Varmint Rifle Match – May 2014

May 13, 2014

The first Varmint Rifle Match for the year had a surprisingly good turn out in spite of the lousy weather. We put up with the intermittent rain and some cold wind gusts. Nevertheless, the shooters were in good spirits and ready to compete. Thanks to Jim Vollmer for firing up some hot coffee.


With a top possible score of 800, there were some shooters that were pushing close. The variable wind gave the advantage to those more experienced at reading it. That will always be the challenge on our range due to the number of berms we have. Still, high scores are there and it doesn’t take the heavy calibers to get them. Have a look at the score Doug Kitzan shot with his AR 15 in .223.


Wind affects all bullets. Learning to read it is the key. These links might help:

Determining Wind Values And Making Your Shots

Horizontal Wind-Drift vs. Distance

Wind Drift

Reading The Wind

Reading Wind: There are no flags on the battlefield


There were, also, several targets that had only 1 or 2 hits and others that had more than 10. That’s not the wind. It’s cross fire. Check your target number before each shot!


Congratulations to David Rohrich, Tyler Halverson and Jay Christiansen for taking the top 3 places, respectively, in the Custom class; David Rohrich, Tim Liebel and Doug Kitzan in the Factory class; Doug Kitzan, Jay McNamara and Collin Weisz in the AR Class, and our two shooters in the Youth class, Ryan Grensteiner and Jalen Granlie.


Thanks to all the participants who helped keep the match running smoothly and for showing up!


Don’t forget, next match is on June 14. Hope to see you there.


Gary Vennie

January 18, 2026
Dear BMRPA Members, It is with a heavy heart that I am writing to let all of you know that the BMRPA has lost one of its founding fathers. Marlin Fried, the namesake of the Fried Family Marksmanship Center, passed away this week. He is survived by his wife Leanne, children and grandchildren. While Marlin has not been active as a shooter with BMRPA for several years, we would still occasionally see him at the outdoor range in his red Chevy pickup, tending to the trees he had planted. In years before, many of you might have known Marlin from Gun City, the shop he started on Main Street in Bismarck. For those of you have never made it to Gun City, it was the type of unique gun store we don’t really get to see anymore. Not all of the trees at the Fried Family Marksmanship Center were planted by Marlin but a great many of them were. He embodied the spirit of old men planting trees which they will never live to enjoy the shade of. It was that spirit of providing for future generations and his enthusiasm for marksmanship and firearms ownership that inspired Marlin to donate the land that the Fried Family Marksmanship Center sits on today. The BMRPA, a club founded by competitive shooters coming together never had its own facility before Marlin’s gift. It was that gift by Marlin and the Fried Family that was one of the greatest factors turning the BMRPA into an organization that provides opportunities for competitors, youth and female shooters and provides a space to exercise our freedom. For that gift, we are thankful and appreciate how uncommon an act such as that is.  So, Marlin and the Fried Family, we thank you! We also wish to express our condolences to the Fried family for their loss during this sad time. A memorial service will be held at 11:30AM on Monday, January 19, 2026, and visitation will be held Sunday, January 18, at 5:30PM at Bismarck Funeral Home, and 7pm prayer service. https://www.bismarckfuneralhome.com/obituaries/marlin-fried Tom Headrick President, BMRPA
November 25, 2025
2025-26 Junior Marksmanship Program
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