Quote of the Day
At Boomershoot, the targets are specially designed for long-range precision shooting and are quite unique. They are high explosive, reactive targets that can be engaged up to 700 yards away1. The smallest and closest targets are 4-inch square boxes filled with a potassium chlorate-based explosive paste. For longer ranges, the targets are larger, 7-inch square boxes, with more explosive material to ensure visibility and reaction at the distance2.
These targets are designed to provide immediate feedback when hit by a supersonic rifle bullet, resulting in a high explosive reaction that is both visible and audible from long distances. It’s what makes Boomershoot an exciting event for participants and spectators alike
Copilot
Conversation with Microsoft’s AI, Copilot, on April 12, 2024
The quote above was in response to “What kind of targets are used at Boomershoot?” The only things that are slightly in error are that the explosive has more ammonium nitrate than potassium chlorate and it is not really a paste.
I’m just amazed at how accurate Copilot is with Boomershoot stuff. Ironically, it makes more mistakes with computer programming questions. If you have questions about Boomershoot and don’t want to go digging around the website or wait for someone to answer your email, just ask Copilot.
In related news, Boomershoot was a great success this year. There were no injuries reported. Everything was very close to on time. Nothing was more than about 10 minutes late. We met are target production goals. As near as we could determine there were no targets which failed to detonate other than those which were hit and damaged by flying debris from other targets. There were only four targets left undetonated at the end of the day. These were three 4” targets and one 7” target. The weather on Sunday was damp but not miserably so. The light rain at the end of the day eliminated the risk of spontaneous combustion of the chemicals the next day.
We had people who came all the way from Arizona, Minnesota, Nebraska, and Scotland(!!!!) just for Boomershoot.
This is the same fireball from a different angle:
Of possible interest is I was giving a tour of my underground bunker to some of the Boomershoot Staff when the Precision Rifle Clinic participants started detonating their targets. We were a half mile away and we could clearly hear the detonations through the ground.
How did the booms sound? Was it very similar to the sound of a boomer 700 yards away through air, or did you get a different character through 900 yards of rock and aggregate dirt? Any double-boom due to the difference of the speed of sound between gas and mostly-solid media?
It was different. There was nothing from the air. You don’t really hear outside sounds from the inside.
Ya, concussion waves travel faster through a solid than they do a gas. Weird ain’t it.
If you ever get a chance go watch a big mining shot. It’s a lot of fun.
You see the explosion, feel the bump up under your feet, then the sound sometime after. Strange as can be.
Amazing you could sense it all the way up in your bunker though.
Glad all was fun and good! Sorry I must make excuse for the second year.
To many broke things this year.
Kevin Baker. The Smallest Minority, always wanted to meet him. We spilled our blood in the same mud. Though not at the same time.
Bagdad AZ. copper mine.
He got tricked into some electrical work there. And I went for a 1 week concrete job, and got stuck there over a month. (Helps hard to find ’round them parts. And for fun you try to kill all the scorpions in your room before they can crawl in bed with you.)
Anyway, glad Boomershot was a great success, again!