Shooting in a strong wind

[pistolero45]

Today I did some offhand target practice in a very strong wind. We all know the bullet gets blown around, but it is also very hard to hold steady when the wind is strong enough to take your hat off. So does anyone else make a point of practicing in windy conditions? Do you think this practice helps should you be at a match on a very windy day?

[glen ring]

It's usually windy here in Oklahoma so I 've made it a point to practice in the wind making note of approx. how fast it's blowing from the north or south as my range sits east and west.

I've only been shooting this discipline for about a year, but I figure the more I know my rifle and cartridge the better off I am.

[Dee]

I did some pigs and chickens today and it was a bit windy. I think it helps to practice in the wind since it will be windy someday during a match. Last year for my very first match it was really windy and I shot a 14/40 the next few months it was perfect mornings and I could not top my 14 lol. Got up to 22/40 by the last match of the year however.

When its windy my body has a tendency to sway and as the wind ebbs and flows my torso moves a bit. I just try to be more patient if I am really feeling the wind and see the flags whipping around and wait for a lull to try and break the shot. Today it was pretty sustained and I practiced holding on the ham to get the pigs center shots. It definetly helps you understand the relationship between felt/observed wind and the affect it has on your shots, even more so at 84 and 110 yards.


Dee

[yankee]

The next time you go to the range or the back yard and it is windy just sit with a watch with a piece of paper. Make notes on how hard the wind is blowing and time it.
You shoulod fine out that it builds up and drops off. Most of the time the cycle will be the same or close. I found it is usually around a 7 to 8 minute cycle. Each day is different and you have to check. Also does it drop off sharply after the peak or taper off. This will give you a shooting time when it is calmest.
Now with silhouette shooting we only have 2.5 minutes and it seems like "Ready" is always called when the wind is starting to increase.
Put the wind in your face, taste it, smell it, feel it. Let the computer in your head do the math. All you have to do is give it some information. The same with the rest of your surroundings.
Yes, practice in the wind. You know how well the rifle will shoot so now see how the wind plays with the bullets.

[chickenchoker]

I surfed for 20 years and you get a pretty good idea of how the wind effects it's surroundings. All you have to do is look at the waves. The waves usually come in sets of 7-9 with the last 2 waves being the largest. Since the wind generates the waves you can get a pretty good picture of how the wind acts. On dry land you just have to find the visual indicator in the surroundings to let you know what cycle the wind is in. If you compare the crest of the wave as being the wind at it's highest value and the trough between crests as the lowest value, then as the peak of the wind just starts to drop, you need to get ready for the ebb of the winds flow. If you practice in the wind, knowing what the wind is doing just becomes second nature.

[sobrbiker883]

80% of the time its windy at the ranges I shoot.

Dead calm in the driveway when I leave, swirling gusts at the line.....go figure.

We even have come to believe that "listo" means "come on wind!".....

Practice in any conditions for any discipline is always good, if one nptes the effects on the shooter and the shot

[Bob259]

Steve, I believe it's the 'Fire' command that sets the wind off.

[Jerry G]

Listo or ready to you northern folks does mean 'come on wind' and Fuego or fire to you northern folks means 'blow hard for the next 2 1/2 minutes'.

I don't think is is a good idea to practice in the wind because it teaches you to jerk the trigger when the animal comes into view. Now, if you work real hard not to jerk, the practice may help.

Shooting into a piece of paper from the bench will teach you much more about what the wind does to your bullet.

If you are shooting during a changing wind, you need a good spotter to call the wind changes.

[dwl]

Let's see if a dumb country boy can figure out this Spanish stuff. Listo means get ready to blow. Fuego means blow now and Raton means blow the targets of'n the stands. Did I get that right, Jerry?

That surfer was right though. If you wait patiently, the wind will show you what the targets on the stands to the right and left of you look like.

dwl

[Jerry G]

You are catching on th this foreign talk real fast. I'm kinna leaning toward Raton means lets see if we can blow all the targets off the stands before any comands are given. Maybe it means rain real hard with a little hail thrown in. Raton is hard to figure.