The 8th National Rimfire Sporter Match will take place during the 2009 National Matches on Sunday, 26 July. This recreation, fun and family-oriented shooting event has grown every year it has been staged at Camp Perry, Ohio. The 2009 CMP Rimfire Sporter Match will be even bigger with over 400 event entries now in.

Warren Westphal, Manteo, North Carolina, won the 2008 National Rimfire Sporter T-Class Championship. His rifle was a Sako P94S Finnfire.

Everyone who shoots in this match will be able to learn a lot of new information at the Saturday afternoon Rimfire Sporter Clinic (starts at 4:00 PM this year) and then enjoy the thrill of competing in the National Matches during the competition on Sunday. Your day at Camp Perry should also include a stroll through the National Matches Commercial Row, a visit to the CMP Store and the camaraderie of the CMP barbeque at the end of the match. Many family groups make the trip to Camp Perry for this match. In order to encourage even more family groups to come and shoot this year, there are no entry fees for juniors.

This article seeks to give both experienced Rimfire Sporter shooters and shooters who are just learning about it an update on some new Rimfire Sporter developments and what you can expect to see if you come to Camp Perry for this year’s match.

Expect to see many family and club groups shooting, assisting each other and having lots of fun together during the National Rimfire Sporter Match.

How to Enter the National Rimfire Sporter Match. The official program for the National Rimfire Sporter match can be downloaded from the CMP website at http://www.odcmp.com/NM/Rimfire.htm. Entries can still be made online through the CMP Competition Tracker at http://www.odcmp.com/NM/Rimfire.htm. Click on “Individual Registration” and then follow instructions to complete your entry and pay your entry fees.

A new version of The CMP Guide to Rimfire Sporter is now available for downloading on the CMP web site at http://www.odcmp.com/Competitions/rimfire.pdf.

The CMP Guide to Rimfire Sporter. The basic source of information, rules and how-to tips for Rimfire Sporter, The CMP Guide to Rimfire Sporter was recently revised. The new version is posted on the CMP website at http://www.odcmp.com/Competitions/rimfire.pdf. The Guide provides detailed information on the course of fire, equipment and how to shoot Rimfire Sporter. The Guide also tells how to conduct Rimfire Sporter matches, provides a newly developed Range Officer script for conducting firing as well as official rules. The official program for the 2009 National Rimfire Sporter Match may also be downloaded at http://www.odcmp.com/NM/Rimfire.htm.

Target frames that will be used for the 2009 National Rimfire Sporter Match are modified so that two targets can be mounted at the same time. This will eliminate three trips downrange per relay to change targets.

Hanging Double Targets. The target frames the CMP will use for the 2009 National Rimfire Sporter Match were modified so that two targets can be hung at one time instead of just one. This will allow both the slow-fire and the rapid-fire targets for each position (prone, sitting or kneeling and standing) to be hung at one time to reduce the number of times range personnel must go downrange to change targets. The Ohio National Guard, which has taken over the National Matches Military Support Mission, has again agreed to provide personnel to change targets during the National Rimfire Sporter Match, but this modification will make their jobs easier and speed up the conduct of the match. The practice of hanging two rather than one target at a time in Rimfire Sporter matches is a procedure that the CMP now recommends all Rimfire Match sponsors use.

Staggered Rapid Fire Starts. A second major change in match procedures that promises to significantly speed up Rimfire Sporter match operations and make it easier for competitors to shoot the match is the use of so-called staggered starts for all three rapid-fire series. In Rimfire Sporter, shooters with manually operated rifles have five seconds longer to complete each rapid-fire series, but to accommodate that difference, shooters with manually operated and semi-auto rifles previously had to fire their rapid fire stages separately. Under a new procedure that has been thoroughly tested at both the 2008 Western CMP Games and the 2009 Eastern CMP Games, a staggered start will be used with all shooters loading after the same command and with shooters firing manually operated rifles starting five seconds before shooters with semi-auto rifles.

Rimfire Sporter shooters shoot both slow-fire and rapid-fire series in each of the three firing positions. Shooters with manually-operated rifles (above) have 30 seconds for each 5-shot series; shooters with semi-auto rifles have 25 seconds.

In the new staggered start procedures, all shooters on the line will be commanded to stand and load together with the commands, ON THE FIRING LINE STAND..WITH ACTIONS OPEN OR CLOSED ON EMPTY CHAMBERS...LOAD FIVE ROUNDS. After confirming that all competitors have successfully loaded, the Range Officer will give two start commands. First, MANUALLY OPERATED RIFLE...START and then five seconds later, SEMI-AUTOMATIC RIFLES...START. Since there are six separate five-shot rapid-fire series in each 60-shot Rimfire Sporter Match, this new procedure will also significantly reduce the amount of time needed to fire the match.

