It’s that time of year when the trees in upstate New York start to get streaked with color, when dried leaves begin to crunch under foot, when I get the urge to make sure that the stove on the sun porch is working properly.
While part of me wants to get ready for hibernation with a plentiful supply of warm beverages and good books next to a warm fire, another part of my inner man begins to nag at me: “This is a great time to get out and shoot. Find something fun and challenging to do!” And so, with my wife’s help, I did.
My wife is a frequent “silent” contributor to this blog. About a week ago she was thumbing through all the advertising circulars that get stuffed into the Sunday newspaper when she encountered a flyer from a craft shop.
One of the items in the circular was a “craft” pumpkin. A craft pumpkin, as it turns out, looks just like the kind of pumpkin that grows in a pumpkin patch, but it is made some kind of composite that can be carved like a regular pumpkin but won’t turn rotten over time like the real ones do. “That would make a great airgun target,” my Better Half said.
“Perhaps it would,” I said, as I began mulling the idea over in my head. A jack o’lantern would make an interesting target, I thought, but I wasn’t particularly keen on the notion of shooting up a craft pumpkin. Maybe I could come up with a paper target that would suffice.
A couple of more days of cogitation produced what you see below: Uncle Jock’s Great Pumpkin Challenge.
Here’s how it works: first, download the PDF file for the Great Pumpkin Challenge from this link. Next, print out the file at 100% on 8.5 x 11 paper, attach it to a safe target holder, and have at it.
These are the rules:
- Distance: 20 yards for match rifles and pistols under 12 foot pounds; 30 yards for air rifles and pistols 12 foot pounds and above. You can use any caliber you desire.
- The objective: Hit the black circles as close to the center as possible. There are 19 possible targets on the face of the jack o’lantern. Only one shot per black circle.
- Scoring: We’re using worst-edge scoring. If your pellet hole stays entirely within the black circle, you get 2 points. If any portion of the pellet hole breaks out of the black circle, you get one 1 point. If in doubt, you get the lower score. If you miss the black circle entirely, you get zero points. On some of the circles, it may be possible to squeeze a pellet entirely into the open space inside the black circle. If you manage that, you get 3 points. If any part of your pellet hole touches the black circle from the inside, you get 2 points. When in doubt, you get the lower score.
- Position: You may shoot from any position that is supported by the human body. SteadyAim harnesses are allowed, but shooting from a mechanical rest is not. If you want to shoot with your air rifle or pistol supported by a cushion, the airgun must be supported entirely by your hand or your arm which is resting on the cushion.
That’s it. Now print off your targets, go have fun, and let me know how you did. You can respond to this blog or you can email me with your scores and photos or scans of your targets at jock.elliott@gmail.com
Til next time, aim true and shoot straight.
– Jock Elliott
Any special notes for printing the target? I don’t have a circle big enough to get a pellet through without touching a black line.
Bobby,
Just print it at 100% on 8.5 x 11 paper. Designing the target was not an exact science.
Maybe there isn’t a circle that is large enough to shoot through without touching black.
It seems to me that if you can drill most of them without touching orange outside the black, you’re doing well.
Not complaining. I appreciate the effort. It will be fun. I just wanted to make sure I printed it right.
Bobby
Bobby,
Enjoy! I look forward to seeing how well you do.