Blue Ridge Mountain 3-Gun Championship – April 23-25, 2010

[homeyclaus]

In hindsight, I had fun, I also developed a new appreciation for big-match RO's, since I worked stage 4 this year (and that was an a**kicker to work). Nobody got hurt, and nobody DQ'd on that stage, which was a big relief. Stage 4 ROs walked 2000 yards per day in that field with shooters alone, in addition to what you normally do. For some reason, my knee stopped hurting last week, which was the opposite of what I expected.

Thanks for putting up with me saying "please check your safety, don't run with your safety off to the 125" all the time, everyone! Sorry to everyone that had their rhythm thrown off my me saying that.

The big bonus on Sunday was to shoot all the cans the shooters left at 1100, sharp

[Benelli Chick]

Ditto!

Thanks so much to Andy, Tammy, Mike, the RO's and everyone who worked so hard to make this match unforgettable. And it was, maybe not exactly in the way planned.

I had a great time. Squad 5 was great to shoot with. Thanks again to Dan who was a squad...Master!!!

We got home just over an hour ago and we're both tired, but it was a really fun match.

Thanks to all the RO's who worked so hard!!! It is so hard running up and down, and breathing in gun powder in a cave, and watching people climb over a water tank...oh wait, that wasn't that hard!!

Anyway, sorry about the weather, but it was good to see everyone. Thanks to Rockcastle and all the sponsors, especially Sabre who was out in force again to cover for people like Mikey, whose country let a little ash ground planes!

The NRA, Mike, Trey, Bill and all. Trey and Bill shot the whole match with the RO's and really got a taste of 3-Gun. I'm thinking they'll be back!

Anyway, thanks!

Andy, we appreciate your hard work and had a blast anyway!!!

Denise

[AlamoShooter]

Any results?

First let me say that Andy & Rock Castle made Lemon Aid from lemons out of the severer weather.

I hope that Andy post partial scores and I will say why.

the Ro's are great -The resort is great. The stages were elaborate & had more plan options than any I had shot All the targets were findable from the rite spot and sometime hiding in plain sight

The Shooters that make events happen are of a Mid level -like me- and we come to matches for small successes on individual stages, and some-times even parts of a stage that we can shoot well. Being able to string good stages together is what we hope for.

Most of us know we are -Not- going to win a match of this caliber, but we -think- that we could maybe finish in the top 10% ? the top 10 even.

I bet over 1/2 of the shooters at the match have hopes of finishing top 10 on any single stage.

Why not give that small victory to them,

I places #1 on stage 9 the first day I called my wife and we celebrated on the phone together , she asked for the "Big Dog" names that had shot the stage so far.

She asked for a placement on the stages I had shot far on Saturday morning , and we agreed this was my best 3 gun match to date.

It would be nice to see even partial results, even incomplete scores are better than none at all. I can see how a national level match like this partial scores would just open a can of worms, but maybe not. A club level match would post what it had on stages shot = each stage becomes its own (Minny match) of shooters that got to the stage. It would be like giving something to shooters like me of a mid level that at least had some good stages.

[whiskey1]

Guys this was something else. Match Director, Andy Horner showed so much grace under pressure and made the only safe decision open to him. The 3-Gun Nation folks came up with a solution that gave everyone in the running a chance at the $5000 check (first get picked in a random draw based on a solid finish on any one stage that you got to shoot, then all you have to do is win a shootoff against some of the best practical shooters in the US- congrats to Mr. Butler). Stage design was better than any previous BRM3G. Rockcastle shooting center- Nick, Nate- and the rest of the crew are awesome. The food was tasty and reasonably priced on site and the service was excellent. Wounded Warrior auction raised wads of money even though it was held in a big tent during a monsoon. Shooting with Team FN was an awesome experience. Those guys and girls are all a class act and very talented at what they do. FN should be very proud of them. Having a famous country music singer around was okay, too. I have it on good authority that 3-gun is his new favorite hobby and he may have already registered for another match to be held somewhere, sometime very soon. I'm sure BRM3G in '11 will be a blast as well (rain or shine)...

[Bryan 45]

Thanks to Andy, Sabre Defence, and all the great folks at Rockcastle for another wonderful match in my back yard. I shot all 10 stages on Wednesday and Thursday with a great group of guys and enjoyed working stage 6 with Scott Hawkins and Sean McCanne- the only stage of the match shot from an asphalt road! We were standing out there in the rain on Saturday waiting for our next squad to show up. A little (2 inches!) rain wasn't going to slow us down.

Thanks to all the sponsors, especially Adams Arms for a kick-ass rifle piston conversion kit, 3-Gun Nation for a very memorable shoot-off, Alan Sheperd for the Barrett hat, and all the great shooters that helped the RO's reset stages.

