CAMP PERRY, OHIO – Air National Guardsman, MSgt Craig Shepard, 49, of Dearborn Heights, MI, was the overall winner of the M9 EIC Service Pistol Match and was also the high non-Distinguished shooter, which earned him his first EIC leg points toward his Distinguished Pistol Badge in the opening match of the 2012 National Matches.
|
|
Air National Guard MSgt Craig Shepard, of Dearborn Heights, MI, was the high non-Distinguished shooter in the M9 EIC Service Pistol Match and was the highest overall scorer in the match.
|
The M9 EIC match follows the Small Arms Firing School (SAFS) for Pistol, sponsored by CMP and conducted by the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit. The M9 EIC match was fired in the afternoon of Monday, 9 July following classroom and hands-on instruction on the firing line.
The top 10 percent of the 381 eligible shooters earned their first four introductory points in the match, including Shepard. Overall there were 400 shooters in the match, which is a 25-yard event fired in three stages – slow fire, timed fire, and rapid fire. Shepard fired 79-2X, 95-2X and 89-2X in those stages, respectively.
|
|
Over 400 pistol students attended the 2012 Small Arms Firing School at Camp Perry in Port Clinton, Ohio.
|
David Neal, 37, of Oak Harbor, OH, placed second in the EIC intro points chase, firing a 258-1X. Rob Castner, 48, of Scott Township, PA, took third with an aggregate score of 257-3X.
The M9 EIC match serves as introductory proficiency match for shooters participating in the SAFS course. The class welcomes many new shooters each year, but it’s not uncommon for several veteran pistol competitors to repeat the class to learn the latest developments from the AMU in the classroom and get experience in the EIC match that follows.
|
|
Army National Guard CW4 Lawrence Grace, New Haven, VT, gives instruction to Riley Cummings, 14, of Middlefield, OH, on the firing line at the Small Arms Firing School for pistol.
|
The Department of Defense first conducted the Small Arms Firing Schools (SAFS) as part of the National Matches at Camp Perry in 1918. Federal law continues to require the annual offering of the schools, which now instruct over 1,000 pistol and rifle shooters a year in firearms safety and fundamental marksmanship skills. The Schools are open to all U. S. citizens who are over the minimum age. Firearms are provided, students must bring eye and ear protection. In the Schools, USAMU instructors, assisted by Army, Air Force, Coast Guard, Marine and Navy Active, National Guard and Reserve shooting team members teach basic marksmanship techniques geared to meet the needs of new and less experienced shooters as well as shooters who want to learn new ways to improve their scores.
There are three courses available: Rifle SAFS, Pistol SAFS, and an Advanced Pistol Marksmanship Course that is part of the Pistol SAFS. Both the Rifle and Pistol SAFS offer beginning shooters special hands-on instruction that starts from the beginning with safety, nomenclature, clearing, loading and unloading, shot technique and basic firing positions. Intermediate SAFS instruction focuses on teaching and practicing competition techniques.
 |
|
A Small Arms Firing School student receives feedback from her coach while viewing her target. The Pistol school allows students to receive hands-on instruction from the best pistol shooters in the world.
|
The Advanced Pistol Course is open to any competitor who has a minimum of 10 EIC points or at least an Expert NRA classification. In this course participants can expect to focus on the fundamentals, understanding training methods, and building a mental approach to competitive shooting. For advanced Service Rifle shooters, separate Advanced CMP-Remington Highpower and USMC Junior Highpower Clinics are available.
Rifle SAFS is a two-day program and will be conducted 28 and 29 July this year. Rifle students fire prone, sitting and standing position slow or rapid-fire exercises. On the second day, Rifle SAFS students, while still being assisted by their coaches, have a unique opportunity to test their new marksmanship knowledge and skills by firing an M16 Rifle EIC Match that uses the course of fire practiced on the range the previous day.
|
|
Each Small Arms Firing School begins with classroom instruction from the United States Army Marksmanship Unit.
|
The Pistol and Rifle Small Arms Firing Schools offer U. S. citizens at all levels of shooting experience, from new and beginning shooters to advanced competition shooters, outstanding opportunities to receive top class marksmanship instruction from many of the country’s best instructors in one of shooting’s most historic settings.
For complete results of the 2012 M9 EIC Pistol Match, log onto
http://clubs.odcmp.com/cgi-bin/report_matchResult.cgi?matchID=7966. For more information about the SAFS Pistol and Rifle schools, log onto
http://www.odcmp.com/NM/SAFS.htm. To view and download photos from the 2012 National Matches and CMP Games, log onto
http://cmp1.zenfolio.com/.
NEXT ARTICLE
|
