MIDNIGHT MADNESS!

The WLOPA 'BLACK OUT' FT Shoot

May 26, 2006

For the past couple of years, several of the WLOPA airgunners have mused over what it would be like to offer a night time Field Target venue.  SO, we put our heads together, and decided that the prime time to do a night-time shoot experiment would be after our monthly meetings that occur on the last Friday of each month. As they usually end at dusk, this created the perfect opportunity to engage in some Midnight Madness.....

With the recent construction of the new FT course that has lanes situated right outside of the clubhouse,  it was possible to have the shoot in close proximity to the meeting which proved advantageous as many of the non-airguning WLOPA members had an opportunity to observe first-hand what we were doing.  (These guys don't like to walk too far at night - could have something to do with the ghost in Jake's shed - another story)...   Excitement ran pretty high among the airgunners, and we had 12 people shoot in our 16 shot AAFTA standards event.......

I wish I would have had an opportunity to take more photographs of the shoot, because having powerful flashlights and Logun Scope-mounted night lights shining down into the wooded area for the new FT course provided what can only be described as a surreal shooting environment.  Seriously, the high power of the Logun lamps illuminated the targets quite well and visibility through the scopes was not difficult, but the shadows contrasting against the illuminated frontal areas of the bushes and trees made it feel like one was shooting into an animated scene as opposed to just shooting targets in the woods.   Also, we kept photographs to a minimum because we quickly learned that the camera's strobe slowed down shooters considerably.... You know the effect - a bright photo flash leaves those nice red and yellow retinal after-images floating around in your field of view before you have a chance to readjust to the dark situation.  We also didn't allow for a sighting in period which made things interesting for the spring gun shooters.

That Rat is out there somewhere...... George Blass prepares to take a shot as Mik Miller Spots

The course consisted of 16 shots on 4 lanes, because we were not quite sure what would happen, but as it turned out, it was a lot of fun, and we learned a few things that will make it possible to do more night-time shoots with ease.  For anyone suggesting doing this, here are some tips:

1.  In addition to your gun lamp, have a small flashlight handy - we found that a lower intensity local lighting in the shooter box allowed quick location of miscellaneous things..... you know those nice to have things like PELLETS!   What would really be ideal are the hands-free headlamps that are now available at most outdoor sports stores.

2.  Have a small clip-on LED light to attach to the clipboard for recording scores.

3.  On the base of the targets, apply a small strip of reflective tape.  This makes finding the targets in the dark really easy, because the standard FT method of following the reset string to the target doesn't work particularly well if the string isn't white (we like to use red at WLOPA because it blends in well with the forest floor).

4.  Insect repellant is a must...... Whew those buggers come out at night, and we can't  have our human cigar-smoking bug repeller, Eric, be on each lane at once.

5.  Have a small local light (eg a cheap battery powered garden or driveway liner light) available at each shooting platform.

6.  If yu don't own a gun lamp, a spotter with a bright and powerful flashlight is essential.

7.  Make the KZ sizes of the targets a bit more generous than usual.  The shadows created by the lamps at night make small KZ's look really small.  If the shoot would have occurred in the daytime, the Troyer difficult factor would have been 32....but the low lighting adjustment across the entire course, jacked it up to 42!

WLOPA's official Bug Repeller, Eric prepares to produce a smokescreen as Andrew Lukban searches for the bat.
(Note for the safety concerned, Eric's gun was breech-opened and empty - the camera angle makes it look like he was pointing it at Andrew - that was not the case)

Our Midnight Madness course, as previously stated, consisted of 16 shots.  The animals were the kind that are usually nocturnal - rats, bats, frogs, etc... and we even got an occasional buzz from a real bat that decided to join the party!  When all was said and done, Mike Miller

 shot a 15/16 in the PCP division taking 1st place with his EVO-2.   George Blass was close behind him with a 13/16 also using an EVO-2.  An David Day took the Piston division with a score of 9/16 using an Air-Arms Pro-Sport.

In summary..... is this fun?  You betcha!!!!  It adds a whole new dimension to FT shooting that went beyond what we all had expected  for a nigh-time shoot...... Will we do it again?  DUH!!!!!  Just remember - WLOPA's monthly member meetings are the last friday of every month.   If you are not a WLOPA member, show up a little before dusk.  The next shoot will be a 24-30 shot course.....so come out and engage in a little MIDNIGHT MADNESS with us!

WLOPA Treasurer,  Maggie Locke, and Doug Locke... both avid
airgunners.  Maggies smile disappeared immediately after taking this shot...lesson learned... flash photography
at night doesn't help the shooters locate their targets!!!

HALLOWEEN SHOOT ANYONE?????