So over the Contrived and Repetitive Nature of Stages today

Didn’t read all of this thread (read a fair bit of the beginning) and I’m hesitant to post here because I tend to get my dumb ass chewed out in this Comp forum…but…

I’ve seen a total of one match my entire life, and it was a NRL22 one. If PRS is anything like that…(yawn)

I mean, it was super cool to see the gear and watch excellent marksmanship, but when I got home and the excitement wore off…

Well, shooting the same target in 3-4 different positions was kinda like watching paint dry?

I’m sure it’s more exciting when actually doing it. Probably.

Just giving you dudes a dumb opinion from someone outside the sport. Not telling you all what to do, or that you’re stupid, or I know better etc.

In NRL 22 at least, I’d love to see guys run to 3-4 shooting locations (25/50yds apart so spectators can see) and shoot pretty quickly, two shots max, out to whatever distances they’re shooting at PRS (up to 1300yds?). Sort of a “there’s a guy out there shooting at us, get him” sort of deal.

(Maybe that’s NRL Hunter?)

The barricade benchrest thing (which I think I witnessed) was indeed sorta boring.

Knowing what tends to happen to me here, someone’s gonna immediately point out what I’m looking for is XYZ and it’s already happening so go back into your hole etc. I feel the competitive testosterone level of the room rising, forehead veins pulsing…

Maybe just nicely point out what I don’t know, use this as constructive feedback, nod sagely and continue dueling amongst yourselves?

I’m like your dad walking by you and your 1990’s high school buddy Spicoli sitting on the couch in Ridgemont and I voice some most bogus uncool thing like, “Aloha, I’m Mr. Hand.”

I feel preemptively sorry for posting this (ducking!)

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Didn’t read all of this thread (read a fair bit of the beginning) and I’m hesitant to post here because I tend to get my dumb ass chewed out in this Comp forum…but…

I’ve seen a total of one match my entire life, and it was a NRL22 one. If PRS is anything like that…(yawn)

I mean, it was super cool to see the gear and watch excellent marksmanship, but when I got home and the excitement wore off…

Well, shooting the same target in 3-4 different positions was kinda like watching paint dry?

I’m sure it’s more exciting when actually doing it. Probably.

Just giving you dudes a dumb opinion from someone outside the sport. Not telling you all what to do, or that you’re stupid, or I know better etc.

In NRL 22 at least, I’d love to see guys run to 3-4 shooting locations (25/50yds apart so spectators can see) and shoot pretty quickly, two shots max, out to whatever distances they’re shooting at PRS (up to 1300yds?). Sort of a “there’s a guy out there shooting at us, get him” sort of deal.

(Maybe that’s NRL Hunter?)

The barricade benchrest thing (which I think I witnessed) was indeed sorta boring.

Knowing what tends to happen to me here, someone’s gonna immediately point out what I’m looking for is XYZ and it’s already happening so go back into your hole etc. I feel the competitive testosterone level of the room rising, forehead veins pulsing…

Maybe just nicely point out what I don’t know, use this as constructive feedback, nod sagely and continue dueling amongst yourselves?

I’m like your dad walking by you and your 1990’s high school buddy Spicoli sitting on the couch in Ridgemont and I voice some most bogus uncool thing like, “Aloha, I’m Mr. Hand.”

I feel preemptively sorry for posting this (ducking!)

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You’re 100% correct. It’s insanely boring to watch, no matter what you do. Watching people shoot comps is worse then watching joker 2.
 
You’re 100% correct. It’s insanely boring to watch, no matter what you do. Watching people shoot comps is worse then watching joker 2.

Yup. Whenever someone says "I'll just come watch" I say "nope bring your rifle and shoot". Watching sucks and after the first stage anyone who is actually interested in the sport will want to be shooting and not watching.
 
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You’re 100% correct. It’s insanely boring to watch, no matter what you do. Watching people shoot comps is worse then watching joker 2.

