Snipers Paradise

John Cranford, Challenge winner with his Accuracy International rifle, is flanked by Sniper's Paradise principals Thomas Blahnik on the left and Jacob Bynum on the right

A javalina’s breath north of the Mexican border and a marlin’s beak east of the Gulf of Mexico lies a thick mesquite forest, home to tusked feral hogs, rattlesnakes, road runners, and white-tailed dear. That is, until the Janovskys arrived three years ago. Mike and Mary Jo Janovsky have carved from this harsh land a shooting oasis second to none. Appropriately dubbed the "Rio Grande Valley Shooting Center", it has become a Mecca for scatter gunners, pistoleros, and long barreled shooting fans. The subject of this article centers around yet another shooting discipline being given considerable time and energy at the RGVS Center; one that is a bit more serious in nature: Tactical Shooting.

Sniper’s Paradise is the blood, sweat, and love child of two sniper specialists. Working long hours to make available training seminars, matches, equipment, and a top notch course, Thomas Blahnik and Jacob Bynum have developed the backbone of a short and a long range sniper course, bringing to the tactical community another top notch facility.

Sniper’s Paradise hosted its first annual sniper match June 11 through June 13 at the Rio Grande Valley Shooting Center near Rio Hondo, Texas. This article attempts to capture the essence of that experience: the course, the personnel who worked to make the match possible, the shooters involved, the equipment, and the Center.

In a preceding article entitled "An Amateur Prepares For His First Sniper Match" (Tactical Shooter August ‘99), I let my imagination, stimulated by a fear of the unknown, run wild. Living in, and being familiar with, South Texas, I imagined the worst and fretted constantly for two months about the chiggers I knew were waiting to dine on my blood. Like anyone else faced with the unknown, I drove the 150 miles south wondering what I might look like in a ghillie suit, just how fast they wear out in a low crawl, and how much a used one might go for in a yard sale. I mean … how would you go about telling the average yard sale customer what the darned thing was … a Hawaiian skirt?

The Center had marked the turn-off very well, indicating a left onto a dirt road and a drive north past an alligator infested pond toward miles of mesquite forest. As I drove I could make out the roof line of a rather large building a thousand or so yards ahead.

A lazy right turn in the road brought comfort to my soul. There in front of me stood a pleasant, civilized looking lodge. I pulled my car to a halt and eyed it for a moment, letting the sight relieve my soul of some of what my imagination had burdened me with.

I parked the car and entered the building. Racks featuring shooting equipment were on my left, the office, kitchen and dining area to my right. Passing the racks on my left, I found a comfortable sitting area, TV, and further on a meeting hall. The walls are lined with trophies, stories and photos of past experiences, and representatives of the best of indigenous and imported wildlife. The east wall is glass, presenting a view of a patio, picnic tables, and shotgunning stations beyond. Where I had imagined a hot, muggy pasture to eat my peanut butter sandwich in, I found myself languishing amid the most comfortable and inviting of settings. I was beginning to understand where the term, Sniper’s Paradise, might have originated. The Janovskys have done a most admirable job.

I found the coffee pot and a few minutes later also found that several of the competitors had already arrived and had tasted a bit of the South Texas/Mexican culture the night before. It was not long before they began pouring in, and in an hour or so we were all deep in discussion about range safety, signing up, and stuffing tee shirts and other goodies into our vehicles.

Taking the road north, the crowd moved to the ranges where the competition was to be held, the ranges that would occupy their lives for the next three days. The 100, 200, and 300 yard ranges were not far, and I studied them as I passed by, making my way to the longer ranges. I gazed at the 1000 yard range for a few minutes and shook my head. The thermometer was already pushing hard at the 100 degrees mark, and the wind off the coast had kicked up to 15 mph. I didn’t need a scope to know that the mirage was a watery shimmer, waiting to haze and obliterate the targets.

After the course of fire had been explained to the competitors, most busied themselves doping the new conditions. I was fascinated. It was not difficult to pick out the pros. They seemed (at least from my green-horn perspective) to know exactly what they were about. I could not help watching John Cranford, a Richardson, Texas Police Officer. He worked efficiently and quickly. His concentration made me a bit tired just watching him. He found his dope quickly at the shorter ranges, picked up his gear and headed straight away to the long range area. He carried himself like he owned this match, and I was convinced he did.

