Memories
Posted: Mon Aug 30, 2010 8:01 pm
Hi... I just joined (Aug 30) and I am taking a look around the site. A friend of mine got me started in small bore
rifle silhouette back in the late 70's. A Browning BLR 22 with a 4 power scope is what I used in my first match. Back
then they only had one class of rifles to be used here in SW Pennsylvania. After that match I was hooked.
A Remington 541S with a Leupold 24x 1/8inch dot was the next play toy. After that a Anschutz 64 MS followed by
a Anschutz 54 MS. I kept the 24x on the rifles. The ranges where the competition were Greensburg, Johnstown,
McDonald, Coraopolis, Pennsylvania. There was another one at Ridgway which I did not go to since some of the
shoots were on the same day as the closer ranges. Ridgway is the only range near me now, 119 miles that still
has the silhouette matches.
Up at Daisytown Sportsmen's near Johnstown, Pa. if you got 10 in a row they would give you a belt buckle with the
silhouette animals on it. I got mine with 10 turkeys. I got to compete in one Pa. State Match. After being laid off
from work for a while I finally landed a job. I was glad to be back to work again but I would not see Sundays off
for 10 years so there went my silhouette shooting. The 54 MS with scope was sold and that was that. The following
two years after I started work they even had the Nationals close by. They gave me Tuesday and Wednesdays off
at the state prison.
As years passed my two shooting buddies died at 44 and 49 years of age. I made it to 61 so far. I tried doing some
high power silhouette at Ridgway but it is not as fun driving the 119 miles without any shooting buddies. I go down
to the local range with my Savage MK II with a Nightforce 12x to 42x and have fun trying to shoot the flies that
land on my targets at 100 yards. I even put honey on the targets to draw then in. The other rifle that I play with
is a re-barreled Savage in .416 Taylor caliber.
Now here is something weird that happened to me in a match. No you don't have to roll up your pants legs for this.
True Story.... I was shooting at the chickens looking through the 24x scope and my spotter was looking through a
42x spotting scope. I saw the bullet hit the chicken dead center and saw the bullet flatten out to about dime size and the chicken did not move.
My spotter saw it too and replied ... If I would not have seen that myself I would not believed you if you told me what happened. The silhouette targets were on metal stands and I am wondering if some magnetic force in the earth at that split second held that chicken on that post. Yes we touched it and it went off the stand.
Well that's about it. Again, this site has brought back a lot of good memories and I will enjoy my stay here.
Thanks
Tom Zangla
South Greensburg, Pa.
rifle silhouette back in the late 70's. A Browning BLR 22 with a 4 power scope is what I used in my first match. Back
then they only had one class of rifles to be used here in SW Pennsylvania. After that match I was hooked.
A Remington 541S with a Leupold 24x 1/8inch dot was the next play toy. After that a Anschutz 64 MS followed by
a Anschutz 54 MS. I kept the 24x on the rifles. The ranges where the competition were Greensburg, Johnstown,
McDonald, Coraopolis, Pennsylvania. There was another one at Ridgway which I did not go to since some of the
shoots were on the same day as the closer ranges. Ridgway is the only range near me now, 119 miles that still
has the silhouette matches.
Up at Daisytown Sportsmen's near Johnstown, Pa. if you got 10 in a row they would give you a belt buckle with the
silhouette animals on it. I got mine with 10 turkeys. I got to compete in one Pa. State Match. After being laid off
from work for a while I finally landed a job. I was glad to be back to work again but I would not see Sundays off
for 10 years so there went my silhouette shooting. The 54 MS with scope was sold and that was that. The following
two years after I started work they even had the Nationals close by. They gave me Tuesday and Wednesdays off
at the state prison.
As years passed my two shooting buddies died at 44 and 49 years of age. I made it to 61 so far. I tried doing some
high power silhouette at Ridgway but it is not as fun driving the 119 miles without any shooting buddies. I go down
to the local range with my Savage MK II with a Nightforce 12x to 42x and have fun trying to shoot the flies that
land on my targets at 100 yards. I even put honey on the targets to draw then in. The other rifle that I play with
is a re-barreled Savage in .416 Taylor caliber.
Now here is something weird that happened to me in a match. No you don't have to roll up your pants legs for this.
True Story.... I was shooting at the chickens looking through the 24x scope and my spotter was looking through a
42x spotting scope. I saw the bullet hit the chicken dead center and saw the bullet flatten out to about dime size and the chicken did not move.
My spotter saw it too and replied ... If I would not have seen that myself I would not believed you if you told me what happened. The silhouette targets were on metal stands and I am wondering if some magnetic force in the earth at that split second held that chicken on that post. Yes we touched it and it went off the stand.
Well that's about it. Again, this site has brought back a lot of good memories and I will enjoy my stay here.
Thanks
Tom Zangla
South Greensburg, Pa.