Shoppers Watch as Shooters Compete at Bass Pro 600

By Sarah Hall, CMP

The Tracker Boat section of the Bass Pro Shop of Leeds, AL, has been an area of changing scenery over the last few weeks. At Christmas, the windows were frosted to create a Winter Wonderland where Santa listened to what children wanted underneath their trees. Then, a few days later, the windows were cleaned off and Santa’s house was moved to make room for the CMP’s mobile range during the 2014 Bass Pro 600 – held Saturday, January 4 and Sunday, January 5.

The 2nd Annual Bass Pro 600 was fired January 4-5 within the boat area of the Bass Pro Shop in Leeds, AL. Shooters fired between artificial trees onto the electronic targets of CMP’s Mobile Range.

In total, 24 electronic targets were set up in the boat garage, between permanent artificial swamp trees that regularly decorate the area. Competitors traveled from several states, including South Carolina, Georgia, Kentucky and Tennessee, to shoot in this exclusive match.

“The Bass Pro 600 is such a unique idea that many competitors travel to shoot in the event just for the novelty of the venue,” said James Hall, CMP program outreach supervisor. “After what can sometimes become a repetitive ritual of weekend after weekend of shooting matches, being able to fire your match inside the boating area, surrounded by lake decorations, is pretty exciting.”

Spectators had the opportunity to use the SCATT shooter training machine, to get a feel for the sport.

On Saturday, 42 junior competitors fired in a three-position match – all while the store’s music played and shoppers stopped by to watch. Spectators were drawn over to the boating area, with the mobile range’s 60” TV’s displaying each competitors shots. With after holiday deals, the store was busy and loud, but competitors focused through the distractions.

Shooters traveled from South Carolina, Georgia, Kentucky and Tennessee to fire in the unique match.

Bass Pro patrons were also allowed to try their hand at air rifle shooting on a SCATT shooter training machine, right beside competitors on the line.

At the end of the day, Daleville, AL, high school’s mental training paid off when they had six shooters representing their JROTC unit in the final. Daleville teammates Christofor Burns and Alexis Poke came away with the gold and silver, and Deanna Long of Screven, GA, took third.

Many curious Bass Pro shoppers stopped to watch the competition. CMP staff said most bystanders were unfamiliar with the sport of competition shooting and grew an interest in learning more about it after seeing the Bass Pro 600.

Sunday, another 37 competitors arrived to test their mental focus amidst the distractions in the International match. Among the competitors was 2012 Olympian and CMP employee Jonathan Hall, who walked away with the gold medal after winning the final with over a 4-point lead ahead of fellow CMP employee Michael Dickinson. George Norton of the Army Marksmanship Unit placed third.

Some competitors blended in with Bass Pro’s outdoorsy décor as they dressed in camouflage for the sporter match. The Bass Pro 600 featured a junior 3x20 match, as well as a 60 Shot standing competition.

This is the second year the Bass Pro Shop in Leeds has opened their boating area to the CMP for match use. The success of last year’s event caused more shooters to attend the open range nights at the CMP Marksmanship Center in nearby Anniston, AL, and also allowed for even more success with attendance at this year’s Bass Pro 600.

Besides the competition space, the store also donated prizes and gift cards for the competitors to win. By Monday, the floors were cleaned, and Bass Pro Shop staff set up for the next event: new 2014 boat displays.

Besides donating their boating area as competition space, Bass Pro also donated an assortment of prizes for competitors.

“Our partnership with the Bass Pro Shop in Leeds, AL, has allowed us the great opportunity to expose not only our Mobile Range to the greater Anniston/Oxford area, but also to expose the sport of competitive shooting to the public,” said Hall. “Customers shopping through the Bass Pro Shop, who are already inclined towards hunting and shooting, were eager to learn about our rifle safety classes for their kids and questioned our experienced staff about competitive knowledge.”

Hall also added, “I like to see that a sport once deemed ‘non-spectator friendly’ is evolving into an exciting experience to watch. Thanks to electronic targets and the mobile range, shooting’s not only drawing in an audience at matches, but also attracting new young athletes for future matches.”

For full results from the Bass Pro 600 visit: http://ct.thecmp.org/app/v1/index.php?do=match&task=edit&match=10824

Left to right: Michael Dickenson and Jonathan Hall, of the CMP, and Army Marksmanship Unit shooter George Norton claimed the top three spots in the 60 Shot competition.

The mobile range will be headed next to Ft. Rucker in south Alabama for the Wiregrass Invitational on January 24-25. The event is hosted by Daleville JROTC and will be the NRA Junior Air Rifle State qualifier. The match will be held within the Army Aviation Museum, making it a truly unique experience. Once the mobile range is put into place, shooters will have the opportunity to fire in the same space museum planes and helicopters usually stand.

A few weeks later, the range will be split in two, as half will be traveling to MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, FL, for the Wounded Warriors, March 1-9, and Murray, KY, for the NCAA Championship, that same weekend.

For information on renting the mobile range for an event, contact James Hall at 256-835-8455 ext. 1145 or jhall@thecmp.org.