Ted’s essays

return to practical pistol shooting

The results from our March 29th Missoula match are now posted online. https://practiscore.com/results.php?uuid=daf5b0ee-b6cc-4e74-9cf5-0055461098d4 Relevant for my placement in the USPSA classification system is my finish in the Limited Class. The “% of standard” below does not take into account that I am probably only competing against other “Super Seniors” (65 and older) for national ranking. The Limited Class allows gun and magazine modifications I do not have, nor do I intend to get. Thus I will always have a bit of a handicap in the national rankings. However, my own personal goals have been to be at the top of the bottom third overall … aka 33.3%. Heck, I blew by that standard last Sunday with a finish in the […]

Helloooo Bitterroot Blasters

I have not shot practical pistol since a while before I moved from Idaho. Today I tried out the Hamilton, Montana practical pistol club … aka The Bitterroot Blasters. Oh Yeah! Just like everything else Montana, these people are very welcoming, friendly and fun to be around. Draw Shoot Move Reload repeat as desired until all targets are either perforated or have fallen down. Rusty Rusty Rusty As I mentioned, it has been years since I last did this. My speed and accuracy were down. These skills are very susceptible to degradation without use. This course of fire to the right was “the classifier”. That is an international standard setup laid out precisely to be repeatable anywhere on Earth. Loaded […]

on the radio this evening

daily @ 1830 hrs 3.910 KHz Montana Traffic Net Wed @ 1900 hrs 146.720 KHz BEARS Wed @ 1930 hrs 146.900 KHz LDS Missoula Wed @ 1930 hrs 14.342 KHz national AmRRON net … 3rd Wednesday Wed @ 2000 hrs 146.580 KHz LDS Stevensville Wed @ 2015 hrs 146.720 KHz BARC Wed after BARC emds 28.350 KHz BARC Thu @ 1800 hrs 14.342 KHz regional AmRRON net … 3rd Thursday These are amateur radio networks that I often participate in. They are on the 2-meter, 10-meter and 80-meter HAM bands. I am not, nor have I ever been an electronic geek, yet I have helped over a dozen people with even less electronic background earn their amateur radio licenses. They […]

Ham Jam and String Fest

The Bitterroot Amateur Radio Club (BARC) and its members operate several radio repeaters in the Bitterroot. These enable people with walkie-talkies, mobile and home radios to accomplish two-way communication over a wide area from Darby to Missoula and beyond. While the club members have the ability and willingness to expand the repeater network, they are expensive to set up, costing significantly over $1,000 each for reliable off-grid mountain-top units that can do the job. This Ham Jam and String Fest is an attempt to attract donations that might extend the network of repeaters through Conner, up the West Fork and up to Lost Trail Pass. If successful enough, this network could reach Salmon and from there much of Idaho. […]

How old do you expect to be when you stop learning?

Put another way, when will you know as much as you are ever going to know? Are you smarter than average? Smarter than 90% of the rest? 99%? Is your generation significantly superior to the prior one? Did something amazing happen to 2,000-year-old genetics in the last 30 years? The obvious answer is that wisdom and knowledge can grow with age. The Elders are potentially a great resource and repository of lessons learned by generations, or centuries of human existence. I use the word “can” because the masses choose to not expand their knowledge. Mass media is owned by 6 corporations. Six CEOs agree on theme, content and objective. 99% of the information presented follows their guidance. The USofA education […]

pine cone golf

Pine trees grow around here like grass on a golf course. They are everywhere. This time of year pine cones cover the ground as Chocolate Lab fur on a tan sofa. A lot of folks rake while others stoop, but the dang things do have to be cleaned up or you are stumbling over a sea of them. Many of us imagine golf-clubbing them off our lawn and pathways. Thus I was inspired to buy a $1.50 5-iron at the thrift store. Oh Yeah! Works great. I have less than a dozen golf games under my belt… and those were 40 years ago. Thus my form and swing are unlikely to pass muster by anyone who knows anything about the […]

Martini arrives

Missy came home yesterday evening with her “Baby Martin”, 3/4 Martin or, as I offered up, Martini. Missy likes the name. It is likely to stick. She LOVES the guitar. It draws her to picking, strumming, studying and playing. It is a pretty little thing and sounds nice. Even Scooter seems to be happy to be nearby when Missy is picking away. Of course Scooter always likes being near Missy any time she isn’t bustling about and banging things around. If Martini is what it takes to get Missy to keep still, Scooter is going to really like Martini. […]