The National Rimfire Sporter Match is fired on Camp Perry’s Viale Range. This year 110 covered firing points will be set up with frames for double targets and benches for 25-yard standing position shooting.

Camp Perry Rimfire Sporter Range Improvements. The largest previous Rimfire Sporter range at Camp Perry had 80 firing points with a canopy cover. Camp Perry’s Viale Range has now been reconfigured so that there will be 110 covered firing points for the 2009 National Rimfire Sporter Match. With entry numbers now indicating that there will be well over 400 event entries in this year’s competition, there will still be four relays on the 110 firing point range, but the time saved by mounting double targets and using staggered rapid-fire starts means that two and one-half hour relays should be reduced to two hours or slightly less. The end of match cookout for the 2009 National Rimfire Sporter Match is expected to begin at 5:00 PM instead of the previous 6:00 or 6:30 PM.

Lapua is once again the official ammunition supplier for the National Rimfire Sporter Match. Every competitor will receive 100 rounds of Lapua rimfire ammo when they check in at the match.

2009 National Rimfire Sporter Sponsors. Both Lapua and Remington once again stepped forward to provide significant support for the National Rimfire Sporter Match. For the second year in a row, Lapua agreed to be the Official Ammunition Supplier for the National Match. Lapua will provide 100 rounds to every competitor in the National Rimfire Sporter Match. Competitors do not have to use this ammo, but it will be very good ammo. Lapua will also have an official display trailer at the Rimfire Sporter Match so be sure to stop by and meet the Lapua representative who will be there.

Remington is an award sponsor for the 2009 National Rimfire Sporter Match. Two Remington M597 semi-autos will be presented to the two junior shooters who win the High Junior titles in T and O Classes.

Remington Arms Co. has also agreed to be an official award donor for the National Rimfire Sporter Match. Remington is providing two M597 semi-auto rifles that will again be presented to the high junior shooters in the T and O Class competitions at Camp Perry.

Additional Awards. All competitors in the National Rimfire Sporter Match will again have full opportunities to earn the coveted CMP Gold, Silver and Bronze Achievement medals that will be presented in the award ceremony at the conclusion of the match. This year, in addition to the Remington rifles that go to the High Juniors in the T and O Class, Benchmade 2009 National Trophy Matches commemorative knives will be presented to the T and O class overall winners, high seniors, high women and high 4-H juniors.

National Matches Air Gun Events. An added attraction for many Rimfire Sporter shooters who come in for the National event will be the opportunity they also have to fire in the National Matches Air Gun Events at the new Camp Perry Marksmanship Training Center air gun range that is fully equipped with electronic targets. The National Match Air Rifle 20-shot Standing Re-Entry Match for sporter or AR-type air rifles is very similar to Rimfire Sporter standing and can add another interesting challenge to your Camp Perry trip. Loaner air rifles, both Daisy M853 sporters and the exciting new Creedmoor-Anschütz NMAR AR-type air rifles, will be available at the Camp Perry air gun center. The program for the 2009 National Matches Air Gun Events can be downloaded from the CMP website at http://www.odcmp.com/NM/AirEvents.htm.

Local Rimfire Sporter Matches Growing. The CMP is pleased to report that Rimfire Sporter is increasingly catching on as a shooting event for CMP-affiliated shooting clubs. More clubs are using Rimfire Sporter to get more club members shooting, to attract new shooters and as a way to get more juniors involved in competitions. In 2008, the CMP sanctioned a record 125 Rimfire Sporter Club Matches. 2009 numbers indicate that even more local or club Rimfire Sporter Matches are being offered around the country. In addition, Rimfire Sporter events are now part of the program for the Eastern and Western CMP Games Matches at Camp Butner, North Carolina and Phoenix, Arizona. The opportunities you now have to shoot Rimfire Sporter on a year-around basis in other areas around the country are increasing.

If you have not already submitted your entry for the 2009 National Rimfire Sporter Match at Camp Perry on Sunday, 26 July, it is not too late to enter. The CMP expects to see another record number of participants, but that only adds to the fun and enjoyment that everyone can have at this National Matches competition. Let’s truly make it the biggest day ever in the short history of Rimfire Sporter shooting.

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