(Editors Note: This story was written in 1999 just after Skip had accomplished this great feat. This was the 'coup de gras' for putting the fifty caliber shooting community on the map in the shooting community. This was an accomplishment Skip had been striving for ever since Mr. Audette had said publicly that Skip's first group was a lucky fluke. For those of you who knew him, he was a man of action and didn't waste a lot of time arguing about the technicalities or the mechanics of how we were going to get the job done to put our sport forever on the map. He would just get to work and do it.

I don't mean to imply (and neither would Skip Talbot) that Skip was the only person making achievements like this. The Fifty Caliber Shooters Association (FCSA) is full of people with incredible talent and abilities. That is one of the reasons I still love going to matches today, because that firing line is crowded with people like Skip Talbot. It is just a sincere pleasure to be identified with such a great group of people.

We all miss Skip, but there are many people who have stepped up to help fill his shoes and while Skip was with us he had many friends and colleges in FCSA who helped him accomplish what he had set out to do. You all know who you are, and I hope you re-read and share in this article with as much pleasure as I do.

We are still improving and there are many more goals left for those so inclined to take up the challenge. I hope you enjoy this story as much as I did writing it. It is an incredible memory.)

The Last Known Photo Taken Of Skip Talbot

A NEW .50 CALIBER WORLD RECORD

By John Burtt

On April 18^th at about 0900 hrs in the morning during the first relay of the Heavy class rifle competition at the FCSA sanctioned regional match in Reno Nevada, Skip Talbot fired a five shot group that established a new world record which measured 2.6002” inches. The new record replaces the 3.2395” inch record established by Craig Taylor during the “World Competition” at Raton, NM in July of 1995.

   It was truly an honor for those of us who were there to share the thrill of such an accomplishment with Skip. The match was hosted by Paula & Randy Dierks and was attended by competitors from as far away as Florida. For once the weather in Reno was very nice. Temperatures reached 85 degrees after a cool early morning chill both days, but the wind was never a serious factor as it normally is in Reno. Skip was assigned to shoot in the second rely on Saturday and on Sunday, he shot in the first relay. We shot heavy gun first and the weather on Sunday morning was even better than it had been on Saturday morning. There was hardly any air moving at all and the wind flags from the 600 yd. berm to the pits area were absolutely still. There was a gentle breeze blowing from behind us but our wind meters were not even registering movement. Paula Dierks was calling the firing line and after the 10 minute sighter period was completer she called the firing line hot within 60 seconds of the time our last sighter round had gone down range. Skip’s last sighter round was a wasted shot into the 10 ring which put him in great shape for his record group. When he fired his first record round it went high and a little bit left at the 11:30 position of the 8 ring. After that it was a matter of keeping them all high without that ever present “flyer”. Skip fired all five rounds very quickly while conditions remained the same and when his target came up after his 5^th round had been spotted by his target puller Nick Kranitas, all I heard him say was “Now that’s a nice group!”. I was sitting at the next bench down from “Skip, so when I heard him say it, I thought I’d better take a look. When I looked at his group all I could see was one 3” inch paster which covered all of the group. What a beautiful sight!

   I stood up from my bench and looked at Skip, who was standing there with the neatest grin on his face that I’d ever seen. Neither one of us dared to say what we were thinking (Could this be a new record group?) but we knew it was going to be a good one. Randy Dierks finished his five shots and wasn’t particularly happy with his results and was grumping about it when he walked up. Ship told him to take a look at his group, and when Randy looked at it, his face just lit up. He was grinning from ear to ear. As the word passed down the firing line everyone had to take a look at the group and things got real quiet. Skip wasn’t talking because he was trying to hang onto a bench to keep from floating away from exhilaration. I somehow suspect Skip was pretty sure he had broken the record but wasn’t positive. Finally, word was passed up from the pits that Skip’s group measured 2-5/8” inches and was well within a new world record. Ship said, “I don’t care what happens from here on out, I’ve done what I wanted to do!”.

   On Friday evening, two days before Skip established his new record several of us got together at a local restaurant, which is our custom when we get together at these fifty caliber matches. The purpose of these gatherings is to share in each other’s lives and friendships and to swap lies and stories about this sport we are so addicted to. Skip had recommended the restaurant and Paula, Randy, George Angelou, Mike Whitesides, Nick Kranites and I all showed up. During the evening one of the stories we heard was one that Skip shared with us about a rebuttal in Precision Shooting magazine by Creighton Audette shortly after Skip had set his 4.2500” inch world record back in 1991 in Tucson, AZ. In his rebuttal, world renowned Mr. Audette stated that Skip’s new world record was “just a lucky group”. Skip’s response to Mr. Audette at the time was, luck certainly played its part, however the 4.2500” inch group in itself was an indication of the direction we are going and the technology available with fifty caliber rifles. In July of 1992 at the FCSA “National Match” in Williamsport, PA, Skip fired a second world record group of 4.000” inches. Now Skip has fired a 3^rd world record group.

   After Skip shot his new world record group on Sunday I was reminded by a visitor to our ranks, Mr. Vic Fogle of Springfield, OR. of a quote from a story printed in The Ultimate in Rifle Precision magazine, 3^rd edition, copyrighted 1954:

   “We have often heard the remark that a good group is to some degree a matter of luck, much like the catching of record fish. To the shooter whose experiences have weighed heavily in his accepting the remark, let him take heart. I know of no better way for Lady Luck to be lured to your shooting bench than with a well planned accumulation of precision equipment and precise preparation. Compromise only where you must and leave to Lady Luck only those things that are within her realm. You may be lucky with your combination. Lindbergh was lucky with his, but for his attempt he combined the best equipment of the day into a compromise design for the specific purpose, and no one will deny that he tried with the last once of his strength and ability…”

   Those members of FCSA who know Skip Talbot and have competed against him since this club began know that Skip has always come to the shooting bench with precision equipment, complete preparation and a world of experience. His accomplishment of a new world record to many of us was just a matter of time. Skip is the embodiment of the precision benchrest shooter who is always on the forward part of the cutting edge in technology and knowledge. He is an indicator of where we have come from as well as the leader of where we are going in the sport of precision long distance shooting. To Skip Talbot, from the entire membership of the Fifty Caliber Shooter’s Assn, Inc., we offer our heartfelt congratulations and we are honored by your presence. Thank you for being the person that you are.