hunting, and the best way to practice for the field is
to actually get out in the field. However, for those of
you not lucky enough to live close to where you hunt,
or at least have access to an area that would closely
simulate that area, all is not lost. You can effectively
practice at your local range by choosing to mimic
the positions and situations that you commonly find
yourself shooting from in the field.
mountains, a bench has very little to offer. They can act as
an Achilles heal with your habits and the tools you use.
A common tool you’ll see in use is a mechanical front
rest and a rabbit eared rear rest. This combo is a favorite
of the bench rest crowd and accuracy fanatics, and is
a great set up for finding out the capability of your rifle.
However, they are not field friendly.
Another tool you will find around shooting benches is a
lead sled or similar device that is designed to not only
help you keep your rifle steady but to also help eliminate
recoil and aid the shooter in getting on target. Lots of
you have probably seen one and I am sure a few of our
readers either own one or have tried them because they
seem like a sound idea at first glance. However, I have
found them to be very detrimental to accuracy in the field.
The biggest reason these types of shooting aids
are detrimental to your success in the field is simply
because you won’t have access to them when you’re
actually in the field. This seems like an obvious
statement, but think about how many people you
see sighting in their hunting rifles with this type
of equipment and it starts to make a lot more
sense.
The only way to effectively practice for
the shots you will be presented with
while hunting is to practice like you’re
The first thing you need to ask yourself when you
step away from the bench is what kind of shooting
you’re likely to encounter in the field. Below are a few
questions to get the ball rolling.
Do you hunt from a tree stand or ground blind?