Shooting Sports USA, a division of the venerable NRA, has unveiled a 'Beginner's Guide to Gear, Skills & Strategy' for long-range competition that has sent shockwaves through the precision rifle community, primarily for redefining the term 'beginner.' The article, seemingly earnest in its intent, outlines foundational requirements for new competitors that include a custom action like a Defiance Ruckus or Curtis Axiom, paired with a Bartlein M24 contour chambered in 6 Dasher, all riding in an MPA Comp Chassis. Optics, the guide suggests, should be 'at least a Nightforce ATACR 7-35x56 with a Mil-XT reticle,' implying anything less is for airsoft.
Skills deemed 'entry-level' range from empirically truing ballistic data to 1500 yards across all density altitudes to consistently identifying and compensating for spin drift at 1000 yards in a 7 MPH wind moving at 10 degrees off the barrel line. The publication asserts that before attending a single match, a beginner's DOPE card should be 'fully populated with verified corrections for Coriolis effect, accounting for hemispheric rotation and latitude, out to the practical limits of the chosen cartridge.' Load development, apparently, should have already identified at least three distinct velocity nodes for their chosen 108gr ELD-M, with an SD under 2 FPS and ES below 5 FPS across a 30-shot string.
One anonymous top-20 PRS competitor, upon reviewing the guide, simply remarked, 'I still struggle with cold bore shots after two decades, and they expect *beginners* to have a full service history in a tactical unit to understand 'basic' stage planning?' ColdBore staff estimates that adhering to the guide's recommendations would place a 'beginner' firmly in the top 5% of all active competitors, if not higher, rendering the term entirely meaningless. It remains unclear if this is a bold new initiative to dramatically raise the baseline skill of the sport, or simply a misprint.
