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Gentlemens:

Thanks again for all the kind word. Barry, it was a pleasure meeting you and I am glad to see you arrived home safe and sound.

The rifle did shoot pretty well. Even I had a few moments of adequacy, but I got over it quickly. The midrange part of the match was shot prone with a sling, something I had never done before. There was a bit of a learning curve there, but it was fun and I think I will do better next time.

The long range was shot at 800, 900 and 1000 yards, and the rules allowed a wrist rest for support. The rest is most anything that you can rest your forward hand on, the only rule being that your hand must be between the rest and the rifle. I have shot long range before, but always with cross sticks as allowed by NRA rules. The wrist rest thing is a new challenge, but I liked it as well. I believe I will continue to shoot that way. The recoil seems easier to manage.

The rifle shot real well out to 900 yards. In fact towards the end of the match it shot a remarkable string at 900 and would have posted a sterling score if it was not for an inexplicable (It could not possibly been my fault) miss. The string scored 10, X, X, X, M, 8, 10.... Howsomever, the rifle seems to have come undone a bit at 1000.

There is something about that last 100 yards of air between 900 and 1000 that really has an effect on the bullets flight to a much greater degree than the extra 100 yards would dictate. In this case I think that 900 yards was about the limit of the load I was using. Even in good conditions at 1000 I was using the whole target, and when conditions worsened I was not able to hold the target. The .45-70 is not the ideal long range cartridge and I was experimenting with a relatively light bullet at higher velocity. I had wanted to do this experimenting six months ago, but that was not to be.

Right now I am uncertain what to do with the rifle. I may leave it as it is for a midrange and silhouette rifle, or I may rechamber to .45-90 for long range. I have a dedicated long range rifle, but at 15 pounds it is too heavy for the 13 pound limit in International rules, and too barrel heavy to shoot off of a wrist rest anyway. I will either rebarrel the heavy rifle to make the 13 pound limit or rechamber the new one to .45-90.

All in all, the match was a grand time. For the individual matches I was paired with Bob E. from Alaska and really enjoyed shooting with him. For the team events I was chosen to fill out the New Zealand team. They were a great bunch of guys and a pleasure to shoot with. I learned a lot from them. It was week spent with old friends and new, and I would do it again in a heartbeat.

Best to all,

Glenn

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