Best of the best shoot through the heat

QUANTICO, Va. - Once a year, the best shooters in the military get together for a chance to be crowned the best of the best.

The Interservice Rifle Championship, in which all military branches compete against each other, is well underway with the start of the long-range shooting portion at Range 4 aboard Quantico Marine Corps base on July 22.

The long-range portion included individual matches with the service rifle at a distance of 1,000 yards. During this portion, shooters had 30 minutes to fire 30 rounds for score, with unlimited rounds to get on target.

To add to the difficulty of shooting at such a great distance, shooters also had to endure temperatures in the high 90s.

“It’s difficult enough shooting at this range,” said Cpl. Josue Morales, a marksman with the Marine Corps Shooting Team. “The heat can’t take you out of your comfort zone and throw you off.”

The long range competition was also the beginning of the team fire portion of the competition, where teams of two service members have 126 minutes to fire 120 rounds down range.

Despite the heat, scores among the shooters were still high, said Capt. Caleb Wells, the officer in charge of the Marine Corps Shooting Team.

“Marines aren’t affected by the heat, said Staff. Sgt. Matthew Walsh, a marksman with the Marine Corps Pistol Reserve Team. “Shooting is a mental game. It’s all about who can overcome human frailties.”

Even though the service members are in competition with each other, participants never lose sight of what’s most important.

“Ultimately we ant to be better shooters,” Wells said. “We share our knowledge with each other so we can all go back and train our junior Marines to be the best.”

When all of the matches are done, scorecards are tallied up for a total score. There are 14 individual land team matches that service members compete in.

The most popular event among the service members is the Infantry Trophy Team match, Wells said.

The match consists of team of six members from each service. They are each given 50 seconds to shoot 384 rounds at the 600 yard in the prone position, then again at the 500 yard-line and if needed the 300 yard-line.

“It’s an intense rapid fire,” Wells said. “You have to really be on your game.”

The medals and awards will be handed out at a presentation ceremony at the National Museum of the Marine Corps at 7 p.m. Tuesday.

“This competition is a perfect example of how all of the military services can learn from each other,” Wells said.