It was pretty jarring watching footage of the IPRF finals, and understanding just how boring of a spectator sport this is. Even as someone who likes shooting PRS matches, understands (somewhat) the skills involved, likes watching his buddies clean stages, watching the best do their thing is remarkably uninteresting. Compare that to any other action sport, hell even USPSA… show a non-shooting buddy a USPSA GM/Eric Grauffel video… “holy shit is that John Wick???” Force someone who doesn’t get it to sit through an IPRF stage… you get my point.

The first thing someone interested in shooting this would probably do is google/youtube a video of what goes on. It just doesn’t look cool how it is right now. I think that hurts “engagement” more than people would like to admit.
 
I'll say, as a total scrub that's not good enough to compete, NRL Hunter manages to actually be fun to watch. Especially the team stuff. Two dudes running around looking for targets, figuring what dope to use on the clock, helping eachother get a position built, etc.. any hunter matches with a triggercam overlayed is 10/10 entertainment IMO.
I won't comment on PRS, it's already been said.

Unfortunately, it's all got a skill barrier that's pretty intimidating for someone like me. I'm just a pistol guy.
 
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It was pretty jarring watching footage of the IPRF finals, and understanding just how boring of a spectator sport this is. Even as someone who likes shooting PRS matches, understands (somewhat) the skills involved, likes watching his buddies clean stages, watching the best do their thing is remarkably uninteresting. Compare that to any other action sport, hell even USPSA… show a non-shooting buddy a USPSA GM/Eric Grauffel video… “holy shit is that John Wick???” Force someone who doesn’t get it to sit through an IPRF stage… you get my point.

The first thing someone interested in shooting this would probably do is google/youtube a video of what goes on. It just doesn’t look cool how it is right now. I think that hurts “engagement” more than people would like to admit.
John Wick. Why two 70+ year olds would watch John Wick, but we did. Our little Bandit watched it with us. Mid way though the show, he just couldn’t take it anymore.

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Gosh, I miss that little fellow, more so than all the dogs, horses, and cats we have owned all these years. We had a little cat that went to college and she was special, as she was my friend. But he was the Bandit, because, he would steal your heart

Now back to your regular programming

American shooter did a pretty good job of televising the AG Cup. Shooter’s Mindset did what they could, but trying to capture it live is a problem with a lot of sports. Tried checking out the Unlimited Hydroplane races. They run a heat every hour, and even the the time between the ten minute gun and five minute gun seems like an hour. Cycling. A four hour event that finishes with a thirty to forty second race (flat races for the sprinters) And NASCAR….they drive around in a group for 498 miles and then race the last 2.5 mile lap to the finish. Formula 1…I’ve seen more passes for the lead in a 1000 foot NHRA drag race than in some F1 races.

Let’s face it. Without a rebroadcast, which packages the action into a reasonably compact time frame and actually captures only the action, most sports simply can’t make it as a spectator sport. And Especially for those sports that are participant sports that normal folks can also do. NBA or MLB are great, but step out onto the field and ask to pitch an inning ain’t gonna happen.

Bring a rifle with a box magazine and a decent scope to a PRS one day match, and yes you can. And if you actually have a bit of long range dope, you might even hit a few targets. It’s what makes participant sports, participant.
 
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The most interesting part of all this, people who claim to participate yet have no clue regarding the history of it.

How nothing successful has 5 different owners ( not including the 6 investors) in the same number of years.

If you don’t know the intent you can’t know where it goes wrong. Sure the laziness changed the intent and morphed it, doesn’t make it good or right, just is. Why settle for just is.

It should have goals beyond make money for kliqs it never grew the sport, that was a talking point. It divided the community as noted.

A true sustainable model was never created, it just stumbles from idea to idea from person to person.
 
Any business that was in business for 12 years and had 5 different owners wouldn't be looked at as successful. It seems more of a game of musical chairs to see who ends up with it last and no seat. LOL
 
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Precision rifle is a nitch
Fairly specialized rifles
Large ranges
More technical knowledge than most of the other shooting sports, less other rifle comps

It would be hard to turn it into a spectator sport. Honestly unless it went full tactical sniper to attract the fringes (or human nature's morbidity) it's boring as fuck to watch.
I drift in and out and I'm fine with that. 2025 I'll shoot a few, 2024 haven't even picked up a long gun.
Even 3 gun or similar can't really maintain an audience and that has more action.
I would love to see something different but I have no idea what it would even be.

