Im really new to this game. Back in 2019 or so I shot a begginers match at new Holland PA and the next match after that the regular club match. Those matches were terrible and it totally turned me off to this game. The beginners match was kinda neat because it was basically an infomercial for the kestrel so of course I bought one.
I was bored and kinda burnt out on uspsa a couple of weeks ago and shot the match at Tremont PA it's Bill Geissele's range. I had an awesome time and I think I'm hooked. The furthest shot was 1068 yards but the next match on the 27th goes to around 1250. The shot at the last match on the 1068 target had a flasher on it but we were the last squad to shoot it and of course after our first shooter the flasher broke. Only one guy in our squad had kinda good enough glass to spot the hits. Believe it or not we could hear the hits on that plate.
I have a cheap pair of 10x binos and I kinda like them because I like to run my scope around 10 power so I would use my binos practice the stage finding the targets. My binos were trash for spotting hits so I would use other guys stuff to call hits. I didn't pay any attention to what they were. I was in over my head at the match because it was basically my first real match. I'm guessing 15x binos would be good for that match for calling hits.
Frankly, anything with ranges that far should have multiple hit indicators and everyone in the squad should be watching. Mirage can make hit indicators hard to see, impacts are very difficult to spot even through the rifle scope itself, and the sound is so delayed it gets lost in the match noise, especially with .243 and .224 projectiles. The x12 UHD razors might be a good choice that stays in your desired mag range and offers good value for the money. It’s more than you indicated you want to spend though. If you want to go that route, pm me. I probably have a Vortex code for $$$ off. I‘ve watched plenty of binos get shit-whipped on to the ground, or off a cliff in the case of Blue Steel Ranch, when a gust of wind blows over a tripod. Invariably, something breaks. Maybe it’s the mount, maybe it’s the bridge, maybe it’s the lens. So the vortex warranty does carry some value (and it’s another reason I would not buy $5000 binos for match use).
Regarding time in the game, a lot of people on here have a lot of experience. I’ve shot a local match in Colorado or Wyoming almost every week for the last four years and a handful of two day matches, Guardian, PRS, CD, and outlaw, in Kansas, Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico and Oklahoma. All of those involved some level of responsibility for spotting. I cycled through several different binos. If there was a ranging bino with a mil reticle, I’d buy it yesterday. Missing a target because of bad range info sucks and happens, especially at smaller matches, so I’m pretty committed to my ranging binos at this point. Even at x10, they’ve never failed me. I think it’s helpful to go into a stage with a visual of the target size, which you can do when you get behind the scope on the first target, but that takes time and cognitive space which few beginners have. Long story short, there’s no magic answer. x12-15, from a name we all recognize, strongly weight a mil reticle or ability to range in your decision if you can afford it and don’t sweat it if you can’t.
