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Very Hot Topic (More than 25 Replies) Off hand support (Read 1199 times)
sportslube
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Off hand support
May 21st, 2025 at 9:59pm
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This coming June 13,14th,15th we will be having out 37th annual Eau Claire, Wi Schuetzen match. New this year, We will be offering an opportunity for our aging shooters who no longer shoot off hand because of either age or physical impairment. They may use an OFF HAND REST, We all know shooters who no longer shoot be cause they cannot hold the gun up any more.  As of now limitation will be as follows,  70 plus or a physical or health related issue,  rest must be round and only the barrel may rest on the support,  it is our hope that this will allow our older shooters to continue to take part in more matches for a longer time.  We hope every one will support our decision to keep everyone involved in our sport.  Questions or concerns
  
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gnoahhh
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Re: Off hand support
Reply #1 - May 21st, 2025 at 10:12pm
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Good for you! I'm in that boat now and rue the fact I can't shoot offhand worth doodly-squat anymore.
  
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JerryH
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Re: Off hand support
Reply #2 - May 22nd, 2025 at 12:30am
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I think that is a wonderful idea. None of us are getting any younger.
  
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bnice
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Re: Off hand support
Reply #3 - May 22nd, 2025 at 6:11am
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Sounds good, I hope it gets a good response
  
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J.Francis
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Re: Off hand support
Reply #4 - May 22nd, 2025 at 6:38am
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I like it;it's kind of like letting older golfers use the forward gold tees so they can still hit greens in regulation. Our "birthrate" in this game isn't even at replacement levels so anything that keeps us shooting longer is a great idea.
  
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Gerald
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Re: Off hand support
Reply #5 - May 22nd, 2025 at 6:53am
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Perhaps two different scores then should be considered, those that use the support and those that do not.   
If the shooters using the support were to be more competitive than those that are not using the support it would keep the two groups separated for scoring results.
  
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Bruce P
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Re: Off hand support
Reply #6 - May 22nd, 2025 at 8:51am
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A couple of things come to mind here.

Standing and leaning your rifle on a support is not an offhand position. If you decide to follow through with this I think you need to establish a seperate classification and separate scoring rules.

That point made, and to add my humble opinion as I see it, this becomes a matter of range safety. If you have someone who is no longer steady on their feet and suffers from an occassional loss of balance, and they either stagger, stumble, or fall with a cocked rifle which happens to go off, now you have the potential for a major problem, especially if the shot leaves the range, or worse yet someone gets hurt or even killed as a result. 

I thoroughly understand trying to accomodate shooters, nor do I want to be a killjoy, but I think you need to think this over a little more. 


  
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art_ruggiero
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Re: Off hand support
Reply #7 - May 22nd, 2025 at 8:56am
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i think it is a great idea  we need to keep our older shooters .  the hell with worrying about score advantage.   old art
  
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sureshot
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Re: Off hand support
Reply #8 - May 22nd, 2025 at 12:58pm
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Doesn't the New Braunfels Club in Texas hold matches using offhand support sort of like ladder rungs?
Think I've seen pics of it somewhere.

Steve. 😀
  
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RSW
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Re: Off hand support
Reply #9 - May 22nd, 2025 at 1:59pm
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IMO - allowing a standing rest is a good idea as long as the scores are separate from offhand. Several years ago the ISSA entertained the idea of allowing a standing rest for those no longer able to shoot offhand but it never really caught on. Standing rest competitors were to shoot along with offhand shooters so there would be no squading issues.
I'm for just about anything that keeps us competing as long as possible  Smiley
  
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sureshot
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Re: Off hand support
Reply #10 - May 22nd, 2025 at 2:27pm
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Like this...

  
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burntwater
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Re: Off hand support
Reply #11 - May 22nd, 2025 at 4:03pm
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Call it range safety or whatever but an accident with injuries automatically becomes a matter of liability. Let's face it ' liability ' is almost a synonym for LAWYERS in the insurance or legal world. Nobody likes the insurance business yet unless your pockets are deep enough to self-underwrite you are a captive patron. The prospect of helping older or physically challenged competitors with an avenue for continued participation is a noble and worthwhile endeavor. I'm all for it but with both eyes open. 

So tweaking or adjusting the rules to accomplish this will realistically require some serious legal forethought. After some summary consideration I would suggest that careful wording of rule changes of this type should be written specifically to exclude any reference to a shooter's infirmity or abilities that the legal community could construe as a safety risk. Any range or sanctioned match that would permit, through their rules, such a possible risk and then subsequently sustain an injury or death as a result of such, will most certainly be susceptible to enough legal weight to possibly close them down. And remember sanctioned match rules apply not only to one but all who participate under such rules. I hate to be such a negative force on this subject but we shooters really don't need any more hurdles, self imposed or not. 

Rick
  
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sportslube
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Re: Off hand support
Reply #12 - May 22nd, 2025 at 4:07pm
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One of the reasons for tying this off hand rest/support,  a couple of years ago at our regional  one of the top shooters in this sport walked off the line and sold his off hand rifle and its equipment because he felt he was no longer competitive.  That is a major loss of knowledge for the younger shooters to learn from
  
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westerner
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Re: Off hand support
Reply #13 - May 22nd, 2025 at 4:12pm
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Gerald wrote on May 22nd, 2025 at 6:53am:
Perhaps two different scores then should be considered, those that use the support and those that do not.  
If the shooters using the support were to be more competitive than those that are not using the support it would keep the two groups separated for scoring results.

  
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frnkeore
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Re: Off hand support
Reply #14 - May 22nd, 2025 at 5:20pm
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I'm sorta for it but, how will you police it?

Some people age better than others and even in the ages from 40 - 60 a persons health will factor into it. 

A thought would be to put a FR (front rest) next to the competitor name or number, keep them out of the top 3 or any OH prize positions. Depending on how many shoot, you could give a separate prize. But, that amounts to a separate class.

And, for me, now that I'm 80, I would want to add a shoulder post to lean against or a SFR class Smiley
  
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