Rifle Marksmanship D

The Kneeling
Position
INSTRUCTION:
 Kneeling Position Model
 Steps in Building the
Kneeling Position
 Shot Technique in
Kneeling
 Firing a 3-Position
Course of Firing and
Qualification Firing

7D.1 The Kneeling Position

Your marksmanship instruction has now introduced you to basic shot technique and
firing in the supported position, the standing position, the proper use of the sling and
the prone position. This means you are ready to learn the third of the three regular
firing positions that are used in JROTC air rifle marksmanship, the kneeling
position.
The kneeling position is generally less stable than prone because it has a higher
center of gravity. In kneeling, you are allowed to use two aids to support and
stabilize the position, a kneeling roll and a sling. You will need to learn how to use
both properly to attain good kneeling results.
Kneeling is the most complicated of the three positions, because you must work out
a series of interrelationships between the arms, legs and body. If you do this well,
however, your kneeling scores should be nearly as good as your prone scores.

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 Silver Silver
2008
Olympic
Medalists’
Kneeling
Positions
Gold

Gold

Gold

7D.2 Model Kneeling Positions

Model Positions. The kneeling positions used by these rifle medalists in
the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing are shown here to give you models to
follow in developing your kneeling position.
Olympic Medalists. The shooter on the top left is Matt Emmons of the
USA. Matt won a silver medal in the 2008 50 meter prone rifle event and
was one shot away from a gold medal in the 50 meter 3-position rifle event
when an accidental discharge on his last shot dropped him to fourth place.
The shooter at the top right is Lioubov Galkina of Russia, who won gold and
silver medals in the women’s 50 meter 3-position events in 2004 and 2008.
The shooter on the lower left and lower center is Du Li of China, the gold
medalist in the 2008 women’s 50 meter 3-position event. The shooter on the
lower right is Qiu Jian of China, the gold medalist in the 2008 men’s 50
meter 3-position event.
As you study these photos, note: 1) how they use their kneeling rolls to
support their bodies, 2) how they sit with their body weight back on their right
heels, 3) how they configure their left leg and arm and 4) how they keep their
heads reasonably erect.

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 KNEELING
Step 1:
Build the Position
Foundation
a. Place kneeling roll on
firing point, turn 40-
60 degrees from the
line of fire
b. Kneel over the roll,
rest ankle on roll,
keep right foot
vertical
c. Sit on right heel,
keep weight back on
heel
d. Locate left foot so
lower leg is vertical

7D.3 Kneeling, Step 1, Build the Position Foundation

Step 1--Build the Position Foundation by Sitting on the Heel and
Kneeling Roll with Lower Left Leg Vertical. There are four distinct
stages to this first step in building a foundation for a stable kneeling
position:
a. Place the kneeling roll on the firing point. It is best to place the
kneeling roll directly on the floor and not on a shooting mat. Turn the roll
40 to 60 degrees away from the line of fire to give an initial orientation to
your body.
b. Kneel over the roll with the ankle resting on the roll. The right knee
should point the same direction as the kneeling roll. Be sure to keep the
right fool vertical as you prepare to sit on this foot.
c. Sit down on the right heel. Try to place the heel in the center of the
buttocks. Sit with your body weight resting on the heel just like you
would sit on a chair.
d. Bend the left leg so that the knee is up and the lower leg is vertical.
There are two position check-points here: 1) the right foot must be
vertical as you sit on it and 2) your lower left leg should also be in a
vertical position.

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 KNEELING
Steps 2 and 3

Left
Step 2: Put the sling on and attach it Elbow
Location
to the rifle
Step 3: Shoulder the rifle and place
the left elbow on the left knee or just
behind the knee

7D.4 Kneeling, Steps 2 and 3

Now that the kneeling roll, legs and lower body are in place to give you a
position foundation, your are ready to add the rifle to the position.
Step 2--Put the Sling On and Attach It to the Rifle. Put the sling on just
as you do in prone. Place the loop high on the arm and tighten it. Extend
the sling as long as possible so that the sling will hang loose when you
shoulder the rifle.
Step 3--Shoulder the Rifle and Put Your Left Elbow in Place. After
attaching the sling, lift the rifle up into position on your shoulder as you grasp
the fore-arm with your left hand. To find the right location for your left elbow,
sit with your body weight resting back on your right heel. Without reaching
forward with your left elbow, simply drop your left arm down to your left knee.
The elbow will normally fall onto the knee or slightly behind the knee; the red
dashed oval in the illustration (above right) shows the area where most
elbow locations will be. Wherever your elbow falls on your knee or upper
leg, use that as a starting point for building the rest of your kneeling position.

