Bill and Elaine sent me some of the pictures they took from yesterday’s match. I promised I’d put them up.
So, what’s a bowling pin match you ask? As CapitalistPig put it, it’s a combination of drag racing, bowling and shooting. Two people line up side-by-side to see who can shoot five bowling pins (or pin tops) off their table fastest. Here’s a table set up for shooting Minor (centerfire smaller than .40 S&W):
The table is eight feet wide, four feet deep, and about 42″ high. The pins are placed 18″ off the back edge of the table, and are spaced 16″ apart. Those people in the back there are my pin setters.
Once the tables are set, the competitors line up, and at the sound of the horn, they’re off!
This pair is shooting Major – .40 S&W and larger – with the pins set 12″ off the front edge of the table, making it harder to get them on the ground.
Then there’s the .22 Rimfire class, with five pin tops placed on the back edge of the table:
In all cases, the shooter stands at a table that is 25 feet from the front edge of the bowling pin table. Those pin tops are pretty small 29′ away.
In all cases the shooters start with their guns in their hands in the “low-ready” position (in this case, muzzle on the surface of the table) and at the sound of the beep, they try to clear their five pins as fast as they can.
The rest of the competitors watch the matches,
or help reset the pins between matches,
or shoot the breeze.
All in all, it’s a fun way to spend the day! And since pin shooting emphasizes speed, accuracy, and power, it’s good practice, too.