Asa parting thought after my ramble I want to say this.... KYL should be a thing!!!! And if you didn't understand the stage or had a gear malfunction there should be 0 reason for reshoot!!!
Have a nice day
 
Tv is easy, you just need an imagination

I saw them shoot an air rifle comp on tv in a warehouse, talk about boring, the firing line never changed only the target

If you can watch hunting on tv you can watch a long range competition, how you film it and edit it matters. See I took cinematography classes to learn this stuff, it’s just another element

You guys are definitely lacking in imagination
 
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The viewability of it as a spectator relies on your ability to get the whole scene portrayed. It's easy to get video of people shooting but who wants to watch PRS B-roll for a weekend? What if all you ever saw in golf (and mind you, watching golf on TV isn't for everyone) was them swinging from the tee box? What if all you ever saw on hunting shows was the close-in view of the shooter taking the shot, no animal, no view down range? What if fishing shows were only the guy casting and never reeling in a fish?

If you had high zoom cameras with NFL style slow-mo replays on the targets, if the viewer could watch trace and impact, if there was a live feed display of a wind station, interactive graphics for the stage showing hits and misses, down-range high-res target cameras, stage layout graphics, up-to-date scores of the top 10 guys as they went through different stages etc... You could spice it up to be viewable and interactive. However, as was mentioned, these matches are held in BFE and that's a lot of production to move in and maintain. I don't know if it's ever going to be realistic.
 
Nah, you can follow select people, you don’t need to get every single person

Carl Taylor had a reality show, it followed select individuals, even the Netflix nascar show only documents select drivers in the chase.

It’s beyond b roll, you have no clue how to make a show so just admit it. An editor with a different outlook can change the game in a second. It just costs money and as history has demonstrated, they do not invest in grow the sport they only talk about it
 
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You’d be surprised how many reality shows are filmed with a majority of go pros vs the big crazy cameras.

You can Starlink it live, you can do a ton, you just need to reinvest in the product.

But if the series can’t even have real officials how do you expect to create valid media. They 1/2 ass everything so you’ve come to have low to no expectations. Even bowling advertises, Go Bowling is a thing
 
Has everyone forgot all the videos that Contingency X did on alot of NRL matches? I loved those videos and recaps of matches. That's what got me drawn to the sport. At minimum PRS could have a camera crew at a handful of matches and do a 25 minute recap of a match. Not only does it do good for attracting people but shows people that weren't there at the match what the elements looked like. Gives you great insite to a range if you have never been to that location. It's great exposure for ranges and match directors. Today we are lucky to see a 2 minute clip from a 2 day match.
 
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Has everyone forgot all the videos that Contingency X did on alot of NRL matches? I loved those videos and recaps of matches. That's what got me drawn to the sport. At minimum PRS could have a camera crew at a handful of matches and do a 25 minute recap of a match. Not only does it do good for attracting people but shows people that weren't there at the match what the elements looked like. Gives you great insite to a range if you have never been to that location. It's great exposure for ranges and match directors. Today we are lucky to see a 2 minute clip from a 2 day match.
I concur.

And to what Frank is saying, the trick is to literally do the filming from many views and positions, with impacts shown on at least some of them and then edit it down to a watchable time and entertainment level.

It’s doable, but would take some time and $ to set up and make the vids.
 
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My wife followed me to a couple of 1 day matches. While she (said she) enjoyed watching me shoot, overall she preferred to sit in the truck. That is how boring shooting events are to non-shooters.

And, hunting shows are also pretty abysmal to watch as well. 3 minutes of “hunting” and 27 minutes of commercials. I really can’t abide being the cash cow for others to shoot pen-raised trophies.
 