Rusty Rossey of Autauga Arms, Inc., accompanied by Anthony "Tony" Gimmellie, USMC and Raymond Smith, Phoenix City, Alabama PD, began unloading equipment and carrying it to the short range. Again, it was easy to see that these men knew exactly what they were doing. Two Special Forces types (Green Berets … my Alma Mater of some 30 years ago), Todd Rinehart and Timothy Cripe from Fort Carson, CO, were on the line as well, twisting knobs and checking logs.

Nineteen in all had arrived, including civilian shooters from Dallas, Houston, and local shooters, a Texas National Guard representative, and local police officers … a melding of tactical shooters from several walks of life had arrived to face the challenge. I judged the competitors to be between 25 and 50 years of age, with one notable exception.

Barclay West strolled to the line carrying a rifle almost as tall as he was. His bright blue eyes and blond hair gave him a James Dean aura. We were to find out in the next two days just how far removed from play acting this 13-year-old was, however.

I found all of the competitors to be affable, easy to talk to, and quick to share information. And why would I think otherwise? For the same reason everyone has been led to believe that all wolves are bad, I suppose. But I’ll be darned if this bunch wasn’t fun, sociable, polite, and, though controlled, enthusiastic and serious about their business … human as the next guy. It was readily apparent that snipers are burdened with a bit (more than a bit?) of a bad rap.

Saturday morning arrived early … for me at least. The 100 degree temperatures of the previous afternoon had treated my body rather unkindly, and I vowed to increase my water intake ten fold. I didn’t stray far from my CamelBak™.

Jacob and Thomas were bent on following their schedule. With the help of the range crew they called us to order just prior to 8 AM.

The shooters had been squadded into two teams. All competitors were to shoot the 100 yard moving target and then split between the short and long ranges.

Jacob and Thomas demonstrated the speed and object of the moving target exercise one time. A life-size wall had been constructed and 3 windows and 2 doors cut out. The target was a silhouette with a bull on the head and a second, larger bull on the chest. The target made its way from left to right, riding on a very ingenious and portable rail system that the two of them had designed (duplicates of which are for sale, I understand). The competitors were to shoot at either bull on the silhouette.

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"The Three Amigos." Rusty Rosey - Autauga Arms, Toney Gimmellie - USMC, and Raymond Smith - Phoenix City (AL) PD traveled over to Mexico Friday night to confer with the Federalis. They talked excitedly about comparing log books and techniques with Mexican snipers throught the night. Their dedication unparalleled, they showed up in traditional Mexican sniper/camo uniforms.

As the shooting began, it became apparent that the close distance between the windows and doors and the speed of the target made this an almost impossible task if one hoped to get the four rounds off that Thomas had allowed. That is until Todd Rinehart took the prone position. This guy needed no automatic. On the target’s return trip from right to left, I learned why. Being a left-handed shooter with a right-ported bolt, working the action did not require that he remove his hand from the trigger to do so and then return to the trigger. With his left hand on the trigger, he had only to work the bolt with his right hand. The technique was simple: he never took his right hand from the bolt, working it rapidly after each shot. Wow.

Everyone had their eyes on Barclay West as he laid out his equipment and assumed the prone position. Too much for a small fry, and too bad … such a nice kid. But there was something in this boy’s eye … a confidence, a controlled countenance. Ummmm. And then he began. Smooth and steady, the bolt came back, return, fire, again … three times right, three times left. Without anyone saying so, we knew we were looking at a young man with a skill beyond his years … the new Quigley Down Under? I wondered if he needed an agent. And I wondered if there wasn’t a bit of uneasiness among the adults, knowing that some of them were about to be beaten this weekend by a "kid"? And did I or did I not detect the slightest of grins on Jacob Bynum’s face as he watched his protg ?

