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Shooting for short guys

weeds

Private
Full Member
Minuteman
Jul 26, 2009
16
10
37
Pittsburgh, PA
Any chance we could get more discussion on navigating obstacles that are not designed for us vertically challenged people in mind? A common theme I've heard with PRS is that props (especially that damned barricade) are designed with taller people in mind and are either extremely difficult or, in my case, just unsafe to shoot off of. Frank has said before that he stands on a bag to shoot the "standing" portion. I personally use a folding stool, but the footprint is pretty small and trying to brace a rifle through recoil while standing on a 12"x12" platform, then hop down, move all this stuff without breaking the 180, and do it to get the shortest time possible (because this is the "skills" stage) is a bit much.

While the barricade is a standard and could be practiced to alleviate some of my personal issues, other props are made out of whatever the range has on hand. If I go out to a match and my tactistool is even only 1/2 mile away, I don't have enough time to drop my gear, run to my car, get the stool, run back, write down dope, and prep for the stage before it's my turn to shoot. So I'm left trying to figure out how to effectively and safely shoot a stage when my rifle is on a prop high enough that I need to be on my tiptoes to even see through the scope.

I have been shooting NRL22 matches and one of the things I do appreciate about those is that they cater to the shorter/younger shooters right in their course of fire. The only obstacle they use that I couldn't safely shoot off of is the ladder and if they require shooting from the top rung the stage description typically says "shoot from another rung". No additional stress on the MD's part, no questions from the ROs, and the shooter is more comfortable because they don't have to worry about how they're going to complete a stage without being a safety hazard.

If this has been discussed before, please share a link because I missed it.