I am certainly pleased by the number of inquires and emails that I have received concerning shooting air rifles from the bench. I want to take minute and thank all the match directors that have joined with me in shooting air rifles this year and as spring fast approaches know that some great scores are going to be shot this year. Already the record targets have been coming in and in the unlimited class 250’s have been shot. I believe we are going to see some high x-counts when the season gets under full swing. There are currently 8 sanctioned clubs and others working to get matches scheduled at their clubs along with other events.  We are beta testing a feature on the website such that match directors can upload their match scores directly to the website.

The rules have been updated to reflect the addition of the Springer Class and the elimination of the Sport Class. Hopefully, the addition of the Springer Class will bring in more shooters who want to show off the accuracy of their spring powered rifles.

The Match Schedule has also been updated with the match dates that have been received so far. We still have some clubs who have not finalized their schedules and these will be posted as they are received. You can click on the match date if it’s highlighted to see the results.

Don Matzeder held the first ever AirGun Benchrest match on January 26. It was a cold and blustery day to be shooting, but it paid off with three Airgun Benchrest World Records being set. Since the Sport Class has been eliminated for the time being, Don Matzeder gets to keep the Sport Class record for awhile.

There is now a Contact Page with the addresses of the ranges along with the names of the Match Directors. You can email the Match Directors by going to the Email Us page and choosing the contact name from the drop down box. This was done to help prevent spam bots from stealing addresses and filling inboxes with junk emails.

There has been a lot of talk about what rifles and equipment to use for these games. Hopefully, we’ll be able to get some helpful hints and suggestions in print soon. Also, we’re working on getting some rifle field tests that are focused on performance off the bench. A set of guidelines is being developed so that the tests are as uniform and unbiased as possible. 

If you’re interested in trying AirGun Benchest, start talking it up at your local ranges to see if it can become a part of their competition programs. Here’s a little hint on how to get it off the ground faster…volunteer to help run the matches.

Check back for the latest news.