Was I close to breaking the 180 here?
Posted Nov 5, 2017, 5:53 PM UTC
514
I think its plenty close enough to where many ROs would just say the shooter is in the wrong.
Why not engage right after passing the wall? It seems to me that you've passed this target and have maybe gone beyond 180 to engage it. Its not blatant or anything, but you have like 6-7 feet from that wall where you should have been engaging these targets and avoiding this situation completely.
2
But in your picture, it only looks close to 180 because the fault lines are super angled. They're not heading straight down-range.
For the second point - copied from above:
IIRC we weren't made aware of the "start with 3rd in rifle" rule until after I'd already made my stage plan, so I was planning to shoot all 4 on the left first, since the wall obscures the 4 on the right.
Since I had to reload and had time to walk past the wall, though, it would have been better to shoot them in the order you say.
1
I'd place the DQ line like this. Maybe even give you one or two more degrees of safety. Imho not even close. I have seen worse angles... ^_^
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Close but hard to tell with the wide angle lens.
Also concerning to me is how you loaded your shotgun. It looks like you grabbed the shotgun with your thumb inside the trigger guard at the top of the trigger and held it steady like that while you added in a round.
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Yeah, I noticed that when I was watching too. It's hard to tell because of the video quality, but I think my thumb was slightly outside. I'm not sure, but it shouldn't have been there either way.
I was loading an extra round to start with 9+1, and I forgot to do it at first, so I didn't do it the way I'd planned.
1
You did not break it, but if you had engaged them on the move you might have.
Close enough that a warning made sense.
2
I know video (especially from a fish-eyed camera like a gopro) isn't the best for seeing this, but I think you can pick out references on the ground, and look at the angles to tell.
The RO called out 180 at 4:29 as I swung right, and apparently a few other shooters watching did the same. The RO and I talked about it for about 10-15s after the stage, but I didn't argue because he has the final say and he didn't call it anyway, it was just a warning.
Anyway, he and others say I was ON the 180, but I am adamant that I wasn't even close. I think they're confusing the 180 being perpendicular to the fault lines, which are going forward and to the left. Of course, the 180 is actually parallel to the back berm (unless otherwise specified for safety reasons, which it wasn't, and there aren't any such considerations in this bay). By my estimation, the 180 is somewhere between the red lines I've drawn between the rocks (mud clumps?) on the ground in this screen cap. I may be standaing a couple inches downrange of the closest rock, but not enough to break the line.
I shot from where I had planned to, and by my estimation I had another 10-15deg to spare.
1
Is that the RO’s foot in the lower corner? I think where’s he’s standing is the real issue. He saw a muzzle swinging towards him, as did the people behind him so they had the perception you were about to be aiming at the RO. But no, I don’t think you were close.
3
I think they're confusing the 180 being perpendicular to the fault lines
This sounds about right. Not going to try to Monday morning quarterback but I don't see anything crazy in your video. He didn't DQ you so he must not have been sure himself.
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Doesn't even look cost. RO put himself in a bad spot.
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Background: I'm not a3 gun guy. My main competition is cowboy action, and that has a 170' rule. I've done USPSA, watched some others, and taken some day long action/fight focused classes.
Personally, I think it's too close for comfort, but the distortion from the video makes it hard to say (can't trust the lines on the ground). I also think that is a terrible stage design, and it's inviting a violation, especially for a left handed shooter doing a reload or clearing a malfunction.
If I were the RO, I would definitely have called this out in the pre-stage meeting so everyone is aware and extra careful. In your specific case, I don't think I would have called a violation unless it was obvious, but I might have said something quietly on the side afterwards. For sure every shooter would be cautioned again before starting the stage and encouraged to adapt their chosen firing point to make it safer for everyone.
1
Appears that everyone's mental 180 was skewed by the diagonal shooting area. Before I even read your description, it looked fine to me based on where I placed the back berm.
That said, why would you not shoot those targets first? Save yourself the possible problem next time.
IIRC we weren't made aware of the "start with 3rd in rifle" rule until after I'd already made my stage plan, so I was planning to shoot all 4 on the left first, since the wall obscures the 4 on the right.
Since I had to reload and had time to walk past the wall, though, it would have been better to shoot them in the order you say.