It was possible to shoot three of the four rounds with some degree of control as the target traversed each way. It was the ambush lead that took a little figuring out. The movement looked extremely fast. Later, however, Thomas and Jacob invited the shooters to walk down range and take a look at their device. Thomas flipped the switch and the target began to move. I walked along side the entire distance, interested in the real speed. By golly, it was traveling no more than an ordinary, if not a slow, walk. My Schwiebert card showed a 6-inch lead at 100 yards for a walking target. Interestingly enough, my groups were about that distance behind the bull on each traverse. Unfortunately, I simply had not believed the card.

When it was all said and done, Tony Gimmellie and a local rifleman/gunsmith, Manny Vasquez, had scored high points on the moving 100 yard targets.

Teams 1 and 2 split after the moving 100, Team 1 to the short range and Team 2 to the long range courses.

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Team1 takes the barricades in the kneeling position for the 250 yard target. From bottom: Steven Woods, Epitacio Carpentier, Mark Reynolds and Kevin Alexander with their thunderboomer .300 win mags, and Barclay West.

For the Barricade Drill, Thomas had the competitors place 5 rounds near the barricade, return, touch their feet to the concrete, and wait for the command. On command everyone had 5 minutes to complete the exercise. The barricade was a sheet of plywood cut to resemble a stairway. The shooters had to low crawl forward with their rifles and shoot from the right side of the barricade from the prone position. Each then returned to the concrete, touched it, and fought his way to the barricade in a low crawl again. This continued until the competitors had shot in the prone right, sitting, kneeling, standing, and prone left positions, loading one round at each return to the barricade. We were told the targets were at 250 yards.

Although this might seem an easy drill, the barricade swayed in the wind and the support was not as stable as one would hope. Jorge Garza and Don Reynolds edged out the rest of the field despite these rather irritating (intentional?) problems. (Author’s note: undoubtedly due to my innumerable hours of practice just prior to this match, my consistency was at a peak … having scored zero points through the end of this event.)

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Timothy Cripe ready for the "Urban Mover." Note the left handed position. A right hander can't beat these left hander's speed.

Golf balls had been color-coded and hung with a string from frames at 100, 200, and 300 yards. Each competitor was allowed 2 shots at each, beginning at the 100 yard distance. Maximum points were given for a hit on the first shot.

The wind was picking up to a pretty good pace by this time, but, although the balls were moving, they were not moving as much as I had feared they might. I did think with some sympathy about the fellows on the long ranges. They would be shooting at 1000 and 600 yards about now. Talking to them at the end of the day, I found that some of them were dialing in as much as 10 to 11 minutes of windage.

If one’s rifle were zeroed and shooting well, the 100 and 200 yard golf balls were not terribly difficult to hit. The 300 was a different story. The string on the end of my barrel was standing out at an angle indicating a fair enough wind even on the leeward side of the berm. This would kick the bullet at least 2 inches at 300.

High scores were shot by Winn Morgan, Kingsville, Texas; Steven Woods, Grapevine, Texas; Jerry Underbrink, Kingsville, Texas; Raymond Smith, Phoenix City, Alabama PD; Todd Rinehart, Colorado Springs, Colorado; and James Anthony, Cameron County, Texas Sheriff’s Office.

On an 8 x 11 piece of paper was the imprint of a man’s head. Superimposed over that were five, one-inch dots. The shooters had 20 seconds to hit the dots from the prone position at 100 yards. Cleaning this target took a calm, yet fast and steady hand. The rifle’s recoil, movement on the bipod, and the weak hand made recovery difficult for an accurate, quick shot. Only the venerable John Cranford of the Richardson PD was able to hit all five. Two other competitors were able to hit four in that time period: Steven Woods and Tony Gimmellie. Mark Reynolds, Rusty Rossey, and Raymond Smith managed three.

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Ready for the 5-Dot Precision. From bottom: Raymond Smith, Jorge Garza, Ronald Evans, Manny Vasquez, and Rusty Rosey.

Team 1 ended the day with the unknown distance exercise. Banks of five steel plates had been placed down range at various distances. The plates were 12 x 12 inches and were hung from the corners. The problem facing the shooter was to determine the distance and the wind, since it was blowing about 15 mph and switching from 3 to 5 o’clock. The ranges varied from about 525 yards to 683 yards.