My wife followed me to a couple of 1 day matches. While she (said she) enjoyed watching me shoot, overall she preferred to sit in the truck. That is how boring shooting events are to non-shooters.

And, hunting shows are also pretty abysmal to watch as well. 3 minutes of “hunting” and 27 minutes of commercials. I really can’t abide being the cash cow for others to shoot pen-raised trophies.

My wife went to a 2-day PRS match with me and she was bored as fuck. I shot, she spectated.

She said she would never go to one again, it was so boring.

There's a good reason why PRS matches have very few spectators. And usually what little are there, are not really there by choice.
 
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Cuz when you make movies you sweat the non fan, it’s to peak interest and educate those who are interested

Your wife being bored is a metric for success? 🙄

Not to mention it proves my point. They made it boring by turning it into bowling, scenario based stages are more fun
 
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My wife went to a 2-day PRS match with me and she was bored as fuck. I shot, she spectated.

She said she would never go to one again, it was so boring.

There's a good reason why PRS matches have very few spectators. And usually what little are there, are not really there by choice.
Maybe PRS should take a page out of the Beach Volleyball playbook…
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I mean in the 12 yrs they have been around they don’t have ANY official media, no how too, unless you look at others

So again, low to no expectations - just repeat grow the sport and you’re good
Wasn't Joel doing media at one point for them? I have been busy so I'm not up to date. But what happened to that?
 
Wasn't Joel doing media at one point for them? I have been busy so I'm not up to date. But what happened to that?
He did for a minute it was a bad deal.

It’s the same with the NRL they started originally cuz they had a media deal with Rich, he sold to Shawn and he killed it. They started the NRL right after.
 
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As an observer of and participant in the shooting sports for over half a century, here are a few of my takeaways.

TLDR: No discipline will be attractive to all shooters. Don't like PRS / NRL / whatever? Don't shoot it, quit bitching about it, and leave those who do like it alone. If, like Frank, you're in a position to offer alternatives, go for it, and thanks.
  • No shooting discipline can be all things to all comers.
    Example: shotgun sports. My "home" [shotgun] club hosts trap, skeet, and 5-stand sporting clays (the latter has 20+ machines throwing about any conceivable target presentation). Historically, if you can win a skeet shoot at DCWC, Fort Bragg, etc, you can win anywhere. In 30+ years of membership, there has been one constant: The skeet, trap and clays shooters DO NOT CO-MINGLE. You can mix them up at a club cookout or something, but when the guns come out, they separate. It would be futile, and stupid, to try to coax them elsewhere. Yes, there are a few members who shoot more than one discipline - but they are not top-rung in any of them.

  • PRS is boring? Jeez, NSSA skeet is the KING of "boring." Field layout is the same, down to inches of measurement, everywhere. Course of fire is the same. The game in 98% mental. In any shoot of decent size, missing one target out of 100 puts you on the porch with the rest of the losers. And NSSA has 17,000+ members. My point: pick a competition format and don't try to keep everybody happy. It's impossible.

  • You're bored? Then go do something else and leave the people who enjoy it in peace. I shoot a little gallery-style precision rimfire match every month. Boring even by NRL22 standards. But it's simple, quick, and fun - and CHEAP. Those of us shooting Vudoos and RimXs, of course, dominate, and the CZ crowd is also right up there. People who show up with 10/22s and such either don't come back or have such a good time they go out and buy better gear - hooked. Competitive shooters who try it and are bored? Buh-bye. Thanks for stopping in.

  • Shooting sports are boring to watch. Stop pretending otherwise. Hell, the Olympic skeet competition was the most "watchable" shooting discipline I've ever seen - because NSSA skeet is as much like Olympic skeet as Pop Warner football is like the NFL. Even then, unless one understands the rules and COF, watching would get really boring really fast. Rifle? Yeah, sure, I wanna sit and watch a sport where I can't even see the target without binoculars and a COF description.

