Rifle shooting requires mental, physical stamina

The period that concludes this sentence has a diameter roughly equal to one-fiftieth of an inch. At a distance of 50 feet away, it would make a threateningly small target. Luckily for the members of the Nebraska rifle team, the bull's eye they face is much larger and easier to hit.

Their target is one-twenty fifth of an inch wide.

"You're basically saying, ‘shoot a perfect shot.' Fifty feet away, shoot something that's the size of a period at the end of a sentence, and then repeat that 60 times, the exact same thing," NU rifle coach Morgan Hicks said.

The objective of rifle is simple: shoot a spot as small as the tip of a ballpoint pen 60 times using two types of rifles and a meticulous amount of discipline.

Rifle competition is split into two portions. Hicks said most duals begin with two hours of firing 60 shots with a .22-caliber (smallbore) rifle – 20 shots each in standing, kneeling and lying-down (prone) positions. The second half of the competition is done with an air rifle in a standing position only 33 feet away from the target. Each shot is worth a possible 10 points, making a perfect score for each round 600 points.

"Most of the good shooters are around the 575-580 range for scores," Hicks said.

NU sophomore ReAnn Wilson said that while many consider the competitions boring and tedious, the opposite is actually true.

"People think it's like watching paint dry or watching grass grow," she said. "But really, it's something that, once you've been exposed to it, it's captivating."

Rifle does, however, entail a different breed of captivation because it employs a different kind of endurance. Where in most sports, the goal is to move the fastest or be the strongest, rifle's purpose is to remain painstakingly still for a long period of time.

"It's a tough sport. People don't think that it is, but if you ask somebody to hold as still as possible for four hours and not move, they look at you like you're crazy," Hicks said.

This end is achieved not only through physical conditioning, but also with the specialized equipment the team uses. Shooters wear flat-soled boots with square toes so they don't rock and waver in either of their positions. In addition, they wear jackets and canvas and leather pants.

"It's not for protection like a lot of people think – it's for stability purposes," Hicks said.

And though the guns the rifle team uses are built to be as personalized and accurate as possible, the most important weapon for a shooter might be her own mind.

Hicks and Wilson said rifle is a sport that is 10 percent physical and 90 percent mental.

"It's very true," Hicks said. "It's more of a mental sport than anything, but it does physically drain you after a while as well. If you count it up it's like four or five hours of just shooting straight. To be at the top of your mental game for four or five hours straight is exhausting."

Wilson said this part of the sport is much more difficult than the physical part.

"I don't think anybody can say they've completely mastered the mental aspect of shooting," she said. "It's technically not possible, I think."

NU senior Sheena Mahloch agreed that mentality is the most crucial feature of rifle.

"Being confident, believing in yourself, being meticulous," she said. "You just have to remember to do it every single shot. If you don't do it, it makes the difference between a nine or a 10."

Mahloch, the only Nebraska native on the team, got her start in rifle through 4-H and hunting with her dad as a kid before setting the goal to shoot collegiately.

"Find a Nebraska kid who doesn't want to be a Husker," Mahloch said.

Wilson's origins in the sport are similar. Hailing from Bozeman, Mont., Wilson and her family enjoy outdoor activities. To her, the toughest opponent in rifle is the shooter's own thoughts.

"In your mind, you're always constantly battling yourself," Wilson said.

For this reason, Hicks said she encourages her shooters to visit a sports psychologist to be able to better harness their nerves.

"Those things are very helpful," she said. "I think you really need to be self-disciplined and have the patience and work ethic to make it through."

Mahloch said patience is vital to excel in rifle.

"There are so many little, teeny, tiny things. On our triggers, if you move it – your finger up and down – that can make the difference between a nine or a 10," she said.

Mahloch added that she and her teammates have taken up knitting, and she compared the perfection needed for that activity to the perfection needed for her sport.

"I enjoy it because it's just the same thing over and over again," Mahloch said. "That's what shooting is about. You're working to make something perfect."

Striving for perfection is the name of the game.

"It's very hard and it takes a lot out of you," Hicks said.

Because to master the sport of rifle, one must be able to maintain needle-sharp focus, exercise discipline and endure hours of remaining as stoic as a pillar.

And, from about 17 yards away, shoot the period at the end of this sentence.

zachtegler@dailynebraskan.com