# Shooting in the rain: a field guide to wet outdoor matches

> Rain does not cancel most outdoor shooting matches, so the shooters who score well in it are the ones who prepared for it. Keeping ammunition, sights and positions dry is a set of small habits, and each one is cheap to learn before you need it.

- Canonical URL: https://target-log.net/blog/shooting-in-the-rain-outdoor-match/
- Published: 2026-11-05 (updated 2026-11-05)
- Category: Competition tips
- Tags: weather, outdoor, intermediate
- Read time: ~8 min

## Key takeaways
- Matches normally continue in rain and only stop for genuinely unsafe conditions such as thunderstorms, so plan to shoot wet rather than hope for a cancellation.
- Wet ammunition and wet sight glass cost more points than rain on your back; a towel in a zip bag and a scope or sight cover do most of the protective work.
- Rain flattens mirage and loads the flags with water, so your usual wind plan needs recalibrating from the first series.
- A between-series drying routine for hands, glove and sling keeps the second half of the match from falling apart.

Every outdoor shooter has a story about the relay where the sky opened halfway through. Mine involves a 50m prone match, one sighter in the dry, and fifty-nine shots in a steady drizzle that turned the firing point into a shallow pond. Shooting in the rain is not a niche skill reserved for a few unlucky weekends. If you compete at 50m or 300m for more than a season, wet weather will find you, and the shooters who keep their scores are simply the ones who prepared for it. This guide covers what rain does to a match and how to play it well.

## Do shooting matches get cancelled for rain?

No, ordinary rain almost never cancels an outdoor match. Competition continues in drizzle and steady rain, and firing is only suspended when conditions become unsafe, most commonly thunder and lightning in the area. Expect the schedule to slip and the relays to compress, and plan to shoot in the wet rather than hope for a reprieve.

The mental adjustment matters as much as the physical one. A shooter who spends the first series glancing at the sky has already given away points. Accept the conditions early, work with them, and treat the weather as the same variable for everyone on the line. It genuinely is the same rain for all of you, and someone in your relay will shoot well in it.

## What rain actually does to your equipment

Water finds your equipment in a predictable order, and knowing that order tells you where to focus.

Ammunition comes first. Cardboard ammunition boxes turn soft, and loose rounds rolling around in a wet pocket pick up moisture where it matters. For .22 LR this is mostly a handling problem, since the cartridges are copper-washed and fairly tolerant, but wet fingers fumbling small rounds into a chamber cost time and composure. Keep your rounds in a closed plastic box or a zip bag and dispense them into a dry hand.

Sight glass comes second. Raindrops on a [diopter](/blog/how-to-zero-your-issf-air-rifle-diopter-sights/) or a front sight tunnel scatter light and make the aiming picture look milky. The old trick is to wipe the glass with a dry, clean cloth that carries a trace of detergent or shaving foam; the film breaks water's surface tension so droplets sheet off instead of beading. Test it at home first; some optical coatings react badly to the wrong product. A simple sight cover, even a cut-down lens cap on a lanyard, does the rest between series.

Paper targets come third, and mostly at the end of a long day. Heavy rain can soften patches and pasters, and a soaked card tears more easily when it is pulled. Scoring usually copes, but if you score your own club cards afterwards, photograph them before they disintegrate; a phone scoring app that reads wet targets from a photo saves an argument later. The [TargetLog paper target scoring app](/paper-target-scoring-app/) does exactly this, and it lives in your pocket that is hopefully under cover.

## Packing for shooting in the rain

Your normal [match day packing checklist](/blog/shooting-match-day-checklist-what-to-pack/) needs about five additions, none of them expensive:

- A small towel in a zip bag, plus a second one for your body
- A spare shooting glove, or glove liners if your discipline allows them
- Covers for scope and sights, and a cloth to wipe glass
- Plastic bags for ammunition, score cards and your phone
- A proper rain jacket that fits over your [shooting jacket](/blog/how-to-choose-your-first-issf-rifle-shooting-jacket-and-trousers/), not instead of it

That last point trips people up. Your shooting jacket has to stay on, so the rain layer goes over the top and gets shed at the firing point if the rain eases. Shooters who train outdoors in cold weather usually already own most of this; see the [cold weather clothing guide for outdoor ranges](/blog/cold-weather-shooting-clothing-outdoor-ranges/) for the layers that work under and over a match jacket.

## Reading conditions when it rains

Rain changes your wind information, and this is where experienced outdoor shooters earn their margin. Two things happen.

First, mirage disappears. A rain-soaked distance holds no heat shimmer, so if you normally confirm the flags against mirage, as covered in the [guide to reading wind with flags and mirage](/blog/reading-wind-for-50m-rifle-flags-mirage-and-hold-offs/), you lose that second reference and the flags carry all the weight. Second, the flags themselves behave differently. Wet fabric is heavier, so a rain-loaded flag flies lower and slower in the same wind that had it snapping in the morning. A flag that looks calm in the rain may be lying to you.

