Sniper’s Hide is no different from other forums covering niche activities. Having been involved in competitive ATA Trap and track days for decades I’m aware of ”Social power dynamics. Accusations of posing can often relate to power imbalances within the group. People with more social power, or those who have been part of the group for longer, may dictate who is "real" and who is not, often reinforcing their own status or a particular group.
Having owned over forty-five motorcycles with dozens being dedicated track motorcycles, some of which were the subject of motorcycle comparisons, there were the “Gatekeepers” that insinuated having pristine track bikes with the latest gear were “poseurs,” thankfully my lap times ended such descriptions.
As I progressed in ATA meets I upgraded my competitive shotgun to a Beretta DT11 Black and flew back to Wenig Custom Gunstocks for a personal fitting in Lincoln Missouri who makes custom fitted stocks for six-time Olympic Champion Kim Rhodes and others. To a lesser degree, “Gatekeepers” at various events and clubs thought having a custom gun cart, custom DT11 Black and Wenig stock, top of the line shooting glasses, custom vest etc. suggested I was in some manner beneath their group using older guns with years of wear as they forewent carts as a rite of passage to some elevated group. While I didn’t consider myself a top competitor I managed several 98 and 99’s out of a hundred at events.
In my experience at competitions professional race teams and top shooters always had nice equipment. Even in Supercross where bikes are filthy after each race, they come to the line in the next moto clean and pristine. I have not seen top competitors at regional or national shooting events with battered or well-worn guns, shooting glasses, vests etc. This observation suggests new or pristine equipment alone does not constitute being a poser.
Certainly, posers or “poseurs” exist, however, the mere ownership of nice equipment or having an interest in keeping ones equipment itself does not automatically define a poser. If the mere ownership or interest in nice equipment could define a poser, then the inverse may be true as well making the conclusion of the first assumption an invalid argument. The motivation of “Gatekeepers” is beyond the scope of this post.
Does the manufacturing of a part to reduce or eliminate wear on a chassis rifle make the manufacturer a poser as well? Does finding a solution to an issue that reduces damage to a rifle and solves a design flaw make someone a poser?
One of my dear friends who owns a security company and spent most of his adult life in the military with six tours of duty in Navy keeps his guns and hotrods in pristine condition. No one would mistake him for a “poseur.”
Having an anodized ARCA rail attached to my chassis will not eliminate scratches, but it will be more resistance than a Cerakote finish over what is likely a softer aluminum chassis.
Everyone is entitled to their opinions, assessments and biases which I have as well. However, with various degrees of success I try to remember how to structure logical arguments as often as I can in my “Golden years” and thought sharing the availability of this product which wasn’t initially easy to find might be helpful to others.
