45-70 twist

[Don McDowell]

Shoot well at Oak Ridge Brent, it sounds like it's going to be a fun match.

[Chill Wills]

Michael, if you don't like the coaching aspect you should be all over long range muzzleloading. No coaching there. Ditto lever gun where the spotter simply spots. Of course wind corrections are pretty trivial in lever gun.

But take up the muzzleoader again. I know you have been there before. It's a one-man game all the way.

Personally, I like the teamwork of paired shooters/spotters. It is part of what makes the match enjoyable. But I like the muzzleloader matches as well. So, I just shoot them all.

Leaving for Oak Ridge in 3 days.

Yes, you are right about the ML, no coaching there. Which is a bit of irony in that shooting in an ML match the rifleman has to stand back up, then looking away from the changing conditions to load for a few minutes and then getting back down into position then reassess the new condition and doing it without having coaching, but BPTR (cartridge) lying there gets coached, does seems bass-akward. I enjoy the LRML game and woud shoot it a lot but it requires an airline ticket to shoot most of the events. I know of no matches being contested west of the big muddy. Sadly, Oak Ridge, spring and fall comes at the spring break time (now) or hunting season in fall. Always a schedule conflict with family events.

You write; "Personally, I like the teamwork of paired shooters/spotters. It is part of what makes the match enjoyable." And that is fair. Different likes for different people. You will get no disparaging remarks from me on that. It could be that Creedmoor is SO hard that the majority of likely competitors want help calling conditions. I know there are days I have come off the line talking to myself. I know there is also a portion of competitors that like the international (solo) type events. It is what it is.
Then there is the new, not NRA, start up (BPTRA) Black POwder Target Rifle Assoc. They have coaching too except for one 1000y match.

[BrentD]

Yes, you are right about the ML, no coaching there. Which is a bit of irony in that shooting in an ML match the rifleman has to stand back up, then looking away from the changing conditions to load for a few minutes and then getting back down into position then reassess the new condition and doing it without having coaching, but BPTR (cartridge) lying there gets coached, does seems bass-akward. I enjoy the LRML game and woud shoot it a lot but it requires an airline ticket to shoot most of the events. I know of no matches being contested west of the big muddy. Sadly, Oak Ridge, spring and fall comes at the spring break time (now) or hunting season in fall. Always a schedule conflict with family events.

You write; "Personally, I like the teamwork of paired shooters/spotters. It is part of what makes the match enjoyable." And that is fair. Different likes for different people. You will get no disparaging remarks from me on that. It could be that Creedmoor is SO hard that the majority of likely competitors want help calling conditions. I know there are days I have come off the line talking to myself. I know there is also a portion of competitors that like the international (solo) type events. It is what it is.
Then there is the new, not NRA, start up (BPTRA) Black POwder Target Rifle Assoc. They have coaching too except for one 1000y match.

There were 4 days of matches in Phoenix for long range muzzleloaders, there is at least one 2-day match in Minnesota, many more matches further east. And, of course there is Friendship with midrange matches. I'm sure there are other matches in areas closer to you but I don't follow them all that close.

There is no fall Oak Ridge match.

I don't think Creedmoor is any more difficult than other matches. I've never understood how one discipline is more difficult than another. Everyone has to do the same thing, and only one person can win.

[Chill Wills]

Az and a full week of shooting! Yes! However, March is spring break time and family is first. I just arrived home from a day of skiing with my son.

I am happy for all the years I spent shooting winters in AZ. I need to take a few years break. I will compete again there too. It will be strange there now that Steve Rhoades is gone.
All the ML matches you listed including the headwaters state of Minnesota are too far for me.
I am sure they are not other matches in areas closer to me or I would be aware and shooting them.

Oak Ridge shoots twice a year. Once in the spring and once in the fall.

Lastly, I can't help you understand how one discipline might be more difficult - in fact, that is not my job, but ply me with dark beer next time we shoot a match and maybe I will make the case then. Or maybe it would be more like

Say Hi to Rick for me when you are at Oak Ridge. I would like to be there too.
Also, when in Oak Ridge ....shoot to thrill! Let's see your name at the top!

[BrentD]

Michael, you missed a good one. Not only did we all call our own wind, at 1000, we shot one relay without support. No rest, no sling. INTERESTING...