My favorite issue (mountain hunting) of my favorite outdoor magazine (Sports Afield) arrived today and, as usual, the first article I turned to is Mule Deer's. This one is about shooting lightweight "mountain rifles." Nicely done, John, as usual. The one thing you didn't spend much time on is "mountain cartridges" that help control those lightweight cartridges. Maybe a follow-up soon?

BTW, you need to get Col. Boddington to take you on one of his exotic mountain hunts sometime - the Matterhorn; are you kidding me?

RM

If you just got your magazine, mine'll show up in about a week. Still trying to figure how PA fits into the postal system.

Just got mine today, but then I have an inside connection....

Got mine yesterday as well. Guess Montana and Colorado are on the same mail route!

Are you anywhere near Denver?

We use the USPS to deliver books ordered on riflesandrecipes.com, because in our dinky little down it's far easier than Fedex or UPS. But once in a very great while an order gets caught in what we've come to call "the Denver Vortex": It gets there, then stays there for up to a month, apparently whirling around inside until one day it gets spit back into the delivery stream.

John,
That vortex also exists in the Denver Airport baggage system.

Yeah, I have encountered it there as well!

Sports Afield magazine finally showed up and i read Mule Deer`s Light Rifle Article was a good read ! Gun Gack III is going to be another great read !!!

Hey MD - Just saw this today, and yes, I am in the Denver metro area. I live in Broomfield, CO which is a northern suburb of Denver.

I do believe the Denver Vortex is real since I've experienced similar things as well in the past. Always just chalked it up to my bad luck, but maybe there is more to it!

We've sometimes suspected the vortex might be partly due to Colorado legalizing wacky tobacco. :-)

Is it possible this issue hasn't hit the stands yet? I looked for it at Barnes and Noble yesterday and couldn't find it.

Magazines generally take longer to be delivered to newstands than the first subscribers--and the first subscribers received theirs about a week ago, about when I got my contributor's copy.

OK, thanks for the info. Barnes and Noble lets us geezers in at 9:30, and the other customers in at 10:30. We will be going back for something to do in the mornings. I'll take a second look for Sports Afield

John (MD):

I read the article you wrote about mountain hunting mule deer. Great article. Two question, though, of the picture on page 57(?), you sitting beside a big bodied huge buck. First - obviously - what's the rifle? Second, how long ago was that picture taken?

Mike

Thanks! That photo was taken in 1992.

The rifle is a custom .280 Remington built by the late Dave Gentry on a highly modified Remington 700 action. He almost turned it into a push-feed Model 70 by changing the bolt-stop and safety, then lightened the action by milling the exterior, and lightened the bolt by removing the steel "tube" of its center, then replacing it with an aluminum tube of the same size. You couldn't tell it all, but it sure lightened things up! The stock was a Garrett Accur-Lt, and the barrel a No. 1 Douglas stainless. Can't remember what Dave used to coat the action and barrel.

I wish Dave was still around...he built some nice stuff. Still have a couple of sets of his one-piece steel rings. My favorites.

Guess I gotta get a subscription to Sports Afield. Great mag, from the articles I've read. And of course, John is in there!
Bob

Thanks, John. That's the rifle you wrote about in Gack I.