Retiring from bench rest competition & listing equipment in classifieds...

J

Jim Erickson

Member
Well, the time has come for me retire from a sport I truly enjoyed. Enjoyed some of the best people and times of my life and, I find this hard to do. Thanks for the memories, camaraderie and friendships and I wish all of you small agg's, good health and safe travels.

I'm starting to list equipment in the classifieds and posted a complete Neilson neck turning setup today. Will add additional equipment daily and will deliver to this year's Cactus Classic if desired.

All the best to the Bench Rest Community,

Jim
 
Jim - To stop shooting benchrest after many years is a difficult thing to do and becomes more difficult as the years pass. Are you OK?
 
Yes...mostly...

My family has a history of hearing loss. My mother had to have ear operations and wore hearing aids as did a younger sister. I've been wearing hearing aids for about 12 years and the last three years my hearing loss has accelerated. MD hearing specialist suggested I reduce my shooting to a few tournaments a year. Last year he suggested even more of a reduction and I only shot three tournaments. This years exam showed an even larger hearing loss. So, I'm trying to save what little hearing I have left...and my wife's sanity!;) Hate to do it but it has become necessary. I am almost deaf without the hearing aids. Like vision, you have to protect what you have while you can. I will miss the competitive arena and the spirit of tournament shooting...the people, wind and endless pursuit of perfection and, commence fire!
 
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One of the many joys of RFBR is the low noise level.

ETA: Maybe there is some air gun BR going on in your area. No ammo headaches as in RFBR.
 
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Jim, I am sorry to hear you have stopped shooting. I miss the fun we had at the matches. Best wishes to you and your wife. Roger Schuppe
 
Jim Erickson said:
My family has a history of hearing loss. My mother had to have ear operations and wore hearing aids as did a younger sister. I've been wearing hearing aids for about 12 years and the last three years my hearing loss has accelerated. MD hearing specialist suggested I reduce my shooting to a few tournaments a year. Last year he suggested even more of a reduction and I only shot three tournaments. This years exam showed an even larger hearing loss. So, I'm trying to save what little hearing I have left...and my wife's sanity!;) Hate to do it but it has become necessary. I am almost deaf without the hearing aids. Like vision, you have to protect what you have while you can. I will miss the competitive arena and the spirit of tournament shooting...the people, wind and endless pursuit of perfection and, commence fire!
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Jim

Sorry to hear about you hearing problems. I flunked my first hearing test in the first grade. I would like to know after you quit shooting in the next year, how your hearing loss progresses. I guess I don't believe ever thing I don't hear...................is it actually a shooting problem or a progressive problem from the aging process? Good luck. I think there are a lot of older guys on here that would like to know your results. Please let us know. Thanks.

Later
Dave
 
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Hey Roger...

rogina said:
Jim, I am sorry to hear you have stopped shooting. I miss the fun we had at the matches. Best wishes to you and your wife. Roger Schuppe
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Good hearing from you. We always had a great time at the MT tournaments and enjoyed the time spent with you folks. Your range is one of the prettier locations to visit and, central to a lot of great fishing and prairie dog shooting! Will definitely miss those times.

Wishing you all the best and hello to all the locals.

Jim
 
Hello Iowa!

Dave Coots said:
Jim

Sorry to hear about you hearing problems. I flunked my first hearing test in the first grade. I would like to know after you quit shooting in the next year, how your hearing loss progresses. I guess I don't believe ever thing I don't hear...................is it actually a shooting problem or a progressive problem from the aging process? Good luck. I think there are a lot of older guys on here that would like to know your results. Please let us know. Thanks.

Later
Dave
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Dave I will keep you apprised of how I progress as I am very interested myself. Given my family history of hearing problems, the Doc believes there is also a propensity of loss from repetitive shooting accumulated over time which is exacerbated by progressively aging...true for vision too. It is not strictly shooting related but all the physical and environmental elements taken in toto. He even suggested that as I watch TV to practice lip reading...how do you do that when you're watching porn!;)

As a side note, since experiencing this hearing decline over recent years, I have been keenly aware of other shooters and their hearing acuity...ain't many BR shooters over, say 50, with keen hearing. There are a lot of "huh's" in BR conversations.

Thanks for your interest Dave.
 
Jim Erickson said:
Dave I will keep you apprised of how I progress as I am very interested myself. Given my family history of hearing problems, the Doc believes there is also a propensity of loss from repetitive shooting accumulated over time which is exacerbated by progressively aging...true for vision too. It is not strictly shooting related but all the physical and environmental elements taken in toto. He even suggested that as I watch TV to practice lip reading...how do you do that when you're watching porn!;)

As a side note, since experiencing this hearing decline over recent years, I have been keenly aware of other shooters and their hearing acuity...ain't many BR shooters over, say 50, with keen hearing. There are a lot of "huh's" in BR conversations.

Thanks for your interest Dave.
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Hope things go well with you Jim. Haven't spoke with you for a while, but I've been told when watching porn, read the right lips..............

Hope your hearing loss does not increase.