I wanted to edit to add a big thanks to Mike and Bret. These guys made sure things ran smooth, and with almost 10% of shooters timing out at 4 minutes, it would be easy to eat up over 10 minutes a shooter without these guys keeping things moving.

Edited April 26, 2010 by Bryan 45

[mike.45]

especially Sabre who was out in force again to cover for people like Mikey, whose country let a little ash ground planes!

Hey !!! I was on the phone to Guy who owns Sabre and lives in the UK, almost every day, to see if we could make the match.....if the guy who owns the company could not make it then I am sure I have an excuse !!!

I will make the Pan Ams, and hopefully with a small stay after with some help !!!

Edited April 26, 2010 by mike.45

[Jeff F]

I just want to thank Andy and all the staff for putting a great match together. Nick and Nate did an outstanding job trying to get all the roads in driving order and I will surely be back next year.

Cannot control the weather but Andy did a great job and I am sure next year will be even better.

[MarkCO]

Thanks Andy, and all of the staff from the BRM3G and Rock Castle! It was fun, challenging and a learning experience all in one. BIG thanks to ALL of the sponsors and the generosity towards the Wounded Warrior Project...$27K was reportecly raised! Thanks Trey and NRA for your encouragement and support. Thanks to 3Gun Nation as well for the shoot-off fun.

As an also not top shooter, I asked Andy if he would consider posting just the top total score on each stage so we could use our scoresheets to figure out our percentage on the stages we shot. He agreed it was a good idea and indicated he would consider it. I'm supposed to e-mail him in a few weeks if it does not show up. I am sure he has a lot of things to do.

Stage 6 ROs, you may have had blacktop, but you still ran a tight ship... Stage 9 was my favorite stage, with 6 and 10 not far behind. Cheers to Squad 5, good to meet new friends and shoot with old friends alike!

Hope to make it back next year.

[RUBIXO]

I will say that I am surprised with quite a few posts on this forum about this match...While I think that Andy put a lot of work into this match I don't think the stage design/process was thought through (and that comes from more RO's than shooters). We were 2 hours behind before the weather hit so it wasn't a surprise when the match was canceled for 2-3 hours of bad weather. I have never been to a match that doesn't shoot in the rain.

I don't care how many people defend the match direction...I listened to so many people that were a part of the match express disagreement with the decision/ disappointment (when we talk about decision makers) that I would never spend any more time coming to this match as long as it is run with the same philosophy.

As response to an earlier post: "results, have you not....?"

Ummm...yeah, I was there when it happened. Let's see:

Drive 1500 miles round trip...

Match entry fee of $285

Expend 400+ rounds of various ammo

3 nights of hotel expenses

ARE YOU F****** KIDDING ME!

There should be some type of results posted...no matter how incomplete they are.

[homeyclaus]

Rubixo, no doubt would everyone wanted to have been able to continue, but I am not sure about how I would have felt standing in the middle of the field with a squad holding lightning rods. After the first 20 minutes of rain, they had to send a tractor to get people off of stage 5 as their vehicles, both cars and trucks alike, got stuck. Had the match resumed after the rain stopped at 1630, the clay roads would have become impassable after the 10th vehicle. Even the next morning, where by morning the ground had firmed up again, coming off of stage 4 at 1130 was dicey once more, as every vehicle softened the road up. It's the nature of the soil in the area.

I heard stages 1, 2 and 3 were worse in places, so this would have turned into a game where only 4x4 truck people could play. Or everyone goes trooper class.

I do agree with posting the scores of the people who had completed the stages though, that would have been nice, even just to see how you did relative to other shooters on that stage. There would have been complaints anyways, either way, so it's a no-win situation for the organizers no matter how you look at it. In fact no matter what they did after the rain, it was a no-win.

As far as stages falling behind, some squads were better than others at keeping their pace. Par time on each stage, for each shooter was something like 7 minutes, that's 4 minutes shooting, and 3-4 minutes to get the rest of the squad to reset to keep the schedule. Without breaching etiquette, there is no way to make some squads do that.

[Religious Shooter]

Wow! This match looks awesome.

I need to get in shape and shoot it in 2011.

[Tomta1969]

I just want to say thanks for the match! I learned, and gained some good experience from this match. I loved the physical, and mental challenge, plus the long distance shots for all the weapons.

I will return next year.

Tom Donley

[Sean.McCanne]

I had a great time working this match...and stage 6 was a great one to work on. The Sabre full autos were great! Thanks to all the competitors who worked so hard to help keep us on time and the 4H kids who came out and worked just as hard as everyone else. Thanks to all of you who made donations to help them keep shooting.

