THE ROCKET OF THE AMERICAN WEST!

The pronghorn is the rocket of the American West and unique in all the world. It is the fastest animal in North America and the second fastest land mammal on earth, exceeded only by the African cheetah. And for distances over a quarter-mile, the pronghorn would win over every other animal on earth. These remarkable creatures can reach speeds of 70 mph; one source reports 85 mph.

Unlike most animal speedsters, the pronghorn isn't built merely for short bursts. This racer is built to keep going, and going... and going. While cheetahs are winded after a quarter-mile, a pronghorn can maintain a 60 mph pace for three or four minutes. And it can comfortably cruise at 30 mph for up to five miles before slowing. Even young pronghorns just a few hours old can, if necessary, run up to 45 mph.

Millions of years ago, the pronghorn developed speed to escape fierce Pleistocene predators like the dire wolf and prehistoric cheetah. But reports of pronghorns racing horsemen and even automobiles seem to suggest that maybe the pronghorn also races just for the sheer joy of it.

What makes the turbocharged pronghorn capable of such speed? Oxygen-and the special ability to process lots of it. Pronghorns consume three times the oxygen of similarly-sized animals. An oversized trachea or windpipe, huge lungs, and a large heart give the pronghorn the ability to consume large amounts of oxygen. Even pronghorn muscle cells are packed with mitochondria, allowing them to burn more oxygen. Pronghorns also run with their mouths open-not because they are tired, as many assume, but because it allows the animals to take in more air. In addition, pronghorn hooves are padded to minimize shock, and their leg bones are extremely powerful.

Reference:
http://www.antelopeland.com/profile/prairie_racer.htm

The Arizona Pronghorn:
http://www.azgfd.gov/video/PronghornAntelope.shtml

1115 & 1016 Yard Antelope Hunting.

Scott's and Mark's Antelope Hunt. These are two master hunters and to hunt at this range requires a lot of time at the range. But what the range dosen't offer is to develope the knowledge of making the proper elevation adjustments when shooting uphill or downhill. Fortunately, I can practice 40 degree angle shooting either uphill or downhill at approx 500 yards out here in the desert. This is critical knowledge to have especially when your hunting pronghorn antelope or big horn sheep which you will seldom find on level ground.

These hunters were shooting downhill and made all the proper scope adjustments.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=np3NthiI-VE

SHOOTING UPHILL AND DOWNHILL:
By Chuck Hawks

The hoary old question of where to aim when shooting up or down hill regularly rears its head. It seems that many hunters understand that shooting at a steep angle changes the point of impact, but can't remember why or in which direction.

The correct answer is to hold lower than normal when shooting steeply up or down hill at long range. (At gentle angles you can ignore the problem altogether over the maximum point blank ranges of hunting rifle cartridges.)

This seems odd to many, and they insist on making the problem more difficult than it needs to be. But the reason is simple. Trajectory, the bullet's flight path, depends on the horizontal (level) range to the plane of the target, not the line of sight range up or down hill. Your eye sees the line of sight (slant) range from your position to the target, which is longer that the horizontal range.

Remember that it is gravity working on the bullet during flight time that causes it to drop. If you were to shoot straight down, say from a tethered balloon, the bullet would have no curve trajectory, it would travel toward the earth in a straight line, just as if you simply dropped it. Likewise, if you shoot straight up, the bullet travels up in a straight line until its momentum is expended. Again, there is no curved trajectory.

You can infer from this that the farther from the level position a rifle is held when a bullet is fired, the less the bullet's drop will be over any given line of sight distance, whether it is fired up or down. Since your sights are set to compensate for bullet drop, and there is less bullet drop when shooting at an up or down angle, you must hold lower that normal to maintain the desired point of impact. For example, if you are shooting up or down at a 40 degree angle and the line of sight range is 400 yards to the target, the horizontal range is only 335 yards. 335 yards is the distance for which you must hold.

Reference: (and 'True Ballistic Range')
http://www.chuckhawks.com/shooting_uphill.htm

Big Game long range hunting. The skill of shot placement and the one shot one kill is always gratifying to see. And another consideration for long range big game hunting is... it's always wise to be hunting with a party of at least three, preferably four. You must now go in and take that animal out and by judging the terrain their in, this could be quite a chore!

Long Range Elk Hunting.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cCyTRzL5AAQ

Long Range, High Country Big Horn Sheep.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MLw_G9F5b1k

Great videos, thanks for sharing.