Shooting in a headwind

Bayourambler said:

Mirage cannot be read when the wind is blowing to you, correct?

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No. Not correct. You can still read mirage. Just be sure to check different ranges to be able to check for fish tailing across the entire range.

Hold your wind meter perpendicular to the direction you’re shooting, then figure a full value wind. If it’s 20mph in your tail or in your face, you may need to dial up or off a tenth, but really only if you’re getting past 600, so really all you need to deal with is the lateral contribution. The wind at your position matters a lot more than the wind down range.

I did DOPE collection a couple weeks ago for an up coming match, I was shooting in 15mph standing, gusting 25 tailwind. Minute by minute I’d get a little fish tailing in the mirage - keeping my kestrel in my hand helped. I went from a full mil hold one direction to a mil in a half the opposite direction and back throughout the day. I use the Kestrel’s weather vane mount on a little tripod to give me indicators on the changing direction. A 4-6” length of string tied to your muzzle will give you the same indication.

Throwing a few landscaping stakes with foot long flagging tape along your range is great also, but only works if you have access to a cold range.

Shooting straight into or with the wind SHOULD be easy. But nobody is lucky enough to actually be shooting perfectly into or with the wind. Give yourself some indicators, watch the mirage along the field, and read the appropriate wind value holding your meter in line with your shots (perpendicular to your line of Fire) - life will get easier, the more you do it.

Bayourambler said:

I sure thought the wind down range mattered more because the bullet is slower and being affected more?

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Any deflection imparted on the bullet is carried through the rest of the flight path. So, the earlier the bullet is shifted, the longer that shift affects the path.

seriously crude mspaint drawing, that hopefully gets the point across.
assume your muzzle is at the right tip of the triangle.

Bayourambler said:

“ The wind at your position matters a lot more than the wind down range.”
I sure thought the wind down range mattered more because the bullet is slower and being affected more?

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Carry this out to the extreme conclusion and think of there being no wind at all until 1 foot in front of the target. This wind has very little chance to move the bullet any amount.

Bayourambler said:

“ The wind at your position matters a lot more than the wind down range.”
I sure thought the wind down range mattered more because the bullet is slower and being affected more?

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Tap a bowling ball sideways just a little at the beginning of the lane, vs. tapping it the same - just a little - at the end of the lane right before the pins. See how far off it ends up in either case. The latter case might miss the sweet spot, the former might miss the entire rack. Yes, the wind has more time to work on the bullet per yard traveled, but no, the overall contribution of any deviating force at the very end of the run just doesn't matter as much as a distortion near the beginning.

Read up on general physics (the longer an object is exposed to a force, the greater its velocity will be), or read the Advanced Ballistics paper by Dan Periard from a few years ago on the subject - he even spelled out the difference in wind value for various ranges, the wind in the first third accounts for about 50% of the total drift, where the wind in the last third of the bullet path only accounts for 10-20% of the total drift.

Where the Wind Matters - Advanced Ballistics

Wind down range is more significant when it is dead calm or near calm at the shooting position. The real challenge is a calmer shooting position and strong winds down range, or gusting winds. This can occur depending on weather and topography.

On a range, or land under your control, you can use flags. In the field, grass and other vegetation can give indications. Of course this is imprecise, and Kentucky windage is something you learn with experience.

Read along the range. No mysticism or magic. If you read 3mph and the grass near you is moving, but it’s laying flat at 600 on a 1,000yrd shot, you’ll need more call than a 3mph correction. Not a lot, but more. If you’re calling 10mph at 600 to 1000yrds, your net call is gonna be a LOT closer to 3 than it is to 10.

Read the paper I linked, everything you need to know is there.

Best way to practice wind shooting is to shoot in the wind. You'll gain the opportunity to see temperature effects on your load as the temp changes too.

Can't build a proper DOPE book by shooting ONE environmental condition.

If the range you were shooting at is a place you go regularly, start taking notes on the conditions. Most ranges only have 2-3 normal wind patterns, and anything outside of that will be days where it is extremely obvious the wind will be...challenging. In all cases, there will be a dominant wind condition that happens more than the others. Find that condition and then pile on the patience to only shoot in that condition.

Shooting into a headwind is my least favorite condition for sure for the exact reasons you have mentioned. Decide if the wind from slightly left or right happens more often, and then wait for the wind to shift to that condition. Even if the condition is stronger, that's ok so long as you shoot only in that stronger condition. Consistency is key.