  • Drawing people into the sport: Hard for centerfire rifle. Expensive, and log-range (500+ yards) venues are few and often far away as compared to shotgun or rimfire. Them's the breaks. To my knowledge, the clubs in my region which host PRS-style competitions also teach a lot of beginner classes. Certainly, I've mentored quite a few newbies as I'm retired and enjoy teaching as much as I enjoy competing. A few have gone to a match or two. Almost all disappear afterward.

  • Drawing people to competition: Yeah, some people just won't compete. Period. Come up with any reason you like. It doesn't matter.

  • Expense: centerfire precision rifle is expensive as hell, in both time and money. No getting around it. Pay or don't.
 
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Re: “broadcast” PRS
If indeed something like PRS ever decided to film a series, one thing the editor could do it take a page out of hockey.

Hockey pucks zipping along are hard to see on TV. So they overlaid a graphic over them. Doing so for bullets in editing (not live) as a way to explain to casual viewers where the bullet is actually flying would be of general interest.

Again, not for every (or most) shots. Just to set up the stage or explain an especially tricky shot over a canyon with switchy winds.

Re: boring and Golf
You know, if I was in a golf comp and I had to take four swings from roughly the same spot, same target, one right after another…next stage: rinse, repeat …holy shit that’d be my last golf comp.

I prefer high stakes one position one shot. You miss? Tough luck move on.

That’s how golf works.

I also enjoy randomness, but that’s a tough pill to swallow for many.
 
Maybe PRS should take a page out of the Beach Volleyball playbook…
Mid-'90s. Old Hickory Gun Club, near Rocky Mount NC. Mid-sized shoot is full. July. HOT.

An up&coming lady shooter, in her mid- to late teens, appeared on Field 2 in short shorts and a bikini top. This is old south Bible belt; some people were highly offended but all the bib-overalls crowd certainly had to go see what the fuss was about. At least one of them missed his own start time... How many came back for the next shoot or joined the club...?
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Same club, same time frame. Tradition in skeet is that, when a shooter runs their first 100 straight, their squad fills the shooter's hat (one MUST! have a hat, whether it's worn or not) with clay targets and someone throws it up in the air, whereupon the squad blasts that hat.

At OHGC - again, this is 30+ years ago - dozens of shot-up hats were pinned to the crown molding in the smoke-filled clubhouse. Amongst the hats was one purple brassiere of significant capacity. The story - I heard it directly from the undergarment's owner - was that she would not wear a hat because it would muss her poofy hairdo, and she told the guys she would never run 100 anyway, but if she did they could shoot her bra.

Well, she did and they did, and over the years the bra would disappear from the crown molding when somebody got offended and it would reappear at some point. If I recall - it's been many years since I shot OHGC - all the hats and the bra went away forever when the clubhouse was remodeled.

I've met a lot of folks and have a few stories in my 7+ years of rifle competition, but none come close to the stories of skeet in the '80s and '90s.
 
Biathlon is the only shooting sport that doesn't suck to watch. Not sure they are gonna get a pass on "contrived and repetitive nature of stages today".

The difference simply is they created a very compelling product and modernised it over tha past 40 years in a way which moves it forward without ruining its essential charm.
 

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Biathlon is the only shooting sport that doesn't suck to watch. Not sure they are gonna get a pass on "contrived and repetitive nature of stages today".

The difference simply is they created a very compelling product and modernised it over tha past 40 years in a way which moves it forward without ruining its essential charm.
Yeah, but for the most part you are not watching the competitors during the skiing portion except just before a shooting position or the finish line. It’s also carefully filmed and edited.
 
Omg it is!!! Hahaha
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Actually bowling was more fun to watch than NRL22. At least you can see the “hits” (strikes, spares, etc) and really hear them too.

I get that you can’t make 22LR targets bigger.
It would be easy enough to have cameras on targets at either of the long range .22 types. Max targets are at most 400-ish and a simple zoom lens could capture that.

Again, it’s about choosing the competitors and stages to film and about good production and editing.
 
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If nobody can see the bullet or the target nobody cares. You could film F-Class like golf with live feeds from shot marker targets, bullet trace track, and scores from the top shooters through the relays and it would be more entertaining than a jersey dude running around barricades.

