HELP ME ESTIMATE THE DISTANCE OF THESE SHOTS

[Moonbogg]

Not much to work with, but you can see the impact of the first shot just above the propane bottle. 8 OZ soda cans at 3X, approx 30deg angle (you can judge angle yourself from video), approx 5 second flight time. My guess is maybe 200 yards? Maybe 250?

[youtube][/youtube]

[mark.f]

I assume you're on a range somewhere and can't pace out the distance for obvious reasons, judging off the audio from your previous videos.

Next time you can bring a topo map and a baseplate compass (and optionally a GPS like your phone).

Pick two points spaced far enough apart from your shooting position to give you an equilateral triangle between them and your predicted landing point by dividing your predicted range by sqrt(3), and picking two points approximately that distance on either side of you. Find them on a map or use a GPS to get to the two coords (UTM/MGRS works good for this), and shoot an azimuth to where the projectile landed. Scrawl them on your map with your compass and measure from the intersection to your firing position to get the range.

Or, alternatively, get a laser rangefinder. Google earth works if there are terrain features you can judge too.

[Moonbogg]

Using Trig sounds like a fun way to do it. Good ideas! Also, you're right about not being able to simply pace it out. It's not safe to walk that far out since it's an open range.

[D_Hall]

Using Trig sounds like a fun way to do it. Good ideas! Also, you're right about not being able to simply pace it out. It's not safe to walk that far out since it's an open range.

Dude.... You live in Riverside, right? BLM land is not that far away. Only a few million acres where you won't be able to find another living soul on any given day.

[Moonbogg]

I think it's BLM land where I go, but I've never actually looked for a truly isolated spot. Your idea sounds good and I might end up doing that, but I won't want to go alone and without a good medical kit to stop the bleeding at a minimum. I have only one concern that is on my mind and is partially why I stay close to the highway; what if I get hurt and need help? Being in the middle of nowhere can be a death sentence if something unexpected and bad happens. Nothing bad ever has happened and likely never will, but hell, even if I trip on a rock and get a really bad cut, it would be nice to at least be close to the main highway so emergency services can easily find me and often times there are other shooters around as well.
Maybe I've just watched too many shows on TV like "I shouldn't be alive" where a freak accident happens and the people are in the middle of nowhere and are basically screwed.

[D_Hall]

As a native....

RULES OF THE OPEN DESERT

1 - Bring lots of water (duh).
2 - Tell somebody where you're going, the route you'll take to get there, the latest you will return, and do not deviate from any of that.

That's 90% of it right there.

Don't get me wrong, it's best to not travel alone, but don't kid yourself. Understand that if you get hurt so badly that bleeding out is real, you're pretty much screwed. You aren't going to make it back to civilization fast enough. The difference is whether you're bleeding out in the middle of nowhere or in the back of somebody's car. If you're not going to bleed out that fast? Hey, just relax and wait for the cavalry to arrive.

Cell phones are good too, of course.

All that said, in all seriousness if you'd like to take a trip out my way I'm sure something can be arranged. (edit to add...) Oh, and I highly recommend Cuddyback Lake for your purposes. Open lake bed means its easy to find where things landed.