Sabre and Adams Arms, you guys put out some great rifles for us to play with, and thanks again for that. Allan, I loved getting to shoot the Barrett 338. That was pretty cool. Thanks to all the other sponsors who came out and supported us and a big thanks to the NRA for coming to play. I hope you guys found what you were looking for!

Yeah, the rain sucked, but the right decision was made. That was really the only way to go at that point. There was quite a bit of lively discussion, but the end result was the same. Andy, Mike and Bret, you guys put on a great match. Jim and the General and the Rockcastle guys, you have a great facility and I'm glad I could come play. I'll be back.

Oh yeah, STAGE 8!!!!

Edited April 27, 2010 by Sean.McCanne

[buzzworm]

A BIG thanks to Andy, Tammy, Mike, Nick, Nate, Allen, Barrett, Sabre, and EVERYONE that worked so hard so that I could come out and play. Great stages, SUPER ROs, lots of fun.

The "secret stage" was great, I vote "best stage of the year".

Good to see old friends, and make new ones. Good shooting with squad 12. Congrats to "Rabbit" for great shooting and getting into the shoot-off.

As far as the weather. Like everyone else, I watched the forcast, I knew the possibility of it getting cancelled, I made the decision to go, and I live with MY decision. I shot 7 before the rain, and it was slick then. I would not want to do it after the rain. People running on hills and trails after all that rain would have been asking for broken arms, legs, or worse. I really enjoy natural terain matches, and the weather is always a factor to consider when going to one. Andy made the right decision for the safety of EVERYONE involved. It was a tough one, but the right one. Thanks Andy!

[Ron B]

Andy and his crew did a fantastic job setting up and running the match. Rockcastle were gracious and appreciative hosts. As with any large match there will be hiccups. The weather situation was more than a hiccup (insurance policies call it an Act of God) but the alternatives as to how to proceed were presented and determined by a vote of shooters. Any shooter disappointed with the outcome is entitled to their opinion and can "vote with their pocketbook" as to participating in next year's match. However, I have plenty of shooting buddies that couldn't get into this year's match that will be more than pleased to take an unhappy shooter's spot in next year's match.

Thanks again to Andy, Tammy, Mike, RO's, Sponsors, Rockcastle, 4H etc. for making this third BRM3G the most fun match you can shoot.

[BayouSlide]

As a BRM3G first-timer, I quickly became aware that, without a doubt, this was the finest and most challenging match I have ever experienced. If I limit myself to one major next year, there is no contest...BRM3G is the one.

Thanks and highest compliments to Andy Horner and all involved for an unforgettable experience

Curtis

[Dan Sierpina]

Thank you to Andy, all of his staff, and all the R.O.'s for putting on this match. I had a great time. Everything was indeed challenging, not only to the shooting ability, but body and mind as well. Stage 8 was a blast! I hope to see something down in the cave again.

Squad 5 was a great bunch of people. It's not very often you squad with total strangers, and finish the match with the desire to squad with every one of them again!

The weather was strange, but, the call that was made will leave a better impression to most of the shooters, I feel. Many traveled a long distance, and travel plans would have been messed up for more than a few.

[RWF]

I will say that I am surprised with quite a few posts on this forum about this match...While I think that Andy put a lot of work into this match I don't think the stage design/process was thought through (and that comes from more RO's than shooters). We were 2 hours behind before the weather hit so it wasn't a surprise when the match was canceled for 2-3 hours of bad weather. I have never been to a match that doesn't shoot in the rain.

I don't care how many people defend the match direction...I listened to so many people that were a part of the match express disagreement with the decision/ disappointment (when we talk about decision makers) that I would never spend any more time coming to this match as long as it is run with the same philosophy.

As response to an earlier post: "results, have you not....?"

Ummm...yeah, I was there when it happened. Let's see:

Drive 1500 miles round trip...

Match entry fee of $285

Expend 400+ rounds of various ammo

3 nights of hotel expenses

ARE YOU F****** KIDDING ME!

There should be some type of results posted...no matter how incomplete they are.

Some matches are continued in the rain as long as it is not severe. I was only watching, but I do shoot pistol matches. This is not the first time a shoot was called due to severe weather that had lightening. We were on stage 5 Saturday just when it started to down pour and us and another truck slid all the way down to the fence, most of it side ways with no control and 2 tractors had to come pull everyone out. Even golfers are made to leave the course due to lightening. The bad weather was predicted in advance. Those who came to shoot chose to do so knowing how it may turn out. Every design has a flaw. If you can not have fun doing this sport, then maybe you need to try golf. And to get this straight, I am the wife, So don't take this out on my hubby, address it to WANDA! Not all scores are posted instantly. Remember, you were not the only one there. All the pictures are not posted yet either, no bithing? Sounds like you are ready for a diaper change. Thank you for your time of reading this. This is Wanda signing off.

