Thread: Help explain competition shooting

Copied from another site, easier than typing it out myself:
WHAT IS F-CLASS?

F-Class shooting was the brainchild of Canadian George Farquharson and the "F" was derived from his last name.
Mr. Farquharson came up with the idea of F-Class to enable he and other older shooters to continue competing alongside "iron sight" shooters who used a sling. Basically, he replaced the iron sights with a scope and replaced the sling hold with the option of using either a front bi-pod or a rest. F-Class is shot from the prone position where the shooters lay on a mat.
He convinced the Canadian NRA (DCRA) to approve his idea and F-Class was begun as an official shooting sport in Canada in the 90's.
This idea caught on fire and very quickly spread to the British Commonwealth, Germany, France, Netherlands and to the United States.
As the sport grew in the United States, NRA officially accepted it and today F-Class has tens of thousands of shooters in the United States and the rest of the World and is, by far, the fastest growing shooting discipline in the United States.
Currently, F-Class shooters shoot on targets that are half the size of the targets used by iron sight shooters, which raises the bar for shooters dramatically and increases the level of skill required to reach the top. This sport is enjoyed by young and old alike. The number of women shooters and family participation has also increased in F-Class shooting.
The first World Championship was held in Ottawa, Canada in 2002. The United States won the gold medal. The second World Championship was held in South Africa in 2005 and the United States won a silver medal. Thereafter, it was decided by all the countries' NRAs that this event had grown in stature and should be held every four years. The next World F-Class Championship will be held in Bisley, England in July 2009. The United States Team hopes to bring home the gold medal.

Here are some of the basic equipment rules:

F-Class has two categories: F-T/R & F-Open. Both are fired from the prone position.
Briefly, the rules are as follows:

F-T/R
Caliber limited to .223 or .308 (unmodified).
Sling and/or bipod allowed.
Rifle weight limit of 8.25 kgs (approx. 18.18 lbs).
Rear bag allowed


F-Open
Caliber limit of .35 and under.
Rifle weight of 10 kgs (approx. 22 lbs.).
Adjustable front rest allowed.
Rear bag allowed.
Rail guns not allowed.
76mm wide forend.
Rifle must be shouldered when fired.
Tables are prohibited.


Target Rifle is the traditional prone (lying down) shooting position with no rest, using micrometer iron sights and usually a sling attached to a shooting jacket to assist with holding and aiming.

Target Rifle competitors are graded from Tyro, C, B and A grade. Tyro is the beginner level, usually for the first year of shooting, where the new shooter is allowed the assistance of a wind coach. In outdoor shooting the wind is of course a major factor on the flight of the projectile, which means a large part of the skill of the sport is to adjust the sights to allow for this.