 pm and everyone was exhausted. That Florida sun beating down on you all day with all the humidity is physically exhausting. After getting back to the hotel and showering, it was time to meet everyone at Hooters to eat and watch the Alabama vs. Florida State game. All I’m going to say is…..Roll Tide Y’all!!

 

Day Two was upon us, and it was time to buckle down as the day before didn’t fare too well for me. My squad started the day with “Go Big or Go Small” stage. Before the stage started, you had to choose to shoot the big target for 1 point or the small target for 2 points. You could not change your mind after your first shot. On command “engage” the shooter assumes position 1 on the barricade and engage chosen target with 3 rounds hit or miss. Then shooter transitions to the next position and repeat with 3 rounds and then transition to position 3 and repeat. Time: 90 seconds. Round count: 9. Target: 12″ circle or 8″ circle. Distance: 410 yrds. Max score: 18 .. Most of us decided on this stage to go for broke and go for the small circle. It fared well for some and not so much for others as the wind kinda got involved (again).

One of my favorite stages (which always involves a Prairie Dog target) was “Curtis Custom Hunting Trip”. Shooter will engage animal targets from near to far. Each target can only be hit once, but the shooter may attempt as many times as they like until a hit is achieved or until they reach the max round count. Targets can be skipped but once you pass a target you may not go back. Time: 90 sec. Round count: 10. Targets/distance: Prairie dog1 (on a pole) 283yrds; Prairie dog2 (on a pole) 330 yrds; Prairie dog3 (on a pole) 362 yrds; Pig1 435 yrds; Pig2 575 yrds; Coyote1 610 yrds; Coyote2 660 yrds; Kangaroo, 728 yrds. Max Score 8 … It only took me 8 rounds to clean this stage. My custom built GA Precision 6mmCreedmoor with Templar V2 action just screamed at this match! I have a 25″ Bartlein barrel, APA Little Bastard brake, Timney Trigger in a Manners Composite Stock. Along with my Bushnell Elite XRS 4.5-30 (I didnt have time to put my new XRS II on before) and my reloaded ammunition which consists of Federal Premium 210M primers, Alliant Reloder 16 and Berger Bullets 105gr Hybrids, just getting the wind calls right was what I needed. I clean my rifle with Hoppe’s #9 and always keep some Hoppe’s Gun Medic handy during matches. All my reloads are done on RCBS equipment. I couldn’t be more pleased with their products! I use my Armageddon Gear precision rifle sling on alot of different barricades along with the shooting bags and rear bags. During cool months of shooting, I will wear XGO base layers under my competition jersey. XGO also has this sun hoodie which is amazing. Lightweight and keeps those harmful sun rays off you!

I just wanted to quickly note something. If an RO tells you that you are on the wrong target, believe them! LOL, it must have been the heat to make me feel rogue on a certain stage. Next time Rudy, I will listen to you.  

I want to thank all the guys at CORE Shooting Solutions: Josh Mann, Mike Mangum, John Watts and Bryan Morgan for opening their doors to another great PRS match. HUGE thanks goes out to George Gardner for all his hard work setting the match up. Thank you to all the RO’s who were there to make this match a success. (Also big thanks to Eric Lundberg for my big bag of gummy bears from around the world!!) To all the guys on squad 9, you are the best!!  Congrats to Matt Brousseau for taking away 1st place (and who was blast to be with on my squad) and to Shannon Kay 2nd place and Tyler Payne 3rd place. Congratulations to all the Top spots including Top Female Christine Allen (Love ya girl)!.To all my great sponsors:  GA Precision, Bushnell, Armageddon Gear, Hoppe’s 9, Federal Premium, RCBS, Berger Bullets, Manners Composite Stocks and XGO. All my equipment ran effortlessly and I couldn’t be more proud to wear all these brands on my shirt.  Thanks to my Husband and my family for always being my rock. I love you guys!

If you are looking at getting into these long range matches, take a look at Precision Rifle Series. These matches are all over the USA with them popping up in Canada and Africa. Big shout to Brian Dennis for everything he is doing for the PRS. It just keeps getting better!

Permanent link to this article: https://thelifeofmissy.com/2017/09/05/core-fall-classic-prs-match-baker-florida/

Jun 07

Buffalo Butte Ranch, Gregory South Dakota

20170602_164412So let’s rewind to July 2016. My Husbands birthday was quickly approaching and I am the type of person that loves giving “different” kind of gifts. After hearing a few friends of ours talk about Prairie Dog Hunts, I thought to myself “Now this could be epic”.  I researched out places for this epic adventure and came across Buffalo Butte Ranch in Gregory South Dakota. It was all inclusive which meant lodging and all meals were included in the hunt price. After I made contact with them, I reserved a date for this great Birthday present. The only catch was that Jim had to wait 9 months for it!

After the long wait, the time had arrived. Jim decided to drive since we had alot of rifles/ammo and going through the airport just seemed like a headache. I decided to fly out Thursday evening with Jim picking me up and then us heading to the Ranch on Friday. We had quite the adventure on Friday.  20170602_122352We visited Sioux Falls (which was beautiful) then stopped off at the world famous Corn Cob Palace. This little place was very unique. Inside it smelled of buttery popcorn (no surprise, right?) and yes, it was decorated with corn cobs everywhere! 20170602_143437A very unique place to visit if you are ever in South Dakota.  Also on our way was the great Missouri River…..yeah, we had to get a few selfies along the way 😉

After arriving at the lodge, we met a few other lodge guests who were extremely nice. After being shown to our cabin, Jim and I took our rifles and made sure we still had good zero’s on all.  Dinner that night was absolutely delicious and the company was just as great!  Jim and I knew from the moment we met the owners, Marshall, Colleen, Dillon and Rachel, that this trip was going to be special.

