I am pleased to announce Resiliency Outreach, Inc. will have three shooters running with the Staff on Friday, and CEO and former 5th Special Forces Group Sergeant Pat Russell will be on hand to talk about his various projects helping veterans on Saturday and Sunday.
Money is always appreciated, but there are many other ways you can help if you want to get involved. Check out https://resiliencyoutreach.org/ for more information.
Some of you planning ahead and paying attention noticed a small blurb in the Course of Fire (downloadable on the Practiscore match page): “Get yourself and all your gear over a 6’ high wall” and had some questions and concerns. I’m posting here to make it fair for everyone.
Yes, there will be a 6’ high wall. Getting over a wall is a very real-world applicable skill and is something I definitely want to test. It will be vertical - no angles. It will have NO ropes, steps, handholds, etc. - it’s just a wall. It will be 8’ wide to allow more than one competitor to go over it at a time. But still - if you’re struggling with the wall and another competitor comes up behind you, give them some room and learn from how they get over - then copy them!
There is no “bypass” or “take the penalty and go on” provision for this or any other obstacle. You must complete it in order to continue. My ROs on-site have the authority to modify the challenge on a case by case basis as necessary - but only in very extreme situations (such as if a competitor has no arms).
Make plans to figure out a way to do this, using only the gear you carry and your body itself. You are more than welcome to use a ladder - but you have to carry that ladder throughout the entire course! My hope is that everyone easily flies over the 6’ wall this year, and we raise it to an 8’ wall next year.
Here are some good examples for techniques you might want to try:
[video=youtube_share;UAjVPh3Oq-0]https://youtu.be/UAjVPh3Oq-0[/video]
Tactical Tailor committed to send $500 worth of gear to be an obstacle sponsor - but then actually sent me almost $1,300 worth of gear. So I’m bumping them up to a full Stage Sponsor, of course! They sent 3 each of their covert rifle cases, shooters mats, and gym bags - and they look to be super high quality! Be sure to thank them and don’t forget to look to them if you need any great RNG gear.
https://www.tacticaltailor.com/
Reminder: you will need a light of some kind to navigate and shoot in the cave (Stage 3). If you show up without a light you will not be allowed to shoot and will be given a zero for the stage. Weaponlights are fine to shoot with, but you’ll also need a separate light to navigate parts of the cave before the shooting starts. I don’t care if you carry a giant spotlight with a 12V truck battery, but you must carry it for the entire course!
If you’ve never been to the cave before, here’s a preview video from 2017 (the names are different, but the basics are the same this year) that will give you a better idea what to expect:
[video=youtube_share;hq52C43sXD4]https://youtu.be/hq52C43sXD4[/video]
I’m having a “Run N Gun Work Day” at Rockcastle on Sunday, February 10th. All are welcome to lend a hand and help, and in return you’ll get to see and practice on these things. I’ll even have a small kayak on-hand to be sure the shooting lanes work for the boat stage. If there’s time you can even run the (unmarked) course if you’d like for practice.
You’ll be digging post-holes to make a more sturdy barbed wire crawl at Doe Valley and a stepped balance beam at the Cave, assembling and setting the wall at the powerline cut, and clearing around the pond and testing for the boat stage. And depending on storm damage, possibly clearing some trees from the trail if needed. Or deciding to leave them as natural obstacles. 
You can come for an hour or all day - anything will be appreciated! Just let me know so I’m not out in the woods for hours while you’re waiting at the Lodge and looking for me.
The Wall is built. I don’t understand why Trump is having such a hard time with this - it only took me a couple hours. You think I can get some of that $20 million gofundme money???
Here’s a few ways you might use to get over. Get creative, and you can totally do this!
[video=youtube_share;SZ0Hq7-gzQ0]https://youtu.be/SZ0Hq7-gzQ0[/video]
Careful coming out of the cave. There is a ledge that sticks out at the opening and is hard to see if you have a hat on. Bonked my head and gopro pretty good last year when I thought I cleared the opening and began to stand up.
Good advice. There are lots of places to bash your head in the cave, and wearing a hat makes it hard to see them.
I’ve had a couple questions about scoring and rules. When in doubt, read the “Rules & Procedures” PDF available for download on the Practiscore Match Page. But here are the three big ones:
Your rifle must be UNLOADED when not actively shooting. If you are found with a round in your chamber or a magazine inserted in your rifle while running, you will be DQ’d and not allowed to finish the course. Bolts can remain closed to keep the dirt out, but you can NOT have a magazine inserted (even an empty magazine).
