AusVarmint

Since the Winter Olympics in Vancouver in 2010, the SWMBO and I have really been bitten by the winter sports bug. In particular the Biathlon events.

For those who don't know, Biathlon started as a Norwegian Military "sport" and was shot over 300m with military, and later fullbore rifles. It is now shot with specialised variation of smallbore match rifles.

There are a number of events but the basic premise is that you cross-country ski a course (around 2.5km for men) then shoot at five targets at 50m. The prone target is 40mm in diameter, standing is 115mm.

You then ski some more and shoot some more. The mens races range in length between 7.5km and 20km.

Missed shots incur a penalty, which depending on the event could be extra distance to ski, or a time penalty added to your time.

Today I knocked up some scaled down biathlon targets (scaled to 20% so I could use my Anshutz air rifle at 10m). The standing target scaled down to 23mm.

Crickey it was hard. Now I am not the best AR shooter, but I didn't have to contend with breathing hard, wind, match stress, snow, minus temperatures etc.

Suffice it to say, on my results today I would have been skiing plenty of penalty loops...

We are halfway through the Biathlon World Cup season, so if you have cable access to Eurosports give it a squint, you may get hooked too.

(I doesn't hurt that the women are actually quite easy on the eye, check out Marie Habert-Dorin or Magdaleina Neuner and the Scandanavians... - I will not offer comment on the men)

Hi Rabbitz , if your hooked on Biathalon and want a rifle , just drive down to Hornsby and buy one. You can even get a air rifle version if your not after a 22. Cheers Ron

Hi Ron,

I don't know that it would be of much use... All of our snow fields are in National Parks and the Biathlon clubs here use laser rifles (I guess you don't need the black art of wind reading). And being an older out of condition type of bloke, not sure I would make the first 2.5km without suffering some sort of cardiac episode!

Just out of interest who sells them at Hornsby?

* I wonder it how would that go in Field Rifle * Now there is a thought!!

we have a bloke at our club who uses one for field rifle. The barrell to me looks significantly thinner than my 54 but damn it can shoot.

the straight pull makes it quick for rapid fire and doesnt have the ejection issue that plagues the 54 and 64

Hi Rabbitz , I was out at the ISC a few months back and there was a group of teens taking some sort of course and they all had Biathalon rifles on the firing line. The basic model it is now also available in .22mag for hunting and i test fired one two weeks ago,very nice. Ring Keith from Industek on ph 9476 2818 Cheers Ron

I thought I had read that at the next winter olympics, all competitors will be using lasers, no more firearms, is that right?

Not in biathlon.

In the modern pentahlon they are moving to laser for the pistol for the Olympics.

Just watching the Mixed Relay from Finland.

At the bottom of the course it is -27°C and -20°C on the range. Apparently the accuracy of the rifles begins to suffer at these temperatures, I guess the fitting of the barrel along with the bedding and even the chambers have changed dimensions.

The ammo is selected for the temp apparently, but there were a few rounds which did not chamber and a few misfires...

-27°C? Stuff that for a poor joke.

Still 25k or more in the stands and around the course watching (Mostly crazy Fins and Russians).