Building certain shooting positions into a stage without requiring it.

[Justin]

So, this past month has concluded the second season that I've helped to run a local Tactical Rifle match, and I'd like to get some input from match directors and stage designers with more experience than I.

For this match, I've been in charge of designing our open-terrain stage. Generally I try to keep the minimum round count for this stage at around 30, so generally the stage will have five targets and six positions, or six targets and five positions, with one target at ~400 yards, and the rest at around 150-200 yards. (Due to the lay of the land, the long range target is placed in the same location at each match, and the other, closer targets are interspersed at the base of some hills in a kind of bowl-shaped area.)

In past matches, we've had some confusion with designating shooting positions by natural features, e.g. shoot from this bush, this tree, this rock, so we decided to mark the positions with some steel plates we had laying around, and some orange traffic cones.

Now here's where I am in need of some help.

Since most of the targets are less than 200 yards, I'd like to have at least one or two positions at each match that require the competitors to engage at least some of those targets from positions other than prone, primarily offhand and kneeling/sitting. Now, it seems like there are a couple of ways to do this, and they both have their problems. On the one hand, I could just simply put something mandatory in the stage description along the lines of "Targets 1-4 are to be engaged from standing at position X." I dislike doing this for philosophical reasons, though, as I think that practical shooting should leave the scenarios open enough to allow people to try to solve the problem with different approaches.

The other approach that I've tried was to mandate that the competitor must be within arm's reach or touching the steel plate. However, at the last match, there was some confusion on the part of some competitors as to which positions they had to be physically touching a plate, and which ones they only needed to be within arm's reach.

So, what are some ways to set up a field course so that engaging some of the targets from, say, standing, is organically built into the stage design, rather than just mandating it?

[Bryan 45]

Use vision barriers and shooting areas. If you want to force an unsupported, standing shot, make a shooting box, then put a barricade of some sort a few feet in front of it that is high enough to not allow the target to be seen from kneeling.

Likewise, a shooting box w/ a barricade can be used to force support side shots or shots where the shooter has to lean considerably. Write in the stage brief "from behind barricade engage...." or "from shooting box engage...."

[Graham Smith]

Use vision barriers and shooting areas.

If I understand the situation, that would be my first thought as well.

For example, if you use a sheet of plywood that is raised up a couple feet and has port in it, plus a secondary vision barrier at ground level, you can create a station where they can see only one target from prone but both targets standing. That forces them to choose how to shoot the two, one prone and one standing or both standing.

[rob_s]

I've been running a tactical carbine match since Dec. 2004. What Bryan and Graham suggest is exactly right. We don't use shooting boxes as my match, but the idea is to simply have a limited range of possible shooting positions from which the targets can be engaged. Non-threat targets can help in this regard as well.

[elkboy]

+1 on the boxes and barriers. The standard 3x3 box eliminates prone and the barricades allow creativity

[outerlimits]

Wanna see someone deploy a bipod in a 3x3 box? I have the video....

[Justin]

Ah, one of the things I should have emphasized. There's really only a pretty small group of us running this match. Probably three of us showing up, so the match tends not to have a whole lot of prop or barricade use. To complicate matters further, the area where we run the natural terrain stage is quite a bit removed from where all of the normal barricades are stored, so we try to use as much natural terrain as possible.

Also, I would like to believe that there should be a way to set these stages up using the natural terrain and cover that is available at the location.

I like the idea of using some 3x3 shooting boxes, and it seems like using the boxes to visually differentiate the positions that require offhand vs. "whatever works" would be a pretty obvious solution. The only criticism I could find would be that you would have to omit engagement of the long-range target at those particular positions, but I don't see that as being a deal-breaker.

To give you guys an idea of what this match is like, here are some pictures from the last match:

Close-range stage, note the target sitting just beneath the bush.

You can see more photos here:

https://picasaweb.google.com/117091622448351939326/Oct232011RifleMatch?authkey=Gv1sRgCPf47LHC3_eqOw#

Edited November 1, 2011 by Justin

[Skydiver]

Wanna see someone deploy a bipod in a 3x3 box? I have the video....

I think that would be amusing to see...

[Graham Smith]

Also, I would like to believe that there should be a way to set these stages up using the natural terrain and cover that is available at the location.

Without actually being there or knowing what kind of terrain you have to work with, it might still be possible to do something similar to what I mentioned. If you put a shoot position just behind a bush so that one target is obscured and a longer one is visible several feet to the side, then someone would have to shoot the closer target standing (or kneeling) then they could drop to prone to shoot the distant target OR remain standing and take the more distant shot.

You can do something similar by placing a no-shoot (or similar) in front of one target so that you only get a clean shot standing.

[Justin]

Graham, click on the link in my previous post and that will give you a bit of an idea of what we've got. We're in a high-altitude arid climate, so mostly scrub brush and a tree or two.

For the most part, I've defined shooting positions in a fairly lax manner, e.g. "within arm's reach of this bush" or "from the area of this tree." However, this has obvious problems, and I think we need to take steps to kind of move beyond it.

I think that your suggestions are good, and by paying a bit more attention to the layout, I can tweak the positions to get that result. Also, the inclusion of 3x3 boxes should work better as a visual indicator to the competitors of what is expected of them at any given position.

I know a lot of this is super basic stuff, but for whatever reason I find it very helpful to solicit input as it helps to kind of solidify the solution to the problem.

[Skydiver]

It's always good to ask questions, and if possible ask for an answer that fits your learning style. Some us learn best by different methods: reading, listening, watching, doing, etc. Some of us learn best by doing it the hard way and making mistakes along the way. (I often count myself in the latter group.)

[Graham Smith]

Also, the inclusion of 3x3 boxes should work better as a visual indicator to the competitors of what is expected of them at any given position.

I just started designing stages for USPSA this year and am finding that there are more ways to approach things than I ever thought possible.

One suggestion for shooting position is to use some stakes and caution tape to designate a shooting area. Put the tape close to the ground and leave the back end open. Instructions are that you can shoot from anywhere inside the marked "box" from any position. Some lengths of mesh snow fence and a few stakes can make a wall or a barrier that has to be shot over or around.

[djeffers]

Wanna see someone deploy a bipod in a 3x3 box? I have the video....

Yes!