This weekend in between the first and second 10 shot strings of rapid fire stage, I looked through my spotting scope and it had gotten bumped and also wasn't focused. The match director was blazing through the commands for second string and I made the huge mistake of not taking the time to scope first string. I thought, "my zeros are good, don't have time and not gonna fool with it". Boy, was I the fool. I had a great group (for me) but it was about 3.5"-4" below  bottom of the X ring. . .

So........ I twiddled that knob after that and slow prone was really good but that didn't repair the damage done. Thing is, I was up for reclassification yesterday and it cost me a new card. Live and learn.

Any procedural mistakes, boneheaded blunders, or inconceivably dull-witted decisions you've made on the line that you'd care to share with us?

First time at Perry for the National Matches (classified as Marksman), fired my sighters and made my sight correction in the opposite direction.  I ended up with a nice group at the edge of the nine ring.  The group was tight enough that it could have been my first ever clean if it was properly centered.

Funny that you bring this up. I was shooting a practice GSM match on my own with the Garand this weekend. 95 on prone slow, so I figured my zero was good for rapid. Guess I had my sling a little too tight or my elevation knob slipped cause this happened during rapid.
https://i.imgur.com/KwNlpnZ.jpg

Cross-fired an X on my 20th shot from 600 in the Hearst Doubles last year.  I would have shot a 287-2X, putting me in 64th place out of 632 entries, and it would have been a personal best for a 30-round match.  

Your not getting a new card any time soon the NRA is not accepting scores and have laid off completions staff

Sanctioned matches resumed on July 1, 2020

Ok, bit of a necro post but here goes. I get prone at 600, scope my target, and fire my sighters which are two 10's just below the X. I start my timed fire scoping each shot. As I'm looking through my scope I see the target go down and come up and scored. The problem was I never took the shot. I had bumped my scope and was looking at the target to my right. Lucky for me I was only three shots in, and was being scored in the pit.

I never make mistakes.  ;-)


It seemed to me, the difference between marksman, expert and master could be as little as the elimination of mistake(s).  Making high master required you to actually have skill - know how to read the wind and have really good technique, etc.  

Making master was relatively easy.  Making high master was not easy.