Rob Wilkinson: King of Powder Keg
Desert Tech held its first-ever precision steel match last weekend and if you thought the winner had it easy then you haven’t been paying attention.
Rob Wilkinson came and saw and conquered the Keg.
Desert Tech hosted its first-ever precision steel match last Saturday, July 12, 2014, and if you thought the Powder Keg would be chock full of savvy shooters from across the State of Utah competing for a spot at the table laden with top-notch prizes at the renowned Desert Tech Training Facility, then you would have been right.
But if you thought the course of fire was going to be easy . . .
“Holy cow,” said Rob. “I stepped up to the first shot and saw that it was a 1,200 yard cold bore and wondered what’s it going to be like today?”
Rob missed that first shot as well as his second. After a few adjustments and a change to more familiar ammo, he didn’t miss much else on his way to claiming the overall point title was well as the 8 pound keg of H4350 powder.
“There were some very hard stages,” said Rob, who shot his first competitive match about three years ago. “Ones that I had never seen before.”
Such as the High Angle stage where he had to rely on the monopod of his Desert Tech SRS rifle to help stabilize the gusting winds at the top of the hill contradicting the swirling winds in the valley below where he lay prone and sweating in 90-degree temperatures.
Prep time was running out and Rob eventually realized that he had less than 20 seconds to squeeze off four rounds at targets 700 and 710 yards away.
Ping. Ping. Ping . . . time.
But he wasn’t the only competitor running on empty at various stages as he and 28 other shooters dealt with two sets of moving targets (600 and 800 yards away), a rotation of tripod and ladder obstacles requiring multiple positions and a little thing match director Russ Wallis likes to call the Wind Cheater which claimed more than its fair share of highjacked rounds.
And that was before they even got to the Trough, a five-position stage looking up at three tempting steel targets about 400 yards away with only a barbed-wire fence and an unforgiving 90-second stop watch between Rob and bolt-action vindication. He hit 4 of 5 shots while everyone else averaged 1.2.
“This was the first shooting match that I was able to shoot tactically,” said Gary Bangerter, a 68-year-old Army veteran of the Vietnam War. “And I really enjoyed the course. There were some interesting angles and moving targets and the timing was kind of fun. Of course, I struggled a bit but it was thrilling.”
Eventually, Jeff Frier finished second after perfect scores in the Cold Bore and Ladder sections, followed by Greg Herbert at third and Marcus Blanchard fourth to earn their selection of Solomon boots, Revision eye protection, high-capacity Surefire mags and Suunto watches from Deliberate Dynamics; a $500 gift certificate from Desert Tech and more.
“You know, I’m just an old guy trying to keep up with the young bucks, “ said Gary. “But I plan my day around food and I’ve got to say that for $30, I haven’t had better food, better prizes or a better time.”
Gary might not tell you but he drilled the cold bore shot as well as a couple of the moving targets. The Steven Ting participation award was christened and DTTF CEO Tommy Alexander flipped burgers and dogs for the masses while Desert Tech founder and president Nick Young was on hand to answer any and all questions about the development of his cutting-edge weapons systems during this ground-breaking event.
By the end of the day, the shooters shook hands, broke bread and convinced each other as well as themselves that with a couple more seconds here or there, they would have taken home the H4350 powder, the trophy and the title: King of the Keg.
“I can’t wait for the next one,” said Gary.
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Desert Tech plans on hosting at least four matches every year as well as providing basic and advanced precision rifle courses and corporate events at the Desert Tech Training Facility. For more details, give us a call at 801.975.7272 and stay tuned for more pictures from the Powder Keg as well as info on our next event.
