with Darrell Udelhoven
Hunting
and Shooting Running Coyotes
with a Rifle even on Snow
Is No Easy Task
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| 10mph/14.66fps |
lead/lungs |
.74' |
1.5' |
in-feet | X | X | X | X | X | x |
x |
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| Zero
Windage |
@90°angle L/R | Clks |
2clks |
4clks |
5clks |
8clks |
11 |
15 |
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| TraJ.
POI |
divide
by Frac. |
.125 |
(.25) |
.375 |
.5 |
.625 |
.75 |
.875 |
1.0 |
1.125 |
1.25 |
| Drop"/Fractions |
clks
up zero |
zero |
5up |
10clks |
16 |
22 |
29 |
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For safety & ethical reasons it is best not to shoot at running deer & most game with a rifle.
Where it is safe to do so "follow-up shots on wounded game" is ethical for competent shooters'.
Remember you are figuring your lead from the heart/lung area!
I prefer the faster 243/06 wildcat on deer and coyotes.
It is better to over lead than to under lead, --I do not need to tell you why.
Keep both eyes open and swing through the vertical center of the body or the neck, squeeze off your shot "at the instant" the lead looks right without slowing your swing through, --you must consciously follow through after squeezing off the shot! Then witness the bullet hitting the mark and dropping them in their tracks.
Running shots should only be taken under Safe Shooting Conditions! Always take up a location where the running shots will be safe. Be alert and never take a running shot unless shooting safety conditions are right, proper terrain and background to stop the bullet, no buildings, livestock, or people anywhere in the area, etc.! The longer range leads are shown for illustration purposes only! Use cartridges with bullets that don't ricochet.
Never take a running shot beyond your shooting skill levels, you need to believe strongly that you can make the shot before you squeeze the trigger! Safety First, --always!
MPH to FPS Conversion: [MPH times 1.467 equals FPS] 20 mph = 29.3 fps; 30 mph equals approximately 44 fps. I figured these leads back in the 1960's when I had to figure the bullet flight time, too. Now we have programs that show the flight time of the bullet in milliseconds out to various yardage's. All you have to do is multiply the speed of the coyote or deer by the bullet's known time of flight in fractions of a sec., --that will be how many feet the animal will move in that fraction of a second.
Time of bullet flight will be just near 100 m/secs or, 1/10th of a sec. || .10 times 44 fps = 4.4 foot lead for a chest hit.First, don't try shots on running game unless the terrain is open with fairly level ground so you don't have to be concerned with the vertical hold adjustments. If you are good at vertical angle swing through leads, such as with a shotgun, you may be deadly with those shots.
It is far better to over lead and miss than under lead. Use a swing through lead so your bullet has an opportunity to strike the animal in the neck or chest. These leads from the heart area are mathematically - the (POI) Point-Of-Impact.
CWD means placing shots in the heart lung area. I'm loading the new Hornady 95 grain SST bullets for my .243 Winchester with an old Weaver K-4 power scope. The Super Shock Tipped SST's are supposed to produce more explosive shock than the 100 grain bullets. Also, I loaded some of them for my .243/06 Wildcat and switched from the old Weaver K-10 scope to a K-6 power for deer hunting. I didn't switch in time to the K-6 and couldn't locate the running deer target at Potosi, Sunday.
Average bullet flight time is going to be around one fifth of second or .20 of a sec., [15 mph times 1.467 = rounded off 22 fps] 22 times .20 of a sec= 4.4 foot lead ahead of the heart and lung area on that trophy whitetail buck, that is about to go out of sight and escape if you don't drop him in his tracks, and around a 3.5 foot lead to score a vital hit on a coyote. Forget about shooting at the deer, it's too far for most of us. For me, without a rest the vertical hold will be the most difficult to control!Range in yards, speed, and angle of the running game will all become instinctive as it does in shot gunning. What we need are variable speed running coyote and deer targets to practice on at different medium to close-in ranges, on all shooting ranges. Someone needs to manufacture and market this technology -- shooting clubs and/or several shooters would pool their money to buy it. Understanding the required leads in your head combined with practice will produce results beyond what you thought you were capable of; but again keep within your skill range under field conditions.