Each competitor was given approximately one minute to range the target and another minute to engage. Jorge Garza of Brownsville, Texas managed to hit four of the five. It is interesting to note that Jorge never touches his windage knob, but instead holds off what he feels is the appropriate distance … "Kentucky Windage". When asked by one of the other shooters why he did so, he answered, "I’m a deer hunter. Deer don’t very often give me time to mess with my dials. When I get a trophy buck in my sights, I make an immediate hold off if necessary and fire." I remember overhearing Jorge on the day before the competition say that he was holding on the target to the right of the one he wanted to hit in order to make the hit on his own. Good shooting Jorge.

Barclay West, Winn Morgan, Epitacio Carpentier of the Texas National Guard, Steven Woods, Tony Gimmellie, and James Anthony each hit three of the five.

Team 2 had some difficult conditions at the long range on Saturday. The wind was blowing at a pretty stiff clip. One can make a guess at the wind and crank in the windage or hold off. However, one’s guess of the speed of the wind may be wrong. At the longer distances, a small error means a miss. I was on Team 1 and did not have the time to cover Team 2, but I did note throughout the day that the wind was stiff, and I knew they must be having problems … at least I knew I would.

The crew was running ahead of schedule, and we all welcomed the chance to knock off and get out of the 100 degree temperatures. For those on the long range, shade was nonexistent.

Back at the lodge, a wild game dinner was being prepared. Ostrich burgers, nilgai roast and chicken fried nilgai were being cooked. Nilgai sausage was also in the pan. For those of you not familiar with nilgai – large antelope from India - let me back into a bit of the history of South Texas. The King Ranch is a legend in the area, dating back to the turn of the century when Captain King of Mississippi river boat fame came west looking for land. He amassed hundreds of thousands of acres and began raising cattle, becoming one of the largest cattle barons of the time.

The following passages are taken from the book The Nilgai Antelope in Texas (The Texas Agricultural Experiment Station, Texas A&M University System), by William J. Sheffield, Bruce A. Fall, and Bennett A. Brown.

"Records of the introduction of nilgai into North America are vague. Nilgai appear to have been acquired as zoo stock from European sources prior to 1926, with the New York City and San Diego, California zoos among the early recipients.

"King Ranch acquired nilgai brood stock, principally from the San Diego Zoological Garden, in small groups of 3-5 animals, and released them with no apparent early success. Failure of these animals may have been because they dispersed and moved long distances alone rather than remaining together to form breeding groups. In 1941, however, 8 cows and 4 bulls were freed after having been held a short time in an enclosure at Norias Headquarters. That stocking seems to have initiated the establishment of free-ranging nilgai in North America.

"Correspondence in the files of the King Ranch and information from Ranch officials indicate that the late Caesar Kelberg was the principal proponent of exotic big game on the Ranch. He felt that exotics might occupy an ecological role intermediate among the native game and livestock and thereby increase the biomass of large herbivores the range could support. Other motives cited for release of exotics have been the novelty of owning unusual animals, to increase the variety of big game for hunting, and as a human food source."

Nilgai cows and calves are tan in color. The bulls begin to turn gray with age, becoming almost a blue-black in the later stages of maturity. They are often referred to as "Blue Bulls" … in India nil meaning blue and gai meaning bull. The mature males weigh approximately 600 pounds, the cows about 400 pounds, being third in size only to the African Eland and the Greater Kudu among the antelope family. The bulls are deceptively fast on their feet, with an almost giraffe-like gait. They have great endurance and are very tenacious, taking a very well placed shot to bring down, and even then they persist at living, often running for several hundred yards before expiring. Winchester developed their Fail Safe bullet by hunting these animals. The Weatherbys and many others have taken them in an attempt to test cartridges, and readers of hunting magazines are seeing more of them sporting their pages.

The meat is very lean and lacks the characteristic taste we often associate with wild animals. The consistency of the meat of older males is rather grainy, but the cows and younger animals are tender and delicious.

I can’t comment on the ostrich, not being as familiar with them. Lisa Bynum (Jacob’s wife) of J J’s Ostrich Ranch, raises them … solving the question you might have as to why we happened to be feasting on these large birds. Thanks Lisa!