Fundamental reason people are there is to see who shoots better than who. You put up your entry fee to see where you stand. Show that (live score feed) and show the exciting parts (bullets hitting targets, trace, difficult stage movement) and tie it together. Focus on tight competition between two shooters. I'll die on this hill. Nobody wants to see just the shooter. When I'm at a match where are my eyes? Glued to my spotter watching where bullets go.

Include interviews, sure, but a GoPro or iPhone isn't cutting it for PRS without bikini babes everywhere. Again, it's like golf where all you see is the swing, no ball track and nothing down the fairway and no scores. Who would watch that?

American Ninja warrior and televised golf have a baby and it's called PRS and you might have something.
 
Biathlon is the only shooting sport that doesn't suck to watch. Not sure they are gonna get a pass on "contrived and repetitive nature of stages today".

The difference simply is they created a very compelling product and modernised it over tha past 40 years in a way which moves it forward without ruining its essential charm.
The women in spandex does help.
 
My 2c is, regarding PRS, there are other options and some of those options are really good, I could shoot a match every month without going to PRS.

I also think comps are good for training but that shit is overrated, some of the best “work” shooters I have been around, shot beer shoots on m-f ranges with the team and never shoot once an official comp. Conversely some of the other really good work shooters did shoot competition routinely.

The similarity is training is training and good training does not have to include any matches. If you wanna run from obstacle to obstacle and mil targets, I don’t think you gotta look to hard to find a place you can practice that craft without paying an entry fee.
 
Again, it’s about choosing the competitors and stages to film and about good production and editing.
Yep, that’s what I said. Good production, good editing. @lash you nailed it. Doesn’t hurt that those boys and girls can SHOOT! But if everyone has noticed, it’s great in Europe where winter sports opportunities exist in almost every country. In the US, Biathlon, not so much. I’ve always enjoyed it because I like to shoot, like winter sports and wished we had a month of good snow here every year in North Louisiana. (Then 70’s or better for the rest of the year)

Speaking of production. Seen hunting shows that are so obviously faked. Shooter hits deer at 900 yards, deer hits the ground so hard it bounces. Next show, advertising a product that was not part of the show where the deer was “harvested.” Same deer, same bounce, different show. Bet they never intended for those two to run back to back. Point, not much faith in the typical hunting show.

So, with all the discussion about spectators, I think the general opinion is that it’s Not Ever going to be a spectator sport. What sports except for maybe little league baseball and high school football ever are a live at the venue spectator sport. Seen the crowds at NASCAR lately? Lots of empty seats. Some big time colleges can still draw a crowd for football, but go to a less than top twenty team and you’ll see lots of empty seats and lots of big numbers in the “Loss” column.

Getting back to @Lowlight ’s original idea. What can be done to make this endeavor we call precision rifle fun, interesting, worthy of time invested?

My thoughts, Make it hard, make it easy and make it kind of middle of the road. (I believe I have already said that). Do all this at the same time. Movement is fun, and I do my best to put it in every practice. But let’s not forget the aged infirm. And let’s not forget the young teens. But the focus should be on the 20 something’s. Got to do something for them that they can afford. Yes it’s a darned expensive sport. It takes at least $6000 to replace my Vudoo as it is equipped and I was pictured with in an earlier post. When I was twenty something, newly married, six thousand of today’s dollars was $954.00. A new Remington was $154 and the best rifles available were the Weatherby’s that sold for the princely sum of $300.00

Oh, my first real job after getting one of those valuable college degrees was $746.00 per month. Before taxes.

So, a five to six thousand dollar rifle won’t work for these young kids just starting out. They need their own class with their own rifles that they can afford. Today’s production rifles, which I once thought were the bees knees have become so expensive as to be a total joke. They need their own class and their own rifles. Loaners only go so far.

Give those 20 something’s something reasonable to shoot and they will make us look really bad. Then we will learn what this is all worth.

My thoughts. Movement, youth and matches with varied stages. (And lots of real clinics for folks starting and moving up). (And don’t forget us grouchy old fellows)