There are no benchrests in the woods.
by David E. Petzal
I learned to hunt deer from a guy named Russ Carpenter. The best advice he ever gave me was "Learn to shoot on your hind legs like a man." Since deer usually give you no time to get into a nice, steady position like sitting, and since there's a shortage of benchrests in the woods, it pays to be able to shoot upright.
Prerequisite Skills: The Mount
Once you have positively identified your target (I will say that again: Once you have positively identified your target), bring your rifle up to your shoulder, holding the barrel level. Do not point the muzzle at the sky, as so many shooters do. It's unsafe and costs you seconds. Keeping your eye on the critter, raise the rifle so the comb of the stock comes up to your cheek. Do not drop your head down to meet the stock. If you have to lower your skull more than an inch or two, your rifle does not fit and you should see a gunsmith. The butt of the rifle does not come straight up; instead, it describes a short arc out from your body and up and in to your shoulder. This way, it won't snag on your coat.
Advanced Skills: Control
The offhand position is simple. Assuming you shoot right-handed, stand sideways to the target with your feet shoulder-width apart. Raise your right elbow until your upper arm is parallel to the ground. This will cause a pocket to form into which the gun butt can fit. Keep your left elbow directly under the rifle. If you let it swing out to the side, you will be supporting the gun with the biceps of your left arm, and no one can do that and keep a steady aim.
As you will see, good offhand shooting is predicated on being able to make the rifle go off the instant the crosshairs are where they should be. No one is able to hold a rifle perfectly steady from this position, so you need to develop the ability to give a controlled yank the instant you have the correct sight picture. If your trigger pull is mushy, or gritty, or heavy, there is no controlled yank in your future.
A good trigger should break like a glass rod snapping and should require no more than 4 pounds, nor less than 3 pounds, of pressure to make it go off. I've seen some hunting rifles with 2-pound triggers, and they are accidents waiting to happen.
There are three ways you can practice. One is by dry-firing with your centerfire rifle. This is invaluable, cheap, and noiseless and won't hurt your gun a bit. I have rifles I've been dry-firing for 40 years. Second, practice with a .22 on paper targets so you can keep score. Third, bring your centerfire to the range and take the challenge below.
The Challenge
Shoot your centerfire at an NRA slow-fire pistol target (the one with the 8-inch bull's-eye) at 100 yards. Mount your rifle, and give yourself a slow count of three to get the shot off. Fire in strings of 20 rounds. A hit anywhere in the black counts; anywhere outside it is a miss. A shot that doesn't go off within three seconds is a miss. If you can get 18 out of 20 in the black, consider yourself a rifleman.
SPECIAL THANKS TO FIELD AND STREAM MAGAZINE FOR THIS ARTICLE. |
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