How far will a coyote move, that is 100 yards away running broadside at 35 mph or 51.3 fps, before your bullet gets there? Use your own cartridge's time of flight @ 100 yards in fractions of a sec. The top speed of a coyote is said to be 40 mph or 58.6 fps.; average running speed is said to be 25 mph or 36.6 fps. Try figuring them at both speeds and different ranges and angles.
You figure the lead on a coyote running at different speeds in fps -- at different ranges.A coyote running @ only (20 mph/ 29.33 fps) 100 yards away; lead is 2.9 feet/nearly 3 feet ahead of the heart/lung area. The speed of the coyote or deer makes a huge difference in the required lead as does the distance. Angle is the other key consideration.
Coyote @ 200 yards moving @ 20 mph/ 29.3 fps times bullet flight time of .166/sec. = 4.8 foot lead ahead of the vital target area. This is using the 243 Win., 55 gr. Nosler bullet with Ballistic Coefficient. .276; bullet flight time is .166 of sec. //coyote running only 20 mph = 29.33 fps X .166 of sec., = lead 4.8 feet or less than one coyote length in front of the vital rib cage target area.
Here is an easy way to calculate the lead when you know your bullets time of flight in Milliseconds at various ranges. Game running 30 mph or, 44 ft/sec: At 250 yards the time of flight of many varmint cartridges is around one fourth or .25 of a sec. or, (.25/sec X's coyote's 44 fps speed (or 44 divided by 4) = 11 foot lead ahead of rib cage). A 10:30 or 1:30 O'Clock angle, divide by 2 = 5.5 foot lead. The Norma Ballistics page link below will give you the millisecond time of bullet flight data you need on your cartridge.
"We need ranges with all of these situations and conditions -- so that everyone could have fun practicing in a friendly environment." Few things equal the recreational enjoyment of this sporting skill exercise!Come on Gun and Ammo manufacturer's (or anyone) get on this and help us get what we need!
You'll bag a lot more deer if you are real consistent on 'reasonable' running shots. It is much better to over lead than under lead; I don't have to tell you why! Drop them in the open before they get in the brush, because you'll wound and lose game trying to shoot through brush.
Put a good scope on your 22 rim fire autoloader and practice on running jackrabbits and even or even squirrels between 25 and 100 yards. The 22 long rifle's bullet flight time is around 133 m/secs. @ 50 yards; .280/sec. @ 100 yards; .439/sec @ 150 yards. Zero it at 50 or 75 yards as you will have a lot of bullet drop. You may be able to see where the bullets hit through your wide field of view scope and make the proper adjustments. Your lead with the 22 rim fire at 50 yards will be almost as much as at 150 yards, and at 100 yards a comparable time of flight lead as at 250 yards with a fast center fire rifle cartridge. I feel this gives a person an idea of how to compute these leads in your head as you draw down on your moving targets. The live action practice will develop the brain visual reflex action motor skills.Consider that the coyote will appear much smaller at 150 yards and appear to be running slower than when at 50 yds. Therefore, practicing with the rifle you will be shooting coyotes with speeds etc., similar to real shooting situations and conditions will always be the best practice. This is why you always need to use the know length of the animal when gauging leads.
What we need is to form shooting clubs everywhere and to set up fast moving variable speed coyote silhouette targets which would be run at various ranges from 50 to 200 yards. The clubs could call them running coyote turkey shoots, and charge each two dollars to shoot against five other shooters with the winner getting a frozen turkey. We used a running deer target back in the 1960's and everyone loved this skill developing mild competitive shooting sport.
By John-Henry
Vari-X III 1.75X6 compacts on other varmint guns. Leupold makes a clear, bright scope that holds zero, and what more can you ask? You don't need more scope then 6X for the majority of calling situations, and my variables seldom move off of that setting, even up close. For calling coyotes (and everything else except dog towns) I like the duplex. It seems to lead your eye to the center, and it's easy to pick up running coyotes with. Snow helps!Make sure when you mount your scope that you have the proper eye relief. When that rifle hits your shoulder your head should be behind the scope with a full field of view. When a coyote is turning inside out to leave the country you don't need to be fooling around trying to find a sight picture.
