Skydiver Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 That was a close final! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skydiver Posted May 2, 2012 Author Share Posted May 2, 2012 LOL! "Greg Littlejohn has been shooting USPSA matches. He spent most of his $6,000 from Bass Pro Shops on ammo." "Dylan Fletcher has started shooting locally in USPSA, IPSC, and IDPA." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skydiver Posted May 2, 2012 Author Share Posted May 2, 2012 ROFL! "Close the barn door. The cows are getting out." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RaylanGivens Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 It was an exciting final... I'm not sure these guys were as good as shooters in past years though... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bbbean Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 Say what you want about the drama and the apparent success of talented generalists over proven champions, that was a barn burner of a finale. FWIW, I'm going to be checking out the PASA shooters to see how many of them are wearing pink bandanas. How bromantic... BB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Smith Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 IT Geeks Rule!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brandrum Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 Pretty disappointed in this season...very bland competitors. Did have some cool challenges though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kdmoore Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 Yea, I usually defend the show against critics, but the talent level of this season really seemed to suffer. I'm guessing that the show's producers leaned more heavily to eye candy and appeal and really didn't evaluate the talent level of the shooters. what they did well this season (and this has happened every year) are the weapons/challenges. From some of Colby's comments on the other show, I guess he's not a fan of speed ... tho he is learning a bit. I'd love to see a challenge that was speed based. sure, put some risk in there too. Hang a piece of steel and say the fastest one to hit it 10 times ... or whatever. Past seasons I've always looked forward to the show, but this season it often sat unwatched in the DVR until downtime was found. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shootingchef Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 May not have to worry about too much. I wonder if the show has been picked up for a 5th season? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dwt Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 I hope not ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
norbs007 Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 IT Geeks Rule!!! Pretty disappointed in this season...very bland competitors. Did have some cool challenges though. I agree... cool challenges, cool weapons but nothing close to a world class shooter; which they kept referring to the competitors. Gabby might be an exception though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brandrum Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 (edited) From what I've heard from potential competitors. They require too much before and after filming to really draw in the real world class shooters. Edited May 2, 2012 by brandrum Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
warpspeed Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 The finale was pretty good. A nice mix of firearms and skill test right up to the end. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
warpspeed Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 From what I've heard from potential competitors. They require too much before and after filming to really draw in the real world class shooters. yes. The time away from your real job is a deterrent to many. I think that is why you have seen guys like Taran Butler & Matt Burkett as experts and not contestants. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KungFuNerd Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 The Semifinals were a joke. 35' .22 Pistol shots are Jars gets you into the finals? Yikes. Chris definitely deserved to win. As lame as this season seemed, there was plenty of entertainment value Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wlktheduk Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 Both SWMBO and I enjoyed this final episode. The Dueling tree with lever-actions was different, instead of the handguns that had been used in the last seasons. That looked tough, and reloading a lever action fast did not look like it would be fun for the fumble-fingered like me The shooting bar challenges (for the last three shooters) showed that sometimes you can really beat yourself. While I am not prepared to question the judgement of a 200 yard shot with the M-14, the 75 yards off-hand with a Benelli with slugs does NOT seem to be a good idea. Shooting at orange juice bottles at 75 yards off-hand, with a .45 ACP 1911??? Yes, I know that NRA Bullseye matches go out to 50 yards and the 1911 holds more then a few records there. BUT those 1911's tend to equipped with red-dot sights (except for the Distinguished matches) Also, NRA PPC matches go out to 50 yards but allow you to go prone, kneel and use a barricade. IIRC, Bianchi Cup has 50 yard stages also, but you-re allowed to go prone, or use barricades. Adding 25 more yards, and a skinny target, and that's a toughie. Chosing shooting challenges like those did show that the shooters were willing to "go big or go home" or so I think. And the miss with the Buckmark .22, I know how he felt (been there, said that, have no T-shirt) The final head-to-head match was neat. While I have no way of knowing, it did seem like the producers chose weapons that had been a problem for the shooters. The flintlock (remember the ball rolling out of Greg's barrel) the plate rack with Peacemaker's (both Chris and Greg had struggles there) the lever action versus the 3 ring target, the moving bottle rack and the Webley's... (and I like Webley's) The BAR's with exploding targets, and the cross-bow's spinning target And then there was the grenade launchers...big bang, big finish. I hope that Top Shot gets renewed. Both SWMBO and I really enjoyed seeing so many different weapons being used, with fun looking reactive targets. Shooting from half-tracks and motorcycle side cars, firing cannons, swinging on a rope like a pirate... The house drama wasn't my cup of tea, but SWMBO liked watching that too. Guns and shooters presented in a positive way, that's fun to watch, is a good thing, IMHO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neomet Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 Was it just me or were the lower two plates on the right tree so loose that they actually bounced and flipped back over to their origional position a couple times when they were shot? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CZinSC Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 Was it just me or were the lower two plates on the right tree so loose that they actually bounced and flipped back over to their origional position a couple times when they were shot? Yes, that is exactly what I thought was happening. It was bouncing back way too quick to be the result of another shot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trini Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 I liked it and hope it gets renewed. A positive shooting show is good PR and will hopefully bring more folks into our world. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fullauto_Shooter Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 Was it just me or were the lower two plates on the right tree so loose that they actually bounced and flipped back over to their origional position a couple times when they were shot? Yes, that is exactly what I thought was happening. It was bouncing back way too quick to be the result of another shot. I saw the same thing and commented to my wife that it was a "BS Target". How can a show like Top Shot spend hundreds of thousands of dollars in productions costs and then not have the technical expertise to set up a dueling tree correctly?? Add to this, they can't seem to comprehend that artificially created smoke blowing across the range creates a distinct disadvntage to to the down-wind shooter - or maybe they just care more about the explosions than creating a fair contest?? The fact that Littlejohn, the same guy who had a 60 second "trigger freeze" during an earlier challenge, made it into the shoot-off did nothing but diminish my already low-opinion of the talent level it takes to become "America's Next Top Shot". If it doesn't get renewed next year, no great loss. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bbbean Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 (edited) The fact that Littlejohn, the same guy who had a 60 second "trigger freeze" during an earlier challenge, made it into the shoot-off did nothing but diminish my already low-opinion of the talent level it takes to become "America's Next Top Shot". To be fair, the USPSA 2011 Open title went to a guy who zeroed a stage at nats. Littlejohn managed to win a whole slew of elimination challenges to get there. A couple of things that are pretty obvious to me: 1) Talented generalists trump specialized champs in the Top Shot format. 2) While the stress management we all learn in competition is useful for Top Shot, Top Shot puts FAR more emphasis on accuracy than speed, and the balance we strive for in USPSA (even IDPA) puts us at a disadvantage in many of the challenges. Also, most competitive shooters win by being consistent over an entire competition, not burning down every stage. If we ran Nats like TS, a lot of our top shooters would be eliminated from a lot of major matches due to one bad stage. 3) No offense to Cliff, Mike, or the other USPSA champs who've gone on the show, but I still think a Jerry Miculek, Rob Leatham, Dave Sevigny, et al level competitor could mow this competition down, but why would they take the time off from earning a living and competing to be in a competition where throwing rocks at a window could decide whether they stayed in the competition or not? Even if all the challenges were legitimate, blowing the top out of one challenge earns you zero breathing room on the next challenge. BB ETA: Our club has picked up new shooters who've told me they first heard of USPSA through Top Shot. I think it portrays guns and our sport in a much more positive light than the way we're normally portrayed on TV. Edited May 2, 2012 by bbbean Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Smith Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 The dueling trees were definitely a problem. Those things would have been fine with most pistols but the wobbled way too much with rifles and the plates were swinging all over the place at times. They either didn't test them or didn't care. They should have stopped people during the first run and beefed those things up. That could well have cost someone a win but I'm not sure who. The pick your shot contest was embarrassing. I don't know what those people were thinking. But I have a hunch - this was a chance to make a really spectacular shot but they were too stoked on adrenaline to think clearly. Nothing wrong with a 200yd M14 shot but not at that target if you have not had a chance to check the sights. 75yds with a 1911??? Without any practice shots? Are you nuts? Shotgun slugs at that target at anything much past 20yds is absurd. Etc... The final challenge was pretty decent. I don't like the fact that they used the grenade launcher for the final stage though. Greg might have won that but the smoke was blowing from Chris's targets in front of his. Even with that, in the seconds that Greg was waiting for the smoke to clear for his last shot, Chris blindly lobbed two shots through the smoke and hit the target. But I'll give it to Greg for not complaining. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
martyg00 Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 Say what you want about the drama and the apparent success of talented generalists over proven champions, that was a barn burner of a finale. FWIW, I'm going to be checking out the PASA shooters to see how many of them are wearing pink bandanas. How bromantic... BB Barry, Check my Facebook page..... I know one of them was wearing a pink one! Old Darth Vader was running a little late today....... We had a great time! Marty A-7424 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KungFuNerd Posted May 3, 2012 Share Posted May 3, 2012 Chosing shooting challenges like those did show that the shooters were willing to "go big or go home" or so I think.. I think it showed that they knew little to nothing about the functional ranges of Ammo and Firearms and even less about their own shooting abilities. Challenges in the past like shooting a Golfball from 100 yards or shooting a Paintball off a Tee were done by people that COULD...not because they wre lucky. And what was it...like 6 seconds per shot at 10" plates? In the FINAL? Yikes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KungFuNerd Posted May 3, 2012 Share Posted May 3, 2012 Oh... And Gary was the one robbed by the Dueling trees. I would have to watch again to make sure but i think his targets were bouncing back after he hit them. It was the right tree/lower 3 or 4 targets. One of them even got stuck straight back. Then all of a sudden it wasn't. I wonder if they stopped to fix it and just edited the stoppage out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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