What made you interested in long range shooting?

[Sujumanji]

I am from Pennsylvania. I've hunted quite a bit throughout my life. We just returned from a 3 day waterfowl hunt in Stuttgart, AR. I've hunted quite a few PA deer but recently booked a trip of a life time to WY to hunt Mule Deer and Antelope. I expect to have to take some decently long shots so I figured I'd better brush up on my LR game! I'm looking forward to learning from you all.

 

[WYOHTF]

I am from Pennsylvania. I've hunted quite a bit throughout my life. We just returned from a 3 day waterfowl hunt in Stuttgart, AR. I've hunted quite a few PA deer but recently booked a trip of a life time to WY to hunt Mule Deer and Antelope. I expect to have to take some decently long shots so I figured I'd better brush up on my LR game! I'm looking forward to learning from you all.

There is lots of knowledge here for sure, I have learned much and am am a better reloader and LRR shooter because of this site.
Good luck on your hunt

 

[Sujumanji]

There is lots of knowledge here for sure, I have learned much and am am a better reloader and LRR shooter because of this site.
Good luck on your hunt

Thank you! My dad's recently taught me to reload (thanks ammo prices!) and I'm having fun taking over his shop loading mostly 9mm, 5.56, 300blk, 6.5CM and 6.5PRC. I'm fortunate that he has every gadget and tool known to man. Hunt is in November so I'll be sure to post results.

 

[crittrgittr]

There is lots of knowledge here for sure, I have learned much and am am a better reloader and LRR shooter because of this site.
Good luck on your hunt

This!!!!

 

[WildRose]

I grew up in the Texas Panhandle on the Llano Estacado at around 4,200' shooting mainly prairie dogs and coyotes that could see us further than we could see them most of the time.

I expanded this a bit in 72 when we started hunting Antelope across the border in NM North and west of Roswell.

I guess you could say it came naturally, but not without a whole lot of trial, effort, lots of misses, and more than a fair bit of aggravation.

 

[yobuck]

Because hunting the steep sidehills is both more productive and enjoyable if you do it with your eyes as opposed to using your feet.

 

[WYOHTF]

Because hunting the steep sidehills is both more productive and enjoyable if you do it with your eyes as opposed to using your feet.

Sometimes it can not be enjoyable because our eyes have not discussed with our feet what is needed of them after the shot

 

[ATH]

I grew up in a place only slug guns and muzzleloaders were legal for deer, and the technologies for both in the 90s were limited. I was stretching things with a ML to 300 yds. Joined here for learnings to apply to that, and eventually transitioned to applying that to centerfire for hunting out west. A lot in common between ML hunting at 300 and centerfire at 1000...

 

[mooch]

Ive always wanted to shoot just a bit further than the opportunities I get. Where I hunt most shots come at 75 yards but I always find myself walking just a bit slower when I come to a field edge or a lake hoping to see my quarry hundreds of yards away

 

[Savagehunter1968]

Huge 5x5 mule deer standing wide open on a cliff 800 yards above me. Me with a .308. Super dry and loud and very very steep no way to close the distance though I did try. Buck of a lifetime probably laughed at me the whole time. That same year there was a couple of Russian guys with high end gear talking how they shoot to a thousand yards. Saw them kill 2 bucks one at 897 and another at 780. Next year I had a 6.5x.284 and was reloading. Killed bucks out to 500 now but nothing near the size of that ol boy and still not comfortable enough to go past 500 on an animal. Goal next year is 500 rnds past 500 yards. Practice makes perfect.

 

[mooredj]

I am an engineer by trade. I was also working towards my black belt in statistics. Always fascinated but trying to make a single hole in a target with multiple rounds at longer distances. I am working to apply what I know about statistics and design of experiments to the art of long distance shooting. What I learn I will share here.

 

[yobuck]

Huge 5x5 mule deer standing wide open on a cliff 800 yards above me. Me with a .308. Super dry and loud and very very steep no way to close the distance though I did try. Buck of a lifetime probably laughed at me the whole time. That same year there was a couple of Russian guys with high end gear talking how they shoot to a thousand yards. Saw them kill 2 bucks one at 897 and another at 780. Next year I had a 6.5x.284 and was reloading. Killed bucks out to 500 now but nothing near the size of that ol boy and still not comfortable enough to go past 500 on an animal. Goal next year is 500 rnds past 500 yards. Practice makes perfect.

Consider how, as opposed to how much, in other words, cheat all you can with how and what you use to improve your odds.

 

[Kline]

I was always obsessed with the "mystique" of it when I knew nothing about it. Ever since I can remember as a young boy I wanted to be a sniper, I'm not sure I can even pinpoint exactly what it was about it. Anyways that's partially what caused me to take the path I did in life. Since then, the science, skill and the enthusiasm of most of the people that you find in the community of long range shooters kept and keeps me interested.

 

[WildRose]

I read elsewhere in a thread about the division and the lack of manners for one another we have these days. It made me think about why I came to this thread or any others. We all have a story about what made us interested in shooting distance, share your story if you are inclined. We have a common interest but how we each arrived there could make for some interesting stories.

I have hunted since I was a boy, starting out with my dad's Ruger .44 pistol or my 30-30 Marlin. Like many on here I spent some time in the military as a young man and was exposed to that plastic M16A1. Growing up and hunting in the Ozarks, I had never taken a shot over 125 yards. The fact that I could routinely hit a silhouette from 50 to 300 meters with that little bullet out of my plastic rifle was pretty cool for this hillbilly. I would have to say that is where I first became interested in shooting distance. Share your story if your inclined

I grew up on the Llano Estacado in The Texas Panhandle. Everything was "long range" from Prairie Dogs, to running coyotes.

We were taught the basic rifle skills at a local range in the bottom of an old caliche pit but the rest you just had to learn by missing a lot and figuring out why, then correcting.