Effect of mirage and what to do about it

[hawkenhunter50]

Last month was shooting a match and heard another shooter/spotter talking about mirage. I'm new to the match shooting and probably not even ready to learn about this or worry about it yet but I've been wondering about it ever since I heard them talking. Anyone care to try and explain what you're seeing and what you do or don't do when you experience mirage?

[M-Tecs]

This is just a light intro to reading mirage. The best way to progress is team matches coaching a good shooter. If they can call their shots you get instant accurate feed back. If you are shooting past 200 yards or shooting outdoor rimfire wind/mirage reading is a must learn skill. Reading the mirage is the most accurate wind prediction for winds under 12 mph

http://southtexasshooting.org/multim...xt/mirage.html

http://bulletin.accurateshooter.com/...with-diagrams/

https://www.accurateshooter.com/shoo...s/readingwind/

https://www.targettamers.com/guides/...potting-scope/

https://gundigest.com/more/how-to/fi...ntrol-for-wind

https://www.americanhunter.org/artic...te-wind-speed/

What type of matches are you shooting???

[hawkenhunter50]

This is just a light intro to reading mirage. The best way to progress is team matches coaching a good shooter. If they can call their shots you get instant accurate feed back.

http://bulletin.accurateshooter.com/...with-diagrams/

https://www.accurateshooter.com/shoo...s/readingwind/

https://www.targettamers.com/guides/...potting-scope/

https://gundigest.com/more/how-to/fi...ntrol-for-wind

https://www.americanhunter.org/artic...te-wind-speed/

http://southtexasshooting.org/multim...xt/mirage.html

Thank you sir, checking out the links now.

Wow that's some interesting stuff. The link for target tamers was really cool to read, will need to read through that one several times. Thanks

They are BPCR Silhouette matches.

[Alstep]

I haven't shot competition in 20+ years, and reading wind & mirage is a perishable skill. I can tell you this: it's part experience and part gut instinct. Understanding the theory is important, but you have to put it all together in a short amount of time. There's no time to get out your slide rule to calculate changes.

If the wind fluctuates a lot, you've got to chase it, so to speak. I try to shoot as fast as I can when the conditions are constant. If conditions change, you've bought yourself some time for the same condition to return. The hardest conditions for me is when the wind fishtails from 11 to 1 o'clock, or 5 to 7.

I know SFC Praslick from the USAMU team. He's an absolute master at this art and is fascinating to listen to when he's talking about shooting. He retired a few years ago. Check out the article about him here;
http://bulletin.accurateshooter.com/...ng-sports-usa/

Also check out the books and articles by David Tubb, a 10+ time national champion.