In any case, the meat was delicious as was the rest of the fare that accompanied it. I left so stuffed that I had trouble taking a shower and climbing into bed. I was so far behind the other competitors by the end of Saturday that I could not decide if I should worry more about Sunday’s shooting, my stomach, or my tired bones.

Everyone returned for the session Sunday … even me. Teams 1 and 2 made their way to the long range. They would all shoot the 600 yard moving target, after which Team 2 would try their luck at the short range for the day. Everyone seemed refreshed and ready for the challenge, full of good food and good spirits.

I noticed something significant for which I was quietly happy and anxious: the wind was calm for the first time. I was not about to lie to myself that I had the ability to deal with 100 inch hold-offs at 1000 yards. Oh, thank you, Lord, I just want a chance to pull slightly above making a complete fool of myself.

Thomas was acting as range officer and began pulling competitors’ names from the hat. He would call one shooter to the line and a second to stand by. I ended up being either the last shooter or the second to last. I waited and waited, worrying that the wind would get crazy again before I had a chance to take the 600 and 1000 yard shots. Not that I wanted an advantage over Team 2 from the day before … yeah right!

The target was a 12-inch wide by 18-inch tall reactive "Larue" type and was 600 yards distant. It moved from left to right at which time the shooter would take his shot as it passed between stakes driven in the ground. When the target reached the right side, it stopped. Thomas would give the signal to start the target to the left. This would proceed until the competitor had shot 5 rounds.

Most of the shooters spent the night in their hotel rooms calculating the lead. The target, it was decided, was moving at a rate of approximately 4.4 feet per second (I thought about that for a moment: 12" wide at 600 yards moving at 4.4 feet per second … no way!) At approximately 2600 fps muzzle velocity of the .308’s, competitors came up with somewhat different answers. But Thomas gave us a break. He and Jacob had stayed late that night and shot the moving target several times. He told us that each of them had somewhat different results, varying from 1.1 to 1.6 mils. We assumed that a difference in reaction time or approach made for the variation between them. But the task was a bit more difficult than it seemed, even with the up front information.

James Anthony, a local police officer, came out on top at this event. In second place were: John Cranford, Don Reynolds of Kaufman, Texas, and Winn Morgan.

By the way, let it be known that the names of these events are not mine, but came from the creative brains of the owners of Sniper’s Paradise. Most of the names were very appropriate, and this one was no exception. Rubber tires had been stacked high to act as a berm, and the area in front of the target was grassy. If the shooter did not hit the target, there was no way of knowing where the bullet landed.

Each competitor was given three tries. A hit on the first garnered full points, while hits on either the second or final shots were scored less. When a competitor hit, he was invited to leave the firing line. The 600 yard sitting event was conducted the same way.

The target was 18 inches wide by 30 inches tall topped by a 6 inch by 6 inch head and was made of the thick steel plate. If I am not mistaken it was the same target used for the 600 yard sitting event. In any case, in my mind, it was minuscule … at least to be shooting at 1000 yards. I could hardly see the stack of tires, let alone that little steel fellow.

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The 1000 yard plate. The 18"x30" steel plate looks pretty small from the shooter's perspective. The neck shot was compliments of 13-year-old Barclay West.

Four shooters hit the little guy on the first attempt. The author shared the honors with young Barclay West and Jerry Underbrink of Kingsville, Texas, and Raymond Smith of the Phoenix City PD. Since this is one of only two targets upon which I garnered such repute, I am dying to give you a blow by blow.

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Jerry Underbrink examines the 600 yard mover and waits for the command to fire. The author shot next to Jerry and spent the weekend admiring both Jerry's shooting ability and his Briley custom rifle

I let the string play out that I had attached to the end of my barrel. I next dialed in 35.5 minutes of elevation. I looked at the string and then at the mirage. The string hung limp, but the mirage signaled a slight wind from right to left. I dialed in 1 minute of right windage and smiled as I thought of Team 2 the day before, needing about 10 times that amount. I aimed at center mass, closed my eyes, and let ‘er fly. The suspense was killing me … first waiting for the bullet to arrive at that long distance, and then waiting for Jacob Bynum to say the magic words. "Hit Steel"! Awright, my first real points! I grabbed my gear and puffed my chest out like I knew what I was doing, like I had planned to hit the tiny object on the first attempt … or on any attempt at all for that matter, and walked off the stage feigning a calm and casual persona. Yeah right!