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 KNEELING, Step 4
Locate the butt-plate high
enough in the shoulder to
establish a good head
position

KNEELING, Step 5
Adjust the rifle height by
moving the left hand
forward or rearward on the
fore-end until the sights
are aligned at target level

7D.5 Kneeling, Steps 4 and 5

Just as you did in prone, the next steps involve adjusting the height of the
rifle in relation to the shoulder and head and in relation to the target.
Step 4--Place the Butt-Plate Up in the Shoulder so the Head is
Reasonably Erect. In the kneeling position, keeping the head up aids vision
and balance. The butt-plate should remain in solid contact with the shoulder
and be located a little higher than it is in prone. With the butt of the rifle and
your head in a fixed position, you must next adjust the rifle height so that the
sights come up to target level.
Step 5--Adjust the Rifle Height by Shifting the Left Hand Forward or
Rearward. The height of the rifle is always adjusted by moving the left hand
on the fore-end, not by moving the butt-plate up and down. Adjust the rifle
height so that the sights on your rifle come up to target level. At this stage,
be concerned only with having the sights at target level, not with whether the
sights point at your particular target. You will fix that problem in Step 7.

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 KNEELING, Step 6
Loosen the hand stop and
move it back to the fork of the
left hand--tighten
Tighten the sling until it takes
over the work of hold up the
rifle

7D.6 Kneeling, Step 6, Tighten the Hand-Stop and Sling

Step 6--Move the Hand-Stop to the Hand and Tighten the Sling. When
you find a left hand location on the fore-arm that aligns the sights to target
level, adjust the hand-stop on the fore-end so that it rests in the fork of the
hand (between the thumb and fingers). Then tighten the sling until it takes
over the work of holding up the rifle.
Once you have found a hand-stop location and sling length adjustment that
gives you a comfortable, steady kneeling position, you can mark those
adjustments on your rifle and sling so that you can return to that same
adjustment each time you fire that particular rifle.

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 KNEELING
Step 7
Rotate the
position to
align the
sights with
your target
Pivot over the
kneeling roll
while moving
the left foot
and right knee

7D.7 Kneeling, Step 7, Rotate to Your Target

Step 7--Rotate the Position to Your Target. If you built your position
correctly, your sling should be doing the work of holding up the rifle and your
rifle sights should be aligned at target level, pointing at somebody’s target,
not necessarily your own. Your position should now have a “natural point of
aim” or location where the sights point naturally when your body is relaxed.
This natural point of aim must be aligned with your target. Do this by
rotating your entire position by pivoting over your right heel as it rests on the
kneeling roll. Rotate by shifting your left foot and right knee to the left or
right to align your sights and position with your target. When your rifle sights
point naturally at your target, you are ready to start shooting in the kneeling
position.

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 Shot Technique in Kneeling
Approach bull’s-eye
from same direction,
Exhale & stop
breathing, take up
trigger slack

Center the front sight

movement over the
bull’s-eye
Squeeze the trigger
while the front sight
movement is
centered

7D.8 Shot Technique in Kneeling

With your position built, you can begin to do aiming exercises, dry fire and
shoot groups in kneeling as you work out a technique for you to use to
fire accurate shots in kneeling:
1. Start by approaching the bull’s-eye from the same direction each time.
After shouldering the rifle and starting to set up your position, let the front
sight settle down onto the bull. As you center the bull’s-eye, take one
more breath, exhale and stop breathing. Simultaneously take up the
trigger slack and add initial pressure to the trigger. As you prepare to
fire the shot make sure your left arm is relaxed and you body feels
balanced (not leaning to either side).
2. Next focus your attention on your front sight and sight picture. Center the
front sight movements over the bull’s-eye.
3. With the front sight movements centered, add gradual pressure to the
trigger until the shot fires. This basic technique is the same as in the
other positions: Center the movement--squeeze the trigger.

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 Balance point
Kneeling Position:
The final step in establishing a
good position is to practice live
and dry firing in the new position

Balance point

To have a stable kneeling position:

a. Keep your body weight back on
your right heel
b. Keep your right foot and left
lower leg vertical
c. Balance your position over the
left and right heels

7D.9 Firing Exercises in Kneeling

As soon as you work out a kneeling position where your upper body and rifle
are comfortably balanced above your left foot and right heel on the
kneeling roll, you are ready to start firing exercises in the kneeling
position. Be sure to precede each live fire series with dry firing or aiming
exercises.
To attain the best stability and highest results in kneeling, pay attention to
these things:
a. Keep your body weight resting back on your right heel. The weight of
your body should balance directly above that heel.
b. Keep your right foot and left lower leg both vertical. If these two support
elements tip or lean to the side, the position will change for each shot and
lose its stability. Keep the right foot vertical so your body weight pushes
straight down. Keep your left lower leg vertical or pushed slightly forward
so that your body weight remains back on your heel, not on your left foot.
c. Try to balance your position so that the weight of your body and rifle
balance directly above your right heel on the kneeling roll and your left
foot. Little or no weight should press down on your right knee. In
kneeling, a balanced position is a steady position.

