{"id":8573,"date":"2014-03-14T18:06:25","date_gmt":"2014-03-14T18:06:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ramworks.net\/blog\/?p=8573"},"modified":"2015-12-07T20:56:58","modified_gmt":"2015-12-07T20:56:58","slug":"hold-a-fine-bead","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/empty-cases.com\/blog\/hold-a-fine-bead\/","title":{"rendered":"Hold a Fine Bead"},"content":{"rendered":"

From the time I was knee high to my grandfather I can remember him saying, “You gotta hold a fine bead.” Of course he was talking about shooting and shooting was something that was a matter of pride to him and just about every other West Virginian I met. Well, at least back in the day. One thing I’ve learned since those days tromping along at my grandfather’s heels is that his advice of “holding a fine bead” applies to just about everything \u00a0else in life too.<\/p>\n

But, this is not about the other things in life, it is about shooting. I remember when Dad used to tell me about going to Basic Training. He said when the drill instructor found out he was from West Virginia he remarked, “Well, at least we won’t have to teach you to shoot.” Apparently, not much changed between the time Dad was at Fort Knox and when I went there some 30 years later. The drill sergeants said the same thing to me.<\/p>\n

\"kyanko-31214\"The West Virginia University Rifle team is made up of 11 shooters<\/a>. Granted, only two are from West Virginia, but that pride in trigger pulling is something the school has adopted. And, it something that the other team members from Missouri, Maryland, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Minnesota and even as far away as Poland, Germany, Estonia and Slovenia have embraced as well. You might also find it interesting that the coach of the WVU Rifle Team<\/a> is from Scotland. The irony is that much of Vest Virginia was originally settled by Scots\/Irish immigrants who found a home in the hills and learned to use a rifle to feed their families and fight off the Shawnee.<\/p>\n

Today the WVU Rifle Team is competing in the NCAA National Rifle Shooting Championship<\/a>. This sporting event will not get any national press and folks all over the country will not be celebrating and partying like they do when the NCAA basketball and football championship games are played. To some extent I can understand this, watching a rifle shooting match is not as exciting as football or basketball. But, unlike those sports, which are just games invented to celebrate athletic greatness, a rifle match celebrates something else. It celebrates American freedom and the long standing tradition of firearms ownership in this country. (No other piece of sporting equipment is mentioned in the Constitution.)<\/p>\n

In a time when guns seem to be politically incorrect, I’m proud to live in a State where the mascot for our University carries a rifle and where the school strongly supports the rifle team. The West Virginia University Rifle Team – currently ranked number 1 – has won an unprecedented 15 NCAA National Championships<\/a>; five more than the next closest team which is the University of Alaska at Fairbanks.<\/p>\n

Let’s hope those WVU shooters take my grandpa’s advice and hold a fine bead!<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

From the time I was knee high to my grandfather I can remember him saying, “You gotta hold a fine bead.” Of course he was talking about shooting and shooting was something that was a matter of pride to him and just about every other West Virginian I met. Well, at least back in the day. One thing I’ve learned since those …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[2500],"tags":[529,530,531],"class_list":["post-8573","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-shooting","tag-college-sports","tag-competitive-shooting","tag-wvu-rifle-team"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p5hujZ-2eh","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":12065,"url":"https:\/\/empty-cases.com\/blog\/kids-guns-and-kissing\/","url_meta":{"origin":8573,"position":0},"title":"Kids, Guns and Kissing","author":"gunwriter","date":"September 1, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"I spent my childhood with a gun. Before I really kissed a girl I was out hunting on my own. I take that back. When I was in 1st grade some girls held me down on the playground and kissed me repeatedly. It was a traumatic experience. In my defense,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "SHOOTING"","block_context":{"text":"SHOOTING","link":"https:\/\/empty-cases.com\/blog\/category\/shooting\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"d-2","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/empty-cases.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/d-2.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/empty-cases.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/d-2.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/empty-cases.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/d-2.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/empty-cases.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/d-2.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":7786,"url":"https:\/\/empty-cases.com\/blog\/front-sights-for-handgun-hunting\/","url_meta":{"origin":8573,"position":1},"title":"Front Sights for Handgun Hunting","author":"gunwriter","date":"December 2, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"To be a successful handgun hunter you need three things: Your handgun has to have sights you can see. You handgun needs a good trigger. You need to practice, practice, and practice. \u00a0 Experienced hunters know that the best times to see game is often in the early morning and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "HUNTING"","block_context":{"text":"HUNTING","link":"https:\/\/empty-cases.com\/blog\/category\/hunt\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Opening day Blackhawk buck.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/empty-cases.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/HS-11-300x239.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":7740,"url":"https:\/\/empty-cases.com\/blog\/that-smell\/","url_meta":{"origin":8573,"position":2},"title":"That Smell","author":"gunwriter","date":"November 8, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Humans are mostly creatures of sight but there are some sounds and smells we find very alluring. Some caffeine aficionados will perk up when they hear a pot of coffee perking. The same can be said if they smell coffee brewing.\u00a0For gun guys there are other sounds and smells. Like\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "HUNTING"","block_context":{"text":"HUNTING","link":"https:\/\/empty-cases.com\/blog\/category\/hunt\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"327 Lever Gun S","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/empty-cases.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/11\/327-Lever-Gun-S-300x103.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":8438,"url":"https:\/\/empty-cases.com\/blog\/she-left-me-again\/","url_meta":{"origin":8573,"position":3},"title":"She Left Me…Again!","author":"gunwriter","date":"February 28, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Once again Drema has left me to head off into the wild west for Gunsite Academy. On her travel day she was delayed for about four hours and they lost her luggage. I told her she was seeing what my life on the road is usually like. But, on day\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"Barranti Leather\"","block_context":{"text":"Barranti Leather","link":"https:\/\/empty-cases.com\/blog\/tag\/barranti-leather\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"DK-2","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/empty-cases.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/DK-2-300x226.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":13317,"url":"https:\/\/empty-cases.com\/blog\/shooting-illustrated-the-little-magazine-that-could\/","url_meta":{"origin":8573,"position":4},"title":"Shooting Illustrated – The Little Magazine That Could","author":"gunwriter","date":"May 4, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"In 2005 a friend introduced me to a displaced cowboy. his name was Dave Campbell and he was the editor of what was at the time, an up and coming NRA publication known as Shooting Illustrated. We visited for a spell and Campbell gave me a few assignments. I guess\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "DEFENSE"","block_context":{"text":"DEFENSE","link":"https:\/\/empty-cases.com\/blog\/category\/defense\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"cover","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/empty-cases.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/cover.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":7542,"url":"https:\/\/empty-cases.com\/blog\/youth-day-at-the-range\/","url_meta":{"origin":8573,"position":5},"title":"Youth Day at the Range","author":"gunwriter","date":"September 12, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Living in a small town has its advantages. So does living in a community and a State where the ownership and use of firearms is not frowned upon. Even when kids are the ones doing the shooting. This weekend marks the fourth annual Youth Day at the Range which is\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"kids and guns\"","block_context":{"text":"kids and guns","link":"https:\/\/empty-cases.com\/blog\/tag\/kids-and-guns\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"logo","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/empty-cases.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/logo-300x146.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/empty-cases.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8573","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/empty-cases.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/empty-cases.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/empty-cases.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/empty-cases.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8573"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/empty-cases.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8573\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12766,"href":"https:\/\/empty-cases.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8573\/revisions\/12766"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/empty-cases.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8573"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/empty-cases.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8573"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/empty-cases.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8573"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}