[V.C.]

Andy Horner and Mike Oberman always design a challenging match. The RO's shot 5 stages a day on Wednesday and Thursday, clearing some of the vegatation for the rest of the shooters. As a claustrophobe I found the "Suprise" stage in the cave to be somewhat disconcerting and test of will. For me, the suprise was that it turned out to be one of my better stages in the match.

Andy's decision to stop the match on Saturday was the only viable decision that could be made at that time. With lightning in the area and deteroaiting stage conditions, to continue would have invited disaster.

For Steve Shimek, Mike DeBrock and the shooters who worked to reset Stage 9 quickly and keep us running, Thank You.

[gose]

As far as I remember, there was a show of hands between two options presented by Andy; continue (and try to get everyone through at least few stages), or cancel, and the majority did not want to continue shooting.

Halting shooting on Saturday seemed like a wise choice, but I would have preferred that they made up a plan to get everyone through a few stages (even if it was just two) on Sunday, and not cancel it until they knew how the weather actually turned out. However, the call was made, and there's not much that can be done about it now.

Thanks Andy for some great stages, we'll be back next year.

Edited April 27, 2010 by gose

[homeyclaus]

The problem with trying to run everyone through on Sunday was that many shooters and RO's had > 10 hour drives home and had to work Monday morning. That generally means trying to be out of Park City by 1700 or so, if not earlier, never mind trying to stay awake driving that long after running 2000+ yards in a day. So many shooters would not have shot all stages either because of access issues and the limits of daylight hours.

[Doug H.]

I was the last guy to shoot the Cave during the match. Our whole squad was in there to stay out of the rain. Several of the trucks, both 2 wheel and 4 wheel drive, barely made it out of the parking area for Stage 8. I didn't go out on Sunday to shoot stages 1 & 2 that I was scheduled for because I didn't want to get my rental Yukon stuck.

In my opinion Andy made the right decision based on the condition of the match grounds. At a range where the bays are more improved, the decision probably would have been different. The draw of a match like Blue Ridge is the natural setting but you have to take the good with the bad. I checked the weather before I came out and I knew T-Storms were a possiblity but I came out anyway. Am I disapointed, yes, but the weather was not Andy's fault.

Doug

[latewatch]

Just for the folks that were dissapointed the match was canceled for "rain" here's a clip of the tornado that touched down in Sunfish, Ky. on Saturday. Sunfish is about 20 miles from where we were shooting.

http://www.wbko.com/home/headlines/92140119.html

The call on the weather was definitely the right one.

[Casman]

Andy and Crew,

You all put on a great match and put a ton of work into it. Thank you all for a great bunch of shooting! The stages were absolutely a blast to shoot and the area is just gorgeous. As soon as someone figures out how to control the weather we'll be set; but under tough circumstances you made the right choice. For most of us this is a game that we play for fun and adding unnecessarily to the risk of going home broken does not serve any of us well.

For anyone who is disappointed in the cancellation I would just say; yes, it’s a bummer but take it from someone who is on the setup crew for another of the big matches it was a much bigger bummer for the crew who put on this event. They have spent countless hours exploring the area, planning the stages, laying out the administration, securing sponsors, working with shooters, building the stages, etc. For them to put all of that into the match and then give us, the shooters, the option of trying to bulldoze ahead or to be safe and call it was mighty generous. They deserve a huge round of applause!

Thanks again to the whole crew, the sponsors, the NRA, Three-gun Nation, The Rockcastle Shooting Center and anyone else that I have forgotten.

I can’t wait to get back out there next year! I look forward to seeing many of you at RM3G in a couple of months.

[RWF]

Andy and his crew did a fantastic job setting up and running the match. Rockcastle were gracious and appreciative hosts. As with any large match there will be hiccups. The weather situation was more than a hiccup (insurance policies call it an Act of God) but the alternatives as to how to proceed were presented and determined by a vote of shooters. Any shooter disappointed with the outcome is entitled to their opinion and can "vote with their pocketbook" as to participating in next year's match. However, I have plenty of shooting buddies that couldn't get into this year's match that will be more than pleased to take an unhappy shooter's spot in next year's match.

Thanks again to Andy, Tammy, Mike, RO's, Sponsors, Rockcastle, 4H etc. for making this third BRM3G the most fun match you can shoot.

I agree 100%. Wanda (the W of RWF)