You CAN carry a loaded pistol in a secure holster, but if at any point in the course that loaded pistol comes out of the holster and hits the ground, you are DQ’d and cannot finish the course. This happens to some poor soul at almost every match, so be sure your holster is secure before you load up and go. If you carry your pistol unloaded and it falls - we’ll just laugh at you and tell you to pick it up. YOU weigh the risks and rewards, and make your own decision on how to carry your pistol. You will NOT be given time to “load and make ready” before starting a shooting stage - you’ll have to do that after the buzzer goes off. “Loaded” for the sake of this match means anything in the pistol - even a loaded magazine with an empty chamber.
Half of your score will be based on your net run time (overall run time minus any wait time you have), and half will be based on your shooting scores from all stages combined. So you must BOTH run fast and shoot well to score well.
RNG Veterans - have I forgotten anything?
RNG Newbies - do you have any questions or concerns?
You guys can thank Bryan Ray for this: We’re adding a rope climb as a “bonus” obstacle. Finish your race, take of your gear, and head over to the rope IF YOU SO CHOOSE. If you can climb the rope and ring the bell, we’ll knock 10 minutes off your run time. This will be a 1.75" diameter poly rope 12’ - 15’ high.
Climbing a rope is an important real-world skill, and I want to reward those who can do it!
Speaking of obstacles - I also want to give a great big THANK YOU to Bryan Ray and his son Thomas, Ben Wolf, Ashley Edgcombe, Matt Webb, and my dear wife Lisa for spending a cold rainy Sunday with me building obstacles. The wall, the barbed wire crawl, and the balance beam are all on-site and available for training if you want to head up there - just check in with the Lodge first before wandering the property.
I’m really happy with how the balance beam turned out. What started as a lame obstacle because I couldn’t think of anything else that fit the geography there turned into something that I think is going to be really challenging for people. We’ll see!
T-shirts will ONLY be available online from https://www.shredderlife.com/shop/2019-rockcastle-run-n-gun/
Only one run will be made, you must order by March 1st to get one, and they will be shipped directly to your house. Big thanks to Shredder Industries for making this so easy on Match Directors!
And there is the added bonus that $1 from each shirt sale goes to support Generation III Gun, a not for profit company founded to promote competitive shooting for Juniors (http://generation3gun.com/).
Reminder: tomorrow at midnight is the 30-day deadline to get a full refund if you withdraw. Here’s the full cancellation policy, which is non-negotiable:
Full refunds will be given if you withdraw more than 30 days before the match. Half your fee will be refunded if you withdraw between 14-29 days before the match. NO REFUND will be given if you withdraw less than 14 days before the match.
Prizes are continuing to roll in. Hornady sent over $600 worth of gear for the prize table, including their Lock-N-Load Iron Press!
Be sure to thank them for their support - most importantly as a note in your order when you buy some of their great gear. And post up here if you have some Hornady gear you like to tell everyone about it!
https://www.hornady.com/reloading/presses/lock-n-load-iron-press#!/
Someone pointed out I forgot to include details in the Course of Fire about the obstacle at Stage 3. I’ve fixed that and uploaded updated COFs to the Practiscore site, so feel free to visit and download the latest copy. But if you just want to see that obstacle, here it is:
Stage 3 Obstacle: Drop your rifle (and pack if wearing one), and navigate the stepped balance beam down the hill to the cave entrance. If at any point you touch the ground, climb back to the top of the hill and start over.
Today’s prize table goodness comes courtesy of Nosler. They sent over $600 worth of reloading components, including 500 70gr RDF bullets, 500 85gr RDF bullets, and 500 pieces of .223 brass.
I’ve used their Custom Competition bullets for years in my FAL and AR-10 with great success, but have yet to try the new RDF bullets. Nosler makes good stuff!
https://www.nosler.com/rdf-bullet
Is the 10k course of fire on practiscore? Didn’t see it posted.
Nevermind, found it further down the match listings. I stopped at the 5k thinking it was all on that one.
Yes sir. Go to the main match page (as if you are registering) and there are three PDFs there you can download. If you still can’t find it, PM me your email address and I’ll send you a copy directly.
Reminder: If you want a t-shirt, you MUST have your order in by 5pm this Friday, March 1st. T-shirts are only being sold online and shipped to you directly. There will be NO t-shirts for sale at the event.
Direct link to buy the shirt is here:
https://www.shredderlife.com/shop/2019-rockcastle-run-n-gun/
Today’s prize pack comes from Vortex Optics. They generously sent FOUR Crossfire Red Dots for a total value of almost $900.00!
Be sure to thank them, and post up here if you run a Vortex product to tell everyone what you use and why you like it!
http://www.vortexoptics.com/product/crossfire-red-dots-2-moa
Reminder: tomorrow at midnight is the last day to withdraw and receive a 50% refund. ANY WITHDRAWLS AFTER SATURDAY MARCH 2ND AT MIDNIGHT WILL RECEIVE NO REFUND.
Still please do withdraw through Practiscore after that if you can’t make it though. We have a ton of people on the waitlist who would love to have your spot if you can’t be there!