Another tip for the day: If you don't shoot with two eyes open, start. You should shoot your coyote rifle just like you do a shotgun. Unless you are cross-dominant, your master eye will take over and see the recticle when the gun comes to the shoulder. I thought that everybody shot with both eyes open when I started, but after watching enough people hunt for their target by sweeping the scope back and forth like a telescope I learned better. You should have both eyes on the coyote as the rifle comes up. When it settles into your shoulder, you should suddenly see a bigger coyote (because of the scope magnification) with a cross hair laying on him. If that isn't happening for you, take an empty rifle, make sure that the eye relief on the scope is correct, and walk around pointing at things. Soon you will be able to look at an object, raise the rifle, and see it through the scope with the cross hair centered in one natural motion. If it seems awkward or persevere, I promise you that you'll kill more coyotes that way. John-Henry
Potosi, WI uses a moving deer target moving from around 5mph/7.3fps to around 7½mph/11fps at around 110 yards. The money shoot is a dollar for each 6 shooters, winner gets 4 dollars. The turkey shoot round is 2 dollars per each of the 6 shooters, the winner gets a frozen turkey.
I figured these leads back in the 1960's. One winter day my father went fox hunting with me and we spotted a fox laying in a snow covered field at around 200 yards from the road side fence. I had been telling him the amount of lead needed to take a fox running at various distances and ranges, but I was going to show him what a good shot I was and he was to back me up just in case I missed. Well, somehow I missed him. The fox took off running directly to our left, I told dad to swing through 21/2 lengths and squeeze it off, he did and the fox flipped end over end from a perfect lung shot. I said, dad you're sure good at following directions. Dad was left handed and had to swing to his left, plus he had not shot my 243 Winchester with my hand loads and I figured he would flinch and miss the fox by a country mile. I would have given anything to have had a video of that scenario. We didn't have enough coyotes in SW Wisconsin back then to bother hunting them.
If coyotes and foxes are scarce don't shoot them -- photograph them! What can be done about the "mange," decades ago it killed off the red fox here in Wisconsin and now it is infesting the coyotes. It may get the Timber Wolves soon as there are reports of it infesting them, too.
Coyotes are the greatest sporting animals in Wisconsin, so let's preserve our sport! Remember, there is a hunting season in Wisconsin on Red and Gray Fox 2001, 2002 season: North of Hwy 64 - Oct. 20 to Feb. 15; South Hwy 64 - Oct. 27 to Feb. 15th. It is illegal to hunt or shoot coyotes during the gun and muzzleloader deer seasons North of Hwys 87, 70, 48, 8, east of 27, 64, 141, 180. This is to protect the Timber Wolf from being shot due to mistaken identity.
Little Red Hale - Coyote Hound at Stud in Michigan New Michigan Coyote Hound
Karl Larsen with Tamarack Creek Cruiser - Coyote Hound
The greatest Sport I know is running Coyotes with Hounds - Darrell -
C.W. Mann's Ranger - Coyote Hounds in Michigan
All the Ballistics for Shooting Running Game with a Rifle
Ballistics Tables on your Cartridge - My Userpages Frames Site
WISCONSIN COYOTE HUNTER'S Photo
Pat Perdue's First Coyote Trophy
WISCONSIN COYOTE HOUNDS and FOX HUNTER'S
Wisconsin Coyote Hunter's with Two Coyotes and their Coyote Hound Max
Max - with Eric Brunette and his Coyote
Bob Langer holding Coyote with his Coyote Hound Max
DuWayne Brown and Bob Langer with Max with Brownie's 323 Yard Running Coyote Kill
Wisconsin Foxhunters with Coyote Hounds
Hunter's John and Ron with fox
COYOTES BOBCATS and RED FOXES and Coyote Hounds - Wisconsin
Shooting Running Coyote Range Targets with a Rifle ManufacturersNorma's Web Ballistics Program - Java Find your bullet's ballistic coefficient then Check your bullet's flight time, etc.
Great New Deer Hunting MagazineWHITETAIL FANATIC Record Breaking Whitetail BuckDEER HUNTING IN WISCONSIN
WHITETAIL PRACTICE - GREAT RUNNING DEER TARGET- PAGE
BEETOWN WHITETAIL TROPHY BUCKS
1999 BEETOWN BUCK - BLOOMINGTON PAIR
Links to - MY PEOPLE EMPOWERMENT PAGESSend Hunting Info To: udarrell@pcii.net
Wisconsin Coyote Hunters
Date Last Modified: 06/08/07
Copyright © 1999 - 2007
Darrell Udelhoven
Empowerment Communications