Snowflakes in Hell

Para and Todd Jarrett demonstrated the new TTR system, short for Tactical Target Rifle, slated for release in 2009.  Quite simply, it is made of awesome.  For an op-rod driven AR, the thing has no recoil.  It’s literally like shooting an airsoft gun.  Recoil on a 10/22 is greater.  An AR that shoots well that doesn’t get as dirty?  Where do I sign up?

The other really nice thing about this system is you don’t get the annoying jack-in-the-box sound in your ear every time you pull the trigger.   I shot it, and I kid you not, there’s virtually no muzzle climb on the system.  I was hitting the reactive gongs out at 100 yards from standing with not too much trouble.  Here’s Todd explaining how the system works:

Looks like it’ll be a little harder to take apart than a normal AR-15, but hey, you should hardly have to clean it without the DI gas system blowing gunk back into the bolt and bolt carrier.

Our time at Blackwater is at an end.  I am back in the hotel at Norfolk, Virginia.  I still have a few more posts to do on the experience, but I definitely want to send out a few really big thank yous for helping put this together:

• Kerby Smith, Director of Communications for ParaUSA, who put this all together, and shot with us, with great skill, I might add.
• Thanos Polyzos, CEO of ParaUSA, who supported our event, and was down there with us.
• Todd Jarrett, who put together and taught the course wonderfully.
• Michael Bane, who sent his film crew for DRTV and The Shooting Gallery.
• Patrick Harlan, Internet Marketing Specialist for Crimson Trace who supplied us with laser grips.
  
• All the folks at Blackwater USA, who were very good to us.  They run a world class training facility.
• All the folks at Blackhawk, who supplied us with SERPA holsters that worked great for us on our weekend, and various other goodies we used on the range, and who drove us to and from in their bitchin’ bus.
• Dan Smith of International Cartridge Corporation, who supplied us with all our ammunition needs, and is a great shooter, BTW.

Lots of other folks helped out, including Bitter, who didn’t make it.  Let’s also not forget the National Rifle Association, who by taking bloggers seriously, helped make the case for other folks taking us seriously.  I also want to thank Kerby and Michael specifically for creating a spot for the Blog Bash organizers, even though we didn’t make the voting.  I feel bad Bitter couldn’t make it.  I know Bitter feels bad she couldn’t make it.  And believe me, when I get back and talk to her about everything and how totally cool it was, she will definitely be sorry she couldn’t make it.

More to come about our weekend.

This is your last chance to vote in the contest between Joe Huffman and Caleb at Blackwater. The odds have gone from 100% in Joe’s favor at the beginning, hovering between 75% and 85% most of the time, now dropping to 70% as we approach the last day.

As soon as I see a post about the results, I’ll remove the poll.

UPDATE: The poll is now closed. Joe Huffman beat Caleb both in the poll and on the range.