Rossi Rifleman

This is not the longest shot by any means and it was not done with a rim fire, but it's been one of the more interesting shots. I lived in an old cabin for awhile that had been vaguely modernized so the washer and dryer were underneath in a root cellar converted to a walk out basement.

So...in the middle of a movie and just at the tail end of twilight, I decided to run out and around to put in a load of clothes during the commercial. I ran out the door and jumped down three steps to the gravel driveway and as I took the first step on the driveway I heard the loudest hiss and rattle I'd ever heard from a rattle snake - directly underneath me - and realized I was in the process of stepping over a very angry snake.

I grew up with them, and I had had them rattle at me on numerous occasions, including one I discovered under bale I'd just lifted, but I'd never heard one make an angry hiss before. I had also been told by the neighbors there were none in the Black Hills where I had recently moved, so along with thinking %@*&$ I contemplated how wrong the neighbors were during the longest and highest long jump of my life. As I landed and turned I saw the snake coiled again for a strike, drew my .45 and shot 2 controlled pairs in the mostly dark to ensure he was dead. We have rules. I leave them alone and I stay out of places they like to be, and they are supposed to stay out of the yard, driveway and places I like to be. When the rules get broken, violence ensues.

Anyway...the next thing I heard was slamming doors and spinning tires as the entire parking lot of the country club next door emptied. Like most nights there had been several golfers drinking beer and trading golf stories in the parking lot before heading home. I'm pretty sure all they saw and heard in the dark under the trees were muzzle flashes and gun shots and apparently they did not want to wait around to see what was going down. If anyone called 911 they apparently recognized the address (I was an investigator at the time) and figured it was probably not criminal in nature. More likely the golfers just took it as "normal" Saturday night behavior in the area.

The next morning as far as I could tell, the 38" timber rattler had been laying stretched out on the drive soaking up some heat, and was not able to coil and strike fast enough to connect as I went over him, no doubt startling him as much as he startled me. I was surprised to find he was a timber rattler as they are not common that far west, and also disappointed as Reptile Gardens was paying $500 at the time for examples of live timber rattlers. Mine was very definitively dead.

Nice I have always been leary camping out west because of rattle snakes and all other nasties compared to around here. Great story I love it.

Greetings
They sure will show up when least expected. Thanks for that interesting read.
Another good example why even in the freindly confines of home to not walk out the from door without the right tool.
Mike in Peru

Can't remember if I mentioned it elsewhere here or not, but earlier this spring I popped a starling at about 60 yards out of my basement window. When the shot hit it I noticed a big ol' fat groundhog wobbling off towards the brush...and just like they always do, he stopped to take a look back before diving down in. I racked the bolt and let another Hornady V-max fly from my 22mag Mossberg Chuckster and sent him spinning. My dog and I tracked him back to the hole, but he was leaking pretty good. Ended up figuring I hit him at about 135 yards. My longest with a rimfire.

112 paces. I will never forget pacing it off.
The unfortunate recipient was a groundhog that was intent on perforating our levy at my home growing up. It had been whole sale warfare all summer and this was the last one in the colony. It had been well educated by the demise of its brethren. Every time I would spot it, I open the back door, it was gone.
I finally spotted it and went out the front door and snuck around the other side of the house. I had one shot offhand and pinned it through the neck. War was over.
That rifle was the finest 22 I have ever owned. It was an old Remington single shot with a crazy long heavy barrel. I do not remember the model of it. Some sorry SOB broke into our house and cleaned me out....

About 200yds with a Marlin 99M-1 22LR and open sights. I was standing on a small hill overlooking my mom's garden when a couple of crows landed on the far side of it. I didn't think that I could hit one that far out, but figured I'd put a scare in them. I held over a little bit, squeezed off and the one I was aiming over started flopping around. His buddy left the premises before I could try for him. Walked down there and I'd got him in the head. Sure impressed my buddy that was with me.

Out back of my old place was a long lane between two fields and electric poles went down to the end about 1000 yards away to feed an deep well pump. I liked to shoot the phone poles, you can hear the sound going past the poles, "wack, wack, wack, thud" I got pretty good at the side to side.

I would also shoot out into the dirt field and you can get good at doping wind even several hundred yards.

I shot a woodpecker out of the phone pole once at 200 yards. Somewhat of a fluke, but I can guarantee you that you would not want to be within five hundred yards of me with a 22.

I shot five hundred rounds a week and sometimes more for years. I have several dozen 22's. My favorite, and most accurate is a Stevens favorite I bought for $70. My next are Ruger 10-22's. Some are more accurate than others. I could shoot the pecans out of the tree with one of them. Break twigs at fifty yards. I shot over a hundred jack rabbits in a morning one time with it all running between rows of a vineyard.

You get good when you shoot every day. Sure wish that I could do that again. I just go on the weekends now if I am lucky.

from the bench or prone I can " ring " the 8 inch plate at 212 yards . not much of a ring more of a ping. range is suppose to be 200 yards they didn't measure so well back in the day, range finders place it at 212 . but it is fun

Ah, it was a wonderful day of shooting ground squirrels on a cattle ranch South of King City, CA.

Four of us were riding around in a Dodge Durango stopping and shooting. We were using bolt action rifles chambered in .17 HMR.

Many long hits but the longest was a young man riding in right side rear seat. He hit one squirrel at 175 yards!

Wish I could do days like that again!

nice