As a kid, I was big on the long range comps with the 308. I was quite confident shooting out to 1400 metres. Kept up with my shooting in the infantry.
No way in hell I would try that silliness on a hunt!
My longest intentional shot was out about 450 metres, but I was prone with a bipod and no wind. I made a fluky shot once, nearing the 600 metre mark, on my buddy's gutshot doe. Poor thing was hit hard but hauling ass over a hillside. My idiot buddy was rattled after missing his follow-up shots.
With only those two exceptions, most of my hunting shots have been within 200 metres. A couple in the 300 metre range, but I would never take these shots in a strong wind or heavy brush.
Too many idiots out there getting careless, pushing the limits of their loads and capabilities.
I watched a video on long range hunting once. Although I was initially impressed, the only thing I could think was, "What if the first shot was only a crippling hit? Much too far for a clean follow-up shot on a hobbling animal." Then I thought, "How many bad hits were experienced by these clowns, that were excluded from the video?"