Team 1 had finally come to the last target. While we waited, several shooters practiced their sitting positions. It occurred to me then that I didn’t have a sling. Sweating profusely in the hot, windless air, I hot footed it back to the Durango and stripped the little Remington LTR of its sling. A small mountain sling from Uncle Mike’s, it was not very appropriate for the huge Accuracy International rifle, but it would have to do. I rushed back fearing that I was late and proceeded to figure out how a sling attached to the massive shooting iron. When I finally got it attached, I followed the lead of the other shooters and tried it on for size. I put my left arm between rifle and sling and took one wrap. I overheard someone say, "Don’t squeeze the rifle with the left hand; just let it rest on your palm". Sounded good to me. I waited.

As stated earlier, each shooter was allowed 3 attempts at the target. A first hit garnered full points; more shots got the shooter less. As I took pictures, I noted that several of the competitors used a closed sitting position. I took up the rifle again and gave it a try. Gees, I thought I would never be able to get back up. Nope, the open position for these old bones.

The wind was still behaving itself, but had churned up a bit more speed than that at 1000 as my turn came. Wind? Are you kidding, I thought as my crosshair weaved and bobbed across the grassy field. Wind is not going to be the problem here. I watched as the crosshair swished past the steel plate on occasion, making its way back and forth across the field. I laughed to myself as I thought of the immense impossibility of me hitting this tiny troll that would not stand still.

"Hit Steel"! You gotta be kidding. Me? For the second time in an hour I left the platform incredulous. But I was not alone. John Cranford (getting any clue by now as to whom might rule this match?), Mark Reynolds, Steven Woods, James Anthony, Manny Vasquez, and Jorge Garza had also made first shot hits. Second shot hits were made by Barclay West, Winn Morgan, and Tony Gimmellie.

For the second day, the crew had finished ahead of schedule. After gathering up our gear, we made our way back to the lodge. I was finally able to get both teams together for photos as we waited for the results. When the moment of truth came, we were herded into the meeting hall. Thomas and Jacob had done as great a job of organizing these proceedings as they did the shooting events. Several sponsors had donated great gifts, and Thomas had each shooter take a ticket from the spool and place it in a rotating basket in order to give them away. After the draw, most of the competitors left with something useful, and with thanks to the good hearts of the sponsors.

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Barclay West (7th place) accepts his bounty from Thomas Blahnik. Toney thought Barclay's shirt was some kind of all right.

Rifle Case and a case of Black Hills 168 grain moly-coated .308 match bullets together with a ghillie jacket going to third and second place finishers respectively; and last but not least the first place prize: an Accuracy International rifle and U.S. Optics scope.

The suspense and the naming order went thus: Tied for 5^th place: Raymond Smith and James Anthony; 4^th place: Anthony "Tony" Gimmellie; 3^rd place and the Starlight gun case: Mark Reynolds; 2^nd place and the case of Black Hills ammo and ghillie jacket: Steven Woods.

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The top five. From left: Raymond Smith, Tony Gimmellie, John Cranford, Mark Reynolds, and Steven Woods (James Anthony - not shown-was undoubtedly chasing local felons at this point)

John Cranford of Richardson, Texas PD SWAT took top honors and the Accuracy International rifle and U.S. Optics scope. Great shooting John!

I have been competing in at least ten major matches per year for thirty years. First in various kinds of pistol disciplines and then in benchrest for the past twenty. I have competed in eighteen national championships, many state and regional championships, and several events with international competitors. I love it … but there is something about what I saw at this match that stirred me to a new enthusiasm. The difference between traditional shooting competition and a sniper match defines a significance that begs some accounting. Whether it is shotgunning, highpower, benchrest, silhouette, et al, the course is always the same. In traditional benchrest, for example, we most often shoot 100 and 200 yards. No matter where we go, the course of fire never varies. The only thing that changes is the conditions. That is not to say that I am bored with this sort of competition, nor that it does not teach one vital lessons about the art of shooting. In fact, benchrest is precision at its best.

