Field target
Field target shooting (also: field target, field target) is a hunting simulation in which air rifles with medium and high muzzle energy are fired. The targets are mostly life-size metal silhouettes of rabbits, crows, squirrels, rats and other small animals, which can also be hunted with air rifles in England and the USA.
Emergence
Field Target originated in England in the late 1970s, where the first Field Target match took place in Sussex on September 7, 1980 . The sport spread rapidly in the UK and the US; Today it is a decidedly popular sport, especially in Great Britain, not least because air rifles have a special position in the very restrictive British weapons legislation and are freely available for sale up to a muzzle energy of 16.3 joules.
The rules of the early competitions were simple: identify target distance estimate correct scope setting according to the Trajektion of pellets to correct and then shooting at a paper target on the animal silhouette. Field Target was introduced in Germany by Volker Blüm and has been an official and internationally successful discipline in the sports program of the Bund Deutscher Sportschützen 1975 e. V. (BDS).
target
Field targets are made of heavy plate steel from which a life-size silhouette of a typical small animal that can be hunted with a high-performance air rifle is punched or cut (in the USA also in the form of other animals such as crocodiles, turtles or snakes). In the silhouette there is a hole at the point that corresponds to the " blade shot region ": the so-called "kill zone". Behind this is a second, spoon-shaped steel part, the “paddle”, which is usually white, bright orange, yellow or red. This eye-catching and clearly visible kill zone is the actual target that must be aimed at. A direct hit throws back the rear part, which is attached to a hinge, and thus reveals the silhouette, which is also attached to the base with a hinge, which then tips over backwards by spring pressure or pull and is thus symbolically "dead". A silhouette hit outside the kill zone does nothing.
High-quality modern targets are constructed in such a way that only a direct hit on the target behind the kill zone will make the silhouette fall over; Shots at the edge of these, in which the diabolo bursts, are unsuccessful. The target animals are easily raised again via a line that ends at the shooting position. Originally, the kill zone was two inches in diameter, a little over five centimeters. With the increasing experience of the shooters and the more and more sophisticated shooting equipment, however, it was reduced in size (British standard 40 and 25 mm; German standard 40, 25, 20 and 15 mm) in order to make the competitions more exciting. Today it is not uncommon in unofficial field target competitions to also use kill zones that are only ten millimeters in diameter.
Classes
In order to ensure equal opportunities, the field target in Germany is shot in different classes. These differ in the guns used and their energy.
- Class 1 - International Class: Compressed air preloaded rifles with an energy of up to 16.3 joules
- Class 2 - spring piston class: Rifles with an energy of up to 16.3 joules that work with spring pistons or gas piston technology and thus have a bounce
- Class 3 - Compressed air class: rifles pre-loaded with compressed air with an energy of maximum 7.5 joules, as they are freely available in Germany from the age of 18
- Class 4 - spring piston class: spring piston air rifles (with rebound blow) with an energy of maximum 7.5 joules, as can be freely acquired in Germany from the age of 18
- Class 5 - Compensated spring piston class: spring piston air rifles, in which the bounce is eliminated by various technical devices with an energy of maximum 7.5 joules, as they can be freely acquired in Germany from the age of 18
Distances and courses
- Compressed air weapons subject to WBK: minimum 9 meters and maximum 50 meters
- WBK-free air guns: minimum 9 meters and maximum 25 meters
The targets are set up for a "course" (course) at changing distances from the firing position (firing line) in "firing corridors" (lanes). A course usually consists of 12 to 25 lanes with two to five goals each. The length of a course can be several kilometers. The start of the lanes is marked by a left and right post; both determine the 1 meter wide firing line. The shooter must always hold the muzzle of his weapon between these posts once he is on the line of fire. When changing the firing position and when cocking and loading the muzzle must remain there. The preferred shooting position is “sitting”, with the legs drawn as close as possible to the chest, with the knees serving as stable support. The shooters usually go through the course in groups of two or three (squads): one person shoots, the second notes the hits on a "score card", the third straightens up fallen targets. All three members of the group shoot one lane and then move on to the next. The first and greatest challenge for the shooter is to estimate the distance as precisely as possible and to include the wind drift of the diabolo. Efforts are being made to position the animal targets in the natural habitat of their living "role models": birds are attached to tree branches, rabbits are hidden between bushes, squirrels are placed under trees. The only rule here is that the kill zone must be fully visible to the shooter from at least one of the permitted shooting positions. A shooting position (kneeling, standing) may be mandatory for certain lanes or targets.
Rating
Every hit that kills a target animal counts as one point; Misses don't count.
difficulty
The challenges of a field target competition include accurately estimating the distance to the target and taking cross winds into account. The trajectory of the pellets fired from an air rifle, due to the drive system, is more pronounced than projectiles from cartridge weapons, which fly at incomparably higher speeds. It is therefore difficult to determine the stopping point at the target from the fire line, and even a slight misjudgment can lead to failure. Almost all field target shooters use telescopic sights, the optical properties of which are used to determine target distances. Riflescopes with variable magnification of 8–20 × with an objective diameter of 42–50 mm are common; demanding shooters use variable magnifications from 10 to 50 ×.
To use a riflescope as a rangefinder, it must have an adjustable parallax compensation. The shooter aims at the target and turns the parallax adjustment ring or side wheel until the target is in focus. The most accurate measurements are possible with high magnifications, large lens diameters and large parallax scales such as side wheels. The shooter can then read the distance to the target on the scale of the parallax compensation adjustment ring or side wheel. Then he has to change the height of the shot with the vertical adjustment screw on the rifle scope or aim with a so-called MilDot reticle with a corresponding stop point. On windy days he also has to "read" the wind speed on a clearly visible colored string and on grass, leaf and twig movements at the target and make appropriate horizontal corrections.
Another difficulty is that in most competitions (this is the rule in Germany) there is a time limit of one minute per target. For example, in a lane with four targets, the stopwatch is started when the telescopic sight comes to the shooter's eye. Then a total of four minutes are available for four distance determinations and stopping point corrections as well as for three charging processes. If this time has passed before the shooter has shot at all targets, the remaining ones are counted as missed shots.
The weather does not play a role in competitions. Shooting is only interrupted if there is a danger to the shooters, for example in the event of a thunderstorm or a heavy storm.