We got up early the next morning and joined some fellow hunters up on a hill by the lodge to shoot at some of the steel targets that were scattered throughout. Target ranges were from 500 yrds out to 1500 yrds. Jim and I both plinked around the steel with those guys until breakfast was ready. After a full belly and couple cups of coffee, I was ready for the day.

20170604_202110Dillon Springer brought Jim & I out to some private land for our adventure. We parked our truck and jumped in with Dillon so he could show us around. Dillon knew I wanted to break the record at their lodge for the longest prairie dog shot. We were up on a hill that overlooked a valley of prairie dog towns. We took my Bushnell Fusion 1 Mile Arc laser range finder and ranged a 1400 yard spot. Dillon brought us back to our truck and since the wind was kinda still (2 – 5 mph) we knew I had to get started to break the record. Jim drove back to the spot Dillon brought us to but Jim parked a little higher up on the hill. After grabbing my Bushnell Fusion 1 mile arc laser range finders, we ranged a berm full of prairie dogs at 1,644 yrds. I just shook my head. Go big or go home, right?  I grabbed my GA Precision custom built 6mmCreedmoor along with some ammo that I had loaded for the previous weekends match, and climbed up on the shooting tower on top of our truck. On a side note here, I wasn’t too keen of this shooting rack when the truck was being built. After shooting for 2 days off it and not having chigger bites….I love this thing! Thanks Carolina Custom Towers & Down East Offroad! The wind was pretty calm so I knew I had to work fast in order to accomplish some shots. With my Kestrel in hand, I put the target distance at 1,644 yrds.  My elevation was 17.3 mils.  I dialed this on to my Bushnell Elite XRS 4.5 x 30 scope. With some freshly reloaded ammunition, I knew I could do this. My ammunition consists of Gold Match primers, Alliant Reloder 16 powder, and Berger Bullets 105gr Hybrids which I personally load myself on all my RCBS equipment.  From where I was prone, wind speeds were between 2 – 5 mph from 3:00.  My Kestrel showed my wind holds from .6 mils to 1.2 mils. 20170603_114935We set up my Bushnell Elite Tactical Spotter and Jim told me he was ready. After adjusting my Armageddon Gear rear bag, I gazed through my scope and was excited to see that this particular berm stretched out and had multiple prairie dog holes all over it!  I spotted a prairie dog and put my first shot down.  I was 2/10ths low.  I adjusted my elevation to 17.5.  I watched patiently on this berm until I spotted more prairie dogs. I sent another shot down by holding for wind right of the prairie dog at 1/2 mil.  The shot impacted about another 1/2 mil to left of my target. Ugh, I didn’t give it enough wind. I was on this berm for probably about 15 minutes sending shots down until I impacted one! At this point I had my wind call (with fingers crossed it wouldn’t change much) and walked Jim on to the mound that I was over-watching. We really wanted to get this on video so Jim used his phone to try and record a shot by using the video/camera while looking through the spotter.  It took a few more shots (due to wind holds) until I successfully impacted another one!  I set the new record for Buffalo Butte Lodge for the longest prairie dog shot at 1,644 yards! What was pretty cool about all this was, when I pulled the trigger you had to wait quite a few seconds before that Berger Bullet met its target! That was one of the coolest! Jim got a few of my impacts on camera and I was stoked to be able to tell everyone about this!!  Jim was itching bad to get his rifle out and start hunting.  We loaded in his truck and drove another few hundred yards away to get settled in a spot to start the hunt! 20170603_123309We were on top of another small hill and there were prairie dog mounds EVERYWHERE!  I put my competition GA Precision 6mmCreedmoor away and brought out my custom built GA Precision .223 trainer rifle. This rifle is set up exactly like my competition rifle. They both are set in a Manners Composite Stock, Bartlein Barrel, APA Little Bastard brake, Timney Trigger with the GAP Templar V2 Action. I have an identical Bushnell Elite XRS 4.5 – 30 on top of this little beast. I had several rounds of Federal Ammunition .223 73gr Berger Bullet BT so I knew these little rats were not going to get away.  Jim and I spent the rest of the afternoon slaying these little rodents from 100yrds out to 600 yrds. It was really an awesome day!

20170603_120714Another great thing about Buffalo Butte Ranch was that they pack you a stocked cooler. We had waters, Gatorade, sandwiches, chips and candy bars to snack on all throughout day.  I brought along my Hoppe‘s Lead-B-Gone wipes so we had clean hands before chowing down!

That evening we met back up at the lodge and had another wonderful dinner prepared by Rachel and Colleen Springer. They were so sweet and knew I bought this trip as a Birthday present for Jim. They had Birthday cake for dessert.  20170603_190958

Another full day of prairie dog shooting was upon us on Sunday morning. Jim and I was brought back to the private land that we were at the day before. We thought we slayed alot of prairie dogs the day before but it seemed like there 1,000’s more!!  We spent all day shooting. Not only was prairie dog hunting fun, but it was also great as a training tool. I would look through my scope and see some 400-500 yrds out. I would then watch the mirage to get a wind hold. Not only was this great for mirage training, your target was really small as well!

This was an absolute wonderful trip and one that Jim and I will be taking annually for years to come. Go check out Buffalo Butte Ranch at www.buffalobutteranch.com … Not only do they offer prairie dog hunts, but they are really known for their Pheasant hunts too! Thanks Marshall, Colleen, Dillon and Rachel Springer. Your hospitality was beyond anything we have ever experienced and you guys definitely have lifetime customers in us!  20170604_194940

Permanent link to this article: https://thelifeofmissy.com/2017/06/07/buffalo-butte-ranch-gregory-south-dakota/