A sniper match, and the job of a sniper, on the other hand, is as far removed from the stagnation of the routine, the predictable, and the conventional as one can get. The result develops a more well rounded rifleman to be sure. The idea of facing a target under stress and without prior knowledge of the situation faced, produces a unique rifleman indeed. And while I continued to refer to this weekend’s event as a match and the participants as competitors, it would more correctly be termed training.

As for my practice over those two months prior to the match and the equipment I chose, I decided that I had not done so badly. The most valuable practice was the time I had spent on the ground. Of the equipment … well, they all came in handy, or would have in some real scenario. I found the Mil-Dot Master to be a valuable tool. I would not part with the CamelBak™ or the laser, both of which performed admirably (the laser did have a bit of a problem in the bright sun and hazy mirage). I did not choose any item that I would part with, and did find new ones at the match that I would acquire were I to continue. I particularly liked the Eagle products that I saw there. But the outstanding tools for me were the Schwiebert Ballisticards. I spent considerable time printing my rifle in various conditions and temperatures and feeding them to Lou Schwiebert. The result was color-coded cards based on various temperatures, velocities, and atmospheric conditions. They never let me down (so long as I did my job … which I often did not). They included not only come-ups but also wind drift, moving target lead, and slant. If caught in the rain, they will not melt, nor freeze in the cold. They are small enough to carry easily in a shirt pocket or buttstock sleeve for example.

I shot four varieties of ammunition and two bullet weights, and all performed very well, although the 175 grain had the definite advantage over the 168 at the longer ranges.

Many of the competitors used Federal match ammo with some use of Remington match, Israel’s Samson match, military issue match, and Black Hill’s moly-coated match ammo. The .308 caliber was by far and away the most common, with only one exception: two .300 Win Mags. Rifles varied from custom hunting rifles to the superb Accuracy International. The Remington sniper rifle in several varieties was the most common … with various stock and custom configurations. Speaking of exceptions: only one other competitor scored on every event besides John Cranford and that was Mark Reynolds shooting one of the .300 Win Mags.

I was more than apprehensive about this whole thing when I was left with little to draw from other than my own over-active imagination. But, although I hate to put it in print for Jacob Bynum to see, I can’t wait for the next "Sniper Challenge". I thoroughly enjoyed myself as did everyone … even with the dumb mistakes that many of us wish we could take back.

The organization, the range crew (Robert Lopez, Billy Colston, and David Wallace), and the Rio Grande Valley Shooting Center were outstanding, as was the food, particularly the wild game dinner on Saturday evening. Our compliments to the chef(s)! Thomas and Jacob had taken great pains to plan and run a smooth, trouble free event. And that they certainly did … down to the quick repairs of a cable damaged by an errant bullet shot at long range. And to the Janovskys, our considerable thanks for being gracious hosts, and for the use of an outstanding range dedicated to "Rebuilding Family Traditions"

The course was well thought out and executed. It had the shooters moving from 100 yards to 1000 yards, from fast moving targets at close range to tiny objects at long range. The competitors had to shoot from all the conventional positions as well as from the weak hand. Several shots had to be fired in twenty seconds at one point while a full minute was given for the execution of another. Yep, "Challenge" was a good name for this event.

I was told that this was not a physically taxing match, but I think most will agree that we got our money’s worth in the 100 degree heat. Maybe the next will take pity on an old man and run the match in nice, fall weather. Remember gentlemen: respect your elders.

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And a good time was had by all.
Top row from left: Steven Woods, Jerry Underbrink, Barclay West, Don and Mark Reynolds, Winn Morgan, John Cranford, Mary Jo Janovsky
Middle row from left: Tony Gimmellie,Ronald Evans, Timothy Cripe, Todd Rinehart, Jorge Garze, Manny Vasquez, Mike Janovsky.
Bottom row from left: Raymond Smith, Rusty Rosey, Kevin Alexander, "The Old Fart," Epitacio Carpentier, Thomas Blahnik, Jacob Bynum, James Anthony

For additional information, photos, and stats, please take a look at the Sniper’s Paradise website given below.

2005 Sniper's Paradise Collector's Rifle

Sniper Golf

Sniper’s Paradise

First Annual Sniper Challenge