When shooting I have always double plugged. Not sure if it has helped, but it sure did not hurt anything. It has also helped at home.:cool:

Later
Dave
 
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Me too

Dave Coots said:
Hope things go well with you Jim. Haven't spoke with you for a while, but I've been told when watching porn, read the right lips..............

Hope your hearing loss does not increase.

When shooting I have always double plugged. Not sure if it has helped, but it sure did not hurt anything. It has also helped at home.:cool:

Later
Dave
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David! This post is why I love you. Tim
 
Jim,
Sorry to see you retire from shootin, As you well know I have had hearing loss in left ear since the mid 80's and when the Navy removed 2/3 of the bones in my left ear. Since that time I have had to endure a plethora of hearing aids. When I lost the last one in 2005 I decided not to buy another since the end result was sweat, and wax build up along with not superb improvement in hearing!My wife and friends got tired of hearing me say huh all the time and finally insisted that I get a new Otolarygologist. The result was the introduction to new and amazing technology, so 2 years ago during major ear surgery the doctor had sold me on a Choclear implant and I have to say the result is amazing, I now can hear 94% better in the left ear, so much so that when Chuck Miller asked me about it, while we were in Phoenix that he has since had the surgery and likewise he is now able to hear! Don't loose hope because technology is always evolving. I will see you at the Cactus!
 
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Tim Oltersdorf said:
David! This post is why I love you. Tim
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Tim

I had always heard that porn was hard on your eyesight, from some problem associated with things that my Dad told me about blindness,,,,,,but nothing to do with hearing.................What you say????? HUH///
 
Jim Erickson said:
Well, the time has come for me retire from a sport I truly enjoyed. Enjoyed some of the best people and times of my life and, I find this hard to do. Thanks for the memories, camaraderie and friendships and I wish all of you small agg's, good health and safe travels.

I'm starting to list equipment in the classifieds and posted a complete Neilson neck turning setup today. Will add additional equipment daily and will deliver to this year's Cactus Classic if desired.

All the best to the Bench Rest Community,

Jim
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Jim, it saddens me to read this. I also have severe hearing loss, it started in my Army days. Living in a machine shop for most of my life didn't help.

Keep us posted on what you are selling.
 
jackie schmidt said:
Jim, it saddens me to read this. I also have severe hearing loss, it started in my Army days. Living in a machine shop for most of my life didn't help.

Keep us posted on what you are selling.
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Thanks Jackie...miss seeing you at matches the last few years and, sorry about your hearing situation. Any plans to come to the Cactus?

Anyhow, I've been posting items for sale here at classifieds with good results. Yesterday I posted 205m primers, Lapua 220 Russian brass and 8208 powder. Today I've posting a Hood press, a JJ Loh front rest and accessories and probably my rifles. Gonna take a lot of the small stuff to the Cactus...dies, Hood scope checker, Hood cleaning cradle etc. Mostly everything to heavy or bulky to ship or requires hazmat.

Jim
 
Hello Gary! Good hearing from you...

Steelhead1 said:
Jim,
Sorry to see you retire from shootin, As you well know I have had hearing loss in left ear since the mid 80's and when the Navy removed 2/3 of the bones in my left ear. Since that time I have had to endure a plethora of hearing aids. When I lost the last one in 2005 I decided not to buy another since the end result was sweat, and wax build up along with not superb improvement in hearing!My wife and friends got tired of hearing me say huh all the time and finally insisted that I get a new Otolarygologist. The result was the introduction to new and amazing technology, so 2 years ago during major ear surgery the doctor had sold me on a Choclear implant and I have to say the result is amazing, I now can hear 94% better in the left ear, so much so that when Chuck Miller asked me about it, while we were in Phoenix that he has since had the surgery and likewise he is now able to hear! Don't loose hope because technology is always evolving. I will see you at the Cactus!
Click to expand...

Hearing loss is such a pain in the ass...almost impossible to watch TV. I turn the volume off and just read captions now...luckily you don't need audio to watch football! My GP is setting me up with a Otolarygologist for futher evaluation. The MD hearing specialist I was seeing was iffy on the Choclear implant procedure for me...we'll see.

Look forward to seeing you in Phx.

Jim
 
Just a note for those considering a cochlear implant:

Cochlear implants are wonderful devices that can really impact patient lives in a positive manner. Just make sure your conversation with the Oto. Dr. includes the MRI compatibility of the device they are considering implanting. Many are not safe in an MRI environment and serious injury to the patient will occur. With MRI being such a widely used diagnostic imaging tool, and the increasing use of higher field strength scanners (3 Tesla), we are seeing more and more patients that can't have an MRI because of these implants. In some cases, the implants have had to be surgically removed, then re-implanted after the MRI. Some medical device mfgs. are now making MRI 'conditionally safe' implants. As a patient, you do have choices.....so choose wisely so as not to limit your options.

For what it's worth. :) -Al
 
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Jim, makes me sad to read this thread. I think the world of you and hope you will break a windshield more often ;) so we can stay in touch.

Brian
 
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