General Information about Shooting Steel Challenge at Coyote Valley
ENJOY SHOOTING IN A SAFE AND FRIENDLY ATOMOSPHERE
Visitors Welcome
New Shooters Welcome
Friendly and Safe
First Saturday 9am
Shoot Rifles
Shoot .22 Pistols
Shoot Handguns
Beautiful Setting
What is the Challenge?
Steel Challenge provides fun shooting for all levels of skill using commonly owned firearms.
Steel Challenge is a shooting sport governed by the Steel Challenge Shooting Association (SCSA). Our range is home to a local group that shoots on a scheduled basis, usually the first Saturday of the month. Note: There is no Steel Challenge shooting on the range other than on scheduled dates and times.
Bring your favorite .22, centerfire pistol or pistol caliber rifle and try it out. We are happy to help you with loading and shooting safely during the match. Be warned, this is highly addictive and you will be out buying extra magazines, holsters, and accessories before you know it! We try to squad shooters with similar guns and speed together for the match. There is a friendly competition, but mostly its just about outshooting yourself.
Shooting a Steel Match is all about how fast you can hit 5 steel targets from a stationary position. You will do this 5 times while being timed and the highest time is discarded so you are scored on your 4 fastest times. An RSO (Range Safety Officer) operates the timer and directly oversees the shooter in close proximity. You may shoot the steel targets in any order except for the Stop Plate, which you hit last. The Stop Plate is marked by a red mounting post. To learn more see the video below.
When we practice and have matches
Coyote Steel Matches start setting up the range at 0730 on the First Saturday of the month. We will have a Safety Brief at 0830 and begin the match at 0900. Depending on the number of shooters the match generally ends around 1400 after the range is cleaned up.
New Shooters Are Always Welcome
We welcome new adult shooters as well as children provided they are accompanied by their parents. If you are visiting for your first time, start at the pro-shop and sign a liability waiver before coming down to the range, even if your only observing. Eye and ear protection are required for all people in the range area. It is highly recommended to have wrap around eye protection, which means some covering on the sides of your glasses as bullet and target fragment ricochets are not uncommon.
Shooting here is governed by the Coyote Valley Cowboys Range Rules posted here under Cowboy Navigation - Range Rules. These rules are modified as required to accommodate Steel Challenge Match Shooting by the Competition Rulebook of the Steel Challenge Shooting Association, as amended. Please make yourself familiar with both sets of rules before shooting.
We have a COLD RANGE, which means all firearms are unloaded until the Range Safety Officer instructs you to MAKE READY. All rifles must have an Empty Chamber Indicator installed. Uncased rifles are carried Muzzle Up, all other firearms are either in a case or holster or in a rifle rack.
The minimum cartridge for centerfire firearms is 38 Special and 9mm. For Rimfire it is Long Rifle only. There is no minimum power factor for Coyote Steel. If your ammunition seems to be damaging the targets, we will ask you to stop shooting. Pistol Caliber Carbine have a maximum velocity of 1600fps, so please check your ammunition specifications to make sure you are under that number.
We use the following commands to begin a course of fire
1. “Make Ready”
The RSO will give this command and you may load your firearm and assume the start position. For Rimfire this means pointing the muzzle at the Range Marker. For PCC this also means pointing the firearm at the Range Marker. For Centerfire it means the firearm is in the holster and your hands are raised above your shoulders.
2. “Are You Ready”
If the shooter does not move or say anything the RSO proceeds to the next command.
3. “Stand By”
This command is followed by the start signal within 1 to 4 seconds. If the shooter makes any movement before the start signal the RSO goes back to the “Are You Ready” command.
4. “Start Signal”
The shooter begins to fire at the targets.
5. “Stop”
Any RSO may stop the shooter with this command.
6. “If you are finished, unload and show clear”
Firearms are checked for an unloaded condition.
7. “If clear, hammer down, holster or bag and zipper”
handguns
“If clear, hammer down, flag and bag and zipper” rifles
“If clear, cylinder closed, holster or bag and zipper” revolvers
8. “Range is Clear”
This is the end of this shooters stage. The range is clear so people may go down range to paint the targets.
Who is the Winner?
Scoring is simple; lowest total score wins. Each stage contains five targets. One of the targets is designated with a Red Target Post as the Stop Plate and must be shot last. All other plates must be hit at least once before the Stop Plate is hit. Any Steel Target missed before hitting the stop plate will add 3 seconds to the score. The 4 lowest times are scored including any penalties. The maximin allowed time is 30 seconds and any shots after that time are not counted.
Our range is limited to a maximum of about 15 yards, so our targets are scaled down to provide a size that is proportionate to targets at regulation distances.