Add the wind shift that often arrives with the weather front itself. The classic pattern is a steady breeze, a swing as the rain front passes, then a different direction altogether behind it. Use your sighting shots deliberately in these conditions: first pair to confirm zero, then keep reading every series as if it were new weather. Shooters who trust their dry-day wind plan through a rain front are the ones puzzling over a sideways group afterwards.

Light usually drops too. A dull, rainy sky means less contrast on the target and a front sight ring that looks vaguer. If your sight inserts are interchangeable, a wider ring often helps in flat light. Give yourself an extra breath before the first sighter and let your eyes settle.

## Adjusting your technique in the rain

The shooting itself should not change much, which is the whole point. Grip, position and release stay as trained. What changes is everything around the shot.

A wet firing point is slippery under elbow and knee, so check your mat is actually flat and anchored before you settle. Wet slings stretch slightly and lose grip on the arm; a sling that has shifted in standing or kneeling is worth re-checking after each series. If your discipline uses a glove, a soaked glove both loses feel and feels different in thickness, which is why the spare in your bag earns its place.

Slow your preparation marginally. Wet shooters rush: cold hands, fumbled rounds and an uncomfortable position all push towards getting the series over with. The opposite response wins. Take the extra seconds to dry your hands, settle properly, and run your normal [pre-shot routine](/blog/how-to-build-a-pre-shot-routine-for-issf-shooting/) without shortcuts. Rain mostly scores through your mistakes, not through physics.

One honest note on trajectory: light rain itself deflects bullets negligibly at target shooting distances, and you should not chase a fictional rain correction on your sights. If your groups move in the rain, look first at the wind shift, second at your position, and third at cold hands before blaming the water.

## The between-series routine that keeps you dry

Between-series management decides whether your second half holds up. A simple loop works:

1. Cover the sights or stand the rifle under shelter if the range has it
2. Dry hands, then glove, then sling or hand stop contact points
3. Check ammunition is closed away and not sitting on a wet bench
4. Re-read the flags for the next series
5. Re-settle into position fresh instead of collapsing into it

Forty shots of standing in drizzle defeats shooters through gradual discomfort rather than any single dramatic moment. The loop above interrupts that slide. It also gives your attention a home between series, which keeps the creeping misery of a wet afternoon from leaking into your shot process.

## Delays, stoppages and what to expect

A thunderstorm delay is the one interruption you should expect. Firing stops, shooters usually clear and move to shelter, and the match resumes when the range officer calls it. Delays can run from minutes to an hour or more, and your equipment needs to survive them: rifle under cover if the rules allow it, ammunition bagged, glass covered. When play resumes your zero has not changed, but your body has cooled, so treat the first series after a long delay almost like a fresh start and use any allowed sighters to confirm.

Scoring in the wet has its own quirks. Gauges and wet paste behave differently, and a card that has absorbed water can tear at the plug mark, which is one more argument for photographing targets before they degrade. If your match runs on electronic targets the rain question mostly disappears from scoring, though you may still thank yourself for the towel.

## faq

**What should I do if my jacket gets soaked through?**
Shoot the match in it and dry it properly afterwards. Shake off surface water, hang it at room temperature, and let it dry slowly. Radiators and direct heat stiffen leather and can shrink it, which ruins the fit you spent a season breaking in. Never pack a damp jacket into a closed bag for the drive home if you can avoid it; mildew finds it fast.

**Is it worth practicing in the rain on purpose?**
Yes, within reason and within your club's rules. A single deliberate wet session at your home range teaches you more about your own equipment's weak points than any article can, and it removes the fear of the forecast. Pick a mild rain, not a storm, bring the drying kit, and treat it as reconnaissance.

## FAQ
**Q: Do shooting matches get cancelled for rain?**
A: Rarely. Ordinary rain is treated as normal weather and the match goes on. Firing is suspended when conditions become unsafe, most commonly thunder and lightning in the area, and resumes once the range officer decides the risk has passed. Expect delays, not cancellations.

**Q: Can I shoot with a wet shooting jacket and glove?**
A: Yes, and most outdoor shooters eventually do. A damp glove changes your feel for the hand stop or fore-end, so keep a dry spare or a towel handy. Leather jackets and slings stiffen as they dry afterwards, so let them air-dry at room temperature rather than on a radiator.

**Q: Does rain affect where my shots land?**
A: Light rain on its own has a small effect at 50m and is usually lost in normal dispersion. What actually moves your points of impact is the wind shift that often comes with the rain front, plus cold hands and a rushed position. Watch the flags, not the raindrops.

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