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 3-Position Shooting
 Practice Kneeling until your are
comfortable with the position
 Then you are ready for three-position
shooting
 Standard 3-Position Course of Fire (3x10):
 Sighters + 10 shots for record prone
 Sighters + 10 shots for record standing
 Sighters + 10 shots for record kneeling
 3x10 is the standard event for Expert
qualification and annual JROTC Postal
Competitions
 Sighters: Practice or zeroing shots before
record shots

7D.10 3-Position Shooting

After you practice kneeling until you feel comfortable with the position, you will be
ready to shoot a standard 3-position course of fire. The standard three-position
course of fire is 10 shots for record in each of the positions, prone, standing and
kneeling. The positions must be fired in sequence in that order.
Time Limits. Each position is timed separately. Time limits are: Prone = 20
minutes, standing = 20 minutes and kneeling = 15 minutes.
Competition Target. In most cases, by the time new shooters are ready to fire 3-
position courses of fire to try for the Expert qualification medal or to compete in the
Annual JROTC Postals, they will be firing on 10-bull competition targets (lower right
illustration). With this target all sighting or practice shots must be fired at the two
bulls in the center of the target with a guard ring around them. Ten record shots are
fired on one target, one shot on each record bull.
Sighters. Shooters may fire as many sighter or practice shots as they wish before
starting the 10 record shots, but all shots must be fired within the time limit for that
position. The most important thing to do during sighting shots is to make any sight
adjustments needed to center the shot group.
Zeroing. In order to zero your rifle prior to starting record shots in any position, you
must be able to see the locations of your sighting shots. If your unit has spotting
scores, this is the best way to do this. If spotting scopes are not available, an
alternative is to have a short zeroing period before starting the prone position so
that shooters can check their shot group locations and make sight adjustments.

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 Qualification Awards
JROTC Qualification
Badges: Marksman,
Sharpshooter, Expert
Marksmanship Ribbons
Awarded according to
regulations
Goal: To demonstrate
your marksmanship skill New JROTC Air Rifle
by qualifying Marksmanship Qualification
Badges—may be worn on
uniforms

7D.10 Earn Recognition:

A challenging JROTC marksmanship goal that is attainable by most cadets who
participate in JROTC air rifle marksmanship is to earn one or more of the
recognition or qualification awards that are available. These awards are authorized
for wear on JROTC uniforms. They offer a visible means for cadets to demonstrate
the skills they learn through this program.
JROTC Qualification Badges. The Army JROTC program has adopted a new
“Rifle Marksmanship Qualification Awards” system that offers cadets opportunities
to earn Marksman, Sharpshooter and Expert qualification badges. Basic
regulations for this program are given in the next slide. These badges may also be
earned by cadets in other JROTC programs.
Marksmanship Ribbons. Navy and Marine Corps JROTC regulations provide for
“marksmanship ribbons” that may be awarded to cadets who meet qualification or
rifle team standards.
Award Regulations. Regulations have been established by the JROTC
Commands to provide standards for rifle marksmanship awards. Check these
regulations for additional details.
Opportunities to Earn Awards. The standards for earning these awards are high
enough that cadets must work to earn them, but all cadets who receive
marksmanship training can earn them if they are willing to do the practice
necessary to bring their scores up to the qualification levels.
Note: JROTC Instructors may procure these qualification badges through
their supply systems.

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 Qualification Firing
Use BMC or AR targets
Use sporter rifles, no special clothing
Marksman & Sharpshooter: Count best
10-shot scores in standing and prone
Expert: Count best 3-position (3x10)
total
Check regulations for details

7D.11 AJROTC Qualification Firing Regulations:

Detailed requirements for JROTC instructors to follow in conducting qualification
firing and awarding qualification badges are given in the qualification regulations. A
copy of the most recent qualification regulations is included in this section of the
JMIC Instructors Notebook. Here is a summary of those requirements:
Sporter Air Rifles. Qualification firing must be done with sporter air rifles.
Precision class rifles may not be used.
No Shooting Jackets. Cadets may not wear shooting jackets or other special
shooting clothing during qualification firing.
BMC or AR Targets. Either the BMC or 10-bull competition target may be used.
Scores are adjusted according to the target used.
Marksman & Sharpshooter. To earn these badges, cadets must fire qualifying
scores in two positions, standing and prone. Any ten-shot score that qualifies may
be counted; targets do not have to be fired consecutively or at the same time.
Expert. Qualification firing for the Expert Badge must be done by completing a
3x10 course of fire where time limits (see regulations) are followed and all three
targets are fired together.
Qualification Scores. Scores that must be fired to earn qualification badges are
listed in the qualification score chart in the regulations.

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