Clint U66 Posted October 31, 2005 Share Posted October 31, 2005 I am thinking of doing a stage that contains a cooper tunnel at our next local match. Being a fairly new shooter, I have never shot with one used in a match. Does anyone have suggestions of a "cool" or "fun" way to use one in a stage? Thanks, Clint Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clay1 Posted October 31, 2005 Share Posted October 31, 2005 Try this link and then do a search under Cooper Tunnel. http://www.stageexchange.com/stages/stages1.pdf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dirtypool40 Posted October 31, 2005 Share Posted October 31, 2005 Naaaah. Just set this one up. Low Cooper, High Cooper and a Railroad hand cart. DAMN!!! That was fun!!! Zorra Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scorch Posted October 31, 2005 Share Posted October 31, 2005 i would not do it. I have Seen ALOT of people doing a ALOT of unsafe stuff in a cooper tunnel. At the Tx State Limited in 1999 we had one and I was the CRO had a guy fall onto his pistol in his chest had several people fall break the 180 and be real Scary and this tunnel was about 4 ft high. I vowed right then NEVER to do one in any match we set up. With that said If you are bent on doing one make it High. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kimel Posted November 2, 2005 Share Posted November 2, 2005 Cooper Tunnels can be done safely. It is the responsibility of the shooter to know their limits and to operate within them. If a shooter does unsafe things then they get to go home. We run them and they are usually about 4' x 4' and often there is a port in the middle requiring targets to be engaged. Never had anyone fall, never had anyone do anything unsafe. You ARE going to see them at big matches so you might as well run them at the local matches so people know how to work with them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clint U66 Posted November 2, 2005 Author Share Posted November 2, 2005 Thanks for the input guys. I think I have come up with a way to have an option of going through a door or the cooper tunnel to advance downrange. This way I figure if someone doesn't feel safe or has physical limitations they can go through the door. Heck, it may be faster to go through the door ..................we'll find out Saturday!! Thanks again. Clint Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wsimpso1 Posted November 2, 2005 Share Posted November 2, 2005 The only ones that I have ever used were constructed of a base, PVC pipes set on pegs in the base, and the cross bars had pegs that set in the pipes. There was one of these bridges every 12" or so. Bump it and it came down. People can hit them and cost them a Procedural, but why ANYONE should fall in one of these is beyond me. You could ban reloading within the tunnel to keep the fumble factor reasonable. I would be most concerned about that if you have lateral movement in the tunnel. If the Cooper Tunnel points straight downrange, I would be less concerned because breaking the 180 is less likely. They are fun. Billski Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scorch Posted November 2, 2005 Share Posted November 2, 2005 (edited) Here is a Picture of the Cooper tunnel with me ROing. They Fell down because they were rushing had no less than 8 Fall out of 225 shooter. Edited November 2, 2005 by scorch Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shred Posted November 2, 2005 Share Posted November 2, 2005 Which brings up another point about Cooper Tunnels-- The RO can have a hard time controlling the shooter when they're in there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul B Posted November 3, 2005 Share Posted November 3, 2005 I've seen and ran through at least 100 Cooper tunnels and really have very little good to say about them. 1. I've seen at least 10 injuries 3 rather serious including 1 broken bone. I still have scars from some I ran through 10 years ago. 2. The really bad injuries by the way do not happen in the tunnel, but as the shooter is exiting the tunnel and trying to straighten up. I saw 1 AD that missed hitting the shooter by an inch as he fell on his gun. From this standpoint it might be good to have something to shoot at from the very end of the exit so the shooter will have to stop and not try to dash out. 2. They are very biased towards the shorter shooter as I have friends who can zip through a 4 footer at 5'2" but it's a very different story at 6'3". I guess this is OK as it's the same for all, but I seldom have seen really high ports as the "tall guy's revenge." 3. I will never understand the concept of 1 procedural per slat. How is that a tunnel. If you want a tunnel make it a real one with a roof so you are actually setting up a practical scenario rather than a procedural trap. All that said, the concept of the slats representing live fire over the rim of a barrier is also valid and there is a place for it, but we need to engineer the tunnel so we can minimize injuries and potential safety issues. As indicated before have something to shoot from the very end and get this, a 3 footer might be better because even the shorter shooters will have to do more than just bend over slightly - hands and knees for every one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kangaroo Posted November 3, 2005 Share Posted November 3, 2005 clint we have a coopers tunnel in our aera 6 3gun match this weekend. we have shot it the past clud matches.. personaly i hate it. to much room for a mistake with a loaded gun. r cash Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Moneypenny Posted November 4, 2005 Share Posted November 4, 2005 I am 6'2" tall, i know NUMEROUS shooters who are under 5'8" tall.. i believe Jake DiVita is one of them that's around 5' 7" or 8" Now how is it fair to me. then they squat a litttle.. i have to be 6-7 inches LOWER than they do in respect to my height. now having "tall guys revenge ports" is BS... becuse they give a platform for everyone to stand on that can't see.. Not that i haven't had 1 or 2 advantages in a match but it's much more rare than finding a low port without a hole to step into. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kimel Posted November 4, 2005 Share Posted November 4, 2005 Sounds to me like a good reason to invent a SuperDuper Adjustable Cooper. Shooter's height minus x inches. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clint U66 Posted November 5, 2005 Author Share Posted November 5, 2005 O.K. guys, I set up the stage for Saturdays match today and I ended up using the cooper tunnel. It's 4 feet tall and 4 feet wide. I ran through it a few times and it didn't seem to be to bad. Steve, I know where you're coming from......I'm 6'2" myself and it seems like a disadvantage when you are competing against someone almost a foot shorter!! I'll let you guys know how it turns out. Thanks again for the input. Clint Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JFD Posted November 6, 2005 Share Posted November 6, 2005 I just shot a stage today with my very first Cooper Tunnel. I'm thinking of sneaking into the club tonight and setting fire to the damn thing I have relatively bad arthritis that has affected my flexability, as well as a bad knee and a replacement hip (hardly a cripple though). I don't know how I made it through that thing without a penalty, but I do know it was a painful/ugly deal that trashed my knee even further. I can deal with anything I've ever come across in USPSA, but this CT just strikes me as stupid with nothing to do with shooting skill and no possible practical application. I did finish OK, but hate it anyway. Of course my wife zipped through it like it wasn't there, but she's a foot shorter than me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clint U66 Posted November 6, 2005 Author Share Posted November 6, 2005 Maybe we can use the CT at next months match, only next time the shooter will have an option of riding a jazzy chair through the tunnel. Sorry Jerry, I had to go there. Clint Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kamakiri Posted November 7, 2005 Share Posted November 7, 2005 I've always liked Cooper tunnels and have occasionally set them up in matches. I am fairly young, athletic and flexible; on the other hand, I'm also pretty tall (6') and I have gotten screwed by penalties in Cooper tunnels at more than one major match, including the '03 Nationals in Bend. Nonetheless I'm still in favor of them. I realize that they can be hard on some shooters with bad knees or other health/fitness problems, and so they should probably be used sparingly. But they're one more of the unusual challenges that make our sport so interesting. Unlike bullseye, etc., IPSC shooting isn't and never has been solely "just about the shooting"; rather it's about being able to shoot fast and accurately while dealing with all sorts of different physical and mental challenges. You just have to watch a top grandmaster move through a field course to realize that there's a hell of a lot more to this than just pulling the trigger. That's definitely a good thing... it's what makes the sport so difficult to master, and never ever boring. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JFD Posted November 7, 2005 Share Posted November 7, 2005 I was thankful I didn't have my knee braced as usual or I'd have taken out every board on the CT I guess it's just going to be one of those things that I hate, but have to deal with. Sort of like going prone or having to go to a knee in the middle of a stage (at least I CAN do those things). It just sucks to see a CT and know it will take me 4 times longer to get through it than anyone else. However if I see the CT frequently, then I'll have to find another match to shoot. Just not worth the pain and possibility of further knee damage. I do realize that the CT didn't appear magically, someone put in the time and effort in order to "improve" the matches. Obviously I picked up useful knowledge that may be needed at the next big match I shoot. Makes me feel like a lowlife for bitching about the thing. I still hate it though I wish I had known the local match Clint U66 was talking about was the same match I regularly shoot. I could have invented a CT horror story before Saturday Also would have known to bring a gallon of gas to the match Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
itento Posted November 9, 2005 Share Posted November 9, 2005 (edited) I'm glad this thread came up. I've been planning a Vet's Day match for awhile and one of the stages is called "Tunnel Rat" and will have a Cooper Tunnel. Thanks to all the comments, it will be a little higher ( 53") than originally planned. Also, each of the slats are 1/2" plastic conduit that is attached by a screw to a rail at on end and rest on a support rail on the other with a "dislodge mark" to indicate any movement. Any brushing against the tubes will cause them to pivot. If during the walk through any competitor feels they are unable to negotiate the tunnel because of incapacity or injury, a "special penalty" of 20% of the competitor's stage points "as shot" will be imposed IAW Rule 10.2.11 and the competitor will be allowed to bypass the tunnel. Edited November 9, 2005 by itento Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
itento Posted November 14, 2005 Share Posted November 14, 2005 We ran our match with the Cooper Tunnel this Saturday. Only one competitor hit one tube. Here is a link to pictures from the match, several showing the tunnel: http://www.tristateshooter.org/12_nov_2005_match.htm. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now